In my opinion it really the best of both worlds. You have Chapala which and be noisy and a little crowded on weekends. Everyone from Guadalajara who can afford to go to Vallarta for the weekends usually ends up in Chapala.

Small are nicer villages abound 10 minutes from Chapala, like Santa Cruz and such.

The first couple of year might take some getting used to not seeing anything in any orderly fashion at all. I like order and hate disorder. I used to go out to the galleria mall in Zapopan (only 45 min away in Guadalajara) and walk around and see things clean, walk on marble floors and see beautiful shops and boutiques everywhere and food courts just like back home(U.S.). But if you want to live out in the country be aware that the common folks are uncultured an uneducated. So people litter. Stop their car in the middle of the street to talk not caring that your behind them, and just vert uneducated things like that.

Frank