The town of Copán Ruinas
In ancient times known as Oxwitik, traces its foundations to the Mayas. By the time of the Spanish conquest of Honduras, the town's site had long been overgrown by rainforest, but since the rediscovery of the nearby ruins it has grown and prospered.
By the 00s the modern town of Copán Ruinas, with about 6,000 inhabitants, has become a growing tourist center for activities beyond the Mayan ruins. Coffee and cardamom plantations, hiking and horseback riding trails, white water rivers and caves dot the surrounding area. With around 1,400 hotel beds, since 2003 the town hosts an annual October conference on tourism.
With its cobble stone streets, and multiethnic restaurants Copán Ruinas is halfway between Guatemala and Honduras. The town caters to the budget backpacker and to sophisticated travelers looking for a bit of pampering and an authentic experience. Copán Ruinas offers a bit to both. It's a place to slow down, get away from the Mayan tourist trail, or experience a bit of exotic adventure.

The fertile Copán River valley
Was long a site of agriculture before the first known stone architecture was built. Copán is the southern most of all the major Mayan sites. Copán, capital to the Xukpi (Corner-Bundle) state, began about 200 AD with the construction of the Great Plaza, ball court, and Acropolis. By 5th Century AD it grew into one of the most important Maya cities.
Large monuments dated with hieroglyhic texts were erected in the city between 420s and 850s, when Copán was ruled by a single dynastic lineage of 16 kings. Ceramic offerings indicate these rulers was closely allied with Teotihuacán, the great urban center in the Valley of Mexico.
Xukpi was one of the more powerful Maya city states, but it eventually declined due to drought and depletion of natural resources- a factor in bringing down most of the Maya city-states. Copán's population peaked at around 20,000 declining to 5,000 by 9th century AD. The ceremonial center was abandoned and by the time of Spanish conquest only hamlets dotted the valley.
Ruins of ancient Copán cover about 12 acres in a 12 kilometer long river valley. Copán is recognized to have one of the best hieroglyphic inscriptions and sculpted monuments in the Maya world. It features a remarkable series of portrait stelae, most of which were placed along processional rute in the central plaza and acropolis. The stelae and sculptured decorations of the buildings of Copán are some of the very finest surviving art of ancient Mesoamerica.
Many structures are elaborately decorated with stone sculptures, usually constructed from a mosaic of carved stones of a size that one person could carry. The volcanic stone construction material used at the site, makes it one of the most well-preserved classic Maya sites.
At its height in the late classic period Copán seems to have had an unusually prosperous class of minor nobility, scribes, artisans, some of whom had homes of cut stone built for themselves, some with carved hieroglyphic texts.
The buildings suffered significantly from forces of nature in the centuries between the site's abandonment and the rediscovery of the ruins. There have been numerous earthquakes and the hieroglyphic stairway had collapsed. The Copán river changed course and meandered, destroying part of the acropolis, yet revealing the site's topography in a large vertical cut. The mudslide destroyed various subsidiary architectural groups.
Although the site of the ruined city was known locally since early colonial times, it remained largely unknown by the outside world until a series of explorers visited Copán in the early 19th century. Juan Galindo wrote a description of the ruins in 1834 that sparked the interest of North American explorer and travel writer John Lloyd Stephens and an English architect and draftsman Frederick Catherwood who published an illustrated books describing Copán igniting even more interest in Mesoamerican antiquities among American and European scholars.
In 1881 English explorer Alfred Maudslay visited the ruins and obtained a permits for exploratory work. His effort produced the area's first topographic map, photographs, plaster casts and drawings of the site that can be viewed at the British Museum in London.
Between 1891 and 1900 the first modern archeological surveys and excavations in the Maya area were conducted by the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology of Harvard University. The ruins were the site of extensive research and restoration from the 1930s to 1950s done by Carnegie Institution, the Peabody Museum and beginning in 1970, the Government of Honduras's Proyecto Copán.
After 1975, the decipherment of the Maya hieroglyphs allowed investigators to read many of the inscriptions at the site and to reconstruct Copán's dynastic history. In 1980 UNESCO declared Copán a world heritage.

