Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico: A Complete Visitor’s Guide

If you’re looking for all the essential details on visiting Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico, the hot springs resort on the side of a canyon, then you’ve come to the right place!

I lived in Mexico for over a year with my family, and we visited Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico during our Pan American Highway road trip.

This amazing hot springs resort area in the mountains of the Mexican State of Hidalgo is well known to Mexican tourists but less so to foreign travelers. Despite all we’ve done living in Mexico, the hot springs resort is one of our favorites!

After a lot more research and a fabulous experience, we put together this travel guide so more people, including families, can enjoy the natural beauty of Las Tolantongo Hot Springs.

We’re even planning a return trip in 2024, so here’s everything you need to know based on my personal experience as well as current research for our own future visit.

Visiting Las Grutas Tolantongo: Things to Know Video

How to Get to Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico is located in Hidalgo Mexico. The Grutas Tolantongo Mexico City drive is approximately four hours, according to the Tolantongo Mexico map on Google Maps.

It’s also about four hours from Puebla and from San Miguel de Allende.

Travel Tip: Traffic in Mexico City can add up to an hour to the transit time on a full-day trip.

This makes it just far enough away that you won’t want to go for the day unless you book a guided tour.

Most people who visit las Grutas Mexico Tolantongo stay for one or two nights. We stayed for two nights so we didn’t feel rushed seeing and doing everything, and we’ll do the same on future visits.

Getting there from the Mexico City Airport

The nearest international airport to Las Grutas de Tolantongo Hidalgo Mexico is in Mexico City (CDMX). It takes about 3.5 hours to get from the airport to the hot springs.

There are many direct flights from the United States, like New Mexico and New York, as well as other countries into CDMX International Airport.

The airport also has many car rental companies available. Driving in Mexico is pretty easy if you want to drive yourself to Grutas de Tolantongo, Hidalgo.

Driving is a great way to get to Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico. There is ample parking throughout the eco-park.

👉 I recommend Discover Cars for pre-booking a rental car to visit Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico.

We snagged a parking spot right next to our Hidalgo Mexico las Grutas de Tolantongo hotel room.

Since there is a lot of security, we didn’t even mind leaving some of our non-essential luggage in the car during our two-night stay. They don’t recommend doing that but it felt very secure.

Mexico Travel Tip: If you’re driving from further afield in Mexico, like San Cristobal or Puerto Vallarta, it’ll take a few days of driving to get to La Grutas de Tolantongo Mexico.

Getting There on a Day Trip

If you’re staying in CDMX, it is possible to take a day trip to the hot springs resort. However, it’s important to note that you won’t have much time there compared to staying overnight.

Rather than drive yourself, though, it’s much easier to take one of the Grutas Tolantongo tours. You can choose either a group tour or a private tour. Each includes a tour guide.

The sun sets a bit earlier in the mountains, and you don’t want to be the one driving the hairpin turns in the dark! Trust me on this one.

👉 I recommend the day tours below if you can only go for one day.

You can rent a locker for 150 pesos, which gets you all-day access. You can use the locker as many times as you wish.

The lockers are big enough to hold a medium-sized backpack. Upon return of your key, you will get 100 pesos back as a deposit.

Just don’t be late arriving for the designated departure times for your Grutas Tolantongo day trip.

The guides will leave without you in order to stay on schedule. Plus, it’s not fair to the rest of the group if you try and make them wait.

Getting There by Bus

You can travel by bus to Grutas Tolantongo, I don’t recommend it for family travel. There’s just too much to navigate between kids and their stuff as well as your own bags.

If you’re feeling adventurous, though, here’s how to take public transportation to Las Grutas de Tolantango from Mexico City.

Go to the North bus station and take the Ovnibus y Flecha Roja bus on platform 7 or 8 to the town of Ixmiquilpan Hidalgo City.

After arriving at Ixmiquilpan Hidalgo City, take a colectivo van from the Ixmiquilpan bus station toward the municipal garden until you get to the “Morelos Market.”

