Zacatlán de las apples, in Puebla, is one of the 112 Magical Towns of Mexico, a category that it won in the program of the Ministry of Tourism of the National Government, for its fantastic physical, cultural, gastronomic, climatic and historical characteristics, which make it an ideal place for tourism.
Although the Great Apple Fair with its music, fireworks, allegorical floats and of course, much of this fruit, is its main event, there are other beautiful festivities and equally attractive places to know and visit in this corner of Puebla.
Let's know the 10 things to do and see in Zacatlán de las apples.
1. The Big Apple Fair
Its greatest traditional and cultural attraction. It is a colorful celebration that adds thousands of people from all over the Sierra Norte de Puebla and tourists from even further afield.
The town celebrates and appreciates the production of the fruit to the Virgin of the Assumption, patron saint of farmers, with a mass and with the blessing of the crops.
Fireworks displays announce the start and end of the festivities that begin around August 15 and span a week.
Religious, cultural and sporting events, tournaments, courses and workshops are added to the parade of floats in which the queen of the fair is known; concerts, exhibition and sale of delicious foods and of course, apples and all their derivatives.
The fruit is transformed into cider, soft drinks, juices and other products. Based on it, sweets, breads and other artisan foods are prepared.
The striped apple is the main base of the local economy, one that became a prosperous land for the production of the healthy and nutritious fruit, shortly after the Spanish conquest.
2. The Cider Festival
The Cider Festival consists of cultural, musical and artistic activities, with the exhibition of cider, wines, a variety of liquors and soft drinks made from fruit.
It is another of the three annual events that brings together thousands of people in the streets of this magical town. It is celebrated in November one week after the Day of the Dead.
Attendees have the opportunity to buy cider at good prices and to participate in tours of the apple plantations and packaging companies, to learn about the manufacturing process of the most important product for the economy of Zacatlán.
Most of the production is destined for the 4 most important cider companies in the town, which pack about a million bottles a year.
3. The Cuaxochitl Indigenous Festival
The Cuaxochitl Indigenous Festival has its origins in the Zacatecas and Chichimecas tribes and communities, settled in Zacatlán in pre-Columbian times.
It is celebrated in May to enhance the culture and customs of the indigenous peoples of the town and the Sierra Norte, being a beautiful opportunity to know and enjoy their music, dances, gastronomy, crafts and other features of these ancestral communities.
In the Flower Crown Festival, as it is also known, a maiden or queen is chosen from among the Indians in the Nahua communities of Zacatlán. The one chosen by the people wears a beautiful typical costume during the celebration.
4. Stay In Their Cabins
Accommodation in Zacatlán de las apples is added as another attraction of the town due to the beauty and comfort of its cabins, which have wood-burning fireplaces.
At the top of the Sierra Norte de Puebla, at 2040 meters above sea level, there are several places to spend the night. Some of the most renowned: Rancho El Mayab Cabins and Camp, Los Jilgueros Cabins, Una Cosita de Zacatlán and La Barranca Campestre. They add:
1. La Cascada Cabins.
2. Sierra Verde Cabins.
3. Country Sierra Viva.
4. Luchita Mía Boutique Cabins.
Each of these cabin-style hotels offers comfortable rooms, beautiful green areas, delicious food and the practice of hiking, walking, mountain biking, hanging bridges, camping, rappelling, zip lines and temazcal baths.
In its restaurants you will try the most representative of Puebla cuisine such as mole with turkey, cheese bread, chili with egg and tasty tlacoyos.
5. Admire Its Architectural Beauty
Zacatlán de las apples adds emblematic buildings considered jewels of national architecture, in a mixture of Spanish and indigenous Mexican techniques.
The former Franciscan convent erected in the 1560s is one of the oldest religious constructions in Mexico and the continent. A sober temple with three naves with a bell tower and another with a clock.
City Hall
The Municipal Palace is a beautiful two-story building with Tuscan columns on the first and windows with dust covers on the second.
Its lines are neoclassical and it was built at the end of the 19th century, by means of a laborious and precise stonework that shows the competence of its craftsmen.
Parish of San Pedro and San Pablo
The parish of San Pedro and San Pablo, patron saints of the municipality, is another piece of architecture to admire.
