Aztecs, Toltecs and Teotihuacános
March 29 – April 8, 2025
$3,995 per person ($710 single supplement)
Between 200 B.C. and A.D. 1519, the Aztec, Toltec, and Teotihuacán cultures pushed the development of North American civilization to its zenith, before being destroyed by the Spanish invasion. On this tour, we’ll see the ancient cities and climb pyramids that rival those of Egypt. An expert on the region’s archaeology will accompany us throughout the trip.
Tour Schedule
Saturday, March 29
Join us in Mexico City, where we’ll stay four nights in the friendly Zona Rosa district with its sidewalk cafés, shops, and charming restaurants.
Meals included: Dinner
Sunday, March 30
At the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlán, now the center of Mexico City, we’ll tour the ruins of the Great Temple that were rediscovered in 1978. We will visit Aztec sites in Mexico City including the sister city of Tlatelolco. We’ll also visit Guadalupe, where Catholicism and Aztec culture merge, and the National Palace with its fabulous murals of Aztec life.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Monday, March 31
We’ll visit Tula, the great Toltec capital founded in the 10th century by Topiltzin. From Tula, the Toltec warrior class ruled a vast territory until their decline and disappearance in the 13th century.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Tuesday, April 1
We’ll spend most of the day touring the Anthropology Museum and its treasures of the Teotihuacán, Toltec, and Aztec cultures, including the huge Aztec calendar stone. Later, we’ll have time to explore the Zona Rosa.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Wednesday, April 2
We’ll travel south of Mexico City to explore the spectacular newly excavated ruins of Xochicalco, situated on a terraced hill. At the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent, we’ll see elaborate Teotihuacán-style relief carvings that reflect Maya characteristics as well. We’ll spend two evenings at a hacienda built by Cortés in 1529.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Thursday, April 3
We’ll travel to Malinalco, one of the most unusual sites in Mexico. Many of the stunning temples are carved out of the living rock, mainly by Aztecs around A.D. 1500. They are dedicated to various Aztec deities and to the orders of Jaguars and Eagles.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Friday, April 4
We’ll visit the ruins and splendid Olmec stone carvings at Chalcatzingo. One sculpture known as El Rey is still honored by local people. We’ll travel to Cholula where we’ll spend two evenings.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Saturday, April 5
Cholula once dominated the entire Puebla-Tlaxcala region, flourishing around the same time as Teotihuacán. It is best known for the Great Pyramid of Tepanapa. We’ll visit the beautiful and well-preserved Maya-influenced Cacaxtla murals found in a great palace near Tlaxcala.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Sunday, April 6
We’ll visit Puebla, Mexico’s best-preserved colonial city. The beauty of its houses and streets makes Puebla a feast of light and color. While in Puebla, we’ll visit the new archaeology museum. Later, we’ll travel to our hotel at Teotihuacán.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Monday, April 7
We’ll visit Teotihuacán, a city that flourished between 200 B.C. and A.D. 750. According to Aztec mythology, the gods came together at Teotihuacán to create the Sun and Moon. Containing 600 pyramids and a population of 200,000, it was an important center of commerce, art, and religion. We’ll spend the evening in Mexico City at the airport hotel.
Meals included: Breakfast and Lunch
Tuesday, April 8
Tour participants depart for home.
Aztecs, Toltecs & Teotihuacános
Tour Details
Cost includes first-class hotel accommodations based on double occupancy (single supplement $710), meals as shown, happy hours, admittance fees, tours, background reading, and surface travel via air-conditioned bus with restroom.
Not included are meals other than those shown and travel to and from Mexico City.
A moderate amount of walking is required. Some sites have rubble, undeveloped trails, and steep stone stairs. Climbing these stairs is necessary in order to see some of the ruins. The tour is at an altitude of 7,000 feet. People with heart or respiratory problems should consult a physician. People unaccustomed to higher altitudes sometimes experience fatigue and dizziness.
For more information about our upcoming tours, please email tours.tac@gmail.com or feel free to call us at (505) 266-1540.
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