From there, walk to the north to the San Antonio parking lot colectivo/microbus station where there is a colectivo directly to Grutas Tolantongo.

How much does it cost to visit Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico?

The overall las Grutas de Tolantongo resort price costs less than you think to spend the day here. In total, we spent 3,800 pesos (~$190 USD). That’s less than $32/person daily.

If you stay overnight at Gruta Tolantongo you’re required to pay for two days of entry tickets as well as two days of parking if you drive.

💲 One-day entry ticket: 150 pesos ($7.50 USD)
💲 Parking: 30 pesos ($1.50 USD) daily
💲 Cheapest family-size hotel room: 1,000 pesos (~$50 USD) a night
💲 Upgrade to a La Gruta balcony room: 50 pesos (~$2.50 USD) a night

If you bring all your own food and stay overnight, the entrance fee for a family of four would be 300 pesos each for the two days plus 60 pesos for parking and 1000 pesos for a La Gruta hotel room.

That’s 2,260 pesos (~$114 USD) for a one-night, two-day trip.

These have spectacular views of the river! If you choose to buy meals at the restaurants, you can budget 100-200 pesos (~$5-$10) per person per meal.

If you eat all meals at Grutas Tolantongo resort for two days that would be an extra 2,400-4,800 pesos (~$120-$240 USD).

We stayed two nights in a balcony room at La Gruta and ate two meals in the restaurants there.

One night at dinner, David and I ordered sangrias for 150 pesos each. They were really good, so definitely a worthwhile splurge!

When to Visit Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

If you can, avoid visiting Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico on weekends. We were there Monday through Wednesday and it still felt a bit crowded.

According to some of the staff, it was pretty empty. So I cannot imagine it being very enjoyable if you have to wait in line for everything.

Pro Tip: By staying two weekdays, You can more easily do all the activities once on the first day and then go back to a couple of the best places on the second day of your stay.

We visited the resort in March and it was perfect! Cool in the mornings and evenings, and still in the 80s during the day.

If you go during the dry season (October to May), the weather will either be similar to our experience or a bit chillier during the day.

Since all the water is naturally warm enough to enjoy, it doesn’t really matter how cold the air is.

Wet and Dry Seasons

During the rainy season (June-September), however, the daytime temperatures can get up into the high 90s or low 100s.

This will make the thermal waters of Tolantongo Mexico feel lukewarm or cool, kind of like going to hot springs in Costa Rica.

However, eating lunch or dinner at one of the onsite restaurants may be uncomfortable. In addition, you can expect a bit of rain in the afternoons.

It won’t rain all day, every day. And you’re going to be in swimsuits anyway. Rain won’t ruin your experience.

Mexico Travel Tip: The best time to visit Hidalgo Grutas de Tolantongo hot springs really depends on your preferences.

It can be fun any time of year, as long as you visit during the week. For the same reasons as avoiding weekends, also avoid going on a holiday, like Santa Semana or between Christmas and New Year’s.

Graph Note: 25C =77F 20C = 68F 15C = 59F

What to Bring to Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

Of course, bring your swimsuit and enough changes of clothes for your stay. But there are some other essentials that may not occur to you to pack.

Here’s what we recommend to make your experience more enjoyable:

☑️ Money

You need pesos. Everything at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico is cash only, including the Grutas Tolantongo hotel rooms.

They do not take credit cards or US dollars. The nearest ATM is in a town 45-60 minutes away.

Plan your budget in advance so you have enough money for the duration of your stay.

☑️ Water Shoes

Some of the paths are rocky. Plus, the bottoms of the Grutas de Tolantogo cave and the river are uneven and rocky as well.

Water shoes are essential for every visitor unless you’re only planning to spend time in the hot pools. But that seems like a boring way to spend time at this resort.

Plan to see everything and plan to wear water shoes. Otherwise, your feet will really hurt before you’re halfway through the day. You don’t want to ruin your experience with sore feet!

☑️ Towel

It’s a water park. You need a towel. And the hotel only provides basic shower towels for use inside the rooms.

