The hot spring is only 15 minutes’ walk from Mexico City International Airport.
The nearly forgotten spring provides sacred water continuously gushing from the age of Tenochtitlan of the Aztec Empire, which is the precursor of Mexico City.
15-minute walk from airport
I do not understand Spanish, somehow, except for some words related to hot springs.
I was gazing at Google Maps, and found the interesting name of a block, Peñón de los Baños (Rock of the Baths), next to Mexico International Airport.
This is the pavement from the Terminal 1 to the station, Terminal Aérea of the Metro Line 5.
Passing by the station, I crossed the footbridge to the other side of Puerto Aéreo BoulevaRoad
It is often true all over the world that areas around the airport have a security problem.
The land price is generally kept lower due to the noise, which leads to the low-income area.
Some people say that the next station, Oceania, has an insecure neighborhood, so be careful after dark.
The streets are on the gradual slope.
Later on I realized the hidden meaning of the slope.
The information board hanged on an apartment’s wall shows Baños Medicinales del Peñón, which means the medical bath of the rock.
Seemingly there is a public bath as the block is named.
Aztec hidden gem
They open from 6am to 8am. No regular holidays.
The rate is 215 pesos per person & hour.
When I was wondering whether to enter or not, I found this notice.
This is an analysis report of the water issued by the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
I decided my mind because I made sure that this was a mineral hot spring.
Going through the quiet courtyard, I felt escaping from the urban jungle.
In this small space, the collapsing 18th chapel fits in this small space.
It is dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
I wondered if there was a relationship between this temple and hot springs.
Waiting space is the corridor of the old apartment; meanwhile, a private tub becomes filled with the water.
I did a search for the history of the place, and found out the surprising fact.
In the 14th century when the Aztec Empire enjoyed prosperity, the place of Mexico City was covered by the huge Lake Texcoco, around 2,100 square miles.
The capital of the empire, Tenochtitlan, was known as a floating city near the west bank.
In 1521, the conquistador Hernán Cortés devastated Tenochtitlan, while the Lake Texcoco has been almost reclaimed, with the exception around Xochimilco.
The gradual slope I waked from the airport turned out to be a trace of a remote island in the lake.
From back then, the hot spring has been gushing on the rocky island, which has been used for the medical use by emperors including Moctezma II of the Aztec and Maximilian I of Mexico.
With the progress of the disorganized urbanization, most people seem to forget the great, but the water does not stop.
It can be said that the Aztec Empire’s hidden hot spring is only 15 minutes’ walk from the gateway of Mexico.
A staff leaded me to the small bathroom like a jail cell.
There are two massage beds and a toilet in the room.
The tub is tiled with marble stones, which is fed by yellowish mineral water.
The water is around 115 degrees F at the gushing point, is naturally chilled around 108 degrees F in the tub.
The pooled water is not so hot, but you can freely add fresh hot watery.
The water discharge is only from the bottom of the tub, so you need to take care not to spill it.
The only characteristic is the color; without smell or significant texture.
The staff asked me to finish soaking in 15 to 20 minutes, but I fully enjoyed the water to the maximum: 55 minutes.
The medical properties of the Aztec hot spring were true, which got rid of my fatigue.
It is almost impossible to dig the ground of Mexico City in order to find the history of the Aztec Empire, because Spanish “historical” buildings were built directly on the ruins.
Meanwhile, the hot springs gushing out of the ground reveals the bare truth of the place.
Summary
Baños Medicinales del Peñón, Mexico City, Mexico
My rating
Type: Walk-in
Rule: Private pool
Chlorination: Not detected
Water temp: Up to 115 degrees F