Catedral Basílica de la Inmaculada Concepción — Attraction in CENTRO

Surprised to find this towering jewel in the bustling streets of Mazatlan's local town plaza. Surrounding it are narrow traffic-congested streets and the seemingly unending blocks of tiendesitas selling everything from the usual breakfast, delicacies, Mexican apparels & accessories. These remind me of the Philippines' own Quiapo & Divisoria locales where the Spaniards had a heavy influence in architecture and cuisine. The Cathedral itself is huge and each corner, every nook, is ornated with impressive masonry, sculptures, gilded arches, intricate tile work and stained glass pieces. Fortunately, our group got there hours before the next mass starts and I got to take as much photos without disturbing the devotees. Although, I would have liked to stay & experience the mass itself, I remembered having a hard time keeping up with the Sunday mass at a different place in Mazatlan just the week prior done in Spanish. And for that one, we were given missals with both English & Spanish. It was interesting to note that there were a lot of 2 pax confession boxes along both aisles. The outside walls are currently being retouched as time and weather (& according to a seasoned contractor, poor cement work) has started peeling the paint and eroding the cement walls. I was still around when it's bellfry's call to mass rang. It sounded more a commanding summons than a gentle invitation. Perhaps it suits the looming and grand stature it aims to effuse. Maybe I will be lucky to attend mass here if I have another...

Beautiful cathedral —Spanish Mass offered daily, plan ahead for seasonal schedule. This is a traditional Catholic Church, those celebrating Eucharist take by mouth and not by hand (common in US). No missalette available, so I used my mobile app, Laudate, which offers English and Spanish translation of the daily reading. Centrally located across from the main city plaza, an easy ride from cruise terminals. I can recommend using DiDi for ride (like an Uber/Lyft) and each way was MX peso $35 or today’s conversion rate of about $2.04 each way—MUCH less expensive than the set terminal taxi stand, which was $9/USD each way. I also stopped in a frozen fruit/ice cream shop for a quick watermelon refreshment—many other fruit flavors are offered for about $1.50 per bar. The plaza was festive and very much ALIVE with tourists and locals during this holiday season. Local police are present to help with traffic flow and...

Must visit. Beautiful cathedral, beautiful architecture, with lots of nice sculptures outside. There are limited places you can inside the church, and there are some stores outside but you will not need to spend much time other than taking a seat inside to admire the beautiful structure. We were there for roughly 20 min including a self-prayer. While you might not spend a lot of time at the church, a block over is the Suraz market where you can purchase a lot of souvenirs at a very cheap price. There are also a lot of restaurants in the area, you can easily spend 2-3 hours just touring the...