Definitely plan to bring at least a couple of towels to share if your family doesn’t have room in your luggage for everyone to bring their own.

We prefer quick-dry travel towels that roll up small and are easy to pack.

👉 Before you travel to Mexico, stock up on this eco-friendly sunscreen.

Also, bring some key pieces of sun-protective clothing. Some activities, like the tunnels and the cave, are well-shaded.

However, the thermal pools, suspension bridge, and river will expose you to the sun all throughout the day.

At a minimum, everyone in the family should have long sleeves to help with sun protection, such as long sleeve rash guards or a long sleeve swimsuit.

After spending two to three days straight in the sun, likely without enough water to drink, you will feel the effects of the sun. And it won’t be a fun ride out of the park when you leave.

☑️ Power Strip

If you have room in your luggage, take a power strip or some sort of outlet extender.

While not necessary in Mexico, it also has universal plug options so it can work on outlets anywhere in the world. This was our saving grace on our trip.

👉 We travel with this power strip that also has USB plug-in options for charging small devices.

While there were technically two outlets in the room, they each only had one plug option.

And one of those plugs was for the very essential fan to keep us cool at night. That left us with a single plug outlet to charge all our devices.

Even just charging two cell phones and a video camera, we would have had to take turns if not for our power strip. Having one anywhere you go is always a good idea.

☑️ Waterproof Phone Case

Make sure everyone with a smartphone has a waterproof case for it. We prefer pouches with neckstraps so we don’t have to hold them every moment of the day.

👉 These are the pouches with neckstraps David and I prefer.
👉 I also wear this waterproof waist pouch for all water activities.

The waist pouch has a triple zip seal and rolls down before velcroing shut. After a year of regular use, I haven’t had any issues with it.

This holds our face masks, my money, our room key, and a small sunscreen stick. I even fit a small granola bar in here in case Little Man gets “hangry” between meals.

By having a separate way to store those essentials, I have a better chance of taking good phone Tolantongo photos with nothing else in the case.

Where to Stay at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

There are several hotels on-site. All of them are cash only and do not take reservations. You just show up to get a room. We arrived at 3 PM on a Monday and got a room easily.

Travel Tip: On a weekend, you need to arrive by 8 AM in order to get a room. Otherwise, you’ll be put on a waiting list to see if a room becomes available.

There’s a budget hotel on one side of the resort near the river, tunnel, and cave. Two other hotels are located on the other side near the suspension bridge and thermal pools.

On weekends, they open two additional budget hotels to accommodate all the extra visitors.

They are strict on occupancy, so you cannot say that kids under 12 will sleep with you in one double bed.

They required us to get a room with two double beds for three people. It’s this way at all hotels located in Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico resorts.

Las Grutas Tolantongo Hotel Room Types

A budget hotel room is just the beds, a fan, some wall pegs to hang wet clothes, a few bottles of drinking water, and a bathroom.

There is no AC, no TV, no fridge, no phone, and minimal wall outlets.

No hotels in the complex offer room service. However, there are ample restaurants and you can also bring your own food.

We paid extra for a balcony room at La Gruta hotel and felt that the view and the extra space were definitely worth it.

The rooms at most other hotels in Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico are similar. However, hotel Paraiso Escondido is the exception. It offers air conditioning, wifi, and a TV in a much newer building.

With all the extra amenities, though, its cost is more than 2.5 times that of all the other hotels in the park.

Camping at Las Grutas Tolantongo

If you’re really on a budget or want a unique experience, you can actually camp on-site at Las Grutas Tolantongo.

You can bring your own equipment or rent it when you arrive. They allow you to pitch your own tent in a variety of areas within the park.

You can even rent a tent as well as other camping supplies if you don’t bring your own. They even rent camping gear like bed pads, tent stakes, and grills.

Note: The rental fee for the tent starts as soon as you rent it until 2 pm the next day. The tent rental is not for 24 hours.

In addition, they sell firewood for cooking. So if you show up and no hotel rooms are available, if you’re feeling adventurous you can camp!

There are showers, bathrooms, and changing rooms available for campers to use.

