The Avenue of the Dead is the great north-south axis of Teotihuacan, two kilometres of the visible city laid out as a single ceremonial boulevard about forty metres wide. Stone platforms with stepped facades line the route on either side. Walking the whole length from the Ciudadela at the south to the Pyramid of the Moon at the north takes an hour at a steady pace, with stops; the central section between the Pyramid of the Sun and the Plaza of the Moon is the best preserved.
Beyond the surviving stones, the Avenue is the key to understanding the city. Its orientation, its scale, and the way it visually connects the pyramids to the surrounding mountains is what made Teotihuacan one of the first great planned cities in the Americas. Bring water — there is no shade on the Avenue itself.