FEB 3

A Complete Guide to the Floating Gardens

of Xochimilco: How to Get There and What
to Do

ACTIVITIES, MEXICO CITY, MEXICO, GUIDES

When planning our trip to Mexico City, Xochimilco

was one of those things on the list that I was really on

the fence about. I had seen so many pictures online

and it looked amazing but could it really be all that?

Was it worth the 45-minute drive out of the city? It

seemed like a long way away and I was worried we'd

get there and it would be this big tourist trap we'd

wasted hours of our short time in Mexico City to get

to. I asked the locals about it, trying to get their

opinions on Xochimilco and was surprised to hear

how positively even the locals, not just the tourists,

spoke about it! With so many resounding responses

we decided to make our way down to Xochimilco

and see what all the fuss was about. And let me just

say right off the bat, it was my favourite thing we

did while in Mexico City and I would implore

everyone to go and see it for themselves.

History
Xochimilco is the Venice of Mexico. It’s an enormous

network of canals which spread across this southern

district of Mexico City. There are over 170 km of canals

which spread out in all different directions. Before

the Spanish arrived in Mexico City, the indigenous

people of Mexico had created an incredible network

of canals which they used as both a means of

transport and as a way to ensure there was a

constant supply of water throughout the country.

Xochimilco means “Floating Gardens" as the Aztecs

created chinampas which were artificial agricultural

plots rich in minerals and there they would plant

thousands of flower fields. After the Spanish invasion,

they dried up many of the canals in the centre of

Mexico City in order to make room for modern roads.

But the canals in Xochimilco remained. Today,

Xochimilco is UNESCO World Heritage Site as it

preserves this Aztecs technology.

How to Access
To access Xochimilco my recommendation would be

to take an Uber or find a local guide who can be both

your driver as well as a local 'fixer' along the way. We

had met Gilberto a few days previously, he had been

our Uber driver and over the course of a long trip we

got to know him very well. I was the one who

proposed he take us to Xochimilco and be our guide

while down there and he happily accepted. It turns

out he had just begun his own guide service. I felt

great about being the one who approached him

with the offer and not the other way around. He was

incredible and if you're interested in his services you

can email him directly to book a tour! If you simply

want to get an Uber there are plenty of drivers always

on the road to get you there and back. The trip takes

about 45 minutes depending on where you're

staying in the city and how heavy the traffic is that

day. A one way ride with Uber costs about $10-$15

USD but if there is heavier traffic it could be as much

as $25. That’s still very cheap for a 45-minute ride but

just something to keep in mind.

Be sure to arrive at the 'Embarcadero Nuevo

Nativitas'. There are multiple embarcaderos, or

‘piers’, which service the canals but the Embarcadero

Nuevo Nativitas is the official pier to catch your boat

and where you'll find the most honest pricing. It’s

also where you'll find food, shopping and restrooms.

If you're taking an Uber to the pier you might find

that along the way, people on bikes will stop your

Uber along the way and tell you that the pier is

closed and you need to access the canals through an

alternative embarcadero. This is completely untrue

and a scam to get you to access their alternative

dock. Our driver actually took them up on this offer

one day when he was visiting on his own, to test this

scam. He said he was brought to a less than savoury

looking entrance with a few meagre looking boats

which had clearly seen better days. He passed on

their offer for a ride and then headed over to the

Embarcadero Nuevo Nativitas, which was, of course,

not closed at all!

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If you want to save some money you can always take

the bus. The metro is another options but the bus

requires only one mode of transportation whereas

the metro requires a few transfers. Take the bus

number 47-A-XAlameda Oriente towards

Xochimilco / Bosque de Nativitas. It takes about an

hour depending on traffic and costs 30 pesos (about

$2).

You can also access Xochilmilco with a group tour.

These are often combined with trips to the Frida

Khalo Museum or the Pyramids of Teotihuacan. If

you really want a huge, group party type of

atmosphere then this is the best way to get it.

