THE SHORES OF LAKE PATZCUARO, CRAFTS AND ARCHEOLOGICAL SITES

Ihuatzio

All of the towns that ring Lake Patzcuaro have preserved their own distinct architectural, artistic and gastronomic style. We recommend that you take a day or two to visit each of them to get an idea of the broad cultural diversity of the region. Here are some short descriptions of the largest towns. For more ideas, ask at the front desk of the hotel.

Ihuatzio: Only a 10-minute drive from downtown Patzcuaro, this small lakeside town is home to an important Purépecha archeological site that was used as an astrological observatory and commercial center up until the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in the mid 16^th century. 

Atrio exconvento de San Francisco, Tzintzuntzan

Tzintzuntzan: This former capital of the Purépecha empire once had 40,000 inhabitants who lived and worked at the feet of towering stone temples and pyramids called Yácatas. The structures still stand on a flat-topped hillside above the modern town of Tzintzuntzan, where visitors can shop for hand-carved wooden furniture and a wide variety of carved stone figurines and decorations. We recommend you visit the spacious grass plaza right in the center of town. It’s an excellent place for a picnic and the well-preserved churches there are some of the oldest in the region.

Quiroga: One of the larger and more industrialized lakeside towns, Quiroga is an important distribution center for delivering the master crafts of the region to the wider world. We recommend visiting the small nearby town of Santa Fe de la Laguna, which has preserved much of its proud Purépecha heritage over the centuries.

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