We have the opportunity of using a friend's place in Patzcuaro. My family consists of one thirteen and a sixteen year-old daughters, my wife and I. We're pretty well traveled and love food, art and different cultures. Are my girls going to be bored in Patzcuaro and is there another destination that we could include that would be a nice compliment?

You will only be an hour or so bus ride from Morelia, which is a very nice university town. If you will be there in late Jan to early March, to see the Monarch butterflies.

You can also spend several days taking trips to each of the villages surrounding the lake. Each village has a different craft that it focuses upon.

Luis Miguel is a great guide for the Monarchs: http://www.mmg.com.mx/

With pyramids (Tingambato), ruins a fabulous National Park (Uruapan), Butterfly preserves, Dia De Los Muertos things every where. A most charming El Centro with not one but two main plazas, a Mercado with incredible bargains I can not imagine anybody getting bored. As the previous poster said The very cosmopolitan city of Morelia with tons of charm/interest is less than a hour away.

What dates will you be travelling through Patzcuaro? That will be the key indication of where else there is to visit. Places to visit in the 'provincias' are dominant upon festivities.

From Patzcuaro it is also relatively easy to pop over to Zihuatanejo for a couple of days at the beach if you want a change of scenery.

In Patzcuaro, we used Miguel Angel Nunez as a guide and he was really great. I highly recommend using him for trips to the craft villages around Patzcuaro. I'm not usually one for using guides and can't say enough good things about him.

take a cab or car ride over to the ferry station and tour the islands. If your girls like the water and boats that may be a nice day or half-day. Janitzio is the more commercial. Also the ticket window and restaurants take cash only.