Located 28 kilometers south of central Mexico, the site of Xochimilco with its networks of canals and artificial islands is an exceptional example of the work of the pre-Hispanic people to build a habitat in an environment hostile to man. Chinampas, artificial islets anchored to the marshy bottom, are one of the examples of traditional production techniques still in use.

Xochimilco was inscribed on the World Heritage List on 11 December 1987 as a living testimony of the human use of a natural territory, made and preserved with creativity and wisdom.