Mazamitla, Jalisco, Mexico: An Unspoiled Mountain Town

Mazamitla is located an hour and a half from Guadalajara, nestled in the heart of the Sierra del Tigre with abundant wooded vegetation, streams, and waterfalls. It is a beautiful mountain town full of history, tradition, and dreams. Its friendly people, architecture, traditional festivities, cultural festivities, handicrafts, and extreme sports will make your visit to Mazamitla a magical experience.

Mazamitla is famous for its offer of wooden cabins for lodging. You can stroll through its streets, admire its wooden handicrafts and taste its typical food. You can also enjoy horseback riding, cattle herding, ecological hiking, landscaping, photography, mountain biking, ATVs, rappelling, and zip-lining, located only 15 kilometers from Mazamitla.

Among its attractions are: the Parish of San Cristobal, with a peculiar eclectic style, is located on a pyramidal base; the Cerro del Tigre, a natural viewpoint at 2,800 meters above sea level from where you can see Lake Chapala; the Salto, a beautiful waterfall between the basaltic rock of approximately 35 meters high.

La Zanja Municipal Park, a forest with playgrounds, terraces, and grills; El Tabardillo, a great viewpoint to enjoy a beautiful panoramic view of the town and the mountains; Sierra del Tigre, where you can camp or practice mountain biking. This mountain village enjoys a cool and sunny climate with an average annual temperature of around 21°C (70°F).

Highlights of Mazamitla Jalisco

The word Mazamitla could mean: "place where deer are hunted with arrows" or "place where arrows are made to hunt deer", due to the Nahuatl words Mazatl (deer), Mitl (arrow), and Tlan (place). Of Aztec origins since 1165, it was part of the Tzapotlán lordship until 1481, when the Purépechas took possession of the land from them. In 1522 the Spaniards took the place, demarcated it, and baptized it San Cristobal Mazamitla.

It is said that during the Independence, the priest Miguel Hidalgo, on his way to Colima, officiated mass in the local community of Palos Gordos, where an oak trunk, which is still preserved, served as an altar. There are also local stories of bandits who during the Colonial and Cristero periods left treasures hidden in the caves of the region.

It is a Magical Mountain Town immersed in the Sierra del Tigre mountain range that frames Lake Chapala; it is at an altitude of 2,200 meters above sea level, with an average temperature of 1º C. Mazamitla enjoys a semi-dry and semi-warm climate, with the rainy season from June to October.

In Mazamitla you will find delicious dishes to eat, the typical local stew known as "de bote", "birria", "borrego al pastor", "corundas", "gorditas de trigo", "frijoles puercos", or "mole de olla". To drink, try a "pajarete" or some capulin, plum, or blackberry punch; atole de aguamiel, mezcal, pulque or tequila. The desserts you must try are pumpkin, coconut, cajeta, chilacayote, peach, quince, or tejocote sweets.

To take home a souvenir of your trip, you will find beautiful handicrafts made of wood and ixtle; there are jorongos and beautiful sarapes; carved quarry pieces and look for the "enjaezadas" candles, typical of the town.