Town Tlaxcala Municipality of Tlaxcala
Locality of 6,503 people in Tlaxcala municipality beside the bypass, with a church with a painted dome dedicated to Saint Sebastian.
From Chiautempan: 10 min by car (6 km by road) How to get there ↓
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Plan your visit to San Sebastián Atlahapa
Where to stay near San Sebastián Atlahapa
Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Sebastián Atlahapa.
Tours to San Sebastián Atlahapa
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in San Sebastián Atlahapa; 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 San Sebastián Atlahapa
- From Chiautempan: about 10 min by road (~6 km)
- Nearest airport: Puebla (PBC), 7 min by car to Huejotzingo
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Tours from Puebla City, near San Sebastián Atlahapa
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About San Sebastián Atlahapa
San Sebastián Atlahapa is a locality in the municipality of Tlaxcala, at 2,325 metres above sea level, within the capital's urban area. The 2020 census counted 6,503 residents, up from 5,086 in 2010. Its name is Nahuatl: atl (water), xalli (sand) and pan (on), meaning on the wet sand. An 1786 division of Tlaxcala's districts already lists it as San Sebastián Atlapa.
Its patron saint is Saint Sebastian, and the church bears his name. Photographs on Wikimedia Commons show an octagonal dome decorated with paintings of religious scenes, a main altarpiece and, at festival time, the saint's image surrounded by flowers and arches of lights. The village is one of only two community presidencies in Tlaxcala municipality where the election is held by customary law (usos y costumbres), not by open ballot.
The Tlaxcala bypass (libramiento), the fast road that circles the urban area to the south, runs along its edge, and the Galerías Tlaxcala shopping centre is nearby. Some directories place Atlahapa about 1.8 km northwest of the centre of La Magdalena Tlaltelulco, a neighbouring locality with its own page in this guide.
How to get to San Sebastián Atlahapa
Drive from Chiautempan: 10 min, 6 km
San Sebastián Atlahapa lies in the urban area of Tlaxcala, in the municipality of the same name. The Tlaxcala bypass (periférico) skirts the locality to the south and is the fastest way in; the Puebla-Tlaxcala metropolitan boulevard, about 25 km long, and the toll highways to Puebla and Mexico City complete the area's road network. Buses reach Tlaxcala city from Puebla in about 50 minutes and from Mexico City's TAPO in about 1 hour 50 minutes; from the Tlaxcala terminal the locality is reached by taxi or local transport (no routes or schedules are published). Huejotzingo, Puebla, is about 34 km away (approx. 40 minutes by car).
Directions to San Sebastián Atlahapa on Google Maps
Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.
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From the nearest cities to San Sebastián Atlahapa
- Chiautempan · 6 km by road, 10 min
- San Martín Texmelucan · 30 km by road, 25 min
- Puebla · 31 km by road, 35 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 Sebastián Atlahapa 7
Sights with their own page, closest to the centre first.
Landmarks and museums
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Basílica de Ocotlán · Landmark · 3 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. -
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 · 4 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 · 4 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.
Nature reserves
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Parque nacional Xicoténcatl · Nature reserve · 4 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.
Viewpoints
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Escalinatas de los Héroes · Viewpoint · 4 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 San Sebastián Atlahapa
Neighbourhoods and villages of San Sebastián Atlahapa
Part of San Sebastián Atlahapa or just outside it, closest first.
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Santa Cruz Tetela · Village · 2 km from the centre
A Chiautempan village at 2,295 m, with prickly-pear groves and farm plots; its Nahuatl name means stony place. -
Santa Isabel Xiloxoxtla · Town · 2 km from the centre
Seat of one of Tlaxcala's smallest municipalities, with an industrial park, a charros carnival and the chapel of Juan Diego. -
Santa María Acuitlapilco · Town · 2 km from the centre
Large locality south of the state capital, beside the lagoon that bears its name and known for its huehues and the dance of El Palomo. -
Santiago Tlacochcalco · Village · 2 km from the centre
Village in Tepeyanco on the Acuitlapilco lagoon, with a church of Santiago Apóstol and a patron-saint fiesta on 25 July. -
La Magdalena Tlaltelulco · Town · 3 km from the centre
A town on the lower slopes of La Malinche, 8 km from Tlaxcala on the Chiautempan-Puebla road, its own municipality since 1995, with a barrio carnival. -
Ocotlán · Town · 3 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 Gabriel Cuauhtla · Town · 3 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. -
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. -
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. -
La Trinidad Tepehitec · Town · 4 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 Buenaventura Atempan · Village · 4 km from the centre
Village in Tlaxcala municipality tied to Cortés's brigantines; it has an old aqueduct and a fiesta of St Bonaventure on 15 July. -
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 Hipólito Chimalpa · Town · 4 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 · 4 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 · 4 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.
Day trips and tours from San Sebastián Atlahapa
The closest Pueblos Mágicos and places to visit, with the drive from San Sebastián Atlahapa 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 Sebastián Atlahapa
- The nearest airport is Puebla (PBC).
- The best months to go are January, February, March, and November.
- 12 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 Sebastián Atlahapa.
Visiting San Sebastián Atlahapa: what to see and do
The church of San Sebastián, with its painted octagonal dome and main altarpiece.
The saint's feast, when the image is set among flowers and arches of lights.
The Tlaxcala bypass and the Galerías Tlaxcala mall on the edge of the village.
La Magdalena Tlaltelulco, a neighbouring locality with its own page in this guide.
Plan your trip
Places to stay in San Sebastián Atlahapa
Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Sebastián Atlahapa.
Tours & activities
Day trips around Huejotzingo sometimes stop in San Sebastián Atlahapa; 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 24 km more to San Sebastián Atlahapa, 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 Sebastián Atlahapa.
Mobile data
Signal can drop away from Huejotzingo: download a map of the way to San Sebastián Atlahapa before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.
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When to go to San Sebastián Atlahapa mild
San Sebastián Atlahapa shares the climate of Huejotzingo, 24 km away. The best months to visit are January, February, March, and November.
See the month-by-month climate of Huejotzingo
Weather in San Sebastián Atlahapa 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 Sebastián Atlahapa, with places to stay, food, and more to see.
Also close to
Near San Sebastián Atlahapa
Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.
Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.