Should you go to Teotihuacán?
If I had to answer this question with a gun to my head, I would say yes. If you’re in Mexico City and you haven’t visited any other pyramid sites in Central America, Teotihuacán is definitely worth a day trip. If you’ve already visited places like Chichen Itza or Tikal, you may find it a bit less necessary.
The popular destination just outside of the capital of Mexico has a fascinating history just like most ancient historical places of its type, and I’d confidently say that learning that history is the best part of visiting this architectural site, which was once an bustling metropolis. Due to deterioration, the pyramids are not as aesthetically pleasing as other well known sites like Tikal and Chichen Itza, but their size is impressive.
Considering the fact that all of the pyramids used to be painted a vibrant dark red color, they have definitely fallen from grace (perfectly understandable since they were built several centuries ago).
Visiting Teotihuacan
Group tours to the famous pyramids range from about $50 to $75 USD. They include a guide, round trip transportation, and entrance fees. There are tours that cost up to around $160 that offer hot air balloon rides, breakfast in a cave, smaller groups, side quests, etc. Some tours, like mine, also include a visit to a traditional restaurant where you can eat some out of the ordinary dishes featuring grilled or roasted insects like in the photo below. The meals may or not be included in the price of your tour.
If you don’t need to learn any ancient history or partake in any extravagance, but you still want to view some ancient pyramids, you can visit the site yourself by public bus, which costs around $7 USD round trip with entry to the site being $4.50
A couple things to note:
- The bus leaves from Autobuses del Norte terminal
- Bring cash to the bus station, as cards may not be accepted at the ticket counter.
- Aim to arrive at the station by 8:00 AM to beat the heat and crowds, and to be at the site when it opens at 9:00 AM.
My Experience
I visited Teotihuacán a year before I visited Tikal National Park in Guatemala. After seeing them both, I admit I enjoyed Tikal more, but Teotihuacán was cool in its own right. The space was huge and more spread out than I had anticipated. In fact, the former city was 20 square kilometers during the time of its existence.
I liked that there were artisanal street vendors selling different items, including wind instruments that mimicked the sounds of different animals. It never felt too crowded either, which was nice.
What I disliked was that my tour guide was boring as hell. I feel that I would have had a better experience with a more knowledgeable and enthusiastic individual leading the tour. A few days beforehand I did research to find a good company at a decent price, and thought I made a great choice. The problem is that a lot of touring companies use multiple guides, and if you’re booking through a 3rd party website you can’t necessarily choose the specific guide that everyone says is great in the reviews.
Here’s a good example of a touring company that seems to be smaller, giving you a better possibility of getting the guide everyone is praising in the comments. I’m not recommending this business, rather giving an example of what to look for in your search.
Some Things to Consider
I suggest looking into the history of obsidian in mesoamerican culture. It’s super interesting and ties into some tours of Teotihuacan. On my tour we visited a shop that sold a ton of obsidian and learned about its immense importance centuries ago in trading and practical use. Not to mention the shop gave us a thorough explanation of the agave plant and all of multipurpose qualities.
To be honest, I enjoyed this part of my tour more than the architectural site! If you’d like, maybe you could visit some shops like this on your own or take a separate tour related to obsidian and agave.
I took it upon myself to purchase a couple cool dark green obsidian pieces and a small silver sculpture the day of my visit.
My Conclusion
Teotihuacán should be on your Mexico City itinerary if you enjoy ancient history or massive pyramids. Depending on your priorities, I wouldn’t say that it’s an absolute MUST SEE. That’s just my opinion though! There is a ton of stuff to do around Mexico City, which offers a wide variety of experiences. Do what works for you.
