Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Mayan civilization, along with Calakmul, Chichén Itzá and Palenque.
Tikal was the capital of a belligerent state, which became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Mayans, the city dominated much of the Mayan region, politically, economically and militarily; it maintained links with other regions, throughout Mesoamerica, even with the great metropolis of Teotihuacan, in the distant Valley of Mexico.
Tikal is located approximately 64 km northeast of Flores and Santa Elena and approximately 303 km north of Guatemala City.
