2 Night Tour of Palenque and La Venta Olmec Museum

Day 1: The nearest airport to Palenque is in Villahermosa, which is 2 hours away. Your flight must arrive by 4 pm. A friendly driver will pick you up at the airport and transfer you to Palenque. The city of Palenque is 5 miles from the archaeological site. Like its Mayan ruins, the city exudes character, charm and an energy all its own. You'll have time in the evening to explore this interesting modern Maya city. Your hotel is nestled in the forested "La Canada" area and within walking distance of downtown. Enjoy a refreshment by the pool and upload your photos with the hotel's surprising fast wireless internet connection. Overnight Maya Tulipanes Hotel Palenque.

Day 2: Today you have an entire day for a guided visit of the spectacular ruins of Palenque. A UNESCO historical monument, Palenque is considered a world treasure. Ancient structures rise out of the lush rainforest on multiple terraces set against the mountains, many of them built by the great King Pacal in the 6th & 7th centuries AD. There are many major buildings to explore and new buildings are now being uncovered and studied. Many wonderful examples of Maya art and history are carved into the buildings' facades, some of them the most famous depictions from the ancient Maya world.

Palenque is exciting because of the vast amounts of information that has been painstakingly brought to light by archeologists over the years. Here you will find the unique building styles that caused early explorers to think that the builders of Palenque were influenced by Eastern or Asian architectural concepts. You'll also visit the Palenque archaeological museum with its extensive collection of jade masks, well preserved carvings and incense burners. Overnight Maya Tulipanes Hotel Palenque.

Day 3: In the morning you'll return to Villahermosa for a guided visit of La Venta Olmec Museum. There are 28 Olmec carvings at this beautiful outdoor museum with interesting zoo and lake. Each piece was set carefully for optimum viewing with benches placed for those wishing to meditate or ponder the huge and amazingly well crafted Olmec heads, intricate altars, and intriguing stele and statues. Based on the earliest long count date inscriptions found at sites that combine both Olmec and Maya influences many scholars theorize that it was the Olmec who invented the long count calendar and initiated the Maya into the understanding of this system of calculating time.

You’ll also visit the newly remodeled Carlos Pellicer Museum of Anthropology. On display is the controversial Tortuguero Stela 6 which has rare inscriptions referring to the end of the 13th baktún, which corresponds to December 21st, 2012. Then to the Villahermosa airport for your departing flight.