Semana Santa: What to Expect on Good Friday and Easter Sunday in Guadalajara

Before I left for Guadalajara, I posed a question on Reddit asking what we should expect during our Semana Santa visit.

I received a range of responses, from “Everyone will be in Puerto Vallarta” to “Everything will be open, don’t worry about it” to “LOL, enjoy being beheaded.”

While I’m certain the last commenter was a simple troll who needed to be ignored – the first two comments were in direct opposition to each other and left me still unsure of what to expect during Holy Week.

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Now that I’m back, I can confirm that both of those two comments were correct:

Many Tapatíos do opt to spend this time on vacation at the beach (Puerto Vallarta being the closest and most popular beach) – yet plenty of places remained open and we felt spoiled for choice of things to do.

Heading to Guadalajara during Semana Santa? Here are a few recommendations:

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SEMANA SANTA IN GUADALAJARA

Visit the Tourist Spots

Guadalajara isn’t just a destination for international tourists; although many Tapatíos head to the beach, many tourists from other parts of Mexico come to visit Guadalajara during the break. As a result, many of the popular sights remain open, despite the important holiday – and there are plenty of things to do.

For example, on Good Friday we toured a distillery and the town of Tequila – although the distillery wasn’t operating and some businesses were closed, we still experienced a full day’s worth of activities (you can read all about it here!).

And on Easter Sunday, we woke up early and headed to the Pueblo Magico of Tlaquepaque. Again, we found some shops and restaurants closed, but more than enough were open to warrant a morning visit. Once back in Guadalajara, we escaped the hottest part of the day at MUSA, which remained open.

The government deems arts and culture incredibly important and ensures that many of these institutions remain open (head here to see the latest).

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Wander a Little

Outside is always open (and free!), and the holiday could be a good excuse to visit some of Guadalajara’s parks and natural wonders. But even if you’re not feeling up for an adventure, this is a great opportunity to stroll the streets to check out the architecture and street art and to see the city in a celebratory mood.

Two weeks of school closures meant we saw many families out and about during the daytime, both on playgrounds in the parks and in other common areas (walking along Avenida Chapultepec was a treat!). And even on Easter Sunday, large swaths of roads were closed to cars as usual from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. so locals could get out and walk/bike/skate/jog safely.

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Be Hip

Okay, but you gotta eat, right? We found that a higher concentration of bars and restaurants were open in the hip neighborhood of Colonia Americana throughout Easter weekend. Not everywhere was open, of course, but many of the trendy restaurants definitely were.

A few of the places we visited on Good Friday and Easter Sunday include:

• Luna Pachuli (Tlaquepaque)
• Cantaritos El Güero (Amatitán)
• Karmele, Fonda Mago (Tequila)
• El Puesto Ambulante
• PALREAL
• Tonel de Diógenes
• Pare de Sufrir Mezcalería
• Belial, Coctelería + Cocina (now closed)
• Nieves De Garrafa Chapalita (Tlaquepaque).

I can’t guarantee these places will be open in future years, but it might be a good place to start! (I also recommend taking a look at my Guadalajara Food Guide before you go!).

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OTHER CLOSURES

Government buildings, banks, and the like will probably be closed from Thursday to Sunday of Easter week (possibly longer), so plan your visits to those locations accordingly. Restaurants and shops that decide to close may just close on Good Friday and/or Easter Sunday as the loss of revenue is just too great to close for two weeks.

If possible, check the location’s website or social media (or call) before you try to visit to ensure they will be open to save you the time and headache. Public Transit and Uber both continued to run over the holiday, but we noticed slightly longer wait times for Uber on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

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FINAL THOUGHTS ON VISITING GUADALAJARA DURING SEMANA SANTA

We can’t always choose when we visit a destination, can we? While a Semana Santa visit does mean that some businesses and attractions will be closed for the better part of the week, strategic planning and a willingness to get creative means that you never have to feel like you’re missing out.

And if you arrive somewhere to find it closed? You now have the perfect excuse to return to Guadalajara.

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What are you most looking forward to during your visit to Guadalajara?