Skip to content
CurveScout

CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Historic Centre of Mexico City and Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
345 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 07
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis

The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.

Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.

Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.

Open this ride in CurveScout

Why this ride

345 km from Mexico City to Mexico City, about 5 h 07 of riding. The stops in between: Ancient Convent of the Nativity, Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio and back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity. The stored terrain estimate reaches about 2,700 m; a measured road-elevation profile is not available. The line favours views over speed.

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

  1. 1. Historic Centre of Mexico City

    The Zócalo, the vast main square of Mexico City, is one of the largest public squares in the world, and standing in it you are at the centre of over seven hundred years of history. This was the heart of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital, built on an island in Lake Texcoco and home to perhaps two hundred thousand people when the Spanish arrived in 1519. After the conquest, Hernán Cortés's men built their new city directly on top of the ruins, using the stones of the temples to construct churches and palaces. The historic centre, together with the canals of Xochimilco to the south, was listed by UNESCO in 1987.

    Read the complete Historic Centre of Mexico City write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Historic Centre of Mexico City is where the day begins. Next is Ancient Convent of the Nativity.

  2. 2. Ancient Convent of the Nativity

    Tepoztlán sits at the foot of a wall of jagged volcanic cliffs in northern Morelos, and on the highest ridge above town, a small Aztec pyramid, the Tepozteco, dedicated to the god of pulque, clings to the rock. Down in the town, the Dominican convent of the Nativity, built in the mid-sixteenth century, is one of the monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl listed by UNESCO in 1994. Its massive church, with a facade carved with angels, the sun and the moon, and a large atrium, is impressive, and the cloister has remains of colourful mural paintings. Part of the convent houses a museum.

    Read the complete Ancient Convent of the Nativity write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Ancient Convent of the Nativity comes up 72 km in. Next is Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio.

  3. 3. Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio

    Tochimilco sits high on the southern slopes of Popocatépetl, the great volcano that towers over central Mexico, and on clear mornings the snow-capped cone seems close enough to touch. Here, in the sixteenth century, Franciscan friars built a monastery dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin, one of the early missions established to convert the indigenous population after the Spanish conquest. Its fortress-like church, with thick walls, battlements and a large atrium where crowds once gathered for open-air mass, is part of the UNESCO site of the Earliest Sixteenth-Century Monasteries on the Slopes of Popocatepetl, listed in 1994. In the town square, an old aqueduct and fountain built by the friars still bring water from the mountain.

    Read the complete Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    144 km in you reach Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio. Next is back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity.

  4. 4. back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Ancient Convent of the Nativity write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity, late in the day. Next is Historic Centre of Mexico City.

  5. 5. Historic Centre of Mexico City

    Return visit. Read the place description above.

    Read the complete Historic Centre of Mexico City write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Back at Historic Centre of Mexico City. That is the ride.

Leg by leg

Historic Centre of Mexico City to Ancient Convent of the Nativity

Historic Centre of Mexico City → Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 67 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

Ancient Convent of the Nativity to Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio

Ancient Convent of the Nativity → Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio is 76 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio to back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity

Temple and Former Convent of the Assumptio → back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity is 76 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity to Historic Centre of Mexico City

back through Ancient Convent of the Nativity → Historic Centre of Mexico City is 67 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.

More motorcycle rides nearby