Many families seemed to set up their tents along the river, although we saw some tents near the thermal pools on the other side as well.

Thanks to the security, the personal belongings left in the tents seemed safe and undisturbed.

However, I would not recommend leaving electronics or valuables in the tents when you aren’t there. If you are camping with valuables, rent a locker for the duration of your stay.

The one drawback to the campsites is that many of the campers did not seem to use the readily available trash bins. We saw a lot of litter on the ground in the areas with many tents.

This was disappointing since the resort has numerous, clearly labeled trash bins everywhere camping is permitted.

If you camp, please be respectful and use the designated trash receptacles for your garbage.

Extra Info on Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

But wait, there’s more! Here’s some extra important info on Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico, from what it is to what to do there!

What is Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico?

Las Grutas Tolantongo, sometimes called Tolantongo Grutas, translates to “The Tolantongo Caves.”

It’s an ecological park inside a 500-foot-deep box canyon that’s part of the Valley of Mezquital.

Fun Fact: The name Tolantongo comes from the Nahuatl word Tonaltonko which translates to “home where it feels warm” or “place with warm flowing waters.”

While there are caves at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico, it is better known for the mountainside thermal water pools made famous on social media.

The Grutas Tolantongo Hot Springs is a natural wonder that has a variety of activities available from caves and rivers to pools and tunnels.

Travel Tip: The park is open every day, 365 days a year.

The waters at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico typically have a whitish-blue shade due to the high concentration of limestone in the water.

The warm water is heated by the volcanic mountains surrounding the canyon.

Most volcanoes in the area are extinct, meaning they no longer erupt. However, there is an active volcano near Puebla City, just a few hours’ drive away. It last erupted in early 2021.

Top 11.5 Things to Do at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

There is enough to do here to keep you busy for two whole days, including doing some of your favorite things more than once.

It’s a massive place, so you’ll need to use the shuttle van to get back and forth between the two zones. They are called the La Zona Gruta and El Zona Paraiso Escondido.

1. Use the Shuttle

The shuttle costs 10 pesos per person, including for kids, and runs every 10 minutes. They get you between the two zones on a faster, shuttles-only route.

If you drive yourself back and forth, you are required to take the main road up to the main entrance and back down again.

Pro Tip: They don’t tell you that there’s a six-person minimum when riding the shuttles.

If your family only has three or four people and no one else is getting on the shuttle when you do, you will be required to pay a minimum of 60 pesos.

Decide in advance if you want to wait for more passengers or pay the extra fee.

In addition, the drivers tend to be very inaccurate with counting change. They shorted me both times I paid for our rides, and I had to point it out and wait for the correct amount in change.

If you don’t have exact change when you pay, tell them (in Spanish) how much you are giving them and how much you expect to get back. For example, you give the driver a 100 peso bill.

Language Tip: “Pago cuarenta pesos. Necessito sesenta pesos de cambio” translates to “I am paying 40 pesos. I need 60 pesos in change.”

2. Thermal Pools

These pools are the main attractions in Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico.

If you’ve seen IG photos of terraced pools devoid of people, these Grutas de Tolantongo pictures were taken here. But they’re never that empty unless you get there right when they open at 7 AM.

Despite there being over 30 pools, we had to wait a bit to get one to ourselves. There are a variety of different options.

However, since most of the thermal pools aren’t very large, it was definitely our preference not to share with others.

In addition, having a kid with us who wanted to goof off, the last thing we wanted to do was accidentally splash people who wanted to simply sit and enjoy the water.

Many of the pools have waterfalls or water flowing over from the pool above. We were lucky to get one that had a waterfall flowing over a cool limestone rock formation.

It even had a little shelf inside where we could take off our water shoes without worrying about them falling off the edge of our infinity pool.

Parent Tip: If you have a floatie, don’t bring it here.

During our time at the thermal pools, we helped people retrieve an inflatable beach ball. They almost lost it for good, but the people in the pool below ours snagged it out of the air.

If you lose it over the edge of the bottom terrace, you won’t be able to get it back. The drop to the bottom of the canyon is too steep to venture down there.

