The Most Beautiful Place in Mexico

With a couple reservations

All photographs ©Brian L Overcast

A hidden corner of La Gloria at Tolantongo. Did I just see a hobbit disappear under that waterfall?

My first reservation about this place called Tolantongo was that you can’t make reservations. I am one of those people who enjoy the planning of a trip almost as much as the journey itself. I started by searching for “Tolantongo Hidalgo” in Booking.com. Nothing. Finally, I just picked up the phone and called the water park. “We don’t make reservations, first come, first serve.” “Cash only, no credit cards.” Seriously?!

The closest town to Tolantongo is Ixmiquilpan which is three hours north of Mexico City. Since being discovered through Instagram and social media over the last 10 years, Tolantongo has become a trendy weekend getaway for “chilangos.” (No offense, please, but this is how the rest of Mexico most commonly refers to CDMX dwellers). Since the metropolitan area of Mexico City contains 22.5 million people, you can see how this could lead to some o…