Guatemala
Tikal National Park
Tikal National Park comprises the remains of a major center of the Maya civilization, located within a forest that is rich in animal and plant diversity.
Tikal was one of the most important political, economic and military centres of the Ancient Maya, who reigned over large parts of the region during its heydays between 200 and 900. The site shows different stages of their evolution, resulting in monumental structures such as pyramids, temples, ball courts, stone stelae, water reservoirs and a network of causeways (sacbe). Animals include jaguar, puma, tapir, howler monkeys, anteaters, crocodiles, and more than 300 bird species.
Community Perspective: "You get it all at Tikal": the main ruins are spectacular and its rainforest environment is still intact. Allow at least 2 days. It is also directly accessible by public transport.
Site Info
Official Information
- Full Name
- Tikal National Park (ID: 64)
- Country
- Guatemala
- Status
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Inscribed 1979
Site history
History of Tikal National Park
- 1979: Inscribed
- Inscribed
- WHS Type
- Mixed
- Criteria
- i
- iii
- iv
- ix
- x
Links
- UNESCO
- whc.unesco.org
All Links
UNESCO.org
- whc.unesco.org — whc.unesco.org/
Related Resources
- penn.museum — The flora of Tikal
- mcd.gob.gt — Parque Nacional Tikal
News Article
- April 8, 2025 france24.com — Teotihuacan altar found at Tikal
- Nov. 30, 2020 smithsonianmag.com — Researchers Uncover 2,000-Year-Old Maya Water Filtration System
- Nov. 28, 2019 dailymail.co.uk — Two tourists are caught defacing 1,300-year-old Mayan temple by carving their initials into the wall
- Dec. 25, 2012 fijitimes.com — Tourists flocking to Guatemala for "end of the world" parties have damaged an ancient stone temple at Tikal
Community Information
- Community Category
- Natural landscape: Forest
- Archaeological site: Pre-Columbian
- Archaeological site: Prehistoric
Travel Information
Recent Connections
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Perfect Inscriptions
1979 -
Over 100 mammal species
The more than 100 mammals include over … -
Centres of Plant Diversity
MA13 Petén Region and Maya Biosphere R…
Connections of Tikal National Park
- Trivia
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Modern Board Games
Tikal (1997) -
On Banknotes
1/2 Quetzal; 1973 -
In Video Games
Age of Empires II: Mayans: Great Jaguar Temple in Tikal; Civilization VII: Mundo Perdido
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- History
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Formative stage
Major construction at Tikal was already taking place in the Late Preclassic period, first appearing around 400–300 BC, including the building of major pyramids and platforms, although the city was still dwarfed by sites further north such as El Mirador and Nakbe (wiki)See en.wikipedia.org
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Mayan culture
Tikal National Park is an outstanding example of the art and human genius of the Maya. (OUV) -
Queens and Empresses
Lady of Tikal (Maya queen) described on several of its stelaeSee en.wikipedia.org
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- Ecology
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Over 100 mammal species
The more than 100 mammals include over 60 species of bat (Crit X OUV) -
Anteaters
silky anteater, northern tamandua -
Tapirs
Baird's tapir -
Otters
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Crocodiles
Morelet's crocodile -
Turtles and tortoises
Central American river turtle -
Jaguar habitat
The more than 100 mammals include .. Jaguar (OUV) -
Critically endangered fauna species
Central American river turtle (UNEP-WCMC) -
Eagles
Crested Eagle and Ornate Hawk-Eagle (Official description) -
Bird Migrations
The Americas Flyway -
Rainforests
The ruins lie among the tropical rainforests of northern Guatemala (wiki) -
Orchids
"Palms, epiphytes, orchids and bromeliads abound in the various forest types." (OUV)
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- World Heritage Process
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First inscriptions
Guatemala: two inscriptions in 1979, with Tikal National Park as the lowest number and the first in the records. -
Mixed sites inscribed on 5 or more criteria
