Mascota

Mascota is a beloved, historic, and partially lakeside town high in the mountains over Jalisco. It's the kind of place people escape to for the sheer artistry of life here, and for the clarity of thought, light, and vision that seems to touch down on you the moment you arrive.

Although the town name sounds like Spanish for pet, in fact, it derives from the indigenous names Amaxacotlán, Mazacotla, or Amaxocotlán, meaning place of deer and snakes. It was always a wild and natural place. People come to stroll the never-finished Temple of the Precious Blood. Work on the temple was abandoned during the Mexican Revolution and never picked back up. High above sea level (1,268 meters), it's always cool and comfortable. 

There is a state archaeological museum with a collection that includes some 600 artifacts ranging in age all the way back to 800 BCE. But many visitors will find the simple experience of the streets and the towering surrounding mountains to be educational enough. 

The fantastic Laguna y Malecon de Yerbabuena is to the northeast of the main town center, and a few winding and crooked streets will get you there. Mascota is also known for the food, the festivity and in some sense, for simply not being a beach town. People also set off for kayaking on the Juanacatlán lagoon and hiking through the staggering and majestic pine and oak forests.  Revolution. 

Most people are going to arrive to the town from other points in Jalisco, especially from the Guadalajara and Chapala areas. ATM Buses (Autotransportes Guadalajara Talpa Mascota) make regular trips to the cities in the bus line name! But they run just one per day on the trip that takes just over three hours. From Puerto Vallarta, the trip is a little quicker at about 2.5 hours, and indeed, it does make a wonderful break for beach-weary sun revelers. Mascota is close, unbelievably refreshing, and a place you are guaranteed to never forget.