Xpujil (Mayan pronunciation: [ʃpuˈxil]) is a town in the Mexican state of Campeche. It serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of Calakmul. As of 2010, Xpujil had a population of 3,984.[2]
Xpujil | |
|---|---|
  Xpujil  Xpujil | |
| Coordinates: 18°30′20″N 89°23′50″W / 18.50556°N 89.39722°W | |
| Country |  Mexico |
| State | Campeche |
| Municipality | Calakmul |
| Elevation | 260 m (850 ft) |
| Population | |
| • City | 3,984 |
| • Urban | 3,984 |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (CST) |
| Postal code | 24640 |
| Area code | 983 |
| Demonym | Xpujilense |
Xpujil is located in the south-east of the state, close to the border with Quintana Roo to the east and Peten, Guatemala, to the south. With Escárcega, Campeche 153 kilometres (95 mi) to the west and Chetumal, Quintana Roo 120 kilometres (75 mi) to the east it is a useful midway point on Federal Highway 186. Close to the town are the Maya ruins of Xpuhil (1 kilometre (0.62 mi)) and Becan (8 kilometres (5.0 mi)), Chicanná, Balamcan, Hormiguero. Further to the south-west is the major Maya site of Calakmul, in the 7,230 square kilometres (2,790 sq mi) Calakmul Biosphere Reserve.
Highway 186 was, as of February 2009, undergoing a major refurbishment to a multilane highway that will improve access to the zone.
In addition to providing services for the local community, Xpujil has a paved runway and serves as the gateway for tourists visiting those areas, with restaurants, transportation services, modest hotels, etc. Currently many tourists travel by road from Cancun to Palenque, and stop to visit the many Mayan sites in the region.
There are plans to increase room availability and other services for eco-tourism and other activities within the Calakmul Ecological reserve.
XEPUJ, a government-run indigenous community radio station that broadcasts in Spanish, Yucatec Maya and Ch'ol, is based in Xpujil.
Valeriana
editIn October 2024 it was announced that a huge city, including pyramids, sports fields, causeways connecting districts and amphitheatres, had been discovered underground near Xpujil, using lidar.[3][4] The discoverer named it "Valeriana", after a nearby lake, "Laguna La Valeriana", the dry bed of which had been used by drug smugglers as an airstrip.[5]
Transportation
editXpujil will be served by a station of the Tren Maya,[6] which is expected to open sometime in 2024.[7]
| Future services | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preceding station | Following station | |||
| Calakmul toward Palenque
|
Tren Maya | Limones/Chacchoben toward Cancún Airport
| ||
References
edit- ^ 2010 census tables: INEGI Archived May 2, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Calakmul". Catálogo de Localidades. Secretaría de Desarrollo Social (SEDESOL). Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Rannard, Georgina (29 October 2024). "PhD student finds lost city in Mexico jungle by accident". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
- ^ "Running out of empty space: environmental lidar and the crowded ancient landscape of Campeche, Mexico: Antiquity : Cambridge Core". Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
- ^ "Eran dos narcoaeródromos" (in Spanish). Por Esto Online. 29 June 2019.
- ^ SIPSE.com (7 June 2023). "Mara Lezama comparte cómo lucirá estación del Tren Maya en Chetumal". sipse.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 October 2024.
- ^ "Tramo 7 del Tren Maya - Guía del Tren Maya". guiadeltrenmaya.com (in Spanish). 26 June 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
External links
editXpujil travel guide from Wikivoyage