TRAVEL + LEISURE World's Prettiest Mountain Towns

Cuetzalan, Mexico The lush green hills of Mexico's Sierra Norte—punctuated by cascading waterfalls and steep cave-studded limestone cliffs—surround this remote indigenous community. The residents here are Nahuatl, direct descendants of the Aztecs that inhabited the region centuries ago.

Marisol García

 Get some mountain air: Every Sunday locals flock to the market in Cuetzalan, where local farmers sell a rainbow of fresh fruits and vegetables, locally grown coffee, and home-spun fabrics. If you’d rather get out into the landscape, try exploring the area’s extensive network of underground caves, reportedly the largest in Central America.