Update on the Placido Domingo Concert
Chichen Itza, Oct. 4, 2008
By Marita Adair
August 4, 2008. Placido fever is spreading, or so it seems. One message I read has a daily countdown to his Oct. 4 concert at Chichen Itza. There’s expectation that the concert will be a sellout and that hotels will fill. One source mentions 5,000 tickets will be sold, another reports 7,000 while the official release is mum on the count. One thing is certain, the grounds have ample space for either number.
Below are reassuring organizational details from event organizers.
– Placido Domingo will attend the dinner after the concert that’s included in the $1000 Premium VIP tickets.
– At the archeological site, where the concert will be held, visitors can expect bathrooms, paramedics, strategic directional signs, assistance for those with disabilities, ushers, section assistants, sale of soft drinks, public telephones, and security.
– Parking will be in five lots with shuttle transportation from parking lots to and from the concert entrance:
Parking lot at the Archeological Zone
At the Hotel Mayaland. The Mayaland abuts the Chichen Itza grounds.
At the old airport.
In Piste (Piste 1). Piste is about a mile from Chichen Itza.
At the baseball field (Piste 2).
The Placido Domingo site http://www.placidoconciertochichenitza.com/ previews the concert and its setting at Chichen Itza, as well as the organizational arrangement for the concert at the site. All, of course, with Domingo singing in the background.
Tickets, available through www.ticketmaster.com.mx, range in price from $50 to $1000. They should be arranged in advance of arrival since none are expected to be for sale at the concert or through travel agencies. The concert will start at 8:30 p.m. and end around 11 p.m.
Hotels with concert packages
A couple of hotels have already created special “concert packages.” The 18th-century Hotel Hacienda Xcanatun www.xcanatun.com, near Merida, is offering a concert package that includes transportation to and from Chichen and a special evening of dining and music prior to concert day. The historic Hotel Hacienda Chichen www.haciendachichen.com, beside the Hotel Mayaland, and next to the ruins, plans a special dinner after the concert. Hotels as far away as Cancun and Cozumel are expected to participate and include transportation.
In the area
Of course, anyone who goes this far to hear Placido Domingo sing won’t want to concert and run. To explore the latest information about the Yucatan Peninsula, go to www.yucatantoday.com. The superior website is loaded with cultural as well as practical information including maps, and what’s new from haciendas, to food, to historic convents, to the latest in where to stay, eat, and relax.
As for Chichen Itza, an astounding amount of restoration makes it seem like a whole new site. Many of the fallen stones that littered the ground at the perimeters of many structures for decades have been put in place.