Welcome to Suchitoto, El Salvador’s Cutest Town
This travel blog will go over the best things to in Suchitoto, one of the most beautiful towns in El Salvador. Every street in Suchitoto is lined with colorful pastel houses and stunning flowers. We almost skipped Suchitoto, which would have been a truly terrible decision. The people here are extremely welcoming and are incredibly happy that you’re visiting. Our homestay hosts thanked me nonstop for 10 minutes for both staying with them and for visiting El Salvador, made sure our every need was taking care of, and made us a delicious breakfast with only a 15-minute heads up.
Suchitoto’s ambiance is not only welcoming and friendly, but also extremely relaxing. Lake Suchitlan is quiet, peaceful, and provides a great opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle of San Salvador. So whether you want to do a bunch of activities in one day or just take it easy, Suchitoto will provide an amazing travel experience that you’ll rave about for years to come. Let’s get into the best things to do in Suchitoto!
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The 11 Most Amazing Things to Do in Suchitoto
1. Explore the Casa de Alejandro Cotto Museum
This is the highlight of Suchitoto in our opinion. We absolutely loved the colonial style house with a gorgeous courtyard and garden that leads to view of beautiful Lake Suchitlan. Alejandro Cotto was a famous filmmaker and is largely responsible for building Suchitoto into the gem it is today. You can even take Spanish (and English) lessons in the garden, which looked really fun. You can come here to read a book, journal, meditate or just relax. We truly could have spent all day here.
Entry costs $3 for foreigners, and you can stay until they close at 5 pm.
2. Admire the Parroquia de Santa Lucía
While the Alejandro Cotto Museum is the highlight of Suchitoto, the Parroquia de Santa Lucía is star of the show. The beautiful white cathedral towers over the main square and quiet town. You can enter the church, but make sure to be quiet and respectful as there may be a service going on. There are a bunch of street food vendors in the main square as well as restaurants where you can enjoy your meal with a view of this gorgeous cathedral.
3. Los Tercios Waterfall: The Coolest Dry Waterfall
Los Tercios Waterfall is an incredibly unique waterfall due to the rocks behind the waterfall. There’s a good chance that you won’t see any water during the dry season, which is from November to April. Nevertheless, this is still interesting and worth a spot on your Suchitoto Itinerary! There are also amazing viewpoints here, which I could spend all day lounging at.
The cost to visit is $1 for entry and $1 for parking.
4. Learn About and Make Indigo Textiles at Arte Añil
Arte Añil (Indigo) is both a clothing store and a workshop where the owner, Irma, makes all of the clothes by hand. You can simply stop in or do an indigo workshop where you learn about El Salvador’s rich history with Indigo and make and dye your own clothes. This costs $35, which is cheaper than most of the clothing items we saw! El Salvador used to be the biggest exporter of indigo, and its history goes back centuries to the early Indigenous Pipil tribes.
5. Visit the Art Center For Peace
This is an old school founded in 1914, closed in the 1980s during the civil war, and reopened as an arts center. Its vision is to promote peace and better the community through alternate education methods. While the exhibits are in Spanish, there’s loads of interesting art in the colonial-style courtyard. The entrance is $2, but you can donate more and help the organization in their mission to help 1000+ kids a year. There’s also a café here where you can grab a delicious breakfast, lunch or coffee!
The Art Center for Peace is open from 7 am to 3 pm daily
6. Explore Lake Suchitlan
Explore Lake Suchitlan by boat, kayak, or paddleboard. Head down to the San Juan Port where the couple restaurants and hotels are happy to rent kayaks and paddleboards to visitors. You can also take a boat tour to the islets of Lake Suchitlan, which are beautiful and are populated by various bird species. Unfortunately you can’t swim in Lake Suchitlan due to the algae blooms and pollution.
7. Wander the Colorful Colonial Streets
The cobblestone roads, vibrantly colorful houses, and the pink and white flowers that lace these streets are not to be missed. Rewind in time and get lost in these beautiful streets with no intentions or direction. This cute town can be explored for hours and you wouldn’t get tired of it!
