Village Villa del Carbón, Estado de México Municipality of Villa del Carbón Valley of Mexico Northern Estado de México
The hillside village founded in 1935 by the people flooded out of San Luis de las Peras; Señor del Quejido feast and boats on the dam.
From Mexico City: 1 h 15 min by car (76 km by road) How to get there ↓
Near here
See everything nearby ↓
Plan your visit to San Luis Taxhimay
Where to stay near San Luis Taxhimay
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Luis Taxhimay.
Tours to San Luis Taxhimay
Day trips and guided outings from Villa del Carbón often include San Luis Taxhimay; 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
How to get to San Luis Taxhimay
- From Mexico City: about 1 h 15 min by road (~76 km)
- Nearest airport: Toluca (TLC), 1 h 12 min by car to Villa del Carbón
Links open a partner site. We may earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.
Tours from Mexico City, near San Luis Taxhimay
Tours, prices and ratings from Viator, checked weekly. We may earn a commission if you book.
About San Luis Taxhimay
San Luis Taxhimay is the new village of people who lost the old one. Until the 1930s their families lived down in the valley at San Luis de las Peras, a 16th-century Otomí village that now lies under the Taxhimay reservoir. The community tells its own story on its website: Otomí settlers began arriving in 1539, Luis Santiago organised the settlement around 1553, and in 1594 Fray Luis López started the church of San Luis Rey de Francia. Local tradition adds that a flood once left logs jammed on the riverbank; when a woodcutter named Toribio swung his axe into one he heard it groan, and in its place the villagers found a figure of Christ, the Señor del Quejido, "Lord of the Groan", who got a chapel of his own on the spot.
On 14 October 1933 the residents were expropriated to make way for a dam to irrigate farmland in Hidalgo. On 6 June 1935 they said goodbye to the village in a procession and moved up the hill to start again, and their houses ended up more than 20 m under water. Today San Luis Taxhimay sits in the north of Villa del Carbón municipality at about 2,250 m, with 2,599 residents in 2020. Its devotion has not changed: the parish of Nuestro Señor del Quejido draws pilgrims every week, and its feast on 25 December is the busiest day of the year.
Much of the village makes its living from the reservoir. The community runs a cooperative, Monhua, plus a hotel, palapa restaurants and eateries along the shore, and boats leave from there for the towers of the drowned church and chapel, which show more or less depending on the water level. Around the dam there is trout and carp fishing, kayak rental, horseback riding and mountain biking.
How to get to San Luis Taxhimay
Drive from Mexico City: 1 h 15 min, 76 km
San Luis Taxhimay is about 24 km north of central Villa del Carbón on the state road that runs from Villa del Carbón toward the Hidalgo state line, roughly 25 to 45 minutes depending on traffic. From Mexico City there are two ways in: the Periférico Norte, Atizapán and Nicolás Romero to Villa del Carbón (about two hours), or the México–Querétaro highway to Tepeji del Río in Hidalgo and then about 13 km west to the village (around 76 km and 1 h 15 min from the Zócalo without traffic). By bus, services to Villa del Carbón leave from the Cuatro Caminos or El Rosario Metro stations (about 40 pesos), and from Villa del Carbón taxis and combis go out to the dam; agree on a pickup time for the way back.
Directions to San Luis Taxhimay on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
Links open a partner site. We may earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.
From the nearest cities to San Luis Taxhimay
- Mexico City · 76 km by road, 1 h 15 min
- Pachuca · 92 km by road, 1 h 30 min
- San Juan del Río · 105 km by road, 1 h 30 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Before you go to San Luis Taxhimay: hours, prices and tips
- Best season
- The Señor del Quejido feast is on 25 December. On the reservoir, how much of the drowned village shows depends on the water level: in the dry season it drops and more ruins appear, including the old Hacienda Taxhimay. Parroquia Señor del Quejido, San Luis Taxhimay; Grupo Animal · checked Oct 2026
- Guide or tour
- No guide needed; local operators on the shore run boat rides out to the towers, and kayaks can be rented too. Tours: Viator GetYourGuide Grupo Animal · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting San Luis Taxhimay: what to see and do
The parish church of Nuestro Señor del Quejido, heart of the village's devotion and of its 25 December feast.
The towers of San Luis Rey de Francia and the Señor del Quejido chapel rising out of the Taxhimay reservoir.
A boat ride from the shore out to the towers of the drowned village.
The community cooperative's palapa restaurants by the water, serving farmed trout and carp.
Kayaks, rowing boats, horses and mountain-bike trails around the reservoir.
Plan your trip
Places to stay in San Luis Taxhimay
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Luis Taxhimay.
Tours & activities
Day trips and guided outings from Villa del Carbón often include San Luis Taxhimay; with a local guide you can get there without a car.
Rental cars
Pick up a car at TLC (Toluca): about 1 h 12 min by road to Villa del Carbón, then 14 km more to San Luis Taxhimay, on your own schedule.
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 Luis Taxhimay.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Villa del Carbón: download a map of the way to San Luis Taxhimay before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
Links open a partner site. We may earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.
When to go to San Luis Taxhimay cool
San Luis Taxhimay shares the climate of Villa del Carbón, 14 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and December.
See the month-by-month climate of Villa del Carbón
Weather in San Luis Taxhimay now and the next 7 days
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Chance of rain is the day's highest.
The closest Pueblo Mágico: Villa del Carbón
Villa del Carbón is the Pueblo Mágico closest to San Luis Taxhimay, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
- Jilotepec · Estado de México · 19 km away
- Tepotzotlán · Estado de México · 23 km away
- Aculco · Estado de México · 56 km away
- Teotihuacán · Estado de México · 60 km away
- Huichapan · Hidalgo · 65 km away
Closest to San Luis Taxhimay
-
Presa Taxhimay · Lake · 2 km away
-
Santiago Tlapanaloya · Village · 6 km away
-
Tepeji del Río · Town · 9 km away
-
Arcos del Sitio · Landmark · 10 km away
-
Peñas de Dexcaní Alto · Mountain · 13 km away
-
Chapa de Mota · Town · 14 km away
-
México Chiquito · Nature reserve · 14 km away
-
Presa Requena · Lake · 14 km away
Near San Luis Taxhimay
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.