Inside a 40m-high statue of independence hero José María Morelos on Isla Janitzio, you'll find this 'museum' where an ascending series of panels painted by Ramón Alva de la Canal (1936–40) tell Morelos' story. A staircase (160 steps) wends its way up inside the statue with the last part ingeniously climbing the statue's raised arm to a lookout with panoramic lake views in the see-through wrist.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
Antiguo Convento Franciscano de Santa Ana
5.9 MILES
South of the lake and just west of Hwy 120 lies this enormous religious compound built partly with stones from the Purépecha yácatas (temples) taken from…
Museo de Artes e Industrias Populares
5.03 MILES
Highlights among the well-curated exhibits of this impressive folk-art museum include a room set up as a typical Michoacán kitchen, cases of gorgeous…
Basílica de Nuestra Señora de la Salud
4.98 MILES
Built on a hill atop a pre-Hispanic ceremonial site, this cathedral-cum-pilgrimage site was intended to be the centerpiece of Vasco de Quiroga’s utopia…
Tingambato Archaeological Site
14.53 MILES
Stroll through luscious avocado groves to the beautiful ruins of this ceremonial site called Tinganio in Purépecha, which predates the Purépechan empire…
Parque Nacional Barranca del Cupatitzio
29.28 MILES
This incomparable urban park is just 15 minutes west of the main plaza, but it’s another world. Tropical and subtropical foliage is thick and aflutter…
4.96 MILES
Pátzcuaro’s leafy main square – more commonly known as 'Plaza Grande' – is Mexico’s largest plaza after the Zócalo in Mexico City and the only one in the…
Museo Antiguo Convento Franciscano de Santa Ana
5.89 MILES
House in the former Franciscan Monastery of St Anne, this fascinating museum showcases Purépecha culture and history and documents the arrival of the…
Tzintzuntzan Archaeological Site
6.15 MILES
This site comprises an impressive group of five semicircular reconstructed temples known as yácatas, which are all that remain of the mighty Purépecha…
Nearby attractions
1. Ihuatzio Archaeological Site
1.91 MILES
The Ihuatzio site contains a partially restored set of pre-Purépecha ruins, some of which date back as far as AD 900. The site lies about 1.5km up a…
2. Taller de Don Salvador Tera e Hijos
3.63 MILES
The town’s best wood sculpture can be found at the workshop of Don Salvador Tera and Sons on the highway.
3.97 MILES
This hilltop lookout on an extinct volcano 3.5km west of the city center is a quintessential morning run for Pátzcuaro's more robust residents; but don't…
4. Templo El Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe
4.72 MILES
This church has a striking neoclassical facade and dates from the early 19th century. In the tower's face are four statues of the Seven virtues: Faith,…
5. Biblioteca Gertrudis Bocanegra
4.82 MILES
On the northern side of Plaza Chica and occupying the cavernous 16th-century Templo de San Agustín, this stunning public library has a barrel-vaulted…
4.82 MILES
Pátzcuaro’s second plaza, usually referred to as Plaza Chica, is officially named after a local heroine who was shot by firing squad in 1818 for her…
4.85 MILES
Built between 1526 and 1539, this pink-stone eclectic-style Franciscan church has an impressive Plateresque-style doorway, an adjoining cloister and a…
4.96 MILES
Pátzcuaro’s leafy main plaza is watched over by a serene statue of Vasco de Quiroga which rises from the central fountain. It was erected in 1965 to mark…