The main facade shows an excellent tequitqui or indigenous baroque work with ornaments and statues, two of them, of San Pedro and San Pablo. It was built between the end of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th.
6. Main Natural Sites
The Barranca de los Jilgueros is another natural jewel of Zacatlán where you can practice adventure activities and admire its waterfalls.
One of its most visited points is the glass viewpoint from where tourists admire fantastic natural landscapes with a lot of green on the horizon. It is also a very romantic place to share as a couple.
Valley of the Above Stones
The Valley of Piedras Encimadas is an imposing spectacle of immense rocks, some with inexplicable positions and balances, which makes this place a very curious place.
Although the rock formations are the main attraction, they are not the only ones. Rappel, zip-lining, hiking and mountain biking are also practiced in the valley. To these activities are added areas for camping.
It is a very beautiful natural place where you can also ride a horse to explore it.
7. The Monumental Clock And Visit The Factory And Museum Of Clocks
The 5 meter diameter Monumental Floral Clock is the landmark and the most photographed place in Zacatlán. It was a gift from the Olvera family, a family with a watchmaking tradition that has been making great watches since the 1910s.
The hands of the clock move over a beautiful circle composed of beautiful and colorful flower plants. It works with electrical energy and by another source that does not demand current, which guarantees its operability even during light failures.
The clock strikes every quarter of an hour with sound and it plays musical pieces of Mexican folklore, such as Mexico lindo y querida and cielito lindo.
The Olvera family's watch factory, Clocks Centenario, is in the historic center of Zacatlán. In it you can see and appreciate how a large clock like those installed in church towers is built, using traditional methods.
Its clock museum exhibits pieces from different periods and sizes and the machines and tools used for their construction.
8. Practice Your Favorite Adventure Sport
The slopes, valleys, hollows, forests and streams of the Sierra Norte de Puebla offer numerous entertainment possibilities near Zacatlán de las manzana.
The Zacatlán Adventure boutique hotel, in addition to comfortable and beautiful rooms, has routes for walking, hiking and biking; It has areas for camping with hot water, zip lines and a suspension bridge.
This ecological park of more than 90 hectares adds paths, trails and facilities for archery. Be sure to enter its famous hollow tree that can accommodate up to 12 people.
Visit the Tulimán waterfalls, an ecological recreational center 30 minutes from Zacatlán, whose name is due to a beautiful waterfall that descends 300 meters in 3 staggered sectors.
The hotel is on the federal highway at km 4.5. Its cabins and other spaces built in a pleasantly rustic way, offer you the possibility of resting in full comfort and with the best care.
9. Relax In One Of Its Cafes And Restaurants
Sitting in a hospitable café in Zacatlán to enjoy an aromatic coffee from the coffee trees of the mountains, accompanied by a delicious local snack while the mountain fog weaves its mantle, is one of the most pleasant things you can do in this Magic Town .
Puebla gastronomy is one of the main strengths of the state to attract visitors. Zacatlán honors that culinary tradition with its moles, barbecues, breads and other dishes.
Café del Zaguán, on Calle 5 de Mayo, is a great place to eat a buffet on the weekend and drink coffee.
Other restaurants where you can taste the best of Puebla, Mexican and international cuisine are El Mirador, La Casa de la Abuela, Tierra 44, El Balcón del Diabolo, Agave, El Chiquis and Mar Azul.
10. Buy apples, candy and gifts
If you are in town in season you can fill your car with apples for a ridiculous price. If not, you can also buy sweets, cakes, breads and juices made with the fruit at very good prices, as well as as many bottles of cider you want.
From the hands of the artisans come beautiful works of traditional clothing such as petticoats, sarapes, neck ends, overcoats, necklaces, earrings, rings and bracelets.
They are also very skilled at working leather, carving wood, molding clay, making huaraches, hats, mounts, plates, pots, jugs, ornaments and toys.
We are sure that all the comments you will hear about this place from those who have already been there will be positive, pleasant and with an invitation to visit it. Go and discover why Zacatlán de las apples is a Magical Town. Do not stay with what you have learned, share it on social networks.
