Nakum Tours!

In Single-Day Trips...Coming Soon!

Take a jungle road on Bicycle or horseback 17 km., or about 11 miles deep into the jungle from Tikal, Guatemala, en route to the hidden, remote archaeological site, Nakum. As the journey is off road, it serves well those that are accostomed to moutain biking. We do provide a horse (no experience needed) if biking is not a comfortable option. to reach this amazing destination. Nakum's beautiful campsite allows only a handful of travelers the privilidge of exploring these hidden temples deep inside the Mayan World's protected jungle. Few people ever reach this ancient Mayan site where, to this day, excavations still continue.

For more information about Single-Day Nakum Tours click on the hyperlink text.

For now, Other tours that include Nakum in Several-Day Tours:

Tikal Yaxha Tour from Flores, Guatemala

Tikal and Yaxha Jungle Tour by Air From Cancun Mexico

Mayan Jungle Highlight Tour from Playa del Carmen Mexico

A Little History on Nakum:

Rediscovered in 1905 by Maurice Perigny, Nakum has had several archaeological and restorative sessions including a Guatemalan “official restoration” in 1990.

Nakum is a Mayan Jungle Site and a former ceremonial center and city of the ancient Maya of Guatemala. Located in the northeastern portion of the Petén Basin region, it rests in what is called the Guatemalan department of Petén. The northeastern Petén region contains significant Maya sites, Nakum being one of three sites composing the cultural and political triangle of "Yaxha-Nakum-Naranjo". Approximately 17 km to the north of Yaxha and some 20 km to the east of Tikal. Outside of Tikal its main temple, a visibly-restored feature, serves as one of the Maya civilization’s best preserved archeological artifacts.

The glory days of Nakum came about during the Late Classic period. The apex of its prosperity was achieved due in large part to its strategic position just nor of the Holmul river, an imperative resource of trade and communication during the period. The Late Classic period moreover yielded 15 stelae which included “structure A”, “Structure C” , and “Structure V”, a triadic top, an astronomical complex, a structure of vaults and vertical walls, respectively. It boasts the largest corpus of ancient hieroglyphics only second to Tikal.

The North and South of Nakum comprise what are considered to be the two main sectors of the site. Southern sector, large in comparison to the Northern, houses a major Acropolis, eleven patios, and several various structures which include a forty-four-room Palace, known as building “D”. Atop the elevated Acropolis of the Southern Section a clear view of the most important structures of Nakum can be achieved. The Northern section has been more of a mystery to the site, having been little investigated.

Politics from the composition of Nakum seems to reflect a society and culture that held political themes above religious ones, figuratively and literally. The religious structures of Nakum are located on the lower levels, supporting the imposing political Temples above. Temples A, B, and C, positioned in the southern of the Central Plaza form a clear triangle that aims northward. Nakum has a quadra-directional orientation. It is believed that royals and rulers observed rituals and performances from Palace D. Historians suggest that the East Plaza, parent to Temple V, was abandoned for reasons not completely unknown. Temple U at the Southeastern Plaza is assumed to have had a direct relationship with the Main City.