Santa María del Oro (Durango)

Santa María del Oro (Durango) is a small, historic gold mining town in Durango, Mexico. It has been designated as one of the country's Pueblos Mágicos.

History
Santa Maria del Oro was founded on August 14, 1758, when Don Pedro Manuel de Acosta granted lands for the establishment of a mission for the Mercedarian friars to be named Our Lady of the Mercies (Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes). Gold was discovered soon after, and by the end of the 18th century, the town's population had burgeoned and the former mission was elevated in status to parish church (parroquia).

By car
It's about 340 km from Durango (Durango) to Santa María del Oro and will take about 4 hours to drive. Take federal highway MEX 45 towards Parral. Near the kilometer 284 marker (in El Carrizo), you'll turn left onto the road to Santa Maria del Oro (Durango state highway 44).

By bus
Valle del Guadiana has buses from Durango that make the trip to Santa Maria del Oro in 3 hours, 40 minutes. A one-way ticket costs M$432 (Mar 2023).
 * , located on Av. Mexico at the corner of Robles in Colonia La Compuerta. You can't miss it: it's a big ugly concrete block of a building that says "Camiones el Oro".

Get around
It's a very small town. Walking is best within town. Taxis are good for places further out.

Eat
A typical regional dish served in Santa Maria del Oro is called El Sapo. It's like a sope in that it's a very thick tortilla of soft maize, fried in lard, and then topped by a stew of chilis and veggies.

Go next

 * Guanaceví
 * Mapimi