It’s a short day trip from the Lake Chapala area, where we live, to the delightful mountain town of Mazamitla. It took us under 2 hours each way. Many well-to-do and middle class Guadalajarans have second homes in Mazamitla, or they spend weekends and holidays in some of the rustic knotty-pine cabins that seem to be everywhere, in the town and surrounding it.

Mazamitla has a population of something above 15,000 people, and with an elevation of about 7200 feet is located some 2200 feet higher than Lake Chapala. It’s cooler. I asked a local resident if it ever snowed there, and she said it didn’t but that winter nights could be very cold.

The central plaza has an elaborate church built in the 1940s, a kiosk, and plenty of pigeons for tourists to throw bread crumbs to.

What is there to do in Mazamitla? Eating, for starters. We had a delicious lunch in an open-air patio at the Posada Alpina, right across the plaza from the church. We didn’t happen to sample any of the regional specialties, though there are many. Another restaurant which is said to have the best food in town is La Troje, at Galeana 53, several blocks north of the plaza.

Shopping includes a number of small shops selling trinkets, mostly made of wood. There is lots of hiking in the area, or just walking around the town gives you plenty of exercise! ATVs are popular… for all ages. This father was amused that I was photographing his son driving; the boy looked to be about 7.

We were there from late morning till late afternoon one busy Saturday, and in all that time I saw one foreign couple, heard one foreign man buying something in a shop with a strong American accent, and saw a car drive by that seemed to have a couple of foreigners in it. Mazamitla is a town based on tourism, much like Bernal, Queretaro, where we lived last year; and like Bernal, the tourists are predominantly Mexican.

When it was time to go home, we could have happily stayed the night, and there are many accommodations for doing so. Reservations may be needed for popular times. The Cabañas Monteverde looked very nice when we walked past it, but there are plenty more. Mazamitla is a very pleasant getaway!