I knew we’d be exhausted after the wedding and would want a few days to relax… what started as an idea to extend our stay in Puerto Vallarta changed into a quick getaway to this place I saw on instagram, Grutas Tolantongo. The nearest airport was Mexico City so we booked a short flight and enjoy this lively city in two evenings. We roamed the Centro district and saw a few Dias de los Muertos decorations and celebrations.   

Our Mexico City hotel, Downtown was a splurge but it was too trendy and hip to pass up… especially now that this extended stay became a mini honeymoon.  

Palacio de Correos de México, the national post office was my favourite building, after our hotel. I read it was this post office that inspired Coco’s custom/immigration border building.

We also saw a Luche Libre show. It was my first live wrestling show and it was quite entertaining. The colored costumes, lively crowd and flips and tricks were comical and fun to see. 

Churros from El Moro was also to die for. It was as good as the ones I had in Spain… maybe even better because it’s been too long since my trip to Spain for a fair comparison.

I’d like to go back and spend another few days in Mexico City… I never knew that it was such a populated busy city and the largest in North America. It reminded me a lot of Lima, Ho Chi Minh City, and New York City… busy, dirty and grungy. Nonetheless, I want to see more.

Grutas Tolantongo

Not fully knowing what to expect, we were blown away with the beauty of this place and how perfect the water temperature was. Finally, luck was on our side and there were barely any international tourists and mostly locals or Mexican tourists. 

The grotto & cave tunnel

I didn’t come here for the grotto or the cave tunnel. In fact, I didn’t know much about it except that it existed. But this was without a doubt, the coolest place I have ever been in my life. The water was comfortable, my feet could touch the ground, the view of the waterfall was serene and the stalactites surroundings were remarkable.  

The tunnel was dark and mysterious but not scary as you have people also exploring with you and it doesn’t go too deep. It was really thrilling to venture in but it started to get too steamy and hard to breathe if you go too far in.

The river

It was turquoise blue and so warm. It reminded me of Havasu Falls but the water temperature was much more comfortable.  

The wells

This is the experience I came for and it didn’t disappoint. The water was so warm and clear and the wells faced a beautiful view of a mountain valley. 

A visiting Canadian who was Mexican told us that the wells are man-made on top of real natural hot springs. They were dug out larger so people could comfortably sit inside each pool.  And we luckily enjoyed these infinity pools mostly to ourselves. 

I cannot recommend this oasis, Grutas Tolantongo enough. It was just as good or even better than Havasu Falls (Arizona, USA) or Blue Lagoon (Iceland). It is still undiscovered so go now before hoards of tourists destroy it. Hire a private driver for about 6500MX for two days and only go on weekdays to avoid crowds. Hotel rooms are first-come-first-serve and very basic but clean. We stayed at the Hotel Paradiso, which was closest to the wells and a few restaurants to fill us up.