Chetumal

Chetumal on the map of Mexico

Chetumal is a city on the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico. It is the capital of the state of Quintana Roo and has about 140,000 inhabitants.

The town lies on the western side of the Bay of Chetumal, near the mouth of the border river Rio Hondo. Chetumal has an important seaport and acts by its proximity to the neighboring country of Belize as a trading center in the region.

The name goes back to the pre-Columbian Chetumal name Chaktemal and was the center of the same name Maya region.

During the Spanish conquest of Yucatán Maya State Chetumal could fend off several attacks by the Spaniards before he was finally subjected in the late 16th century. Today Chetumal was established in 1898 as a Mexican port city under the name Payo Obispo, what was changed again in 1936 to Chetumal.

As the capital of Quintana Roo Chetumal houses the government offices of the state and the University of Quintana Roo.

Attractions

  • The Experience Museum Museo de la Cultura Maya is home to numerous replicas of objects of the Mayan culture. An interactive mechanical gear transmission illustrates the operation of the Mayan calendar.
  • The Museum of Constituyentes informed about the history of the city's founding.

Air table

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