The Maya were brilliant builders, mathematicians and astronomers. At Caracol they built temples, plazas, palaces and even roads called sacbeob — wide white paths that connected different parts of the city. They carved detailed pictures and writing called hieroglyphs into stone monuments called stelae, which still stand in the city today.
Caracol was built in the rainforest on the Vaca Plateau, surrounded by thick jungle. Because it is so deep inside the forest, it was not well known to the outside world until the 1930s. Even today, getting there takes a long drive on a rough road, which makes it feel like a real adventure.
Toucans, howler monkeys and coatis now share the ancient ruins with visiting school groups and tourists. You can climb to the top of the Caana pyramid and look out over a sea of green treetops stretching all the way to the horizon — an absolutely spectacular view.
Archaeologists are still working at Caracol, carefully brushing soil away from buildings and objects to learn more about what daily life was like for the Maya people who lived here more than a thousand years ago.