Criteria: i/iii/iv/ix/x. 5 - 3 Cultural, 2 Natural -
Perfect Inscriptions
1979
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- Human Activity
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Tobacco
The living jungle around Tikal has protected and nurtured cotton, sisal, tobaccoSee www.penn.museum
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Irrigation and drainage
The diversity and quality of architectonical and sculptural ensembles serving ceremonial, administrative and residential functions are exemplified in a number of exceptional places, such as ... irrigation structures. (official description) -
Locations for playing sport
Pre-Columbian Ball courts (7) -
Historical Graffiti
By Mayan occupants and 19th century explorersSee www.penn.museum
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Petroglyphs
Petroglyph 1 is a 4x6m rock carving, depicting a captive. -
Writing systems
Several hieroglyphic inscriptions
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- Constructions
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Acropolis
The "North Acropolis"See en.wikipedia.org
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Pyramids
Several larger and smaller ones, including Twin Pyramid Complexes (wiki) -
Stelae
See en.wikipedia.org
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Tombs
Tombs of many of the rulers on the dynastic ruler list have been discovered (wiki)See en.wikipedia.org
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Baths
Ruins of a temazcal (steam bath) south of Group F
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- WHS on Other Lists
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World Heritage Forest Programme
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Ramsar Wetlands
Parque Nacional Yaxhá-Nakum-Naranjo -
Biodiversity hotspot
Mesoamerica -
Centres of Plant Diversity
MA13 Petén Region and Maya Biosphere Reserve - "home to an impressive diversity of flora and fauna across its various terrestrial and freshwater habitats. More than 2000 higher plants, including 200 tree species have been inventoried. Palms, epiphytes, orchids and bromeliads abound in the various forest types" -
World Biosphere Reserves
Part of Maya (1990)
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- Timeline
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Built in the 8th century
At its height from 700-800, Temple of the Great Jaguar probably built 730 completed by 734 -
Holocene
The Mesoamerican tropical rainforest evolved after the last glaciation in the Late Pleistocene.
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- Science and Technology
- Visiting conditions
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Foreigner prices
Locals Q 25.00, foreigners pay Q 150.00.
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- 18
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James Bond in Movies
Moonraker (1979) -
Star Wars
The ancient ruins of Tikal and the surrounded forest were depicted as the Rebel Alliance’s military base on the fourth moon of Yavin in “A New Hope”
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News
- france24.com 04/08/2025
- Teotihuacan altar found at Tikal
- smithsonianmag.com 11/30/2020
- Researchers Uncover 2,000-Year-Old…
- dailymail.co.uk 11/28/2019
- Two tourists are caught defacing 1…
Recent Visitors
Visitors of Tikal National Park
- Adam Hancock
- Adrian Turtschi
- Alberto Rodriguez Gutierrez
- Alejandro Lau
- Alex Baranda
- Alfons and Riki Verstraeten
- alicemears
- Ali Zingstra
- ALS
- A. Mehmet Haksever
- Ammon Watkins
- Ana
- AndreaTLV
- Andrew Wembridge
- Artur Anuszewski
- Ask Gudmundsen
- Atila Ege
- Bamse
- basementonline
- Bill Maurmann
- BMuramatsu
- Bram de Bruin
- brornt
- Carlo Medina
- Carlos Sotelo
- CascadianRain
- Cirene Moraes
- Clem C
- Clyde
- Coppi
- ctravel
- CynthiaSam
- CynthiaW
- Dan1306
- Dani Cyr
- Daniela Hohmann
- Dan Pettigrew
- dave wood
- Dennis Nicklaus
- Don Irwin
- Dutchbirder
- Els Slots
- Emilia Bautista King
- Erfe91
- Eric Lurio
- Eric PK
- Erik Jelinek
- Eva Kisgyorgy
- Fan Yibo
- Feldhase
- Fernweh
- fmannucci
- Francky D'Hoop
- Frédéric M
- Garrett
- Gary Arndt
- geographybuff
- George Evangelou
- George Gdanski
- GeorgeIng61
- GerhardM
- Gerlach
- Gernot
- Gjert
- Gordon Mitchell
- GZ
- Hammeel
- Hanming
- Harald T.
