Archaeological site Tlacolula de Matamoros, Oaxaca Municipality of Tlacolula de Matamoros Central Valleys of Oaxaca
A Zapotec hilltop city with a big ball court, a maze-like palace and a fortress lookout over the Tlacolula Valley.
From Oaxaca: 30 min by car (35 km by road) How to get there ↓
Near here
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Plan your visit to Yagul
Tours to Yagul
A guide brings Yagul to life: look for tours from Mitla that include the site and the ride there.
Tlacolula, Tlacochahuaya and Yagul Market Sunday
★ 4.0 (2) · From US$121
How to get to Yagul
- From Oaxaca: about 30 min by road (~35 km)
- 10 km northwest of Mitla
- Nearest airport: Oaxaca (OAX), 47 min by car to Mitla
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Popular tours to Yagul
Tours, prices and ratings from Viator, checked weekly. We may earn a commission if you book.
About Yagul
Yagul is a Zapotec city spread over a rocky hill just off the highway between Oaxaca and Mitla. People lived here from a few centuries before Christ, but most of what you see dates from about 1250 until the Spanish conquest, when Yagul was the capital of its own small kingdom with several thousand inhabitants. After the conquest its people were moved down to the valley, to what became Tlacolula.
The site has three parts. On the lower terraces are the ceremonial buildings, including one of the largest ball courts in Oaxaca and the Palace of the Six Patios, a warren of rooms and courtyards where the rulers lived. Above them, on the cliffs, is the fortress, a hilltop refuge with walls and a lookout that takes in the whole Tlacolula Valley, from the mountains around Teotitlán to the fields toward Mitla.
The hills around Yagul matter even more than the ruins. Caves and rock shelters here, such as Guilá Naquitz, hold some of the earliest evidence of plant domestication in the Americas, and in 2010 UNESCO listed the area as the Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla. The site is quiet and rarely crowded, which makes it a good stop on the way to or from Mitla.
How to get to Yagul
Drive from Oaxaca: 30 min, 35 km
Yagul is about 15 minutes west of Mitla on Highway 190 toward Oaxaca; a signed turnoff leads about a kilometer north to the entrance. Buses and colectivos running between Oaxaca and Mitla can drop you at the turnoff, then it is an uphill walk. It is an INAH site with an entry fee, usually open daily from morning until late afternoon; check before going.
10 km northwest of Mitla
Directions from Mitla on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to Yagul
- Oaxaca · 35 km by road, 30 min
- Tuxtepec · about 170 km by road, ~2 h 30 min
- Salina Cruz · 213 km by road, 2 h 35 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Before you go to Yagul: hours, prices and tips
- Hours
- Open daily 8 am to 5 pm; last entry at 4 pm. INAH · checked Oct 2026
- Entry
- 210 pesos for foreign visitors, 105 for Mexicans and foreign residents. Free on Sundays for Mexicans, and always free for Mexican children under 13, students and teachers. INAH · checked Oct 2026
- Rules
- No smoking, no food and no pets. There are toilets and parking. INAH · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting Yagul: what to see and do
Stand in the ball court, one of the largest in the Oaxaca Valley.
Get lost in the rooms and patios of the Palace of the Six Patios.
Climb to the fortress at the top for the view over the Tlacolula Valley.
Look for the carved stone tombs on the lower terraces.
Plan your trip
Tours & activities
A guide brings Yagul to life: look for tours from Mitla that include the site and the ride there.
Rental cars
Pick up a car at OAX (Oaxaca): about 47 min by road to Mitla, then 10 km more to Yagul, on your own schedule.
Flights
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Oaxaca (OAX), about 47 min by road from Mitla, the base for Yagul.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Mitla: download a map of the way to Yagul 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. Hotel names from OpenStreetMap.
When to go to Yagul mild
Yagul shares the climate of Mitla, 10 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and December.
See the month-by-month climate of Mitla
Weather in Yagul now and the next 7 days
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Chance of rain is the day's highest.
Make Mitla your base
Yagul is an easy trip from Mitla, a Pueblo Mágico with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
- Capulálpam de Méndez · Oaxaca · 38 km away
Closest to Yagul
-
Tlacolula · Town · 3 km away
-
Lambityeco · Archaeological site · 5 km away
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Santa Ana del Valle · Town · 5 km away
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San Bartolomé Quialana · Town · 8 km away · Oaxaca
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San Marcos Tlapazola · Town · 9 km away
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San Juan Guelavía · Town · 10 km away · Oaxaca
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Teotitlán del Valle · Town · 11 km away
-
Santiago Matatlán · Town · 12 km away
Near Yagul
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Lists with Yagul
Ruins in Oaxaca · 12 Ruins near Oaxaca · 6Something wrong or missing on this page? Suggest a fix or addition
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.