Copán Ruins

One of the great cities of the ancient Maya, famous for having the finest sculpture in the Maya world. The highlights are the tall carved stelae of the Great Plaza, the Hieroglyphic Stairway (the longest Maya inscription known, with more than 2,000 glyphs), the ball court and the Acropolis.

The Sculpture Museum at the entrance is a must: it houses a full-size, brightly painted replica of the Rosalila temple, found buried intact under a later pyramid, and gives a real sense of what the city once looked like. Tunnels under the Acropolis are open for an extra fee. Scarlet macaws, Honduras's national bird, fly freely around the entrance.

The pretty cobbled town of Copán Ruinas is about 1 km away, with good guesthouses. Hire one of the official guides at the gate. It's close to the Guatemalan border at El Florido, and shuttles run from Antigua.