La Huasteca Potosina
Like something from a tropical postcard, Tamul is easily the Huasteca Potosina’s most spectacular waterfall. Milky-blue water plunges 105m into the…
Must-see attractions in Northern Central Highlands
Guanajuato
Diego Rivera's birthplace is now an excellent museum honoring the famous artist, who was persona non grata here for years. Rivera and his twin brother…
Guanajuato
Don’t leave Guanajuato without visiting the magnificent Teatro Juárez. It was built between 1873 and 1903 and inaugurated by the dictator Porfirio Díaz,…
Guanajuato
On a hill overlooking Guanajuato, 5km north of the center, is the magnificent Templo La Valenciana. Its facade is spectacular and its interior dazzles…
San Luis Potosí
This excellent museum devoted to the work of Mexican artist Federico Silva (b 1923) should not be missed. The 17th-century building was once a hospital…
Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guanajuato
Guanajuato
The attractive orange-yellow Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guanajuato contains a jewel-covered image of the Virgin, patron of Guanajuato. The wooden…
San Luis Potosí
This superb museum displays a fascinating collection of ceremonial masks from across Mexico and around the world, and does a good job at explaining the…
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Querétaro
While a museum of calendars might not sound riveting, this extraordinary museum is unexpectedly interesting. It takes a wide angle view of calendars and…
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Zacatecas
The excellent Museo Rafael Coronel is not to be missed. Imaginatively housed in the ruins of the lovely 16th-century Ex-Convento de San Francisco, it…
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La Huasteca Potosina
This huge jungle-fringed sinkhole is home to tens of thousands of swifts as well as many green parrots, and at dawn and dusk they surge in or out of the…
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La Huasteca Potosina
The stunning cascades of Minas Viejas are well worth the 78km trip northwest from Ciudad Valles, if only to see the gorgeous turquoise waters here. The…
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Museo Histórico de San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende
This is the house where Mexican independence hero Ignacio Allende was born in 1769, a fact that draws a steady stream of Mexican pilgrims year-round. The…
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Zacatecas
The Museo Pedro Coronel is housed in a 17th-century former Jesuit college and is one of provincial Mexico's best art museums. Pedro Coronel (1923−85) was…
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Northern Central Highlands
The remote and scenic ruins of La Quemada stand on a hill 45km south of Zacatecas. The exact history and purpose of the site are extremely vague and many…
Guanajuato
This famous museum is one of the most bizarre (some might say distasteful) sights in Mexico. The popular attraction is a quintessential example of Mexico…
San Miguel de Allende
Located near the east end of Insurgentes, this multitowered and domed church dates from the 18th century. The pale-pink main facade is baroque with an…
Guanajuato
The monument to El Pípila honors the hero who torched the Alhóndiga gates on September 28, 1810, enabling Hidalgo's forces to win the first victory of the…
Reserva de la Biosfera Sierra Gorda
Northern Central Highlands
The Reserva de la Biosfera Sierra Gorda, in the rugged Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range, covers a huge swath of the northeastern third of Querétaro…
Museo Regional de Guanajuato Alhóndiga de Granaditas
Guanajuato
Built between 1798 and 1808 as a grain storehouse, the Alhóndiga became a fortress in 1810 when 300 Spanish troops and loyalist leaders barricaded…
Parroquia de San Miguel Arcángel
San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel's most famous sight is its parish church, characterized by its pink 'wedding cake' towers that soar above the town. These strange pinnacles…
Guanajuato
Narrowest of the many alleyways in Guanajuato's streets is this callejón, where the balconies of two houses practically touch. In a local legend, a fine…
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Zacatecas
The most appealing of the many explanations for the name of the hill that dominates Zacatecas is that bufa is an old Basque word for wineskin, which is…
Bocamina de San Ramón & Bocamina de San Cayetano
Guanajuato
These neighboring mines are part of the famous Valenciana mining district. Silver was discovered here in 1548. At San Ramón you can descend via steps into…
Dolores Hidalgo
Previously the Presidencia Municipal, this museum was inaugurated in 2010 for Mexico's bicentennial celebrations. Despite its name, the majority of its…
Museo del Pueblo de Guanajuato
Guanajuato
Located beside the university, this fascinating art museum displays an exquisite collection of Mexican miniatures, and 18th- and 19th-century artworks by…
Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Dolores
Dolores Hidalgo
The Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Dolores is the church where Hidalgo issued the famous Grito (a call to arms for the country's independence) and is the…
Guanajuato
The main building of this university, whose ramparts are visible above much of the city, is one block up the hill from the basilica. The distinctive…
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San Miguel de Allende
Known as Mexico's Sistine Chapel, this vitally important church in the hamlet of Atotonilco, 11km north of San Miguel, is defined by its connection to the…
Dolores Hidalgo
The first and biggest winery in Guanajuato opened in 2005, heralding the reintroduction of wine production in the area 200 years after the Spanish banned…
San Miguel de Allende
A splendid church with a fine altar and several magnificent old oil paintings. Painted on the interior doorway are a number of wise sayings to give pause…
San Miguel de Allende
This former monastery was converted into a fine-arts school in 1938. Don't miss the murals of Pedro Martínez, plus the Siqueiros Room, which features the…
Dolores Hidalgo
The town's main square naturally boasts a statue of the man himself, Hidalgo (in Roman garb, on top of a tall column). Here too is a tree that, according…
Guanajuato
Templo de San Francisco was built in 1741 in a late baroque style, as noted in its decorative motifs and stone entrance, though neoclassical features were…
San Miguel de Allende
Built in the early 18th century, this chapel, like the Templo de San Francisco, was part of a Franciscan monastery complex. The main facade shows St…
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Zacatecas
Visiting one of Mexico's richest mines (1586−1960s) provides an insight into a source of wealth and the terrible price paid for it. Digging for hoards of…
San Miguel de Allende
El Chorro was the spring where San Miguel was founded. Today it gushes out of a fountain built in 1960, and there are public washing tubs here that are…
San Miguel de Allende
The shady Parque Benito Juárez is a lovely place to relax and meander through, with benches, well-maintained pathways and a popular play area for children.
Guanajuato
Built in 1663 by members of St Diego of Alcántara, the facade – carved pink quarry stone – exemplifies Mexican Churriqueresque and is quite lovely.
San Miguel de Allende
One of the best views over the town and surrounding country is from the mirador southeast of town.
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Jardín Botánico El Charco del Ingenio
San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel's 88-hectare botanical garden is also a wildlife and bird sanctuary. Pathways head through wetlands and magnificent areas of cacti and native…