3. Suspension Bridge

The entry to the suspension bridge is at the base of the thermal pools. It provides an unencumbered, panoramic view of the canyon.

The bridge is made of wooden slats, so it does sway a bit if there’s wind or a lot of people on it.

I enjoyed looking up at the thermal pools for a different viewpoint while Little Man enjoyed looking down, to see how high up we were.

If you take small children on the suspension bridge, make sure they are sure-footed enough to walk alone.

Otherwise, you may want to carry them across. It is secured on the sides with netting, so they won’t fall off.

However, the light swaying and separation of the slats can make it hard for toddlers to walk on their own.

4. The Cave

The Tolantongo caves and the adjacent tunnel are where most of the thermal waters originate in Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico.

There is a large amount of water shooting out of a fairly small opening in the ceiling of the cave.

It runs out of the cave and down into the river, where you can also swim further downstream.

Parent Tip: Because of the waterfall’s force, there is a fairly strong current in the cave. The water flow can pin them to the nets at the edge. Keep a solid hold on your kiddo(s) if they aren’t good swimmers.

Thankfully, Little Man has well-developed swimming skills. So he loved playing in the current. This is one of the spots we returned to a second time because he enjoyed it so much.

5. Secret Cave

Off to the right at the back of the main cave is a dark opening. If you don’t know it’s there, you can easily miss it.

We didn’t see it the first time and only saw it the second time when people were leaving it.

Inside that area is another cavern. The current coming out of it is VERY strong. You cannot swim against that current.

So, the resort has put a metal and rope set of handholds against the wall on the right side. Little Man held onto David’s neck with me right behind them to get past the entry.

Once you’ve done that, the second cavern gets very shallow. The water didn’t even reach Little Man’s knees.

You need a waterproof lamp to explore this area. We used the flashlight from my phone inside its waterproof case.

A lifeguard in the second room used his lamp to show us the massive waterfall and bats, both further back in the cavern than we could safely access.

6. Tunnels

For the tunnel adjacent to the cave, you walk up a set of stairs, under a small waterfall, and into a dark, long tunnel.

You will need a waterproof lamp to explore this area, too. The floor is very uneven, and there is a rope railing running along the cave wall.

The further in you go, the thicker and hotter the air feels. Just a short walk inside there is a deep-ish pool you need to enter in order to keep exploring deeper into the caves.

We didn’t enter it because Little Man said it was too hard to breathe and he wanted to turn around.

The pool looked about as deep as my torso, and had a small step to get back out again. However, the water in the cave was as hot as an actual hot tub so I didn’t want to subject Little Man to that.

As most kids are, he’s more sensitive to hot water than many adults. He dislikes when hot tubs are over 100 degrees.

Parent Tip: Skip this if you have really young kids. Or take turns so all the adults in your group can experience it.

7. Second Tunnel

Next to the suspension bridge, there is a second tunnel. It is paved with cobblestones inside, so the floor is still a bit uneven. Watch your step while traversing it in order to avoid tripping.

Parent Tip: The second tunnel is not nearly as hot or dark as the first one, which makes it great for kids to explore.

There’s a small waterfall to walk through at each end of the tunnel. In addition, at one end of the tunnel, there’s a small pool to relax or swim in for a while.

It didn’t quite reach my shoulders and had a small waterfall inside, which made it fun for Little Man to play in for a while.

Pro Tip: Do this at the height of the afternoon to help avoid getting too much sun on that side of the resort!

8. Swimming Pools

Each zone at Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico has two traditional, chlorinated swimming pools.

These pools are located in the main area next to the hotels. They are also watched closely by several lifeguards.

One pool on each side has a shallow and a deep end that is clearly marked with a floating rope separating them.

They are great for the smaller kids or those who prefer swimming somewhere that doesn’t have a current.

One pool in each zone also is much deeper. This pool has a jumping platform, similar to the platforms seen at cenotes in the Yucatan peninsula.

These platforms are a hit with older kids and adults alike.

