Guadalajara Reporter

Jalisco’s Haciendas and Casas Rurales Association is offering a range of discounts on stays in old colonial houses and traditional haciendas, all of which are within a few hours drive of Guadalajara and Chapala and won’t break the bank.

Names such as Mascota, Etzatlan or Sayula may not ring any bells but all three are locations in the private tourism association’s ongoing plan to promote the wealth of natural beauty that exists in Jalisco’s interior.

“Inland, rural Jalisco is the heart of the state,” enthuses Alberto Rebollero, director of Haciendas and Casas Rurales de Jalisco. “It’s our living history. You’ll feel like the owner of the hacienda with your horse waiting for you to go out into the agave fields.”

One example is Hacienda La Magdelena, located just north of Guadalajara, in Zapopan. A 17th century hacienda that is on the old silver road from Guadalajara to Zacatecas, it was visited in 1735 by none other than the Virgin of Zapopan. Since then things have changed and the family that has owned the land for seven generations has converted it into a retreat from the city. With 20 hectares of gardens, exotic birds, a Moorish swimming pool, horseriding, massages and beauty treatment on offer, Hacienda La Magdelena is one of the association’s 32 locations that guarantee a relaxing break or short vacation.

A room in the hacienda will set you back between 1,500 and 2,000 pesos, but between Sunday and Thursday there is a 25 percent discount and the third night is currently free. On September 15, their Mexican Independence celebration promises to be special with traditional dancing, food and games.

Haciendas and Casas Rurales de Jalisco is an association of owners of diverse, traditional lodgings set up nine years ago to promote “alternative tourism,” which in Jalisco can be loosely translated as “something other than the beach.”

Explains Rebollero: “We have a variety of experiences on offer and a detail to service that is difficult for chain hotels to provide. Some of our locations offer spas, some offer a really great gastronomic experience, others are simply for relaxing in great scenery and also there are adventure places for mountain biking, horse riding and many other activities.”

A few of the lodgings in the association are old colonial houses in metropolitan Guadalajara, but the majority are in smaller rural towns, the tequila-growing region and picturesque mountainous areas of Jalisco, such as Tapalpa and Mazamitla.

“It’s all about experiencing what the people in the towns live,” explains Rebollero. “For example in Tlaquepaque there are craft workshops that people can participate in. In the town of Tequila the distillery tour is done at night when the tequila is being distilled and the whole town fills with a rich aroma. You don’t get that with a tour during the day.”

“Most the locations have spas and masseurs,” says Rosario Sahagun de Robles, the owner of the Meson de Santa in Mascota (about two and a half hours from Guadalajara). “And the difference is that I will make the experience a special one.”

Although most the haciendas and colonial houses in the               association suffered with the swine flu outbreak, a few of them actually saw a rise in business.

“Some of the locations in mountainous areas had a small increase in visitors,” says Rebollero. “People were trying to get out the city.”

Most were hit with the double whammy of the influenza and the financial crisis, something that still affecting the businesses.

Explains Sahagun: “It’s still lower than normal, although it has been picking up.”

To help boost business, the association has a series of promotional offers available, including a third night free and up to 50 percent off in some locations.

“There is no excuse not to travel to one of these places,” says Rebollero. “There are a range of prices and something can be found for everyone.”

The detailed website for the Association of Haciendas and Colonial Houses of Jalisco is www.haciendasycasonas.com. The English section is well-written and the costs and directions to reach the locations are very clear. Check it out.