8. Hike Through a Former Guerrilla Camp
Gringo Tours Suchitoto offers a tour of Cinquera, which includes talking to a former FMLN rebel to hear his story, hike through the Cinquera Eco Forest where you’ll see remnants of a guerrilla camp and learn about the El Salvadorean Civil War. You’ll take a dip in a waterfall and also take a short tour of Cinquera and it’s murals. Gringo tours also offers other interesting tours, like birdwatching and exploring Guazapa mountain on foot, (or by horse!) while learning about the recent civil war.
If you want to do this as a day tour from San Salvador, check out this tour.
9. Enjoy a Morning at Suchiland Adventure Center
Suchiland Adventure Center is a 20-minute walk outside of town and is the perfect place to spend an afternoon. It’s near Tercios Waterfall and the San Juan Port, so you may as well stop by if you’re over there! Here you can do the following activities:
- Mini Golf $8: on weekdays and $10 on weekends
- Practice Your Swing With Golf Net: $10
- Ziplining: $10
- Paintball: $10-$180 for 100 to 2000 balls
- Trapeze Bicycles: $8
- Normal Bicycles: $6/hour
- Extreme Pendelum Swing: $8
- Horse Riding: price varies
- Cornhole, tetherball, playground and other games are free
Suchiland is open from 8 am to 6 pm Fridays-Sundays, 9 am to 5 pm Tuesdays-Thursdays, and is closed on Mondays
10. Visit a Plate Museum Museo de los Mil Platos y Más
The Museo de los Mil Platos y Más, or the “Museum of a Thousand Plates and More”, is one of the more peculiar “museums” we’ve gone to. This is run by a woman who, apparently just really loves plates, and has collected the most interesting plates from all over the world. There are entire sections for the following themes:
Hollywood, religious, sports, mother and baby, astrology, Norman Rockwell, clown, Elvis, and much much more.
This museum costs $3 and takes 10-20 minutes.
11. Catch a Movie or Drink Coffee With a View at Casa Clementina
Casa Clementina has a cute makeshift open-air home theatre as well as a café with beautiful views of Lake Suchitlan. The best part is that it’s a non-profit organization with tons of different programs. From teaching English, computing, and reading to helping troubled kids to servicing the elderly in need, Casa Clementina is an amazing organization that helps empower the community through the arts as well as technical skills. They seek to increase cultural tourism and benefit the local economy, so supporting them is supporting the entire community of Suchitoto!
Best Time to Visit Suchitoto
Though Suchitoto can be visited year round, we recommend trying to visit during El Salvador’s dry season, which runs from November to April. With clear skies and warm temperatures, it’s ideal for strolling the cobblestone streets, soaking up the town’s beauty, and enjoying outdoor activities around Lake Suchitlán.
However, if you don’t mind the possibility of rain showers and are on a budget, the shoulder months (May & September) can be a good option with fewer crowds and potentially lower prices.
Where to Stay in Suchitoto
Suchitoto doesn’t have a lot of places to stay, but there are definitely some gems. We stayed at Mangal B&B, which was absolutely amazing. We got an extremely nice place for fairly cheap, and the best part was the delicious breakfast they provided, which kept us full until dinner!
El Tejado and Casa 1800 both have restaurants and beautiful views of Lake Suchitlan, so these are great options if you have the budget!
Suchitoto Accommodations
How to Get to Suchitoto
The easiest way to get to Suchitoto is with a rental car. This will be helpful for exploring towns around Suchitoto, like Cinquera, a former guerrilla outpost.
If you only have time to do Suchitoto as a day trip from San Salvador, check out this tour!
How to Get to Suchitoto from Within El Salvador
No matter where you’re coming from in El Salvador, you’ll first want to get to San Salvador. From there, you’ll be able to catch the #129 or #140×3 bus to Suchitoto from Terminal Nuevo Almanecer. This takes 1.5 hours and costs $1. Bus 129 does not have overhead storage, so keep that in mind when doing this journey.
Warning: You may have seen other sources say to the bus leaves from punto de microbuses ruta 140 or Terminal Oriente, but this is no longer the case. The bus to Suchitoto only departs from the Terminal Nuevo Almanecer.
