Amecameca de Juárez is a sleepy town of 31,000 people (2010) south of Mexico City, in the State of Mexico between Mexico City and the Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl volcanos of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. This area is popular with weekend visitors from Mexico City, Puebla and Morelos to enjoy the scenery of the mountains, eat local foods, visit the Sanctuary of the Señor del Sacromonte, the Panohaya Hacienda and other attractions. It is on the Ruta de los Volcanes tourist route.
Amecameca has an old and beautiful church, the Parish of the Asunción, on the zocalo. The town lies near the Ixtaccihuatl and Popocatepetl volcanoes, and is the most convenient place from which to head up to climb Ixtaccihuatl.
Amecameca is fairly close to Puebla and to Mexico City. To get to or from the town by bus, one first travels to the big freeway interchange where the 150 and 115 freeways intersect, near the town of Chalco; tickets for this point may be referred to as tickets to "Chalco" or "Los Cocos," and it may be necessary to remind the driver to stop there. Once at this interchange, you must walk across the freeway or along an overpass to get to the correct strip of dirt where one catches the next bus. This can be dangerous. It would not be a good idea to attempt it at night, and there is no way to figure out which location to go to without asking people. Buses to Amecameca have signs saying "Ameca."
In Amecameca, colectivos stop at the north side of the zocalo. The station for big buses is a few blocks northwest of the zocalo, on the street that cuts diagonally across the grid of city streets and connects the town to the 115 highway.
From Toluca: Get to Lerma passing through La Marquesa, go to Mexico City through Constituents, towards the Periférico, go through Mixcoac and Circuito Interior towards Churubusco, reach Calzada Ermita Iztapalapa that connects with Santa Martha Acatitla, highway to Puebla until the deviation to Chalco, continue on the Federal highway to Amecameca.
From Mexico City: Get to Blvd. Puerto Aéreo to Calzada Ignacio Zaragoza, pass Canal de San Juan and Santa Martha Acatitla. Head along the highway to Puebla until the turnoff to Chalco, traveling along the Federal highway to Amecameca.
From Guerrero: From Chilpancingo head towards Tequesquitengo, go through the junction of the same name towards Galeana, go to Cuautla and take a detour towards Amecameca.
From Hidalgo: From Pachuca, go to El Dorado at the San Cristóbal junction, take to San Cristóbal Ecatepec, at the Los Reyes junction towards C. Mexiquense, turn off to Periférico, passing the Aragón junction and Av. 602 until Calzada Ignacio Zaragoza, go along the highway to Puebla until the turnoff to Chalco, following the Federal highway to Amecameca.
From Michoacán: From Morelia going to Tarímbaro, go through the Morelia, Maravatío and Contepec junctions, at the San Juanico junction take to Atlacomulco and to Toluca continuing towards Mexico City. Once there, take Constituent Avenue, turn off at Periférico passing Mixcoac and Circuito Interior, reach Calzada Ermita Iztapalapa towards Santa Martha Acatitla, continuing along Calzada Ignacio Zaragoza, highway to Puebla until the turnoff to Chalco, continue along the Federal highway until you get to Amecameca.
The town is small enough to be easily walkable, but there are also taxis, as well as lots of ciclotaxis on the streets.
Alpinists with the necessary equipment and experience will usually pass through Amecameca on their way to climb Iztaccíhuatl in Iztaccíhuatl-Popocatépetl National Park. (It has not been possible to climb Popocatépetl since it began showing renewed volcanic activity in 1994.) Register for your climb at the national park office above the Hotel San Carlos; they will give you paperwork to fill out, but you don't pay them any money. The next step is to hire a taxi up to Altzomoni Lodge or La Joya. The driver will know to stop at the visitor's center at the Paso de Cortes, where you will pay your fees and, if you're staying at the Altzomoni Lodge, obtain a key. The Altzomoni Lodge may be full, and it may be difficult to learn this without heading up to the Paso do Cortes. An alternative base of operations, which may in fact be preferable, is the Grupo de Los Cien hut higher up on the mountain, which is unlocked and free. Altzomoni has bunk beds, electricity, fireplaces, and toilets, but no potable water. The Grupo de los Cien hut is a bare-bones alpine hut, offering only shelter against the wind and weather. In an emergency, it would also be possible to take shelter inside the semi-enclosed shack at La Joya that serves as a taco stand on some weekends. Information about climbing Ixtaccihuatl is available on summitpost or in Secor's Mexico's Volcanoes: A Climbing Guide. The climb requires an ice ax and crampons, and can be done either in two days (with one or more nights at the Grupo de los Cien hut) or in one long day. Because of the high altitude of 5230 m (17,160 ft), climbers typically acclimatize first by climbing La Malinche or Nevado de Toluca.
There is a large supermarket in the center of town. An open-air market lies along the eastern side of the zocalo.
Market days are Monday, Wednesday and Sunday when the town is covered in portable stalls in a tradition called the tianguis.
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