Right in the heart of Mexico, you will find the beautiful San Miguel de Allende. This quaint colonial town is considered by Mexicans and many renowned travel magazines to be one of the prettiest cities in the world. We needed to find out for ourselves if that holds any truth.
Welcome to San Miguel de Allende, bienvenidos amigos!
First things first
Before we dive deep into this must-see and must-do list, we want you to know more about your next bucket list location.
San Miguel de Allende (SMA) is known as a stunning, picturesque, and very colorful city in the heart of Mexico. Many Mexicans visit San Miguel for a long weekend, and many wealthy Mexicans come here to retire and enjoy the good life. But not only Mexicans flock here, also the Canadians and Americans have as well. You will find many ex-pats and pensioners (50-90+ yrs) here from northern America. And we concluded that people seemed generally happier here than in other places in Mexico.
SMA has about 75.000 inhabitants, the elevation is at 6,234ft, and you can reach SMA in about 4 hours with a bus from Mexico City (Norte station).
This rustic old town is declared UNESCO-heritage, and therefore you will hardly find any typical western shops like Zara, Wal-Mart, H&M, and all kinds of brand stores. There is a mall area just outside town to shop, but don´t expect too many western things in the city center. It´s still very authentic, luckily!
You will find dozens, if not hundreds of little hidden gems: boutique shops, galleries, cafes, bakeries, lunchrooms, gift shops, and so much more.
Retirement
All in all, San Miguel looks like the perfect location for you to enjoy the good life. It´s a popular tourist destination, and we recommend you to go for at least 3-4 days to soak it all up, but we found that SMA is more a location for you to retire, to take a step back, and really grow into living there. This is where you wine and dine with old friends and share stories from the good ol´ days. If we get to reach old age, we might consider returning to San Miguel for retirement.
Okay, enough chitchat, let´s dive into the top 10 Things to Do in San Miguel de Allende!
1) Wandering through San Miguel
The main reason to visit this charming gem is because of how stunning the whole city center is. The bright red-yellow-orange colonial architecture, the well-kept squares and gardens, the cobblestone alleys, the gorgeous massive doors, the beautiful vistas from up the steep hills, and the streets, in general, are just breathtaking.
Our number one recommendation is therefore to just walk through the whole city. Get lost in these alleys and streets. And keep going. It´s quite steep at times, but the whole city is quite walkable. Don´t forget your comfy sneakers or mountain boots.
We especially loved walking around town during Golden Hour (sunset) and also during the early hours of sunrise. The city is at its most handsome in these short hours. It can be quite bright and hot between 11 am and 3 pm, so plan your trips accordingly, especially if you are taking pictures as a photographer.
Pro-tip: Calle Aldama is the prettiest street for photography, drone shots, and fun selfies.
Pro-tip 2: Try to visit San Miguel during the week. It can be quite busy on the weekends.
I say it once more again; walking around, getting lost, and gawking at the beauty of this city is the main attraction. So do that!
2) El Jardin & Santo Domingo & more!
The center of the city center, also called El Jardin, is the main square where you will find many of the main attractions. The obvious one is the very imposing and very impressive pink Santo Domingo Church. Thanks to the design of the wedding cake towers, it looks like the mature version of the Disney castle. Gawking in awe for a couple of minutes here is totally understandable.
There is also an impressive museum on the Jardin called Museo Histórico Casa de Allende, and a well-kept garden where you can hide from the sun, and then there´s the bustling vibe thanks to the food carts, terraces, and many fun-loving tourists. You will return to this square a couple of times when you´re in San Miguel de Allende!
3) Wine and dine all over town
San Miguel is the perfect city for fine dining. Wine and dine, and lunch and brunch! It harbors many internationals kitchen, but mainly the best of the best (read: French, Italian, and Mexican). You can find many restaurants in different price classes, from unbelievably cheap to crazy expensive. Even for westerns standards, some restaurants can be quite expensive. We´ve tried many different restaurants while we were there, and trust me, they are all excellent! It´s worth the money. But let's not forget, you mostly pay in 95% of the restaurants in Mexico half of what you would pay in westerns countries, so have at it!
