Durango and the Western Film Sets
Capital De Durango / Sets CinematográFicos · Durango, Durango
A colonial city on the northern high plains with a mountain of iron ore at its edge that is slowly being mined away. But Durango's oddest inheritance is Hollywood: from the 1950s onward more than a hundred films were shot in the desert north of the city, mostly westerns, and John Wayne made several of them here. The standing sets at Chupaderos and Villa del Oeste are still there, part derelict and part restored; Villa del Oeste is the one with shows and a restaurant, and it is more theme park than ghost town. The other reason to come is the road out: the old Espinazo del Diablo crossing of the Sierra Madre, now bypassed by a highway carrying the Baluarte Bridge, among the highest cable-stayed bridges in the world. The city is quiet, tidy and unhurried, with a baroque cathedral and a grand 1900 theatre, at 1,890 m. It is a good stop between the Pacific coast and the north, not a headline destination. Come for two nights, and check state travel advice for the mountain roads.
Plaza de Armas, Centro Histórico, Durango, Durango, 34000, Mexico
An open city - free, no gate. Museums keep daytime hours and generally close Mondays. ⚠ THE FILM SETS ARE NORTH OF THE CITY: VILLA DEL OESTE IS MAINTAINED, CHARGES ADMISSION AND RUNS STAGED SHOWS, while ⚠ CHUPADEROS IS LARGELY OPEN, PARTLY DERELICT AND UNSTABLE IN PLACES - both are unshaded desert, so carry water. ⚠ THE BALUARTE BRIDGE IS ON THE DURANGO-MAZATLÁN HIGHWAY, around 400 metres above the river, with roadside viewpoints; ⚠ THE TOLLS ON THAT HIGHWAY ARE SUBSTANTIAL. ⚠ THE OLD ESPINAZO DEL DIABLO ROAD STILL EXISTS AND IS NARROW AND UNBARRIERED - daylight and good weather only. ⚠ SCORPIONS ARE COMMON HERE - shake out shoes and bedding in warm months. ⚠ DURANGO CARRIES A TRAVEL ADVISORY: the city is ordinary and busy, the risk is isolation on rural roads - check current advice, travel by day, use toll roads. ⚠ HOURS AND PRICES NOT VERIFIED FOR THIS FILE.
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