Las Grutas Tolantongo: Hot Springs, Grottos, and Waterfalls

The name Las Grutas Tolantongo literally means “grottos where it feels warm.” And just as its name suggests, Las Grutas Tolantongo is a place filled with beautiful natural caves and thermal pools. It’s nestled in the Mezquital Canyon and surrounded by mountains, providing a beautiful panoramic backdrop while you relax.   

It’s become a popular spot for locals, as well as tourists visiting Mexico City. And if you do an image search of Las Grutas Tolantongo, you’ll see why! The crystal clear blue water and mountain scenery make it the perfect vacation destination for bloggers and Instagramers who want to capture the perfect shot for their followers. 

But I promise you’ll enjoy it even if you’re not there for the photos. You can simply kick back, relax, and enjoy the view!

Sections & Activities at Las Grutas Tolantongo

There are two main hot spring areas at Tolantongo. On one side you can access the tunnel, grotto, and river, and on the other you can access the thermal pools.

The thermal pools are the most popular, probably due to Instagram, but we actually preferred the tunnel, cave, and river. I preferred the natural setting and warmer temperature of the caves and river over the pools and would suggest asking your tour guide to spend more time there, if possible.

The tunnel was pretty cool. You enter through a waterfall and feel a bit like an explorer as you progress through the darkness and navigate up and down through little pools. We recommend bringing a waterproof cell phone carrier so you can take pics inside. But most importantly, you’ll want it so you can have a flashlight! It’s pretty dark in there and can be claustrophobic and slipper, so be careful!

The cave under the waterfall is also pretty cool, with pretty blue water and stalactites hanging from the ceiling. The warmest water is there and feels more like an actual hot springs.

While the hot springs are the main attraction at Tolantongo, you can also relax in regular pools, walk to a suspension bridge, hike, check out some waterfalls, and go zip lining.  

If you want to spend more time there, you can camp or stay in hotels at the park. Rooms cost anywhere from $650-$1800 MXN ($33-$90 USD). Pictures and prices are displayed on their website, but it doesn’t look like you can reserve rooms online and I read a blog that said rooms must be booked on site, which is kind of annoying. 

You can also rent a 4 person tent for $150 MXN ($7.50 USD). Though I question whether that would be a comfortable fit for 4 people. I’d probably only put 2 people in a tent that size based on the picture. I think once you have your clothes and gear in there wouldn’t be much extra room. 

How do you get there?

Las Grutas Tolantongo is about 3.5-4 hours north of Mexico City in Hidalgo, Mexico. It’s nestled in the Mezquital Canyon in the Sierra de Hidalgo mountains at an elevation of 4,200 feet.  

Most people get to Tolantongo from Mexico City through an organized group found on Tripadvisor, Viator, or Airbnb, which is what we did. We weren’t pleased with our group though. They crammed our party of 3 into a tiny car with another couple. If we did it again, we’d probably hire a driver or do a private excursion. Or for larger group excursions, I’d probably double check the size of the vehicle and space before booking. It looks like a better tour group might be Exploring the Waters of Tolantongo. 

Most organized groups charge about $100-$150 USD / person. Ours was $115 USD / person. Organized groups usually pick you up and drop you off at your hotel or a designated meeting location and include entrance tickets to a park/activity, but always best to check to make sure. Since Las Grutas Tolantongo is a 3.5-4 hour drive, expect it to be a long day and to start the day early. Our tour lasted from 6:00AM-6:00PM. We met at a hostel at 6:00AM, had a 3.5 hour drive to Tolantongo, 5 hours there (2 hours at the caves/river, 3 hours at the pools), and another 3.5 hour drive home. 

Another option, which may be preferable for those who wish to spend the night at the hot springs, would be to rent a car. You can rent a car for approximately $30-$50 USD/day. The journey is relatively easy because you pretty much stay on Mexico 85 the whole way, but you will need to bring money for tolls. You may lose cell signal on the journey. So it’s probably wise to have a picture of a map or directions printed out for backup. It is advised that people avoid driving at night. So if you are at Tolantongo late and would not be able to make it back to Mexico City before sundown, then it’s best to stay at the hotel on site and travel back the following morning. Parking onsite is $30 MXN ($1.50 USD / day).

A third option is public transportation. But this would probably be our least recommended option, as it’s more complicated and takes significantly longer and will eat into your vacation time.

I read one blog that said it can take up to 6-8 hours. It also doesn’t appear to save much money and looks like it would cost just as much, if not more than renting a car, depending on the number of people in your group.

