Town 25 km southeast of Xilitla
A Nahua river town where the Moctezuma and Amajac meet, with a riverside market and one of the Huasteca's big Xantolo celebrations.
Tamazunchale is the gateway to the Huasteca Potosina for travelers coming north from Hidalgo, a hot, green town of about 25,000 people where the Moctezuma and Amajac rivers meet. Its name is usually traced to Tének words meaning "place of the woman who governs", a reminder that Huastec towns were sometimes ruled by women. The area was settled long before the Aztecs, who conquered it in the 15th century, and today a large part of the population is Nahua.
The town has a river-town feel: a busy riverside market, the Parroquia de San Juan Bautista, and the old three-arched bridge of the Mexico–Laredo highway that appears on the municipal coat of arms. Around it rise steep, forested mountains that are worth a drive just for the views.
Tamazunchale really comes alive at Xantolo, the Huasteca's Day of the Dead, at the start of November, with altars, music and dancers in masks filling the streets. Outside those days it is a good place to eat zacahuil and bocoles and to see everyday life in the southern Huasteca.
What to see and do
Wander the riverside market and the Parroquia de San Juan Bautista.
Look at the old three-arched bridge on the former Mexico–Laredo highway.
Come in early November for Xantolo altars, music and masked dancers.
Eat zacahuil, bocoles and other Huasteca dishes.
Getting there
Tamazunchale is roughly an hour from Xilitla by car: drive down to Highway 85 and head south. Second-class buses and colectivos also run between the towns of the Huasteca along the highway.
25 km southeast of Xilitla
Directions from Xilitla on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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Weather mild
Tamazunchale shares the climate of Xilitla, 25 km away. The best months to visit are Feb, Mar, Aug, Nov.
Make Xilitla your base
Tamazunchale is an easy trip from Xilitla, a Pueblo Mágico with places to stay, food, and more to see.
More around Xilitla
-
Nacimiento de Huichihuayán
· Nature reserve · 8 km away
The source of the Huichihuayán River, where crystal-clear water flows out of caves into shallow pools in the jungle. -
La Silleta
· Mountain · 10 km away
The saddle-shaped peak above Xilitla, the highest point in the municipality, with coffee farms on its slopes. -
Castillo de la Salud
· Landmark · 14 km away
Healer Beto Ramón's rainbow-colored herbal medicine complex in Aguacatitla, near Axtla de Terrazas: a surreal sight of its own. -
Sótano de las Huahuas
· Cave · 17 km away
A huge pit in the jungle near Tampaxal, run by a Tének community, where swifts and green parakeets fly out each morning. -
Huehuetlán
· Town · 18 km away
A quiet Huasteca town with a 17th-century parish and an ancient tree in its plaza; liveliest at the San Diego feast in November. -
Coxcatlán
· Town · 20 km away
A Huasteca town with a 17th-century church and convent, plus the Pozas de Rosendo for swimming. -
Sótano de las Golondrinas
· Cave · 27 km away
The Huasteca's most famous pit, about an hour away near Aquismón; go at dawn to see thousands of swifts spiral out.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.