- Harry Mitsidis
- H Beswick
- Hdhuntphotography
- homadism
- Iain Jackson
- Ilya Burlak
- Izzet Ege
- Janos
- Jarek Pokrzywnicki
- Javier
- Javier Coro
- Jawnbeary
- Jens
- Jezza
- J_neveryes
- João Aender
- jonathanfr
- Jon Bauer
- Jon Opol
- Jose
- Joshuakirbens
- jsrinivasan
- Justin Rickey
- KAO
- Kasper
- KateY
- kathryn.park
- Keith90245
- Kelise
- Kelly Henry
- kelseyyurek
- KentishTownRocks
- Kevin247
- KngAlaric
- Kurt Lauer
- Lameduck99
- Larry F
- LaVale
- Leontine Helleman
- leroykstlj
- Liamps91
- Linz
- Lithobates
- Loic Pedras
- Longdutch
- Lucas Del Puppo
- Lucio Gorla
- Ludvan
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- Lukasz Palczewski
- lynnz317@aol.com
- Mahuhe
- Malgorzata Kopczynska
- Marcobrey
- Mardigny
- Matthewsharris
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- Maxine Eisenberg
- Michael anak Kenyalang
- Michael Ayers
- MichaelH
- Michael Novins
- Michael Turtle
- Michal Kozok
- Michal Marciniak
- Miguel Marquez
- Mikeupowers
- Mikko
- Milan Jirasek
- misswanderlust
- MMM
- Monika and Rini
- montgomw
- MoPython
- Morodhi
- natlefebvre@hotmail.
- Niall Sclater
- Nihal Ege
- PabloNorte
- Pascal Cauliez
- Patrik
- Paul Schofield
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- Philipp Leu
- Pieter Dijkshoorn
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- RobRos
- Roger Ourset
- Roland
- Roman Bruehwiler
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- Samuel Turtschi
- Santiago Lafuente
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Community Reviews
Show full reviews
I visited Tikal in December of 2023 on a day trip from Western Belize. Echoing the past reviewers, the huge site well deserves various superlatives. The Grand Plaza is the most impressive cluster of temples and acropolises anywhere, the pyramid at El Mundo Perdido and the Temple IV are among can't-miss structures, and there are many hidden treasures found throughout the park.
A true connoisseur could probably spend several days here exploring all of the different remnants of the ancient civilization as well as the diverse natural surroundings. However, the aforementioned main highlights can be seen in the space of three to four hours, which allows for day-tripping options. There may be fairly long car queues at the National Park entrance and then lines at the visitor center. Having a guide saved us the wait times and obviously helped with both the narration and the navigation of the site. The guide also suggested that we utilize an infrequent shuttle from the visitor center to the core of the site (at $1 per person), which saved us some time and effort at the very start of the walking circuit.
The round trip from San Ignacio took about nine hours in total, including border crossings, the drives, and the lunch onsite. Having a driver with superior pothole-evading skills was highly beneficial, as the road is well-paved only inside the park and on a stretch close to the border. TikalGo offers both group and private options, and I was pleasantly surprised …
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Since my previous visit, 25 years ago, I had forgotten what Tikal looked like. It has a real ‘lost city’ feel, especially at the main plaza. With its white stucco elements and honeycomb towers, it has a different architectural style than the other Maya sites. There’s much more to see than the pyramids: I encountered petroglyphs, steam baths, water reservoirs (Tikal had no access to water other than what was collected from rainwater), stelae, giant stucco masks, and historical graffiti too. Howler monkeys, Geoffroy’s spider monkeys, coatis (pizotes), and agoutis are mammals that are easily seen as well.
