Town 15 km southwest of Casas Grandes
A green orchard town settled by Mormon pioneers in the 1880s, with brick homes and the bilingual Academia Juárez school.
Colonia Juárez is a small, green town in a river valley southwest of Casas Grandes, and one of the most unusual places in northern Mexico. It was founded in 1886 by Mormon pioneers from the United States, who arrived in the area in 1885 and named the settlement after Benito Juárez. Many of today's residents descend from those families and grow up speaking both Spanish and English.
The town looks different from its neighbors: brick houses with gardens, tidy streets, and orchards of apples and peaches filling the valley. On a hill above it stands a white temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dedicated in 1999, a rare sight in a mostly Catholic country.
Colonia Juárez is also home to the Academia Juárez, a bilingual high school founded in 1897 that is the oldest private secondary school owned by the church. For visitors, the appeal is a quiet walk through the streets and orchards, a look at a little-known chapter of Mexican history, and fresh fruit in season.
What to see and do
Stroll the brick-lined streets and see the town's pioneer-era homes.
See the white temple on the hill above town.
See the historic Academia Juárez, founded in 1897.
Buy apples or peaches from the orchards in season.
Getting there
Colonia Juárez is about 15 kilometers southwest of Casas Grandes, roughly 20 minutes by car, and about 19 kilometers from Nuevo Casas Grandes. Taxis from either town can take you there. It also pairs well with Mata Ortiz, which lies about 14 kilometers to the south.
15 km southwest of Casas Grandes
Directions from Casas Grandes on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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Places to stay in Colonia Juárez
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Weather mild
Colonia Juárez shares the climate of Casas Grandes, 15 km away. The best months to visit are Apr, May, Oct, Nov.
Make Casas Grandes your base
Colonia Juárez is an easy trip from Casas Grandes, a Pueblo Mágico with places to stay, food, and more to see.
More around Casas Grandes
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Hacienda de San Diego
· Landmark · 16 km away
The abandoned estate of tycoon Luis Terrazas on the road to Mata Ortiz; revolutionaries regrouped here in 1911. -
Mata Ortiz
· Town · 23 km away
The pottery village that revived Paquimé ceramics: hundreds of families paint fine pots by hand and sell them from their homes. -
Cueva de la Olla
· Archaeological site · 43 km away
Cliff dwellings in a canyon cave with a giant pot-shaped adobe granary, an INAH site in the Valle de las Cuevas; free entry.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.