Tenancingo

Tenancingo, also known as Tenancingo de Degollado, is a small town of about 14,000 people (2010) in Estado de Mexico, about one hour southwest of Mexico City.

Understand
Tenancingo is an old colonial city, established in 1551. Its primary tourist draws are the historic downtown churches, the Christ statue atop Three Marias Hill, the 18th-century Carmelite monastery at Desierto del Carmen, and the historic downtown area (Centro) with its main plaza, market days, and low-key vibe.

Get in
From the Central de Autobuses in Toluca, take the Flecha Roja bus to Villa Guerrero (40 minutes, M$80). From there, it's a 10-minute taxi ride to Tenancingo.

Get around
The historic downtown area is best explored on foot. Taxis are available to get you to places like Desierto del Carmen, which would be a long walk.

Do

 * Hike to the top of Cerro de las Tres Marías, with its enormous white Cristo Rey statue (Christ King), built in 1985 by Hector Morret. The path to the top of the hill requires climbing more than 1,000 steps, though there's also a paved road that might be easier. The views of the town are spectacular from the high vantage point.


 * Desierto del Carmen National Park, one of Mexico's smaller national parks, it preserves the historic Carmelite monastery as well as the surrounding forests of pine, oak, and eucalyptus. More than 100 bird species live year-round in the forests as do a number of reptiles and mammal species. Most mammals are smaller species and there have been several sightings of an animal called cacomixtl, which is similar to a ringtail or coati (which you also might see in the park). Located on the southeast side of Tenancingo, the park has miles of well marked hiking trails and three popular overlooks that provide outstanding views of the Tenoncingo Valley, the El Malinche volcano, and the nearby town. The lookouts are called Balcon de Diablo Balcon de San Miguel, and Balcon the San Elias. Although its a popular tourist site known for its historic and cultural value, the monastery is still in use — it has an active religious community and is part of the Diocese of Tenancingo.


 * Hermenguildo Galeana Park — a 343-hectare natural park with dense forests, cabins and palapas for rent, camping, hiking, and horseback riding available.


 * Parapente, known in English as paragliding, is practiced from several launch points on mountains around Tenoncingo. The best launch conditions are mornings during the dry season, from November to March.

Buy
Tenancingo is known for a wide range of handcrafts, especially rebozos (shawls), which have been made since colonial times on traditional backstrap and pedal looms. If you are interested in textiles, Tenancingo is worth some serious investigation as the town produces some of Mexico's best rebozos. Small carpentry shops in the Tenoncingo Valley fashion wood furniture, there are more than 100 small woodshops in Col. La Camapana alone.


 * Tianguis — market days are Thursday and Sunday when the streets fill with vendors setting up stands in a 5-block area downtown

Go next

 * Malinalco
 * Toluca
 * Metepec
 * Cuernavaca