The pools in Zona El Paraiso Escondido are a bit bigger than the pools in Zona La Gruta.

In addition, one of the pools in Paraiso has a large water slide that is open Saturdays and Sundays from 1-3 PM.

Since we didn’t go on a weekend, we didn’t get to try it. However, it looks really fun!

9. River

The thermal river is comprised of a series of terraced pools that run over rocks down a gentle hill. Swimming in warm river waters is a lot of fun!

It’s really long and offers a wide variety of places to swim.

Because the small particles of magnesium salts make the river a whitish-blue color, you cannot see the bottom anywhere in the river.

Note: The river doesn’t get very deep. Little Man was easily able to touch the bottom a majority of the time.

Little Man’s favorite part of the river was climbing the rocks between the sections.

We walked to the very end of the swimmable area and he climbed eight sets of rocks back up toward our hotel.

10. Zip Line

This is the only activity that is not included in the daily entry cost for Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico.

☑️ Cost: 200 pesos (~$10 USD)
☑️ Weight Limit: Maximum 95 kg (209 lbs)
☑️ Age Limit: Minimum age is 10 years old
☑️ What’s Included: Ride a series of four lines.

We didn’t zip line because Little Man wasn’t old enough, and he would have been mad if one of us did it without him.

If you do decide to zip line, you’ll be treated to amazing views of the forest as well as the canyon.

Some people we talked to at the zip line entrance said it was their second time doing it that day.

One day even said it was the best zip lining he’s done in Mexico. So if you try it, contact us to let us know how you liked it!

11. Hiking

There are dirt walking trails between La Gruta and El Paraiso Escondido. You can trek them between zones instead of taking the shuttle if you wish.

If you’re feeling adventurous or need a break from aquatic activities, this is a great option.

The trails offer great views of the forest as well as the plant and animal life that live in the area. They’re a nice walk.

In addition, the trails aren’t so steep that kids can’t navigate them or that you’d need special shoes.

You can walk them in your water shoes. It’s a relaxing change of pace since very few people take advantage of this activity.

11.5 La Gloria Tolantango

There is a second nature park that you can visit between the cave and the swimming part of the river. It’s called La Gloria Tolantango, after the waterfalls adjacent to the Tolatongo caves.

This nature park isn’t part of Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico. There is a separate, cement walking bridge connecting the two resorts. It costs an additional 150 pesos to visit.

They have their own pools and thermal springs to enjoy. You can also take a 20-minute hike through lush vegetation to see a spectacular waterfall and Hidalgo natural pools.

Travel Tip: If you visit La Gloria Tolantango, make sure to take bug repellent. While Grutas Tolantongo doesn’t have a mosquito problem, La Gloria certainly does!

Important Travel Tips for Las Grutas Tolantongo

☑️ Stock up on essentials in Ixmiquilpan.

This is the last town before you get to the resort. Here you will see a lot of shops selling water shoes, waterproof phone cases, and floaties.

If you’ve forgotten to pack shoes or phone cases, this is an excellent place to get them.

My waterproof phone pouch had gotten lost, so I bought a new one here for 100 pesos (~$5 USD). The zip seal isn’t as good as the ones from Amazon, but it didn’t leak during our adventure so I was happy.

☑️ Skip the floaties.

We already had a tire-shaped floatie packed so we didn’t buy one in Ixmiquilpan. We did use it for a little while the first time we visited the river.

However, after Little Man tired of it, the floatie often got grabbed by the wind and floated downriver without us. I had to prop it up on the side of the river by a rock so it didn’t blow away.

Overall, while Little Man enjoyed it for a short time I felt it was more effort to keep track of it than fun to use.

So I wouldn’t recommend buying a floatie unless your kid is used to water wings and you’ve forgotten to pack them.

☑️ Learn some Spanish.

Or have a good translation app on your phone. Surprisingly, very few local staff members speak English, including restaurant servers, guest services, and hotel reception employees.

Although this is a tourist destination, most visitors are Mexican. During our visit, less than 10% of the visitors we saw were foreigners.

