Town Panotla, Tlaxcala Municipality of Panotla
Municipal seat 4 km west of Tlaxcala, with the Baroque church of San Nicolás de Bari and a name in carnival and clarinet music.
From Chiautempan: 15 min by car (13 km by road) How to get there ↓
Near here
Plan your visit to Panotla
Where to stay near Panotla
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in Panotla.
Tours to Panotla
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in Panotla; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Tours from Puebla City
Africam Safari Zoo Admission with Transportation
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How to get to Panotla
- From Chiautempan: about 15 min by road (~13 km)
- Nearest airport: Puebla (PBC), 7 min by car to Huejotzingo
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Tours from Puebla City, near Panotla
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About Panotla
Panotla is the seat of the municipality of the same name, about 4 km west of Tlaxcala city at 2,242 metres. It had 8,696 inhabitants in the 2020 census, and the whole municipality 28,357 across 19 localities; after the seat, the largest are San Jorge Tezoquipan and San Tadeo Huiloapan. The Nahuatl name is read as "place of passage in the river", and the municipality is crossed by the Zahuapan river.
The municipality holds very old settlements: San Jorge Tezoquipan is dated to between about 350 BC and AD 100, and San Mateo Huexoyucan was a regional political and religious centre. In the seat, the church of San Nicolás de Bari has a Baroque stucco facade with estipite columns and floral, animal and human motifs, a two-level bell tower, a large atrium and, in its single nave, neoclassical altarpieces and a 17th-century organ; it was dedicated in 1796. Its feast has two parts: the fiesta chica on 6 December and the fiesta grande on the third Sunday of December, closed by fireworks two days later.
Elsewhere in the municipality are other churches: the Sanctuary of Nuestra Señora de la Defensa in San Ambrosio Texantla, with an octagonal dome and tiled facade, and the church of San Francisco de Asís in San Francisco Temetzontla, 18th century, with a three-level tower and clock. Panotla also figures in the story of the Tlaxcala carnival, which according to the municipal text began in 1890: the clarinettist Mariano Minor Flores came from here and is credited with spreading carnival music across the state.
How to get to Panotla
Drive from Chiautempan: 15 min, 13 km
Panotla lies about 4 km west of Tlaxcala city, so the trip from the state capital is short: roughly 10 minutes by car or taxi from the centre. From Puebla it is roughly 31 km and about 35 minutes, and from Huejotzingo, the nearest pueblo on our list, roughly 23 km and 25 minutes. By public transport the starting point is the Tlaxcala bus terminal, where you ask for the colectivo to Panotla. From Puebla you reach Tlaxcala first (CAPU terminal) and continue from there. The churches of San Ambrosio Texantla and San Francisco Temetzontla are in other localities of the municipality, so a car or taxi is best.
Directions to Panotla on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to Panotla
- Chiautempan · 13 km by road, 15 min
- San Martín Texmelucan · 20 km by road, 15 min
- Huamantla · 48 km by road, 40 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
What to see in Panotla 8
Sights with their own page, closest to the centre first.
Landmarks and museums
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Catedral de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción · Landmark · 3 km from the centre
The 16th-century Franciscan church of the Asunción, with a Mudéjar cedar ceiling; Tlaxcala's cathedral and a World Heritage Site since 2021. -
Museo Regional de Tlaxcala · Landmark · 3 km from the centre
INAH museum in the cloister of Tlaxcala's Franciscan convent of the Assumption: 13 rooms running from the Paleolithic to the 20th century. -
Palacio de Gobierno de Tlaxcala · Landmark · 3 km from the centre
Seat of Tlaxcala's government since colonial times, on the Plaza de la Constitución; its arcades hold Desiderio Hernández Xochitiotzin's history murals. -
iglesia de San José · Landmark · 3 km from the centre
17th-century baroque church in central Tlaxcala, twice a cathedral and restored after the 2017 quake; home of the Niño Milagroso image. -
Basílica de Ocotlán · Landmark · 4 km from the centre
Tlaxcala's hilltop pilgrimage church: a churrigueresque façade between 33 m towers and an octagonal camarín carved by an indigenous artist.
Nature reserves
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Parque nacional Xicoténcatl · Nature reserve · 3 km from the centre
A 1937 national park covering Tlaxcala's historic centre, the Zahuapan River and the hills of three of the old Tlaxcalan lordships.
Archaeological sites
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Ocotelulco · Archaeological site · 4 km from the centre
Temple and painted altar of Maxixcatzin's lordship, with a site museum, in San Francisco Ocotelulco, 3 km from Tlaxcala city. Free entry.
Viewpoints
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Escalinatas de los Héroes · Viewpoint · 3 km from the centre
A 1960s flight of 250 steps with a central fountain and statues of national heroes, climbing to a lookout over Tlaxcala city.
Map of Panotla
Neighbourhoods and villages of Panotla
Part of Panotla or just outside it, closest first.
