The Tehuacan-Cuicatlán Valley, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018, extends south from Tehuacan into the state of Oaxaca, covering about 145,000 hectares of semi-arid desert landscape. The valley is one of the most biodiverse arid zones in the Americas, with an extraordinary density and variety of cacti — organ pipe, columnar, and barrel cacti, many of them endemic to this valley — alongside a rich array of reptiles, birds, and other wildlife adapted to the dry conditions.
The most accessible entry point from Tehuacan is the road south toward Zapotitlán Salinas, where the cactus forest becomes most dramatic. The village of Zapotitlán (about 40 km south) has a small cactus botanical garden and serves as a base for exploring the surrounding landscape. The drive through the valley alone — with towering columns of blue-green cacti lining the road — is one of the more unusual and striking landscapes in southern Mexico.