Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles Road Trip: Route, Tolls & Stops

By admin, 3 October, 2026

The Wayro route from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles is 185 miles (298 km), about 4 h 35 min of driving without stops.

U.S. State Department travel advisory: Mexico City — Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution; State of Mexico — Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution; Hidalgo — Level 2, Exercise Increased Caution; Querétaro — Level 2, Exercise Increased CautionAdvisory issued May 29, 2026; checked September 29, 2026. Querétaro is the Mexican state that contains Pinal de Amoles. See the full advisory for current details.
Museo SoumayaAcuario InbursaMuseo TezozómocParque NaucalliTlalnepantla CathedralCristo ReyParque de las EsculturasTemplo y exconvento de San FranciscoGalería LibertadMexico CityPinal de Amoles
Route from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles with the 9 stops listed below (blue dots).
Distance185 mi (298 km)
Driving time, no stops4 h 35 min
Main roads, in orderViaducto → Periférico → MEX-57 → MEX-57D → MEX-120 → QRO 5 → QRO 100
Mexican states on the routeMexico City (Level 2), State of Mexico (Level 2), Hidalgo (Level 2), Querétaro (Level 2)
Toll roadsMEX-57D
Fuel estimate (car at 25 mpg)about 7.4 gal; actual use varies by vehicle and traffic
Stops listed below9

Driving this route in a car with U.S. plates

Temporary vehicle import permit (TIP)Required: this route is outside the zones where U.S.-registered cars can skip the temporary import permit (Baja California, Baja California Sur and part of Sonora)
Mexican auto insuranceRequired for all vehicles: buy a Mexican policy before you drive

Sources: U.S. State Department, Mexico travel information (updated August 11, 2026); permits are issued by Banjercito.

What the drive from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles is like

MEX-57 (70 mi) and MEX-120 (51 mi) carry about 65% of the 185 miles. MEX-57D is a toll highway (cuota); MEX-57, MEX-120 are free federal roads (libre). It runs through 4 states: Mexico City, State of Mexico, Hidalgo, Querétaro. Of the 9 stops listed below, 6 are within a mile of the road.

The route from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles, road by road

RoadRoute miles (from–to)Length, miState
local roads0–22Mexico City
Viaducto2–64Mexico City
Periférico6–2418Mexico City, State of Mexico
MEX-5724–9470State of Mexico, Hidalgo, Querétaro
MEX-57D94–1039Querétaro
MEX-120103–12623Querétaro
QRO 5126–1293Querétaro
connecting roads129–1323Querétaro
QRO 100132–1386Querétaro
local roads138–1435Querétaro
QRO 100143–15714Querétaro
MEX-120157–18528Querétaro
  • Mile 9 of this route: Mexico City → State of Mexico (state line)
  • Mile 41 of this route: State of Mexico → Hidalgo (state line)
  • Mile 60 of this route: Hidalgo → State of Mexico (state line)
  • Mile 93 of this route: State of Mexico → Querétaro (state line)

Stops between Mexico City and Pinal de Amoles

  • Right off the route (under 1 mile): Museo Soumaya (mile 9), Acuario Inbursa (mile 9), Parque Naucalli (mile 13), Parque de las Esculturas (mile 26), Templo y exconvento de San Francisco (mile 47), Galería Libertad (mile 115)
  • Nature and outdoors: Parque Naucalli (mile 13)
  • Museums and history: Museo Soumaya (mile 9), Museo Tezozómoc (mile 12), Tlalnepantla Cathedral (mile 17), Cristo Rey (mile 19), Parque de las Esculturas (mile 26), Galería Libertad (mile 115)
  • With kids: Acuario Inbursa (mile 9)

Museo Soumaya

Mile 9 · Museum network · 0.6 mi from the route

Museo Soumaya is a private, nonprofit art museum in Mexico City with two buildings, Plaza Loreto and Plaza Carso. Its collection spans pre-Hispanic sculpture, Mexican art and European masters such as Rodin, Dalí and Tintoretto.

