I have now visited Uxmal twice: first in 2003 with my family, and again in November 2024. In 2003 we stayed at one of the very nice hacienda style hotels just up the road and were able to visit several of the Puuc Route sites in addition to Uxmal. In 2024, we visited Uxmal as a day trip, driving from Merida. The main highlights of the site are mostly unchanged across the decades: the unique rounded-cornered Magician's Palace, Nunnery Quadrangle, Governor's Palace, and Grand Pyramid are are still very impressive. Other smaller details like the turtles carved on the House of the Turtles are also fun to find. The combination of these grand buildings makes Uxmal one of the top ancient Maya sites to visit.

An advantage to staying close by in 2003 was that it let us come back at night for the Sound and Light show that they had at the time. We watched the show from the Nunnery Quadrangle and it was a special treat to be among the ruins after dark, although the repeated, "Chaac!" chants during the show did unsettle my then-8-year-old a bit.

In our 2024 visit, we picked up a local guide at the entrance, and he provided worthwhile commentary, such as pointing out significance of the serpent and geomentric carvings at the Nunnery Quad, or other buildings on site.

Nearby Sites

As others have mentioned, this WHS incorporates other Puuc Route Maya sites. In 2003 we made it a point to visit some of these. Kabah is the most interesting, with its wall of Chaac masks, warrior statues, and much more.

Labna was less interesting, with its main highlight being a large palace structure.

Another "while you're in the area" highlight we visited was the Loltun caves, impressive for its natural beauty, but also showing signs of Maya occcupation.

After our Uxmal visit in 2024, we drove to the nearby classic period Maya site of Oxkintok. It's an interesting set of ruins to visit with a nice set of plazas, pyramids, stelae, in a rougher state than Uxmal. Beware that the road to Oxkintok is very narrow, sometimes with bushes brushing against both sides of the car simultaneously.

Summary

Uxmal is one of the most satisfying ancient Maya cities to visit. It has large impressive structures, is relatively accessible, and somewhat different than most other sites. There are numerous other Maya ruins to visit nearby and using the enjoyable city of Merida as a base hub works really well. I found little changed at the Uxmal site itself from visits 21 years apart, except for additional tourist attractions across the road.