This time I explored the park in 2 sessions, from 14-17 on the first day and the next day from 6-10. I stayed overnight near the entrance at the Tikal Inn. I walked 10 and 12kms respectively during these visits, and believe to have covered all there is to see. Maps.me works and will show the approximate location of all structures (the connecting smaller paths aren’t displayed that accurately). The way to the Exit (Salida) is always signposted. There aren’t special Covid measures at the site, which is mostly unsupervised anyway. Especially the morning session was very quiet, with hardly any other visitors around.
My Highlights
- View above the canopy from the Mundo Perdido pyramid (it’s also the only place where your phone will pick up a 4g signal),
- Palace of the Grooves (building with grooved vertical panels, entered via a narrow …

Tikal was the last major prehispanic archeological site I visited on my Mexico-Guatemala-Belize trip last winter. And it was the best one!
The size of the site (gigantic), the number of pyramids and structure (numerous), the quality of the pyramids (amazing) and the wildlife (abundant) cannot be compared with other sites (even with Palenque). Me and my friend visited on a tour book at our hostel in Flores. We didn't took the sunrise tour, but rather the early bird one arriving in Tikal for opening. I think it's the best time to visit as it is not a ridiculously early wake-up, the crowds are still manageable and the wildlife is active. Our tour last half a day, and we head back to Flores at noon.
The most interesting complexes are la Gran Plaza, el Mundo Perdido, la Plaza de los Siete Templos and el Templo IV. It's a good idea to have a guide here to truly understand the site. Many pyramids and temples can be climbed on wooden structures. The view from la Gran Piramide de Mundo Perdido and from el Templo IV are nice. It's also nice to climb on Templo II and on both Acropolis Norte y Central to get the view over la Gran Plaza.
Wildlife we spotted include a lot of coatis, an agouti and howler and spider monkeys. Even without binoculars, we spotted 19 bird species, including cool ones such as great curassow, ocellated turkey, limpkin, slaty-tailed trogon, black-headed trogon, collared …
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Tikal was the first ancient Maya site that I ever visited, and it remains my favorite one. I've since visited about 20 others, but Tikal still stands above them all. The combination of the lush jungle and the steep pyramids poking above the canopy with their delicate roof combs above the top temple rooms was just fantastic. I loved the combination of the imposing pyramids with the detailed hieroglyphic stellae and the occasional giant stucco mask. You get it all at Tikal, whereas other places, like Calakmul, for example, disappointed me a little because it didn't have much of the finer art, like stellae, while it had plenty of impressive massive buildings. When we visited Tikal (1988) you could still climb on any of the structures, although a couple of them required getting up some rickety wooden ladders. I still remember how scary it was to climb the very narrow steps and having respect for the ancient Maya who had to ascend and descend these staircases routinely
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I visited this WHS in December 2015. I drove from Palenque to Tikal by car through the El Ceibo border. Tikal is definitely Guatemala's highlight and one of the best WHS I've visited so far. The rainforest environment is still intact although the central plaza has been cleared. However, 'VIP service' buses/vans should not be allowed inside the historical area proper as is currently done from the back roads for the older wealthy tourists. However, apart from this practice, the main ruins are spectacular as are the minor ones still full of scrub and overcome by the jungle. Tikal is the best preserved example of an ancient Mayan city. Climbing is prohibited mainly on Temple I although access to the other main temple structures is gained by climbing wooden stairs on the back of the structures. As always, birdlife and fauna is most 'active' at sunrise/sunset. It's worth staying at least 2-3 days to be able to enjoy the park at different times of the day. The sunrise hype can easily be skipped as it's the only time when the site is really packed and since it is frequently misty, there is nothing you'd miss if instead you stay in the lodge in the national park (except the crowds and the early wake up call at 03:30!).
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Tikal was a highlight of my 2-week stay in Guatemala. Before I left for Guatemala, I saw a travel program on TV about pyramids and it stated that the pyramids at Tikal were superior to those in Egypt. Since I haven't been to Egypt, I can't say I agree or disagree. The view from Temple IV is amazing. I also enjoyed the walk through the jungle in order to get to the North Acropolis. I was delighted by the spider monkeys and toucans!
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