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Yucatan Adventure
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Hacienda Chichen Resort: Responsible Tourism in Action
Hacienda Chichen Resort is a Colonial boutique hotel with a high environmental awareness and commitment to ecological programs and native cultural activities, including local socio-economic responsible actions and support since 2003, when the administration under Mrs. Isabel Barbachano took over the operation of the hotel and Mr. Bruce Gordon became the Property Management and Conservation Director.
The property of Hacienda Chichen sits in the heart of the ancient Maya city of Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico. For three generations, the owners have kept this property with environmental care, respect to its historical legacy, and its impressive cultural value.
Thus, we can assert that the Hacienda Chichen Resort & Yaxkin Spa exercises well organized efforts in their operation and administration to make positive contributions directly related to the environment, native cultural traditions, and the local-community welfare of the nearby towns of Xcalacoop and Piste. Indeed, few hotels and haciendas in Yucatan, Mexico have dedicated their efforts to “Responsible Tourism” as wholeheartedly.
Hacienda Chichen has a very low construction density, dedicating less than 0.5% to constructed areas within the 300 hectares of privately own property land which includes some of the Maya temples denominated “Old Chichen,” currently under study and reconstruction directed by INAH, Mexico’s National Institute of Archaeology and History. The vast virgin land that the Hacienda Chichen owns has a unique topography and is carefully guarded by Mr. Bruce Gordon, our Environment Manager and director of our conservation programs to protect the flora and fauna habitat; he designated over 80 acres of the land to a Maya Jungle Private Reserve, home to multiple species of native flora and fauna, including 150 different bird species nesting in our Bird Refuge and jungle gardens.
The Hacienda Chichen was built by the Spanish Conquistadors using stones from a Maya temple during the 16th Century, a unique historic recycling fact. Since then, recycled building materials have been used whenever possible; during the 2000, 2003, and 2005 remodeling periods, we even reclaimed more than a few old furniture pieces as part of our love for responsible choices and to reinforce the hotel’s Colonial rustic ambiance This environmental friendly practice has enhanced our appreciation for beauty and grace even in old recycled and reclaimed materials, and has allowed us to reduce the range of trade-offs and waste commonly found in remodeling projects. Due to the Colonial importance of the Hacienda, and its historic cottages built during the 1920s to house the first Maya Archaeology Expedition sponsored by the Carnegie Institute, under the guidance of Dr. Sylvannus G. Morley, our guestrooms have unique maintenance needs we cater to with utmost consciousness in order to reduce waste.
Water
Resources and Conservation:
Yucatan’s fresh water supply is primarily found underground; the damage caused by toxic waste, oils, and improper septic practices has increased in recent years in this region. According to many scientific studies and the United Nations, shortage of clean water is one of the most serious challenges facing the world this millennium. Hacienda Chichen owners and administration have taken great care to protect the hotel’s underground fresh water well reserves from pollutants and other damaging agents. We monitor our water sources purity levels and continually improve our pluming net to reduce water waste.
Water Recycling: We recycle all of our waste-water biologically and through man-made wetlands. The gray waters (laundry, showers, and washbasin) go to a biological filtered tank - this filtered water is then used to water our gardens. The black waters (W.C.) are pumped to our bacteria biodegrading tanks and organic recycling system - then sediments and organic waste are used as fertilizers for our gardens and compost pile. The greasy waters of the kitchens have special grease traps and filters with sand, gravel, stone and bacteria - this water, once filtered, is used in our natural rejoyadas (natural sink holes with unique micro-environments) and jungle habitat.
The huge amounts of waste produced by tourism in this region are detrimental to the environment. A large part of the waste goes into landfills, which uses up large areas of land and also leads to pollution from methane production, which is a greenhouse gas. The best solution is to reduce waste of this nature; we are currently making our guests and staff aware of this challenge, encouraging the use of glass pitchers of water in restaurants and rooms, in an effort to reduce plastic water bottles and other “disposable” non-organic waste.
Until there is a well managed plastic recycling system in this region, Hacienda Chichen is choosing to decrease the use of plastic water bottles as much as our guests allow. You will find a water jar at your bed side with purified drinking water as a courtesy of ours to help you relax when drinking water; you will also find one chilled water bottle in our rooms’ mini-bar at a small charge, which we hope you do not feel the need to buy.
Energy Efficiency:. Energy savings are one of the most important environmental actions we all can choose to help reduce the damage cause by our lifestyle and habits. Carbon dioxide is the chief contributor to the man-made greenhouse effect. Hacienda Chichen encourages its staff and guests to use energy in a responsible manner in an effort to save energy. We encourage guests to use energy saving choices while staying with us, requesting them to turn off room lights and setting the room’s air-condition unit in a responsible manner, never leaving the room with the unit on, to reduce its impact of global warming. Most of staff rides bicycles to work rather than their motorcycles or cars, and we encourage this practice.
