A city before the city
The conquerors didn't arrive on empty land. Where they founded Mérida stood T'Hó, a Maya city. The national monuments catalog of Mexico's INAH records that, before setting up the colonial city, the Spanish found Maya ruins there.
Friar Diego de Landa, the Franciscan who wrote the Relación de las cosas de Yucatán (Account of the Things of Yucatán) in the 16th century, described those buildings.
Why it was named Mérida
The new city's name is attributed to the resemblance the Spanish saw between T'Hó's structures and the Roman ruins of Mérida in Extremadura, back in Spain. Mérida's city government also links the name to that Spanish city.
What happened to its buildings
INAH documents that stones from pre-Hispanic buildings were reused in colonial construction. The record for the Casa de Montejo, completed in 1549, notes reused Maya materials. In other words, part of T'Hó still stands, built into downtown's walls.
INAH also notes that the Plaza Grande sits on a Maya settlement and that the earlier layout partly altered the Spanish grid.
Founding Mérida on T'Hó
The Spanish city was founded in 1542 with a town council. According to INAH's record, 60 Spanish families and 300 Indigenous people took part. The layout began with a main square, where civil and religious buildings were concentrated.
Looking for T'Hó downtown
- Casa de Montejo: look closely at the stone blocks of its façade; INAH documents reused Maya materials.
- Plaza Grande: remember you're walking over an ancient Maya settlement.
- A local guide can help separate documented history from legend.
From downtown Mérida to the Maya cities
If T'Hó sparks your curiosity, the great Maya cities that do survive are a day trip away.
Close by, on Calle 61 between 62 and 64, is Mary Tours' office, the starting point for its excursions around Yucatán and Quintana Roo. The Chichén Itzá, Izamal and Valladolid trip is the classic way to see them. See the booking section to find a trip that fits your dates.
Fun facts
- Mérida's founding involved 60 Spanish families and 300 Indigenous people, according to INAH.
- Some of T'Hó's stones are still in downtown's walls.
- Mérida's name evokes Roman ruins in Spain.
Related tours
Archaeology · 11 h
Chichén Itzá, Izamal and Valladolid
Four stops in one day, and none of them rushed
from $1,200 MXN per person
See itinerary
8:00 AM – 8:00 PM · daily
- 8:00 AM Departure from the office — An hour on the road to Izamal. The guide uses the drive to set up what comes next.
- 9:00 AM San Antonio de Padua Convent — The story of the 16th-century Franciscan convent told in its atrium, then free time to walk the yellow town.
- 11:15 AM Chichén Itzá — Guided walk through the Temple of Kukulkán, the Sacred Cenote, the Ball Court, the Tzompantli and the Jaguars and Eagles platform.
- 1:45 PM Regional lunch in Kaua — Buffet of Yucatecan dishes: cochinita, relleno negro, lime soup and meat-free options.
- 3:00 PM Selva Maya cenote — The swim lands exactly when the sun is at its worst. Changing rooms and showers on site.
- 4:20 PM Valladolid — Francisco Cantón Rosado park with its original railings, the church of San Servacio and the murals in the town hall.
- 8:00 PM Back in Mérida — We drop you off where the day started.
Included: Air-conditioned transport, General culture guide, Regional buffet lunch
Not included: Chichén Itzá entrance, Cenote entrance, Drinks
Cenotes · 7 h
The four cenotes of Santa Bárbara
Four different cenotes and a lunch made by hand
from $1,450 MXN per person
See itinerary
10:00 AM – 5:00 PM · daily
- 10:00 AM Departure from the office — An hour on the road to Homún, through the ring of cenotes.
- 11:00 AM Cascabel cenote — Closed, cave type. You descend inside and the water sits in half-light: the most striking of the four.
- 11:30 AM Chaksikín cenote — Semi-open. You go down between limestone walls painted with Maya-themed murals.
- 12:00 PM Xooch cenote — Semi-open, with a shaft of light that falls straight onto the water mid-morning.
- 12:30 PM Pool Cocom cenote — Open and surrounded by vegetation. You swim along a channel out to the wide part.
- 1:30 PM Regional lunch — Home cooking with hand-made tortillas. Plenty of time to eat without rushing.
- 4:00 PM Back to Mérida — An hour back, arriving around five.
Included: Transport, Certified guide, Entry to all four cenotes, Regional lunch
Not included: Drinks with lunch
Nature · 9 h
Celestún and the pink flamingos
The largest flamingo colony in North America
from $1,600 MXN per person
See itinerary
8:00 AM – 5:00 PM · daily
- 8:00 AM Departure from the office — An hour and a half west, out to the port.
- 9:30 AM Boat ride — Flamingo and bird watching, the mangrove tunnel, the freshwater spring and the Maya bath on the sandbar.
- 11:00 AM Lunch by the beach — Fish, octopus or shrimp from the gulf, at a table facing the sea.
- 1:00 PM Free time on the beach — Almost three hours to swim, walk the shore or do nothing at all.
- 4:00 PM Back to Mérida — Arriving around five.
Included: Transport, Guide, Boat ride, Lunch from a set menu
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Coupon −$300 MXN per personCaribbean · 17 h
Bacalar, the lagoon of seven colours
Seventeen hours for water that changes colour every metre
from $2,800 MXN per person
See itinerary
5:00 AM – 10:00 PM · daily
- 4:45 AM Boarding — We leave from the downtown office. If your accommodation is on the way, we collect you there — agreed beforehand on WhatsApp.
- 5:30 AM Drive to José María Morelos — Two hours. Fifteen minutes there for toilets and to stretch your legs.
- 7:30 AM Drive to Bacalar — Two and a half hours more, now crossing into Quintana Roo.
- 10:15 AM Boat trip on the lagoon — Pirates’ Channel, Cenote Negro, Cenote Esmeralda and Bird Island, with an explanation of the stromatolites and the ecosystem.
- 12:15 PM Lunch — Lunch in the town, beside the lagoon.
- 1:30 PM Bacalar magic town — Three and a half hours free: the San Felipe fort, the square, the piers, the cafés and the crafts.
- 5:00 PM Back to Mérida — Five hours back, with a stop halfway. Arriving around ten.
Included: Transport, Guide, Boat trip, Lunch
Not included: Drinks
Frequently asked questions
What was T'Hó?
The Maya city on which Mérida was founded in 1542.
Can you see T'Hó's ruins?
Not as an archaeological site, but its stones were reused in colonial buildings like the Casa de Montejo.
Why is Mérida called Mérida?
Because the Spanish saw a resemblance between T'Hó's ruins and the Roman ruins of Mérida in Extremadura.
Who described T'Hó?
Friar Diego de Landa, in his Relación de las cosas de Yucatán.
