Avenue of the Dead

What is the Avenue of the Dead?

The Avenue of the Dead, the Calzada de los Muertos, is the 40 m wide axis of Teotihuacan. About 2 km of it is open to walk, from the Ciudadela to the Plaza of the Moon. The whole avenue ran about 5 km. 80 platforms line the open stretch.

It points 15°25’ east of north, at Cerro Gordo. INAH dates the layout to 150 to 225 CE. The builders canalised the San Juan River to cross it. The ground rises about 27 m from the Ciudadela to the Plaza of the Moon, so you walk it uphill from the south.

The name is Mexica. They took the platforms on both sides for tombs; the buildings were palace residences. INAH’s map also gives the Nahuatl name, Miccaotli.

How to walk the Avenue of the Dead from Gate 1

From the gate: Gate 1, Puerta 1 on INAH’s map, 710 m and 10 minutes to the Ciudadela at the south end of the Avenue. Metres and minutes on this page are measured on the map; the trail distances and durations are INAH’s.

Tickets are sold at the booth at Gate 1: MX$210 for international visitors and MX$105 if you carry a Mexican ID. Sundays are free for nationals and residents; the tickets page has the exemptions. Your ticket covers the three site museums. Since late April 2026 every gate has a bag inspection.

From the Ciudadela you walk north. The Pyramid of the Sun is 1.6 km and 21 minutes away on the east side. The Pyramid of the Moon is 1.0 km and 14 minutes further. That is 35 minutes of walking without a stop, uphill by 27 m.

INAH tells you to start at the Ciudadela. You leave by Gate 3 at the Plaza of the Moon, 530 m from the Pyramid of the Moon. The Explorer’s Trail leaves by Gate 5, next to the Museum of Teotihuacan Culture.

Buses from Terminal del Norte, the Terminal Central de Autobuses del Norte, stop at Gate 1 and Gate 2. The return bus leaves from Gate 2 every 15 minutes.

INAH trails along the Avenue of the Dead

Three of the seven trails in the free INAH digital guide use the Avenue, and the longest is 5 to 6 km.

• Explorer’s Trail: Gate 1 to Gate 5, 5 to 6 km, 4 to 5 hours. It walks the whole Avenue north, then comes back to the Pyramid of the Sun and the museum.

• Quick Trail: Gate 2 to Gate 3, 2 km, 45 minutes to 1.5 hours. It passes the Pyramid of the Sun and the Puma Mural to the Plaza of the Moon, the northern 1.0 km only.

• Accessible Trail: from Gate 4, 2 km, 2 to 2.5 hours, with no steps. It takes you to the Plaza of the Moon, the Pyramid of the Sun and the Museum of Teotihuacan Culture.

Things to see along the Avenue of the Dead

Five stops line the 2 km from the Ciudadela to the Plaza of the Moon, and the first is 710 m from Gate 1.

The Ciudadela is a square of four platforms, about 400 m a side, round the Temple of the Feathered Serpent. The temple is the third-largest pyramid in the city. Its west façade keeps the original sculpted heads.

North of the Ciudadela the Avenue crosses the bed of the San Juan River. Here you pass the Superimposed Buildings and the West Plaza Complex, a plaza with three pyramidal bases and an altar. The Pyramid of the Sun, 65 m high, is on the east side opposite Gate 2.

The Puma Mural is on the east side, your right walking north, about 100 m south of the Plaza of the Moon, under a shelter. It was found in the 1963 excavations.

At the north end the Palace of Quetzalpapálotl sits off the south-west corner of the Plaza of the Moon. It was built 450 to 650 CE and reconstructed by Jorge Acosta in 1962 to 1964. The Pyramid of the Moon, 45 m high, closes the Avenue.

When is the best time to walk the Avenue of the Dead?

Walk it from 08:00, when the gates open, and be at the Plaza of the Moon before 10:30. INAH puts the hottest hours at 11:30 to 15:30. INAH’s visitor guide says nothing about shade along the Avenue. It tells you to bring sunscreen, a hat and a reusable bottle.

By the sun: in at Gate 1 at 08:00, the Ciudadela by 08:30, the Plaza of the Moon before 10:30, the Museum of Teotihuacan Culture by 11:30.

Water is sold at Gate 3, by the Plaza of the Moon, and at the Museum of Teotihuacan Culture by Gate 5. Toilets are at Gate 3 and the museum; the official map also marks them at Gate 1, Gate 2 and Gate 5. Last entry is 16:30 and the zone closes at 17:00. INAH lists Tuesday and Wednesday as the quieter days.

Where is the best view of the Avenue of the Dead?

From the first platform of the Pyramid of the Moon you look straight down the 2 km of the Avenue. The Pyramid of the Sun is on the east side, the Ciudadela at the far end.

INAH reopened that first platform to climbers on 19 May 2025, and nothing higher. It advises you not to climb with heart problems, high blood pressure or a recent operation. The Pyramid of the Sun cannot be climbed. The dated rules for both pyramids are on the climbing page.

The INAH visitor guide has the seven trails and the map.