Town San Juan Huactzinco, Tlaxcala Volcano Route Monasteries on the slopes of Popocatépetl Puebla Valley
Bread-baking town in southern Tlaxcala with a Franciscan church from 1670, carnival costumes and a San Juan Apóstol fiesta on 27 December.
From Chiautempan: 15 min by car (15 km by road) How to get there ↓
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Where to stay near San Juan Huactzinco
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Juan Huactzinco.
Tours to San Juan Huactzinco
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in San Juan Huactzinco; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.
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How to get to San Juan Huactzinco
- From Chiautempan: about 15 min by road (~15 km)
- Nearest airport: Puebla (PBC), 7 min by car to Huejotzingo
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Tours from Puebla City, near San Juan Huactzinco
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About San Juan Huactzinco
San Juan Huactzinco is the seat of the municipality of the same name in southern Tlaxcala, at about 2,300 m and inside the Puebla-Tlaxcala metropolitan zone. The 2020 census counted 7,679 people in the town; the municipality has just one other locality, Milpa Alta, with 9. The Nahuatl name is explained as "in the venerable dry place" (huacoui, tzin, co).
Its past is longer than it looks: the Enciclopedia de los Municipios describes human occupation from about 800 to 300 BC and an important settlement in the Tezoquipan phase (300 BC to AD 100), with irrigation canals and dikes and a city of plazas, streets and drains. In colonial times the Franciscans evangelised it and the church, from 1670 according to that source, was built with indigenous labour. It has been a municipality since 1995, split from Tepeyanco, to which it belonged.
The church of San Juan was raised in stages between the 16th and 18th centuries, with a Latin-cross plan, a lunette vault and two unequal towers: the right one of one stage, the left of three. Its bell was cast in 1880 and came from the Los Reyes hacienda. The big fiesta is 27 December, for San Juan Apóstol, with fairground rides, shooting games and fruit and sweet stalls, and above all the festival bread made by local bakers, including chimixtlán, made with panela and aguamiel. Carnival starts on the third Friday of Lent, with huehues dancing from house to house from 11 am to 6 pm, and the town sews costumes later worn at carnivals elsewhere in the state.
How to get to San Juan Huactzinco
Drive from Chiautempan: 15 min, 15 km
San Juan Huactzinco is in southern Tlaxcala, just south of San Jerónimo Zacualpan and near Tepeyanco and Zacatelco. By road, access is along the Tlaxcala-San Martín Texmelucan corridor: from Tlaxcala city it is a short drive, and from Puebla about 22 km and 25 minutes. By public transport, take a bus from Puebla (CAPU) or Tlaxcala toward Zacatelco or Tepeyanco, then a combi or taxi; combis are the usual local transport here, but. Huejotzingo (a Pueblo Mágico in Puebla) is about 18 km away, around 20 minutes.
Directions to San Juan Huactzinco on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to San Juan Huactzinco
- Chiautempan · 15 km by road, 15 min
- San Martín Texmelucan · 28 km by road, 25 min
- Puebla · 25 km by road, 30 min
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
What to see in San Juan Huactzinco 1
Sights with their own page, closest to the centre first.
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Laguna de Acomulco · Lagoon · 4 km from the centre
A lagoon of about 20,000 m² in Zacatelco's fourth section, fed by springs and under restoration since the 2010s.
Map of San Juan Huactzinco
Neighbourhoods and villages of San Juan Huactzinco
Part of San Juan Huactzinco or just outside it, closest first.
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San Jerónimo Zacualpan · Town · 1 km from the centre
Southern Tlaxcala town with a clock-tower church, tule weaving, carnival charros and a San Jerónimo fiesta on 30 September. -
San Lorenzo Axocomanitla · Town · 1 km from the centre
One of Mexico's smallest municipalities: a 17th-century church, San Lorenzo's fiesta on 10 August and fibre basketry. -
Tepeyanco · Town · 2 km from the centre
Old lordship south of Tlaxcala city with the ruins of a 1554 Franciscan convent, a brick-and-tile parish church and a name for avocados. -
Zacatelco · Town · 2 km from the centre
South Tlaxcala town between Puebla and the state capital: the Baroque Santa Inés parish, frothy cacao drink and the chivarrudos carnival dance. -
El Carmen Aztama · Village · 3 km from the centre
Teolocholco village whose Nahuatl name means 'place where herons are hunted', with a Virgen del Carmen church and a fair that starts on 14 July. -
San Cosme Atlamaxac · Town · 3 km from the centre
Locality in Tepeyanco, 9 km from Tlaxcala city, with 3,019 residents in 2020, next to the Calvario hill and under 1 km from the municipal seat. -
La Aurora · Village · 4 km from the centre
Tepeyanco locality close to the Franciscan former convent, among avocado orchards with La Malinche in the background. -
San Andrés Cuamilpa · Village · 4 km from the centre
Tetlatlahuca village whose Nahuatl name means "in the wooded milpa"; church of Saint Andrew the Apostle. -
Santa Cruz Quilehtla · Town · 4 km from the centre
Seat of a young municipality in southern Tlaxcala: carnival chivarrudos, rockets and paper flowers, and the Holy Cross fiesta on 3 May. -
Tetlatlahuca · Town · 4 km from the centre
A municipal seat with the parish of Santa Isabel (fiesta 19 November), tule crafts and an ancient settlement on the Cerro de La Cruz.
Day trips and tours from San Juan Huactzinco
The closest Pueblos Mágicos and places to visit, with the drive from San Juan Huactzinco 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 San Juan Huactzinco
- The nearest airport is Puebla (PBC).
- The best months to go are January, February, March, and November.
- 5 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 San Juan Huactzinco.
Before you go to San Juan Huactzinco: hours, prices and tips
- Best season
- Carnival from the third Friday of Lent; patron fiesta of San Juan Apóstol on 27 December. INAFED, Enciclopedia de los Municipios · checked Oct 2026
Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.
Visiting San Juan Huactzinco: what to see and do
The church of San Juan, with two unequal towers and a bell cast in 1880
Festival bread and chimixtlán, made with panela and aguamiel
Carnival costumes made in the town
The fiesta of San Juan Apóstol on 27 December
Huehues dancing house to house from the third Friday of Lent
Plan your trip
Places to stay in San Juan Huactzinco
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Juan Huactzinco.
Tours & activities
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in San Juan Huactzinco; 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 18 km more to San Juan Huactzinco, on your own schedule.
Flights
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Puebla (PBC), about 7 min by road from Huejotzingo, the base for San Juan Huactzinco.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Huejotzingo: download a map of the way to San Juan Huactzinco before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
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When to go to San Juan Huactzinco mild
San Juan Huactzinco shares the climate of Huejotzingo, 18 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and November.
See the month-by-month climate of Huejotzingo
Weather in San Juan Huactzinco 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 San Juan Huactzinco, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
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Near San Juan Huactzinco
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.