Museum Hours:
COPAN RUINS: Best time to visit is early in the morning when there are few tourists and the sun is still low (Mon - Sun/ 8am - 4pm/ $15).
COPAN SCULPTURE MUSEUM: Built around an ancient, vividly colored Mayan temple, the museum houses some of the original sculptures and stelae found at the ruins. Altars and head stones are particularly impressive. (Mo-Su/ 8am - 4pm/ $5).
COPAN TUNNELS: The two 100 meter tunnels give you another insight at the ancient city (Mo-Su/ 8am - 4pm/ $12).

Macaw Mountain Bird Park:
Dozen of rescued and donated parrots, macaws, toucans make their aviary on this river side park. Sip a cappuccino while listening to a guided tour included in your ticket. (M-Su: 9am-5pm/ 651-4245)

Miramundo Coffee Finca:
Hike thru forest trails to waterfalls and springs, or learn about how coffee is planted and picked. The 140 acre mountain coffee plantation gives a fine introduction to Honduras' biggest export. (Info: 651-4245)

Casa Kinich:
Polish your Mayan counting skills at this interactive museum located in an old school building. Using pulleys, weights and pedals you can learn about Mayan history, astronomy, language and have a bit of a workout. (M-Sa: 8am-12pm & 1pm-5pm/ free/ 651-4105/ casakinich.com)

Regional Archeological Museum:
Founded in 1939, this fascinating little museum has interesting artifacts moved here from Copán Valley archeological sites. Alongside the Altars "U," "T," and Stella number 11, its pottery statues, carved human bones, teeth incrusted with jade, jewelry are some of the curious artifacts on exhibit. (M-Su: 8am-4pm/ $2/ 651-4108)

San Jose Aurel Church:
With a vaulted wood roof and two towers the town's 1890s principal church stands across the main square. Every year, on May 1, entire Copán marches in procession celebrating the day of the their patron- Saint John the Worker. The other big festivities and processions occur on Christmas and Holy Week with a reenactment of Christ's burial. The townspeople are still looking for the robbers who in 2006 stole the patron Saint's statue brought to the church from Guatemala.

Hot Springs:
A 20 kilometer ride north of Copán takes you to Aguas Calientes where you can enjoy a relaxing hot bath in a concrete pool, or venture into the river and using river stones create your own perfect combination of hot and cold.

El Cuartel:
This old police and army outpost and prison is strategically located overlooking the town. You can get a panoramic view of the town, or show you soccer skills at a sports field that once served as a prison yard.

Butterfly and Orchid Garden:
Be ready to be amazed by the vibrant colors of the 35 species of butterflies raised on a farm, or see an exhibit of the 'blue morpho' butterfly. Check out the 120 species of Honduras' orchids, and the recently discovered new species, to be called by the name of the garden owner and discovered 'Sobralia Gallardii.' (M-Su: 8am-4:30pm/$5)

Finca El Cisne:
Experience how life on a Honduran country hacienda used to be by visiting a plantation of cardamom and coffee. The 1,000 hectare rancho, is located 20 km north of town amid fruit trees, fish lakes and cattle pastures.

Hiking:
Reenergize yourself by getting a 360 degree tour around, thru, or over Copán town and valley on guided hikes ranging between two and six hours. You will hear about local history, politicks and environmental issues. (Mo-Su/ in the morning)

Horseback riding:
Riding thru fields, hills and even archeological sites can be an unforgettable experience.

Off-road Motorcycle Tours:
Ride an off road motorcycle to the most remote places around the valley (Mo-Su/ mornings)

Bird Watching Tours:
Depart on a half-day trip to the forest foothills to observe one of the regions 350 bird species, amongst them the elusive Motmot.

Tubing:
A three hour trip takes you past the ruins, thru tobacco and corn plantations.

Caving:
Admire the stalactites and walk along an underground river inside the Boqueron cave 23 outside of Copán Ruinas.

Action Arte:
A non-profit organizing cultural activities for Copán's children. It organizes art, photo and video workshops, drama and painting classes. See how you can help or support them with a donation or a purchase of young artist's work. (Across Casa de Todo. tel.: 651-4185)

Learning Spanish:
Several immersion schools offer language courses and family stays. (around $125 per week)