Petrified waterfalls of mineral-white stone 30 metres above the valley. Nothing else on earth looks like this.
Hierve el Agua — "the water boils" — is a set of petrified waterfalls in Oaxaca's Sierra Juárez mountains. Despite the name, the water is not hot — it's mineral-rich spring water at around 22°C that has deposited calcium carbonate over millennia, forming formations that look exactly like frozen waterfalls cascading from the cliff edge. Two pools at the top of the formations have been modified for swimming, with the Oaxacan valley stretching below. The visual effect — swimming at the lip of what appears to be a stone waterfall — is extraordinary.
- 1,520 m
Pools & saunas
Waters & pools
- Natural
- 22°C
- Open-air
Gallery
Worth knowing
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Petrified mineral waterfall formations 30+ metres tall
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Swimming pool perched at the edge of the stone cascade
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Zapotec archaeological sites nearby
An insider's tip
The pools fill quickly after 11am. Arrive at opening for the first swim before the tourist groups arrive. The valley view from the pool at the cascade edge is the defining image.
Don't leave without
Swim to the edge of the smaller pool (Alberca Chica) and look down the stone cascade face to the valley. The perspective is vertiginous and completely unique.
In brief
- Location
- Oaxaca, Mexico
- Type
- Natural Monument
- Temperature
- 22°C avg
- Access
- Drive-up
- Elevation
- 1,520 m
- Entry
- Paid / ticketed
- Soakable
- Yes
In the water
Best season
November – April (dry season; road accessible)
On the map
16.8653°N · 96.2758°W