How to Get to Suchitoto from El Tunco
To get to the Terminal Nuevo Almanecer in San Salvador from El Tunco, take the 102A minibus for $1.50 to San Salvador. This takes a little over an hour and drops you off here. Walk 20 minutes here and catch the 29A mini bus for $0.35 or any bus going to Terminal Nuevo Almanecer. Other buses that happen to be going there might cost a little more.
How to Get to Suchitoto from Santa Ana
To get to San Salvador from Santa Ana, take bus #201 from Francisco Lara Pineda Station for $0.85, which takes a little over an hour. You will get dropped off at Terminal de Occidente. From there, walk 30 minutes to here and flag down one of the #29 buses to take you to Terminal Nuevo Almanecer.
How to Get to Suchitoto from La Ruta de las Flores
To get to San Salvador from any of the towns on Ruta de las Flores, take the #249 bus to Sonsonate for $0.50. Then take the #205 bus from Sonsonate to San Salvador for $1, which takes a little over an hour. You will get dropped off at Terminal de Occidente. From there, follow the same instructions as if you were to arrive from Santa Ana, listed above.
Where To Eat in Suchitoto
- Art Center for Peace: Food where profits benefit a great cause
- El Harlequin: For great chicken soup
- Central Market: For fresh fruit and veggies, as well as quick street food
- La Cocina de Niña Elva: For duck and chicken soup, and of course pupusas
- Casa de Abuela: For coffee (we didn’t like the cake very much)
- Donde Charlie: For very interesting pupusas like Tex Mex and Margherita
- Casa 1800: For fancier meals with great views of the lake
- El Tejado: For great views and cool atmosphere
- Get 3 delicious pupusas for $1, located here
What is Suchitoto, El Salvador known for?
Suchitoto is known for being a charming colonial town with super nice people and great views of Lake Suchitlan. It is also very close to Cinquera, which has beautiful nature and was used as a rebel stronghold during the El Salvadorean Civil War.
Why Visit Suchitoto?
You should visit Suchitoto if you enjoy beautiful colonial towns that allow you to go at your own pace. There’s tons of things to do in Suchitoto’s surrounding nature and if you’re in search of a calm vacation, you could easily spend a week here. We can’t wait to come back and do more!
Keep Exploring El Salvador…
- The Absolute Best Things to Do in El Salvador
- The Perfect 10-Day El Salvador Itinerary
- The Most Amazing 1 Week El Salvador Itinerary
- El Salvador to Nicaragua by Boat: Your Ultimate Guide
- The Best Things to Do in and around Santa Ana, El Salvador
- Your Complete Guide to the Santa Ana Volcano Hike
- How to Spend the Perfect Day in El Tunco, El Salvador
- La Ruta de las Flores: El Salvador’s Most Beautiful Towns
- From Antigua to El Salvador by Bus: Your Ultimate Guide
- Is El Salvador Safe to Travel to? Everything You Need to Know Before Visiting
Our Favorite Travel Resources
Accommodations: We use Booking.com for hotels and HostelWorld for hostels. We also use VRBO or TrustedHousesitters for longer stays.
Flights: We recommend using Skyscanner to find the cheapest and best flights.
Ground Transport: We use 12Go and Omio for buses and private transfers, and rentalcars.com and Discover Cars for rental cars.
Activities: GetYourGuide and Viator are the best websites for booking organized tours.
International Medical Insurance: We highly recommend SafetyWing for Digital Nomads and HeyMondo for those not traveling full-time, or who frequently engage in higher-risk adventure activities.
eSIM: We recommend Airalo or Holafly for getting data internationally.
Check out our Travel Resources Page for more of our favorite travel-related products and services!
Wow! what an incredibly beautiful place! I have to admit I don’t know much about El Salvador and this town looks so cool. I love the cascading flowers and it looks like there’s a lot to see. Great post thanks for sharing!
Thanks for checking this post out! El Salvador is truly an amazing place and we highly recommend visiting it if you haven’t already!