Acuario Inbursa

Mile 9 · Public aquarium · 0.6 mi from the route

In the Nuevo Polanco area of Mexico City, Acuario Inbursa spreads across about 3,500 square meters of exhibits holding some 1.6 million liters of seawater.

Museo Tezozómoc

Mile 12 · Museum · 2 mi from the route · side trip; actual detour depends on access roads

Run by the Instituto Politécnico Nacional since 1999, Museo Tezozómoc is an interactive museum about science and technology.

Parque Naucalli

Mile 13 · Park · 0.2 mi from the route

Parque Naucalli is a park just outside Mexico City, in the municipality of Naucalpan de Juárez, where planning for the park began in 1975.

Tlalnepantla Cathedral

Mile 17 · Catholic cathedral · 1 mi from the route

Consecrated on August 23, 1964, Tlalnepantla's Corpus Christi Cathedral stands where Franciscans founded the Convent of San Francisco in 1525.

Cristo Rey

Mile 19 · Monument · 1 mi from the route

Begun in 1975 and inaugurated in 1981, this colossal Cristo Rey statue stands on Cerro Cola de Caballo in the Sierra de Guadalupe, within the Jardines del Recuerdo cemetery in Tlalnepantla.

Parque de las Esculturas

Mile 26 · Open-air museum · 0.6 mi from the route

Seventeen sculptures by Charlotte Yazbek, first shown at the Mexico Pavilion of the 1964 New York World's Fair, stand in this Cuautitlán Izcalli park. The artist oversaw their installation here in 1976.

Templo y exconvento de San Francisco

Mile 47 · Convent · 0.6 mi from the route

The Templo y Exconvento de San Francisco is a church and former convent located in the city of Tepeji del Río, in the Mexican state of Hidalgo.

Galería Libertad

Mile 115 · Art museum · 0.4 mi from the route

Run by Querétaro's state culture department, Galería Libertad is a public gallery in the historic center of Santiago de Querétaro devoted to exhibiting, promoting and teaching the visual arts.

More drives to Pinal de Amoles

From Mexico City to other places in Mexico

Frequently asked questions

How long is the drive from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles?

About 4 h 35 min of driving without stops, over 185 miles.

How far is Pinal de Amoles from Mexico City by car?

About 185 miles (298 km) on the Wayro route. Other map services may show a few miles more or less, depending on where they start and end in each city.

Do I need a permit to drive my U.S. car from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles?

Yes. A temporary vehicle import permit (TIP) is required for a U.S.-registered car on this route, which is outside the zones where it can be skipped. Mexican auto insurance is required for every vehicle.

Is it safe to drive from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles?

The U.S. State Department rates Mexico City Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution; State of Mexico Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution; Hidalgo Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution; Querétaro Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution (advisory issued May 29, 2026). Read the full advisory before you go.

What roads does the drive from Mexico City to Pinal de Amoles use?

In order: Viaducto, Periférico, MEX-57, MEX-57D, MEX-120, QRO 5 and QRO 100. The road-by-road table above shows the route miles and states for each one.

What are good stops between Mexico City and Pinal de Amoles?

Closest to the road: Acuario Inbursa (public aquarium, mile 9, 0.6 mi from the route); Parque Naucalli (park, mile 13, 0.2 mi from the route); Galería Libertad (art museum, mile 115, 0.4 mi from the route). All stops are described above.

How we put this guide together

Wayro calculates the route from OpenStreetMap road data; mile numbers are positions along this route, not highway mile markers, and "from the route" distances are straight-line, so the real detour depends on access roads. Stops are chosen from parks, natural sites, museums, historic sites and attractions close to the route (roughly 2 to 7 miles depending on the type, farther for World Heritage sites): at least one strong stop for each stretch of the drive, then the best-known places nearest the road, with no more than five of one type, up to nine in all. Places that are closed, private or not open to visitors are removed. Place and city descriptions are written by the Wayro team from official park, museum, tourism and government websites and other published sources. Safety levels and entry rules were checked against the U.S. Department of State on September 29, 2026. Conditions change, so check the linked sources before you travel.

Route data © OpenStreetMap contributors.