So far, it has been absolutely amazing moving at my own pace and going wherever I want with the rental car. I have stopped at almost a dozen ancient ruins around the Yucatán while on my way south to Oaxaca.

Ancient Archaeological Mayan Ruins

My first stop from leaving Tulum, I spent the night in a small town called Muna, where the following day, I left out at sunrise for a day of ancient ruins. The first epic ruins I checked out was Uxmal, followed by the Labna ruins, then the ruins of Xlapak, and then the ruins of Sayil. The next town I drove to spend the night was Campeche, and I left out bright and early for the stunning ruins of Edzna and then the ruins of Hochob. By nightfall, I made it to a tiny little town called Xpujil, which is next to one of the largest protected areas in Mexico. Located deep inside the reserve is one of the largest-known Maya sites and accessible by driving 2 hours is known as the famous ruins of Calakmul. It was definitely one of the most impressive ruins I have ever seen, and not only did I get to see and explore the massive site, but I also got to see tons of spider monkeys, toucans, an armadillo, a deer, and many exotic birds. I also visited and explored the ruins of Balmkú, the ruins of Chicanná, the incredible ruins of Becán, and the ruins of Xpuhil. It was so cool to explore every corner of the sites and climb to the top of many of the pyramids while having the entire place to myself at many of these ruins.

On the way to Oaxaca

As I continued south towards Oaxaca, I passed by and stopped a night at the town of Palenque and San Cristobal de las Casas. Before I did the last 6 hours driving to Oaxaca the next day I camped in a tiny little village under a bridge by a river for the night. It was pretty magical camping the night there as I was going to sleep with the sound of the river flowing by and the dancing fireflies (lightning bugs).