More about our recommendations for quality restaurants, the best cafes for coffee and lunch, and the best work spots for digital nomads in this extensive article we´ve made for you.
4) Rooftops!
San Miguel de Allende has dozens of cool rooftops where you can enjoy a drink or two, have a tasty snack, and gaze at the beautiful vistas in front of you. But not all rooftops were that great… And some of them were truly mindblowing!
So, do you need to go to Luna, Quince, Selina, or Fatima 7?
More about our recommendations for the best rooftops in this extensive article we´ve made for you.
5) Fabrico Aurora & art galleries
Art fans, you are in for a treat in San Miguel de Allende. There are dozens of cool little art galleries hidden all over town. The colorful art will brighten your day and fill your soul with creative zest.
The main attraction in SMA for art lovers is Fabrica Aurora. A building as pretty as its name. This former textile factory has been transformed into a collection of shops, galleries, cafes, and fancy interior design stores. Although we are not really that much into art to really buy something, we do really liked our visit here!
p.s; be sure to have the brownie in the cafe in the back of Fabrica Aurora (!)
4 things we did NOT like about San Miguel de Allende
It´s maybe hard to believe, but there were some things we did not like about this otherwise beautiful town.
Unclear what´s inside: when passing by these colonial buildings, you can´t really see if this shop is an interior design store, a cafe, an art gallery, or a restaurant. It feels like many of these places are hidden gems and you have to know from somebody who´s been living in SMA for longer to know where to go. The reason for this is because it´s a UNESCO-heritage site, and shops can´t have flashy signs hanging everywhere.
Quite steep: Man, I kinda hurt my legs on the first week in San Miguel. These steep hills can be quite intense if you are not trained to walk on an incline up or down for a couple of hours a day. You will get used to it fast, but it´s not in the first week!
Small sidewalks: The sidewalks are just tiny. And when it´s busy on the streets, walking here can be a little frustrating.
Noisy smelly busses: Pffff, these big old busses driving around town, ugh!
We share this criticism to give you an honest review of this city. The good and the bad. And the good outweighs the bad by a landslide. So don´t let this discourage you and go have fun in beautiful San Miguel de Allende
6) El Charco del Ingenio
El Charco del Ingenio is an ethnobotanical garden, but very Mexican. Very! It felt like the most Mexican thing we´ve seen in the 5 months we were in Mexico. It´s dry, filled with many hundreds of cacti, and it all looked like you were in some sort of western cowboy movie set. It was like walking in Breaking Bad!
The entree is about 2.5 dollars and totally worth it. It´s a solid hour (or even two if you dive into the knowledge of these many plants) of walking around in this gigantic garden. Don´t forget your sunscreen, a hat, good walking shoes, and enough water!
We decided to hike upward from the city center all the way up to El Charco del Ingenio. This was a tough one, but a nice one! The neighborhood you enter before the garden was very steep, but also very beautiful. The fancy houses here are quite nice.
Can´t wait to go to San Miguel? Book that flight and room today!
7) La Gruta Spa
After walking up those hills for many miles on end, your legs, back, neck, and shoulders might need some well-deserved rest. A day at La Gruta Spa is the perfect getaway from the bustling city center. This well-designed spa area is built around a grotto that emits warm water from the ground. The warm swimming water is, therefore, a delight!
Our bodies felt extremely relaxed after a couple of hours at the La Gruta Spa. Be sure to go inside the grotto to really see what the fuss is all about. Standing under that strong stream of warm water is soooooo good. Your neck and shoulders will thank you for this.
You can also feast on an excellent and very affordable menu here (the avocado&tuna is amazing), relax on comfy lounge chairs, and lay in the grass like there is not a care in the world.
The entree is about +- 12 dollars per person and it´s about a 20-minute drive from the city center. Have a wonderful day here! 🙂
Wanna see more of the adventures we had in SMA, including the La Gruta Spa day? Check out our Instagram Stories!
