Historic Site · San Andrés, El Salvador
Joya de Cerén
Joya de Cerén is an archaeological site in La Libertad Department, El Salvador, containing the remains of a pre-Columbian Maya farming village. Built AD 200–600.
Photo: xiquinhosilva via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Cropped and resized for display.
Landmark facts
| Location | San Andrés, El Salvador |
|---|---|
| Type | Historic Site |
| Built | AD 200–600 |
| Area | Area: 0.05 km² |
| Coordinates | 13.8275° N, 89.3561° W |
Every fact above is taken from the sources listed below; anything no source states is left blank rather than guessed.
What Joya de Cerén is known for
Joya de Cerén is an archaeological site in La Libertad Department, El Salvador, containing the remains of a pre-Columbian Maya farming village.
About Joya de Cerén
Joya de Cerén is an archaeological site in La Libertad Department, El Salvador, containing the remains of a pre-Columbian Maya farming village. The site is located in the Zapotitán Valley, approximately 36 km (22 mi) northwest of San Salvador. This site is notable for the exceptional preservation of a Classic period settlement, which was rapidly buried by ash from an eruption of the Loma Caldera around AD 600. Joya de Cerén was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993 in recognition of its archeological significance and is a major tourist attraction in El Salvador.
How to get there
| Nearest town | San Andrés |
|---|---|
| Nearest airport | El Salvador International Airport (SAL) |
| Distance from the airport | 33.2 miles (straight line) |
Nearest major airport by straight-line distance from the landmark’s coordinates; road distance will be longer.
Airports near this landmark
The airports a visitor would actually fly into, nearest first — each link opens its profile on our sister site AirportProfiles.
- El Salvador International Airport Saint Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (SAL) · San Salvador (San Luis Talpa), El Salvador · 33.3 miles away
- La Aurora International Airport (GUA) · Guatemala City, Guatemala · 94.2 miles away
- Palmerola International Airport (XPL) · Palmerola, Honduras · 122.4 miles away
Landmarks nearby
The closest landmarks in this library, by straight-line distance.
More landmarks in El Salvador
More historic sites
Frequently asked questions
What is Joya de Cerén?
Joya de Cerén is an archaeological site in La Libertad Department, El Salvador, containing the remains of a pre-Columbian Maya farming village.
Where is Joya de Cerén located?
Joya de Cerén is in San Andrés, El Salvador. Its coordinates are 13.8275° N, 89.3561° W.
How do I get to Joya de Cerén?
The nearest town is San Andrés, and the nearest airport is El Salvador International Airport (SAL), about 33.2 miles away (straight line).
When was Joya de Cerén built?
Joya de Cerén was built AD 200–600.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joya_de_Cer%C3%A9n — Wikipedia article — overview, history and core facts (CC BY-SA).
- https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q27985 — Wikidata — built year, architect, height/size, visitors, official website (CC0).
- https://github.com/jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports — Nearest major airport computed from landmark and airport coordinates (haversine); airport list: jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports.
Page last updated 13 November 2026.