More of the Mexican guests we encountered spoke English than the on-site workers.

Be prepared to immerse yourself in the Mexican culture and language on this visit. It’s part of the adventure!

☑️ Bring Your Own Food.

Bring your own food, at least for breakfast or snacks. The restaurants at the resort aren’t terribly expensive.

However, they all basically serve the same thing. Picky eaters who don’t like Mexican food will have a hard time here.

Packing Tip: Easy-to-pack food items include bananas, granola bars, cereal with individual-size shelf-stable milk, and pop tarts. Bread, peanut butter, and Nutella are also easy.

There was one restaurant on the La Gruta side that served hot cakes for breakfast (it was also the only restaurant that served burgers at lunch and dinner), but it wasn’t the closest to our room up on top of the hill.

Little Man does enjoy cheese quesadillas and barbacoa so we didn’t have any issue with lunch or dinner.

☑️ Get a cooler for cold food.

If you bring cold food, make sure you have a cooler to store it. You can buy bags of ice at the tent rental shop to keep food cold. There are also a couple of small convenience stores on site.

We had some cold food and freezer packs in our cooler but made sure to use all the cold food before the packs reached room temperature.

They lasted about 24 hours, through breakfast on our first morning at Las Grutas Tolantongo hot springs.

Map of Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico

As you can see from the Grutas de Tolantongo map, this resort complex is pretty massive. In my opinion, a day trip to the Hidalgo Mexico hot springs is not enough time to enjoy it in a relaxing way.

You’ll either need to skip an activity if you go at a leisurely pace or you won’t be able to do anything you really enjoyed a second time.

We did the river on the afternoon we arrived at Gruta de Tolantongo, and then the cave and the tunnel first thing after breakfast.

Because we’re raising a hobbit, we had to go back to the room for snack time before heading to the los Grutas de Tolantongo swimming pools at La Gruta.

Then, we took the shuttle over to El Paraiso Escondido to explore the thermal pools, suspension bridge, the other tunnel, and the other swimming pools, as well as have lunch. Not necessarily in that order.

Pro Tip: To make the most of your visit to Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico, plan your activities so you only have to go back and forth between the two zones once.

To be honest, we would have been happy to have stayed one night and left after that. We could have easily made it to another nearby city in Mexico before dark if we’d left that second day at 2 PM.

However, staying the second night allowed us to enjoy the river and the Grutas de Tolotongo cave on the La Gruta side a second time the next day.

Little Man loved being able to pick our daily activity schedule, and we enjoyed giving him the freedom to be in charge.

Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico: FAQs

Do you still have questions about Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico? Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about the resort.

Final Thoughts: Is Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico Worth Visiting?

Definitely yes! I’ve never met someone who didn’t recommend a visit to Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico.

Keep in mind that Grutas Hidalgo Tolantongo is not perfect. The litter on the ground and the opportunistic shuttle drivers do detract from the overall ambiance.

However, you will certainly be treated to an authentic Mexican tourist experience in a very beautiful place.

Important Note: Visitors staying overnight, in both the campground and the Tolantongo Hotel Mexico, tend to play loud music at times.

We loved that part of it, actually. It’s authentically Mexico. There is no music permitted at night, though. So you’ll still get a quiet night’s sleep.

I’ve also noticed some adult travelers complaining that kids run all over at the park. Again, we loved that as well. After all, our kid was one of the ones doing the running.

When we visited Grutaa de Tolantongo, there were a lot of kids but they weren’t out of control. Exhuberance in kids shows that they are having a good time and that it’s a great place for families to visit!

Las Grutas Tolantongo Mexico might not be an ideal place for adult solo travelers who want constant peace and quiet though.

Despite being an eco-park Mexico Grutas Tolangongo does feel more like a family water park in many ways.

Despite the minor negative issues I mentioned, I do highly recommend Las Grutas Tolantongo México for families to visit. Grutas Tolantongo Hidalgo México is a popular tourist destination for good reason!

We had a great time and hope to return again someday to Tolotongo in order to enjoy it all over again!