Day of the Dead in Patzcuaro

I am trying to decide whether to go to Patzcuaro for Day of the Dead. I was in Patzcuaro a year ago, but not at that time. Just how crowded is it? Will it completely ruin the snoozy atmosphere that I loved so much? What difficulties might I encounter? i.e. will it be hard to find a place to sit down and eat a meal, will it be hard to get a taxi, will prices be ridiculously inflated? (I already know that a hotel room will go for almost twice as much.) I would love to be there during D of the D, but would really appreciate any firsthand accounts.

Well, Mr. Butler, you have come to the right place.

I have lived in Patzcuaro for over five years.

It will definitely ruin the snoozy atmosphere (snoozy?). It will be hard to find a place to sit down, though places will be available.

Taxis will be available, though less so than usual, I imagine. Probably will cost more. Traffic is extremely bad. As you may recall, there is not a single traffic light in Patzcuaro. There should be, but they don´t want to ruin the "colonial" atmosphere. Better to have traffic jams. As if Cortez had traffic jams.

The entire Plaza Grande is jammed with folks selling stuff in stalls. You can forget about "seeing" the plaza. It will be almost totally covered with stalls. However, it is far better than it was a few years ago. Now, there is some organization. At least the stuff being sold is mostly interesting. Lots of artisanías from all over Michoacán. The sidewalk around the entire plaza is covered with a nice, blue awning.

Wall-to-wall people.

The really odd thing is that the two cemeteries in Patzcuaro are not open to the public on the big night. Only cemeteries in outlying pueblos, the biggest attraction being the cemetery in Tzintzuntzan, about 10 miles away. It will be wall-to-wall people, too, and the highway from here to there will be a parking lot.

You still want to come?

For me, it is the worst time of the year to visit. Patzcuaro is great to visit, but in calmer periods. In my opinion Los Muertos should be avoided unless you are quite young and like wall-to-wall people and traffic.

You will get differing opinions from others. The tourist bureau, for instance.

If you were thinking about this year and have yet to nail down a hotel reservation, you are most likely out of luck anyway.

I might even elect to stay in Quiroga or Uruapan and commute to the celebration. Beware of drunk drivers, and pickpockets in the milling crowds.

Thanks for the advice. I'll just have to decide what kind of trip I want to have - definitely leaning toward a more quiet one. I do already have a hotel. I appreciate the insider's point of view and understand where you're coming from. I live in Austin, TX and it's hard for me to get on board with the hype that circulates about this place. But others seem to love it.