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La Trinidad Tepehitec · Town · 2 km from the centre
Tlaxcala's "Heroic Town" by the city bus terminal: a hub of the 1910 anti-reelection movement, with one of the state's liveliest Day of the Dead nights. -
San Juan Totolac · Town · 2 km from the centre
Seat of Totolac, 3 km from Tlaxcala city: an 1714 parish church and the festival bread baked every week. -
La Trinidad Chimalpa · Village · 3 km from the centre
Old community in Totolac right beside Tlaxcala city, with a church to the Holy Trinity and a patron-saint fiesta in June. -
Los Reyes Quiahuixtlán · Town · 3 km from the centre
Totolac hill town just north of Tlaxcala city, heir to the Quiahuixtlán lordship, with cave paintings at Los Molinos and a Three Kings fiesta. -
San Hipólito Chimalpa · Town · 3 km from the centre
Village in Tlaxcala municipality about 2 km from the capital's centre, with a yellow-domed church to Saint Hippolytus and views of La Malinche. -
San Lucas Cuauhtelulpan · Town · 3 km from the centre
Locality in Tlaxcala municipality with 5,185 people in 2020, patron Saint Luke the Evangelist and a Nahuatl name meaning "on the wooded mound". -
San Miguel Tlamahuco · Village · 3 km from the centre
Village of 1,108 people next to Tlaxcala city, with a red-domed church on a small hill and La Malinche behind it. -
Santa Cruz Techachalco · Village · 3 km from the centre
Locality in Panotla with 2,167 people in 2020, under the patronage of the Holy Cross, with a Nahuatl name meaning "on the stony sandy ground". -
Acxotla del Río · Town · 4 km from the centre
Totolac community beside the Zahuapan river, with an 1876 Nativity church and a Virgin procession eight days before 8 September. -
Ocotlán · Town · 4 km from the centre
The hill town above central Tlaxcala, the municipality's most populous locality, with the Pocito holy-water chapel and the basilica on top. -
San Damián Texóloc · Town · 4 km from the centre
Municipal seat of just over 10 km², of pre-Hispanic origin and a milk-and-farming economy; parish of San Damián. -
San Diego Metepec · Town · 4 km from the centre
Town in Tlaxcala municipality, 'hill of the maguey', with a red-and-white church tower and the La Ocotera ecological park. -
San Francisco Ocotelulco · Village · 4 km from the centre
Totolac village next to Tlaxcala, heir to the lordship of Ocotelulco, with the church of San Francisco de Asís and the ruins close by. -
San Francisco Temetzontla · Village · 4 km from the centre
Panotla locality at about 2,570 m with an 18th-century church, a clock tower and a green-tiled dome, set among low hills north of Tlaxcala. -
San Gabriel Cuauhtla · Town · 4 km from the centre
Locality south of Tlaxcala city next to Ocotlán: once brick and tile makers, now housing estates, with a chapel of San Gabriel.
Day trips and tours from Panotla
The closest Pueblos Mágicos and places to visit, with the drive from Panotla and tours that leave from it.
Times marked ~ are estimated from the distance. Links open a partner site. We may earn a commission if you book, at no cost to you.
Before you go: getting to and around Panotla
- The nearest airport is Puebla (PBC).
- The best months to go are January, February, March, and November.
- 9 of the places on this page are more than 3 km from the centre: take a taxi, a ride-hailing app or a local bus.
- For day trips a rental car gives the most freedom; the tours above leave from Panotla.
Before you go to Panotla: hours, prices and tips
- Best season
- Feast of San Nicolás de Bari: fiesta chica on 6 December, fiesta grande on the third Sunday of December. Wikipedia, Municipio de Panotla · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting Panotla: what to see and do
Church of San Nicolás de Bari: Baroque stucco facade with estipite columns, 17th-century organ and a wide atrium
Sanctuary of Nuestra Señora de la Defensa, in San Ambrosio Texantla, with an octagonal dome and tiled facade
Church of San Francisco de Asís in San Francisco Temetzontla, with a three-level tower and clock
Feast of San Nicolás: fiesta chica on 6 December and fiesta grande on the third Sunday of the month
Tlaxcala carnival, with local roots in the music of clarinettist Mariano Minor Flores
Plan your trip
Places to stay in Panotla
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around Panotla.
Tours & activities
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in Panotla; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
Rental cars
Pick up a car at PBC (Puebla): about 7 min by road to Huejotzingo, then 23 km more to Panotla, on your own schedule.
Flights
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Puebla (PBC), about 7 min by road from Huejotzingo, the base for Panotla.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Huejotzingo: download a map of the way to Panotla before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
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When to go to Panotla mild
Panotla shares the climate of Huejotzingo, 23 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and November.
See the month-by-month climate of Huejotzingo
Weather in Panotla now and the next 7 days
Live forecast from Open-Meteo. Chance of rain is the day's highest.
The closest Pueblo Mágico: Huejotzingo
Huejotzingo is the Pueblo Mágico closest to Panotla, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
Near Panotla
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.