Itinerary of a nine-day trip through the state of Michoacán with stops in Moreila, Pátzcuaro, Cuitzeo, Tzintzuntzan, Janitzio, and many more magical towns.
Table of Contents
About This Trip
Michoacán is a state in the western part of Mexico, along the Pacific coastline. The name Michoacán a nahuatal name Mechoacan meaning “place of the fishermen”. The capital city is Morelia with a population of more than six hundred thousand people.
Fun fact: Michoacán produces more avocados than any other state in Mexico.
When planning a trip, hardly anyone would ever consider visiting the state of Michoacán. Mostly known for its Monarch butterfly sanctuaries, this state has much more to offer. From the many road trips we’ve taken in Mexico, this was truly one for the ages.
Itinerary
Day 1: Cuitzeo
Transportation: Flew in to Guadalajara international airport, rented car, and started driving to the city of Morelia in the state of Michoacán. We made a quick stop in the pueblo mágico of Quitzeo (about a three hour drive from Guadalajara).
Lodging: We only passed through Cuitzeo on the way to Morelia.
Getting Around: Mainly walked around the town of Cuitzeo. The lake offers amazing views driving into and out of Cuitzeo.
Attractions: It was a very scenic drive all the way. The town of Cuitzeo is a such a peaceful and wonderful place with hardly any tourists. Be sure to checkout the Santa María Magdalena monastery complex, which is right next to the main square.
Day 2 & 3: Morelia
Lodging: We stayed at Hotel Virrey De Mendoza. This is a historic building with excellent location! Another great place to stay at is Casona Rosa B&B. They’ve received several, well earned awards and are also recommended in Lonely Planet. It’s a one stop shop including options for tours. It also has a great location in the heart of the historic center. Say hello to the owner for me, Rose Calderone!
Getting Around: Morelia is a small city with small streets. This causes driving to be a challenge. We kept our car parked until we left early the last day.
Attractions: We took a tour guide on day one to get the inside scoop. You can ask for an English guide at the hotel. Tour of the city included the main church, the aqueduct, scenic view of the city, Fuente de Las Tarascas, Calzada y Santuario de Guadalupe, Templo y Conservatorio de las Rosas, and Colegio de San Nicolas (where another famous Mexican revolutionary, Miguel Hidalgo, once taught).
Day 4: Capula, Quiroga, and Tzintzuntzan
Transportation: We drove our rental car from town to town. The drive from town to town is about 30 minutes each, so it’s easy to cover a lot of ground in one day. Our final destination and stop for the day was Pátzcuaro.
Lodging: Spent the night in Pátzcuaro in Hotel Mansion de los Sueños. Staff was super friendly, they had parking (tough to find here), and was 2 blocks from the post-card main square. Rooms were a bit chilly at night, though.
Getting Around: We mainly walked around in each town.
Attractions: This is a super packed day that was extremely memorable. It was this day that we got a wide taste of small towns, and ate some amazing carnitas along the way. Be sure to check out the Catrinas in Capula, the amazing food in Quiroga, and the archaeological site in Tzintzuntzan (pueblo mágico).
Day 5: Pátzcuaro
Transportation: We drove our rental car here. Inside the town, you can hit all the main spots walking. Streets are very small and not designed for cars, so we only used it to get in and out of the town.
Lodging: Hotel Mansion de los Sueños in Pátzcuaro.
Getting Around: We mainly walked around the town.
Attractions: Pátzcuaro alone would’ve been reason enough to go to Michoacán. it’s a beautiful pueblo mágico nearby Lake Pátzcuaro. We stayed only a single night in Pátzcuaro, though I recommend staying at least two to soak in the magic and to get to visit the island of Janitzio.
Day 6: Island of Janitzio and Urupan
Transportation: We woke up early and drove our car from Pátzcuaro to the the embarcadero to catch a boat to the island of Janitzio (about a 10-15 minute drive). We spent about half a day in the island, but really you can easily spend a full day here exploring. After our visit to the island, we headed out to Urupan.
Lodging: We stayed at Hotel Plaza Uruapan. This was a fairly average hotel, but good location. We were able to walk around to explore the city.
Attractions: The island of Janitzio is a must. The pescado blanco (white fish) was delicious, and you get to cross the Lake Pátzcuaro in boat. This gives you an amazing view of the island, which you will often see in web pages of the region. Uruapan offered some tasty tamales and atole at the mercado!
Day 7 & 8: San Juan Parangaricurio, Paracho, Tangamandapio, and Jiquilpan
Transportation: On Day 7 we drove out early in the morning so that we can still catch the cool weather when hiking up the lava at the church. After the church ruins, we left for Paracho. We spent several hours in Paracho and then drove to our night stop in Jiquilpan.
Lodging: We stayed in Hotel Plaza Tarasca in Jiquilpan. It has 3/5 stars in Google reviews, but I think it’s more like 2.5/5 stars. Definitely below average hotel, but with excellent location—we had dinner and breakfast right at the main, small square. Parking was a pain here, but the hotel staff was tremendously friendly. The guy drove with me to help me find a spot. There’s not a lot of allowed parking spots there.
Attractions: Hiking the lava at the ruins of the church in San Juan Parangaricutiro is an unforgettable experience. The guitar magic of Paracho and its people is amazing.
Jiquilpan was a very peaceful half day before driving off to Guadalajara. We got to eat a breakfast at the main square. Afterwards, we walked around the small blocks, and got to go into the library that hosted Jose Clemente Orozco’s murals. We also visited la Casita de Piedra, where my wife bough some silk earrings and we got to learn how real silk is made.
Day 9: Back to Guadalajara
We spent the evening in Guadalajara, and enjoyed a few neat spots there. We’ll leave that for another blog!
I hope you find this Michoacán itinerary useful as you plan your next trip to Mexico. Be sure to check out our other itineraries for other destinations.