San Francisco de Campeche

About

Spanish conquistadors founded San Francisco de Campeche in 1540 on the site of the Maya city of Can Peche. The city’s location on the Yucatán Peninsula made it an important part of the trade routes between Spain and the New World, which in turn made it a target for pirates. To combat the corsairs, the city was guarded by defensive walls and watched over by forts, which took advantage of the hilly terrain. The most prominent of these is the 18th century San José el Alto, which is a prime example of military architecture, and houses an excellent museum dedicated to underwater archaeology. Campeche’s historic center is the last walled city in the Americas alongside Montreal, and its bastions, colorful buildings, and well-preserved mansions, and preserve a picture-perfect slice of the colonial era.