Personally, I find these tours a little pressed for time,

often rushing you around from place and to place. I

like to take things at my own pace so we chose to do

this on our own but if you’re short on time and want

to see all these destinations this is a great option.

The Trajineras
'Trajinera' is the name for the iconic brightly coloured

boats which float up and down the canals. They have

flat bottoms and float throughout the canals with

nothing more than a long wooden ore which is

controlled by your rower, just like a gondelier. In the

center of the boat is a large table and there are about

a dozen chairs on either side, so you can have an

entire group ride on the same boat! The covered roof

is perfect for keeping the sun off during hot days but

if you want to sit out in the sunlight the front of the

boat has ample room. The boats are vibrantly

painted to resemble the flowers which used to grow

on either sides of the canals hundreds of years ago.

Each boat is given a different name and what you

might not know is that if you know who to call, you

can have your name painted on a boat just for you

when you arrive. This is perfect for birthdays or

quinceaneras.

How Much does a

Trajinera Cost?
Getting a Trajinera for cheap isn't something you

should expect when you come to Xochimilco. This

isn't one of those super budget friendly excursions.

The maximum rate set by the city is 500 pesos per

hour, per boat (not per person as some tricky

boatmen might quote you). You can try and haggle

your way down but unless you have a good grasp on

Spanish haggling, you'll find it pretty difficult to get

the rides any cheaper than 400-450 pesos per hour.

As we had our local guide with us, he was able to

easily haggle the price down to 700 pesos for 2

hours. 2-hours is the minimum I would go for since it

takes a while for them to get the boats out of the

dock and an hour would barely get you out into the

canals far enough to see the real Xochimilco. I would

honestly say I wish we'd gone out for longer! Plus, the

longer you go, the better chance you'll have of

striking a deal! Remember to tip your boatman at

the end of the trip, most of the money you pay goes

to his boss and the actual driver sees little of that

price so a nice tip will go a long way for them.

If you meet fellow travellers along your travels it's

always worth asking them if they're interested in a

trip out to Xochimilco and that way you can save a bit

of money going in as a group. Just be warned that

you need to arrive as a group, not just glom onto

other tourists who are asking about pricing who are

already at the docks. There is also the 'collectivo'

boat. This larger motorized boat runs every half an

hour and only costs 30 pesos each way. It only runs

back and forth from one station to another so its a

much shorter, less leisurely ride, but if you're looking

for a budget option, this is it!

Once you have secure your boat, you set out from

the dock into the canal. Most of the boats are located

near the pier and blocked in by dozens of other

boats. I didn’t even think it would be possible for us

to get out but they did it! Making your way through

the field of trajineras into the open water. This felt a

little bit like a giant version of bumper cars and was

so interesting to watch our driver make his way

through the pile of rainbow coloured boats.

Ben & Frank

Ben & Frank

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Food
You are allowed to bring whatever food and drinks

you want with you on the Trajineras. Just a few

minutes away from the main pier is the Mercado

Xochimilco, a great place to grab some fresh snacks

and delicious treats. There are also various food stalls

located along the pier when you arrive at the

Embarcadero Nuevo Nativitas. Depending what day

of the week you visit will change what's open (the

weekdays tend to have less stalls and sellers open

than the weekends), but there's always something to

buy both on land and on the water. That’s right,

there’s food available throughout the canals as you

travel. Vendors with roasted corn, coconut water,

tacos, cold beer and freshly made micheladas float

up and down the canals. The prices are more than

you’d pay in the market but you pay for the privilege

of having them coming right to you boat!

La Isla de Las Muñecas

'The Island of the Dolls' or 'La Isla de Las Muñecas'

is a famous attraction along these canals. You

probably have seen it on Anthony Bourdain or

Buzzfeed Unsolved. Many boatmen will say they'll

take you to the island in 2 hours but the truth is the

real island is about 5 hours out from the main pier.

There are various replicas of the island you'll see

along the main route but these are not the original.

While I think a 5 hours journey might be a little much

for most people, the farther out you go the more and