One of the greatest cities that people in Mesoamerica was Teotihuacan, the Aztec city of the gods. There are two great pyramids and a standing temple dedicated to Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpant. This remarkable city was influenced by both Toltec and Maya cultures which had existed many years earlier. Early Spanish explorers were amazed at the sophisticated culture which they discovered and only later did they learn about the cultures (Maya, Toltec and Olmec) whose achievements had had a deep influence on the later Aztec civilization.

Several great Maya cities show influence from the Toltec culture as well. These include Tulum and Chichen Itza. The Maya civilization showed many great architectural developments under the Toltec influence especially from the 10th to the 12 centuries. In Chichen Itza visitors will find a Maya observatory and a temple of the Jaguars which shows the Toltec influence because the Toltecs also worshiped the jaguar.

The city of Uxmal in the Yucan is considered the greatest examples of the earlier Puuc architecture style of the Mayas. In this region of the Yucatan there are many fine example of Maya architecture including the Pyramid of the Magician in Uxmal, the palace at Sayíl, the buildings of Labná.