Currently, there doesn’t appear to be a bus directly from Mexico City to Tolantango. So if you opt for public transportation you have to take a bus from Mexico City’s North Terminal Bus Station to Ixmiquilpan. And then from there you take a taxi or colectivo (shared van) to Tolontongo. Prices for the bus are approximately $300-400 MXN ($15-20 USD). Prices for a taxi from Ixmiquilpan are approximately $600-800 MXN ($30-40 USD). And prices for a colectivo from Ixmiquilpan are about $50 MXN ($2.50 USD). But if you don’t want to pay the extra cost for an organized group, don’t mind the extra travel time, and are not comfortable driving yourself, then maybe this is the option for you.

Hours & Cost

General admission to the park is $150 MXN ($7.50 USD / person / day). 

The ticket includes entry into all areas of the park, including the grotto, tunnel, river, thermal pools, general swimming pools, hanging bridge, hiking trails, and waterfalls.

The park is open from 7:00 AM – 8:00 PM. 

Parking is $30 MXN / day ($1.50 USD).

Our Experience

We want to be brutally honest about our experience. We booked our trip with an operator that we didn’t list on this page, which unfortunately we would not recommend. They crammed 5 of us (7 including the driver and guide) into a tiny car, with no leg room and very minimal room for bags/luggage. (Literally no leg room. Had to practice our yoga to fit into this vehicle.)

Our group was all pretty tall, about 6 ft. We either had our knees against the seat in front of us or sat sideways, which is doable for a short ride, but gets uncomfortable on a 4 hour drive. A clasp on Tony’s bag broke when we tried to shove it into the small trunk because there wasn’t enough room for our backpacks and the door shut on it (mind you, this is a normal backpack, not a giant suitcase).

The tour company said they were going to take us to a place where you could pick up breakfast or a snack before/after the trip, but it was really just a gas station with a small, subpar empanada shop. 

We were given 2 hours at the caves/river and 3 hours at the baths. However, by the time we changed, put on sunscreen, and stored our belongings in lockers, we really only had about 1 hour at the caves/river, which was a shame because that was my favorite part. 

I preferred the natural setting and the warmer temperature of the caves and river over the baths and would suggest asking your tour guide to spend more time there, if possible. 

The caves and river were warmer than the baths. The baths were like lukewarm bath water, but they were warmer near the top, where the water comes directly from the mountain and doesn’t have as much time to cool. Taking pictures and admiring the view at the pools was great; but it’s kind of funny that the most comfortable waters, in our opinion, were the warm waters of the caves and the rivers! So plan accordingly depending on your recomendation.

Definitely bring your own snacks/food to Tolantongo. We had lunch at a small fast food/snack place there and tried their chicharrones, which was, uh, not our favorite. If you like rubbery fat, this is for you. Perhaps, it’s better elsewhere. I’m not sure if all chicharrones taste like that, or if these were just terrible, but it definitely scared me from wanting to give it another go. Perhaps, the sit down restaurant there is better. But I wouldn’t want to waste precious minutes at a sit down restaurant given our limited time at the pools.

What to wear and bring

• Bathing suit 
• Sunscreen 
• Towel (We recommend getting microfiber towels because they pack up nice and small in a suitcase.) 
• Flip flops or water shoes (Water shoes would probably be best for the tunnel/cave portion. It may hurt your feet a bit to go barefoot. Flip flops will probably fall off in the water. And tennis shoes will get soaked!)
• Snacks (the food there isn’t great, and that way you don’t waste time when you could be in the water!) 
• Waterproof phone case (you can also purchase these there, but they can be double to triple the price)

Final Tips

• Put on your swimsuit and sunscreen before you arrive to maximize your time at the hotspring. 
• You are not allowed to take belongings other than shoes and a towel to the caves. So, you will either want to leave your belongings in your car or purchase a locker. 
• Bring cash for the lockers.
• Request to spend more time at the caves and river if possible. 
• It’s dark in the tunnel. So using a waterproof flashlight or the one on your phone. 
• The rocks can be slippery when wet, so be careful!
• While our experience could’ve been better, we highly recommend a visit! It’s a beautiful place and if you can spend the night there, do it! (Or at least make sure your tour operator is well-reviewed and well-rated! Total rookie mistake on our part…)

For more information on Las Grutas Tolantongo, check out their website here: http://www.grutastolantongo.com.mx/costos.html.