Tlaquepaque

Tlaquepaque was a village of potters that Guadalajara grew around and then, sensibly, left largely to the potters. Its centre is pedestrianized: Calle Independencia and its neighbours run for blocks between restored mansions housing galleries, ceramic studios, blown glass, textiles, furniture and the high end of Mexican decorative arts, with courtyards, fountains and jacarandas at every turn. The Museo Pantaleon Panduro holds the national ceramics prize collection - a survey of what Mexican clay can do, from Michoacan to Oaxaca - and the regional ceramics museum fills in the local tradition of barro bruñido and the whimsical figures Tlaquepaque made famous. The social heart is El Parian: a huge covered patio of adjoining cantinas surrounding a central kiosk, where mariachi groups rotate through and diners hire songs over tequila and birria until late. Sundays fill it entirely. Prices run higher than village workshops but the quality is curated, and for anyone with a single afternoon to buy Mexican crafts well, this is the address.

History

The name comes from Nahuatl and means "place above clay land". Before the Spanish arrived, Tlaquepaque and neighbouring villages formed a kingdom with Tonalá ruled by a woman, Cihualpilli Tzapotzinco, who welcomed Nuño de Guzmán peacefully in 1530 and was baptised Juana Bautista Danza (Wikipedia, Tlaquepaque).

The main sights

• The gallery lanes - restored mansions of ceramics and design.
• El Parian - the mariachi patio and its ring of cantinas.
• The ceramics museums - the national prize collection and local tradition.
• The courtyards - fountains, jacarandas and tequila terraces.

When to go

Any day for shopping; Sunday afternoons for El Parian at full mariachi volume. Evenings are the prettiest, with the lanes lit and terraces open.

What to expect

Prices are boutique - this is the polished end of the craft trade, and bargaining has limits. Weekend crowds are dense. Shipping is widely offered and worth using for ceramics.

Nearby

Tonala's street market is fifteen minutes further out; Guadalajara's centre and the Hospicio Cabañas lie northwest.

Key facts