Planning a Trip

Getting There & Departing

By Car -- From Morelia there are two routes to Pátzcuaro; the faster is the new four-lane Highway 120, which passes near Tiripetío and Tupátaro/Cuanajo. The longer route, Highway 15, takes a little more than an hour and passes near the pottery-making village of Capula and then through Quiroga, where you follow signs to Pátzcuaro.

By Bus -- The bus station is on the outskirts of Pátzcuaro, 5 minutes away by taxi ($2/£1.10). If you're going anywhere outside of Michoacán, it's best to go to Morelia first. If you're going straight to Mexico City, the Pegaso bus company offers nonstop service. Buses between Morelia and Pátzcuaro run every 10 minutes. To visit any of the lakeside villages or nearby towns, public transportation is an option, but taxis are not that expensive. From the Pátzcuaro bus station, there are buses to Tócuaro and Erongarícuaro every 20 minutes; to Tupátaro and Cuanajo every hour; to Tzintzuntzan and Quiroga every 40 minutes; and to Santa Clara del Cobre every hour. For Ihuatzio, you can pick up a minivan or a bus from the Plaza Chica.

Orientation

Visitor Information -- The Tourism Office, Cuesta Buenavista 7 (tel. 434/342-1214), near the basilica, is open Monday through Saturday from 9am to 3pm and 4 to 7pm, and Sunday from 9am to 2pm. Although you might not find someone who speaks English, the staff can give you maps and point you in the right direction. There's also an office on the west side of the Plaza Grande (no phone). It keeps the same hours as the main office.

City Layout -- In a way, Pátzcuaro has two town centers, both plazas a block apart. Plaza Grande, also called Plaza Principal or Plaza Don Vasco de Quiroga, is picturesque and tranquil, with a fountain and a statue of Vasco de Quiroga. Hotels, shops, and restaurants in colonial-era buildings flank this plaza. Plaza Chica, also known as Plaza Gertrudis Bocanegra, flows into the market, and around it swirls the commercial life of Pátzcuaro. Plaza Chica is north of Plaza Grande.

Getting Around -- With the exception of Lake Pátzcuaro, the lookout, the bus station, and hotels on Lázaro Cárdenas, everything is within walking distance. Taxis are cheap. The lake is about a kilometer (less than a mile) from town; buses make the run every 15 minutes from both the Plaza Grande and the Plaza Chica, going all the way to the embarcadero or muelle (pier).

Special Events

The island of Janitzio has achieved international celebrity for the candlelight vigil that local residents hold at the cemetery during the nights of November 1 and 2, the Days of the Dead. Tzintzuntzan, a village about 15km (9 1/3 miles) away, also hosts popular festivities, including folkloric dances in the main plaza and in the nearby yácatas (pre-Hispanic ruins), concerts in the church, and decorations in the cemetery. If you want to avoid the crowds, skip Janitzio and Tzintzuntzan and go to one of the smaller lakeside villages or other islands on the lake that also have extraordinary rituals. The tourism office has a schedule of events for the entire area and publishes an explanatory booklet, Días de los Muertos.

During the week surrounding Days of the Dead, artisans and vendors from all over Michoacán fill the Plaza Grande in Pátzcuaro with regional crafts. Easter week, beginning the Friday before Palm Sunday, is special, too. Most activity centers on the basilica. There are processions involving the surrounding villages almost nightly, and in Tzintzuntzan, there's a reenactment of the betrayal of Christ and a ceremonial washing of the feet.