As previously mentioned, Mr. Bruce Gordon directs all the Nature & Wildlife Conservation, and the Reforestation programs at the Hacienda Chichen's property. Under his direction, the Hacienda Chichen is committed to taking active measures to preserve, conserve, and enrich the flora and fauna habitats, aiming to increase diversity and attract more indigenous wildlife. His responsible actions have stopped the illegal hunters of white deer and other endangered species for entering the property; thus, increasing the safety of many endangered endemic species in the region, including families of kinkajous, oscillated turkeys, and white tail deer. Mr. Gordon and his forest-guards have planted over 2,500 indigenous hardwood trees in the property and reclaimed over 80 acres of unauthorized farmed land.
Since 2003, the Hacienda Chichen has taken special care to increase the wild medicinal plants and herbs used by native Maya healers and regional communities. To expand the awareness of Maya traditional holistic healing methods and the benefits of such practices, we are currently training local females in the art of Maya herbal healing and will introduce our first products in 2007 to the general public. All herbal Mayan products will be produced with our own organically grown ingredients and the wild herbs found in our Maya Jungle Reserve, a percentage of the profit will be dedicated to sustain this project and the training workshops offered freely to those local females the Elder Maya Healers deem fit.
In December 2006, the Hacienda Chichen dedicated over 10,000 meters of land to be the sacred grounds for the Maya Priests and Elder Healers, members of the non-profit organization Kuch Kaab Yéetel J-Men Maaya’ob, A.C. The main mission and vision of these organized Maya Priests and Elder Healers is to restore the Maya Cultural legacy and healing traditions of their ancestors and to preserve the rich legacy of their native cultural heritage; they organize various cultural and spiritual activities, educational workshops, sacred ceremonies, and informative lectures to develop general awareness of their ancestral values and practices. Their contribution to the conservation of the Maya Culture enriches the local community and visitors alike; Hacienda Chichen is proud to contribute and sponsor many of their projects and endeavours in an effort to increase the opportunities available to them and the experiences of those that value the Maya Civilization as a whole.
Local support and social commitment: Hacienda Chichen Resort employs 99% Maya people and locals at all levels of our administration, this includes many of our managers, the Executive Chef, head of departments, and other relevant positions in our organization. A portion of our profit is dedicated to training our staff in-house for higher level positions within our organization; this practice directly benefits the nearby communities and local families.
Working with local people, Hacienda Chichen open in 2005 Yaxkin Spa, a holistic Spa were Mayan traditional healing practices, native herbal medicinal remedies, and other organic elements are used to purify and renew the energy in each of person in communion with nature.
The Hacienda Chichen's workshop and training programs were established in 2004, inspired by the drastic increase in illegal tree-cutting within the property and the vast deforestation of mature trees used to make hand-carved, wooden souvenirs sold on the tourist routes to Chichen Itza and within the archaeological zone. To minimize the negative impact of this activity, Hacienda Chichen has designated an area to plant mainly Gumbo Limbo trees, the favorite tree of the illegal wood-carvers. Other workshops and training programs are geared towards providing our staff with the means to earn additional income without negatively impacting their surroundings or community. In 2005, the Hacienda Chichen was a member of the Annual Bird Festival in Yucatan and sponsored members of its staff to become local bird-watching guides and encouraged local families to protect and value the natural habitat of our land and nearby areas. The bird-watching guides know that if the trees are all cut down, there will be no birds, and that would not be beneficial to them or the community.
Local organic products support: Our staff is welcomed to benefit from the wild honey found in our property, as well as from the traditional Maya medicine herbs found in our Nature trails and other richness of the land as long as their activities do not destroy the delicate nature of the habitat. During 2007, Mr. Gordon and his forest-guards will start a program for organic, pure honey production and bee-hives in the property.
Our senior retired staff member and local farmer, Filomeno, designed in 2003 and still caters the Hacienda Chichen’s organic food production in our own backyard. Guests can come and stroll each morning for a visit and to hear his soft Maya lyrics and songs as he shares his tips on how to grow better fruits and vegetables in your own home.
Purchasing policy: Hacienda Chichen purchasing policies focus on using products that have minimal impact on the environment. All our cleaning supplies are bio-degradable and have low environment impact. We purchase local products, and organically grown food products in the region using a high standard of health and quality criteria.
Proud of the beautiful traditional arts and crafts of the Maya people, we buy all our new décor items directly from Mayan communities; this contributes to the conservation of native, traditional arts and crafts skills while increasing their income opportunities.
The result of all our practices and commitments: Our social responsible vision benefits us all, by creating an ambiance of shared welfare among the native staff, nature, and our guests, a genuine “family feeling” is felt among us. Guests learn to appreciate the mystical aspects of the native people, who in return have the opportunity to express and share their Maya traditions with our guests; thus, increasing the natural joy of learning about each other; this interaction enriches the local community at the same time that the community enriches the visitors’ cultural experience and knowledge.
There are plenty of ways you can support and help the communities you visit, ask us about small useful gifts that you could pack for to support local schools and conservation projects. Your support is highly appreciated; you can help by buying at Toh Boutique Mayan Art-crafts or by making a donation to support The Maya Foundation In Láakeech A.C. social and ecological programs. Yucatan Adventure & Hacienda Chichen proudly support the social work programs of
THE MAYA FOUNDATION IN LÁAKEECH June 2006 Updated December 2007 Re-edited March 2008 |
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