Half-Day Guided Tour of Lake Chapala from Guadalajara

My mother, sister and I went in this tour. We had a very nice time with our tour guide and driver. The day went by too fast, and the best place we ate during our trip to Guadalajara was the La Nueva Posada

Ramon was the name of our driver from Guadalajara to Lake Chapala. I hesitate to call him a guide because I do not want to insult the people who make their living being Guides. He was terrible at best. Was unable to provide even rudimentary insight toe the architectural sites we were seeing (Churches) as to when they were built, etc. Dropped us off at Lake Chapala and stated, "..you should have been here last week. They cleared the lilies from the lake and they seem to have grown back already." Great insight. Lake Chapala through his information was a waste of time. Onward to Ajijic. Drove us through the residential area where all the Canadians and Americans live. Parked next to the "Beach" area. Then we walked some 4-500 meters uphill to the city center area where a magnificent church was. No info on the church. Took us to a small shop where his female friend, I guess, tried to talk us into buying some overpriced bottled of flavored candies and tequilas supposedly made by her family and found NO WHERE else in Mexico. Why he couldn't park at the square we will never know. Walked back to the beach and the van expecting to stop somewhere for a "guides" perspective.....Nothing. Boarded the van and drove off. (Found the candies and Tequila in San Miguel De Allende the next day much cheaper). If Ramon spoke for more than10 minutes during the entire 9 hr "tour", I didn't hear him. My suggestion to anyone reading this is to rent your own vehicle, get a brochure from the hotel Concierge and go on your own. It will be more interesting than using this tour. Normally VIATOR is great. We have used them all over the world with great results. NOT THIS TIME.

This was a total clusterfu*k. Every other time I’ve done a tour the tour begins after they pick you up. This time, they picked me up early and drove 25 minutes across town to pick up two other people- who were going on a different tour (we waited 20 minutes for them to come down) and they then brought us to the main office where we all sat and waited another 30 minutes. They then drove back in the direction they picked me up to go to the lake. Our tour guide was great, but I wouldn’t book with this company again.

Antonio was a excellent tour guide. Spoke excellent English and very knowledgeable in the history of Mexico. Took very good care of all of us. We also had a excellent driver for this tour. Highly recommended.

Very informative tour leader, Antonio. Antonio is an area native and fluent in the local life. He had wonderful recommendations for our free time shopping and dining.

I enjoyed the tour. the driver Antonio spoke great English and very informative.

I was very fortunate to have the tour guide, Paco, to myself which allowed a great deal of flexibility on the schedule skipping the visit to Vicente Fernandez's ranch, stopping at a liquor store to buy some gift tequila. Paco's English was very good, and he was knowledgeable and friendly. I was surprised by the amount of time I was left by myself to wander and explore not a bad thing, but somehow I had been expected more guiding and it worked out well. Lago de Chapala is very scenic, with steep mountains coming right down to the water in many places, and the number and variety of waterbirds was amazing. The second stop, the nearby town of Ajijic, was charming with its art galleries, cobblestone streets and attractive promenade along the lake shore past flowering trees in riotous color. Lunch at Los Telares restaurant in Ajijic was excellent try the chilled shrimp dish 'camarones aguachile verde. I had the place almost to myself, and it was soothing and relaxing to linger over my meal listening to the fountain in the courtyard. Travel tips: The rainy season in Guadalajara is July - September, which meant that the weather in late April during my visit was ideal high 70's - low 80's F with very low humidity but that also meant the hills and mountains were brown and sere, and frequent and numerous wildfires partially obscured the views with smoke. Also, Chapala Lake is a favorite weekend destination for the Guadalajara metro area, so if you can visit on a weekday, the crowds will be much, much less. Finally, if you're not used to the strength of the sun this far south, it is intense and sunscreen is a must!

The tour guides were very nice and told interesting stories about every site we visited, from the bus station, through the way to Chapala Lake, Ajijic and back. I really enjoyed it and overall I think the tour was worth my time and money. Thanks

Todo muy bien. Me gustó, me fascinó, me encantó el viaje. Fue maravilloso, excelente. Paisajes muy bonitos y la gente muy amable, atenta.