Concepción de Ataco

Concepción de Ataco (usually known as Ataco) is a small town in the Apaneca-Ilamatepec mountains of Western El Salvador. It is a colonial small town where time stands still, where cobblestone streets are filled with stone buildings that might seem to have stepped out of a history book if it weren't for the vividly colorful and often fanciful murals that cover walls on almost every street in town. Central America is famous for its shade-grown organic coffees, and in Ataco you don't have to go far to get a fresh cup. The plantations are right at the town's edge and small roasters and baristas will be happy to fix you a cup of steaming gladness. The town is one of the best places to spend a night or two along El Salvadors Ruta de las Flores.

Understand
Prior to the Spanish conquest of the Americas, the town of Ataco was settled by the Pipil people (a Mesoamerican culture that historically spoke Nahuatl and is related to the Aztecs and Mexica peoples of Central Mexico). In El Salvador, indigenous groups were repressed until well into the 20th century and few indigenous people flaunt their heritage or speak their native tongues.

Ataco has a cool subtropical highland climate. Its elevation in the mountain highlands means that daytime temperatures never go above 25 °C and cool nights make for easy sleeping without the need for air conditioning (the coldest nights are in November when temperatures can drop as low as 10 °C, perfect blanket weather!) Ataco gets quite a bit of rain throughout the year, but the highest rainfalls are usually in the month of July.

Get in
Chicken buses are the easiest and cheapest way to get around in El Salvador. From the Terminal Occidente in San Salvador, take the Ruta 205 bus toward Sonsonate (usually painted a shade of dark aqua green). The trip will take over 2 hours and costs about US$2. In Sonsonate, take a Ruta 249 bus toward Ahuchapan (it passes through Ataco). From Sonsonate to Ataco is about 1½ hour and will cost about US$1-2.

Get around
The central downtown area is compact and a joy to walk, with colonial buildings, cobblestone streets, and street vendors with a dizzying selection of things you don't really need. Moto taxis are common, especially for short trips, though regular taxis (most small Nissan sedans) can be found at sitios near downtown parks and can also be called to your hotel. Assuming you are comfortable with Spanish, you can negotiate a daily rate if you'd like a driver to take you around on a custom sightseeing tour (usually very cheap). If you don't know where something is, take one of the moto taxis (tuc-tuc).

See




Do

 * Climb La Mirador de la Cruz to get a nice view of the whole town (there are several other miradors if you want to climb them all)

Go next

 * Ahuachapan
 * Juayúa
 * Apaneca