Town 30 km east of Nochistlán
Old Los Altos town with a 1540s hospital chapel for Indigenous people, and artisans known for serapes and bone-carved chess sets.
Teocaltiche is one of the oldest towns of Spanish origin in Los Altos de Jalisco, east of Nochistlán near the Zacatecas line. Its name comes from Nahuatl and is usually read as "place near the temple." The area was taken by Spanish forces sent by Nuño de Guzmán in 1530, and a decade later its people joined the great uprising of the Mixtón War.
The town's oldest building is the former Hospital de Indios, a chapel and hospital raised around the mid-1540s to care for and evangelize the Indigenous population. It is one of the important 16th-century buildings of the region and now serves as a cultural space and library.
Teocaltiche is also a town of craftspeople. Weavers still make woolen serapes on old looms, and local carvers are known for chess sets and small figures carved in bone, sometimes combined with wood. The grasshopper, or chapulín, is the town's symbol, and you will see it around the center.
What to see and do
Visit the former Hospital de Indios, the town's 16th-century chapel and hospital.
Look for woolen serapes woven on traditional looms.
Buy a bone-carved chess set or miniature from a local artisan.
Spot the chapulín, the town's grasshopper emblem, around the center.
Getting there
Teocaltiche is about 34 km east of Nochistlán, roughly 35 minutes by car on the state road. Regional buses connect Teocaltiche with Nochistlán, Aguascalientes and Guadalajara. Check the opening hours of the Hospital de Indios locally.
30 km east of Nochistlán
Directions from Nochistlán on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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Weather mild
Teocaltiche shares the climate of Nochistlán, 30 km away. The best months to visit are Jan, Mar, Apr, Nov.
Make Nochistlán your base
Teocaltiche is an easy trip from Nochistlán, a Pueblo Mágico with places to stay, food, and more to see.
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Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.