8) Parque Benito Juarez & Mirador Viewpoint
The general area surrounding the Parque Benito Juarez is just stunning. It´s all so picturesque! Take your time and just walk around this beautiful area. Relax at the park, walk around the many alleys and streets surrounding this park, and be sure to also walk up the red stairway up to the Mirador Viewpoint.
The hike up is a tough one, but very much worth it (keep going, take your time). The views from the streets and eventually from the Mirador Viewpoint are amazing!
9) Staying at Merle´s lovely Airbnb: Casa Rustica
There are many excellent and fancy hotels in San Miguel de Allende, but none will have Merle, Conchita, and Pancho. Let me explain!
As you know by now, we stayed in San Miguel for 4 whole weeks. And we needed an affordable, comfortable, functional, and atmospheric place to stay. After searching on Booking and Airbnb, we found Casa Rustica. This cute little Airbnb rental had so many raving reviews, that we got very curious. Is this place truly as great as advertised? And is the host really that nice?! We had to find out!
And by golly, the reviews were totally right. Host Merle Peek, an 83-year old American illustrator and children book writer from Colorado, is an absolute gem. This genuine sweet man welcomes you into his unique house with a warm heart and a big smile. He has built a wonderful and very uniquely designed house with many plants, pots, lamps, and colorful details. You will be overwhelmed at first by all the quirky details you see everywhere, but you will love them more and more.
Avocados & margaritas
There are two options to choose from. A larger area on the second floor, or the room on the bottom floor. We stayed in the bottom room, which was cooler and had less noise. You share the living room, kitchen, and courtyard with Merle (and maybe other guests). The whole house is just a delight!
We watched old and new movies with Merle, enjoyed many breakfasts (avocados everywhere!) and late-night margaritas with each other, and listened to many of Merle´s stories. He even read a couple of his children's books to us. We felt like little kids again!
Pancho & Conchita
And we didn´t even tell you about our new furry friends, Pancho and Conchita! These little critters are actually street cats who came to Merle´s house and thought; ´I like it here, I´m staying!´. Little Pancho is the younger one, but don´t let his cuddly face and white mickey mouse gloves deceit you, this cute little rascal knows how to fight! 😉
Conchita is a whole different story. This thousand-year-old cat has had a rough life. She is … >> Read the full suitcase story on Conchita here!
Tell Merle we sent you
The neighborhood of San Rafael doesn´t look like much, but the locals living here are very friendly and welcoming. Just a minute beyond these charismatic streets, you´ll find the first streets of the beautiful city center. And there are a couple of little minimarts in the street for basic groceries. Merle´s Airbnb is about a 10 to 15-minute walk from the Jardin.
We absolutely recommend staying at Casa Rustica for at least a long weekend. Tell Merle we sent you!
Merle, we miss you! Thanks for having us, and for inspiring us to be nicer persons. Bon dia old friend!
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10) But wait, there´s more!
But there´s more to do in and around San Miguel de Allende than we´ve mentioned above, like going to the very artistic chapel of artist Jimmy Ray, or take the touristic brown bus ride that drives around town (starts next to Templo San Fransisco), or go to La Begona for a relaxing day at the lake, or take the kids to the waterpark called Xote Parque Acuático. And if you are into action and sports: rent a mountain bike and go high up the hills, and/or even take a balloon ride in the early morning for the best views of the whole region.
Personal extra tip 1: Men, are you in need of a good haircut? Or even your beard or mustache trimmed by a professional? Then you should definitely go to Villano Barberías. This might be the fanciest barber we´ve ever been to. Not cheap, but I really liked the experience and how my hair and beard looked.
Personal extra tip 2: Fancy a good relaxing massage? The ladies at Essential Massage and Watsu are really good at their craft. The place looks quite fancy as well, but the massages weren´t even that expensive (about 35 dollars for a solid hour). We even went twice!
And you could even go for a day tour to the neighboring city of Guanajuato. It´s an hour's drive away from San Miguel. We´ve been to picturesque Guanajuato and written also an extensive top 10 list for you to check out. You´ll love visiting this vibrant town for a day or two.
So, amigo, now you know where to go when you visit San Miguel de Allende. Have fun! 🙂
Book that trip
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