El Tajin

Tickets and tours: all the options

Entry is run by INAH, the national institute of archaeology, and is paid at the visitor centre; the ticket covers the site museum. Queues are rarely long, so buying ahead is optional, although during the Cumbre Tajin festival in March tickets and transport are in demand.

GetYourGuide resells the entrance ticket, one version marketed as a skip-the-line ticket, which mainly saves the wait at the desk. Guided tours start from Veracruz city, about four hours away, sometimes with a visit to a vanilla producer or a stop in Papantla; and there is a long day trip from Mexico City with a guide, which spends many hours on the road. Transport, entry and a guide are usually included; lunch varies.

There is plenty to read on site, with panels in Spanish and English, and the museum explains the reliefs, but local guides at the entrance add a great deal on the ballgame and the meaning of the niches. Outside the gate, the voladores of Papantla perform their flying ritual from a tall pole several times a day for tips. If you are staying in Papantla or Poza Rica, the standard ticket and a local guide are the sensible choice; from Veracruz, a guided day trip saves a complicated journey.

A short history

The area around El Tajin had been settled for thousands of years before the city grew. It flourished from about AD 600 to 1200 as the centre of the Classic Veracruz culture, with temples, palaces and about 20 ballcourts. Who built it is debated; the Totonac, who live in the region today, gave the site its name, after a rain and thunder god. The city declined and was abandoned by the 13th century. A Spanish inspector came across the Pyramid of the Niches in 1785. Extensive excavation began in the 1930s under Jose Garcia Payon and continued in later decades. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1992.

Getting there

Papantla and Poza Rica are the bases. Poza Rica has a small airport with flights from Mexico City, and ADO buses from Mexico City's northern terminal reach Poza Rica in about five hours; from Veracruz city it is about four hours by road. From Poza Rica, local buses towards Papantla stop at the turn-off for El Tajin; from Papantla, taxis take about 20 minutes, and colectivos run to the site.

By car, El Tajin is signposted from the highway between Poza Rica and Papantla, with a paid car park by the visitor centre. The entrance, ticket office and museum are at the south end, and the walk to the Pyramid of the Niches takes about five minutes.

Rules and what to bring

Climbing the Pyramid of the Niches and other main buildings is forbidden; stay on the paths. Drones need a permit from INAH. The site is hot and humid all year, so bring water, a hat, sunscreen and insect repellent, and wear shoes with grip for the steps up to Tajin Chico. Toilets, food stalls and a restaurant are at the visitor centre. Tripods and professional cameras may need a separate permit.

When to go

Arrive at opening. By late morning the heat and humidity build, and the main plaza has little shade. Tours from Veracruz arrive around midday, and Sundays bring more Mexican families because entry is free for residents. The voladores perform several times a day, so ask at the gate when you arrive.

November to April is the most comfortable period, though the northern cold fronts known as nortes can bring wind and drizzle in winter. From June to October heat and rain are heavy, and storms are possible. In March, around the spring equinox, the Cumbre Tajin festival brings concerts, workshops and indigenous ceremonies, drawing large crowds; book hotels in Papantla well ahead. Allow three hours for the main plaza, the ballcourts and Tajin Chico, and four with the museum and the hill.