If you go....

Where to Stay

Because it is geared to Mexican pilgrims, including people of modest means and large families, Talpa has a good number of inexpensive hotels. Prices are usually $5 to $10 cheaper midweek; you won’t need a reservation unless you go during one of the major holidays. The hotels listed below cost between $30 and $45 for a double room.

Hotel Los Arcos: Independencia 82; tel. 388/385-0272. Restaurant, cable TV, fan.

Hotel Misión: Hidalgo 14; tel. 388/385-0202. Talpa’s long-standing favorite has three stars and 49 rooms, some with private patio. Restaurant/bar. 300p/350

El Pedregal: Calle 23 de Junio #20; tel. 388/385-0274. Nicely maintained rooms surrounding a large, quiet central courtyard. Secure parking. $430/450

Where to Eat

You can get a good meal at either of these restaurants for $5 to $10US. El Patio: Under the arcade facing the main plaza; tel. 388/385-1500, Serves Mexican dishes and has many tables on a large, attractive outdoor patio. Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

El Herradero: Calle 23 de Junio, across from Hotel Pedregal; tel. 388/385-0376 is popular with visiting families and serves Mexican food all day, with handmade tortillas. Open daily after 7 AM.

Getting There

By car: From Puerto Vallarta to Talpa, it's an easy two- to three-hour drive along a new, two-lane road. A suspension bridge inaugurated in 2007 makes the formerly scary drive quite doable, however ask around before you drive up in the rainy season, when mudslides can still be a problem.

By bus: ATM buses leave from their own small Puerto Vallarta bus station (Calle Lucerna 128, Col. Versalles, tel. 322/222-4816) three times or four times a day at around from morning to late afternoon, stopping at La Estancia (11 km [7 mi] from San Sebastián), Mascota and finally Talpa. The ride takes three to three and a half hours. In Talpa, the bus station (tel. 388/385-0015) is two blocks north and three blocks west of the plaza, and you can easily get a bus between Talpa and Mascota, a distance of about 17 km (10+ miles). Buses also connect Talpa several times a day with Guadalajara's new bus station (Entronque carretera libre a Zapotlanejo, tel. 33/3600-0588, 33/3600-0098). It’s 4 to 4.5 hours by car to the outskirts of town, add an hour for the bus.