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    Satellite view of San Felipe y Santiago and its fields, in Jiquipilco, Estado de México

    Photo by EOX IT Services, Copernicus Sentinel data 2016, CC BY 4.0, via EOxCloudless

    San Felipe y Santiago

    Village Jiquipilco, Estado de México Municipality of Jiquipilco Northern Estado de México

    Otomí community in the Jiquipilco highlands with two patron feasts, in May and July; fourth most populous in the municipality.

    From Toluca: 40 min by car (48 km by road) How to get there ↓

    Near here

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    Plan your visit to San Felipe y Santiago

    Where to stay near San Felipe y Santiago

    Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Felipe y Santiago.

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    Tours to San Felipe y Santiago

    Day trips and guided outings from Villa del Carbón often include San Felipe y Santiago; with a local guide you can get there without a car.

    Tours from Mexico City Teotihuacan pyramids morning or afternoon without tourist traps ★ 4.9 (10,269) · From US$59
    Find tours on Viator GetYourGuide

    How to get to San Felipe y Santiago

    • From Toluca: about 40 min by road (~48 km)
    • Nearest airport: Toluca (TLC), 1 h 12 min by car to Villa del Carbón
    Rent a car at TLC Flights to TLC

    Route, map and directions ↓

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    Tours from Mexico City, near San Felipe y Santiago

    Teotihuacan pyramids morning or afternoon without tourist traps ★ 4.9 (10,269) 5 h 30 min From US$59
    Balloon flight + Breakfast in cave + Pyramids + Pick up CDMX. ★ 4.9 (8,170) 2–8 h From US$149
    Xochimilco, Coyoacan and Frida Kahlo with Optional Lunch ★ 4.5 (8,395) 9 h From US$40
    Balloon flight + pick up in CDMX + Breakfast in Cave + Pyramids ★ 4.9 (7,685) 4–7 h From US$157
    Teotihuacan Hot Air Balloon Flight from Mexico City / Volare ★ 4.8 (4,447) 3–9 h From US$144

    Tours, prices and ratings from Viator, checked weekly. We may earn a commission if you book.

    About San Felipe y Santiago

    San Felipe y Santiago is one of the 81 localities of the municipality of Jiquipilco, in the northwest of the State of Mexico, and the fourth largest of them: INEGI counted 3,280 residents in 2020. It sits about 4 km west of the municipal seat, at roughly 2,570 metres. The name is that of its two saints, Philip and James the Less, apostles martyred together. This is not a town of monuments but of highland and Otomí roots, and that is what you come for.

    Jiquipilco's municipal monograph places it on the plain that, according to tradition, held a large lake when the Otomí settled here in 1274. Mammoth bones turned up in the area, which people call giants' bones. In 1567 the viceroy granted communal lands to the Otomí of San Felipe y Santiago, and in 1856 the Lerdo Law took away their right to reclaim them. In colonial times the village belonged to the parish of San Juan Bautista de Jiquipilco, founded in 1592.

    The calendar has two feasts: 11 May for San Felipe de Jesús and 25 July for Santiago. The community has a public library and several paved roads linking it to San José del Sitio, Loma de Hidalgo and San Bartolo Oxtotitlán. Nearby are the dams and hills of the Jiquipilco ecotourism park, and the municipality is proud of its pulque fair, since the hills are full of maguey.

    How to get to San Felipe y Santiago

    Drive from Toluca: 40 min, 48 km

    San Felipe y Santiago lies about 4 km west of Jiquipilco, the municipal seat, and about 36 km straight-line from Toluca; by road allow roughly 1 hour from Toluca. The municipality's 2024 monograph lists Jiquipilco-Ixtlahuaca, Jiquipilco-Temoaya and Jiquipilco-Naucalpan among the main paved roads, plus the branches San José del Sitio-San Felipe y Santiago-San Bartolo Oxtotitlán and Loma de Hidalgo-San Felipe y Santiago. The practical route is to reach Jiquipilco first (via Temoaya or via Ixtlahuaca) and then take the road to the community.

    There is no published published bus or combi line for this locality; ask in Jiquipilco's plaza about local transport. The Pueblo Mágico of Villa del Carbón is about 22 km away, 28 minutes by car according to a locality directory (Pueblos América).

    Directions to San Felipe y Santiago on Google Maps

    Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.

    Where to stay Hotels in San Felipe y Santiago Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Felipe y Santiago. See prices →

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    From the nearest cities to San Felipe y Santiago

    Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.

    Before you go to San Felipe y Santiago: hours, prices and tips

    Best season
    The patron feasts fall on 11 May (San Felipe de Jesús) and 25 July (Santiago). Monografía municipal de Jiquipilco 2024 · checked Oct 2026

    Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.

    Visiting San Felipe y Santiago: what to see and do

    Feast of San Felipe de Jesús, 11 May
    Feast of Santiago, 25 July
    Parish of San Juan Bautista in Jiquipilco, about 4 km east
    Ecotourism park with Presa El Jabalí, Presa Verde and Cerro La Bufa, in the municipality
    Maguey fields of the highlands, base of Jiquipilco's pulque fair

    Plan your trip

    Places to stay in San Felipe y Santiago

    Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Felipe y Santiago.

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    Tours & activities

    Day trips and guided outings from Villa del Carbón often include San Felipe y Santiago; with a local guide you can get there without a car.

    Viator GetYourGuide

    Rental cars

    Pick up a car at TLC (Toluca): about 1 h 12 min by road to Villa del Carbón, then 23 km more to San Felipe y Santiago, on your own schedule.

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    Flights

    The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Toluca (TLC), about 1 h 12 min by road from Villa del Carbón, the base for San Felipe y Santiago.

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    Travel insurance

    Medical and trip cover for Mexico, by the week or month.

    SafetyWing

    Mobile data

    Signal can drop away from Villa del Carbón: download a map of the way to San Felipe y Santiago before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.

    Airalo

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    When to go to San Felipe y Santiago cool

    San Felipe y Santiago shares the climate of Villa del Carbón, 23 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and December.

    See the month-by-month climate of Villa del Carbón

    The closest Pueblo Mágico: Villa del Carbón

    Stone facade and white towers of the Peña de Francia parish, Villa del Carbón, Estado de México cool
    Estado de México Villa del Carbón

    Villa del Carbón is the Pueblo Mágico closest to San Felipe y Santiago, with places to stay, food, and more to see.

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    Closest to San Felipe y Santiago

    Near San Felipe y Santiago

    Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.

    Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.