Colonial Mexico Overview: An Authentic Cultural Experience

Mexico's beach destinations are wonderful places to relax and enjoy. But there's another side of Mexico worth exploring, too: the historic Colonial Cities. With their cobblestone streets, ornate cathedrals, pastel buildings, parks and plazas with flowering gardens and colorful fiestas, these towns and cities look and feel just as the Spanish left them over 200 years ago.

Each city has its own identity, culture, food, arts and crafts, and magnificent architecture, with some cities declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

TravelStore invites you to experience the glorious heritage of Mexico's Colonial Cities, and offers a number of travel packages for your consideration. Each offers private tour guide in each destination, motorcoach service between cities, transfers to and from motocoach terminals and hotels, and tickets to museums and more. These include:
4 day/3 night Mayan Experience (Merida & Chichen Itza)
6days/5 night Guadalajara/Aquascalientes/Zacatecas package
8 days/7nights Legends of Old Mexico with Guadalajara, Guanajuato, San Miguel de Allende and Mexico City package.

As always, we can customize your visit and arrange whatever itinerary best suits you.

Contact one of TravelStore's Mexico Travel Experts to arrange your Colonial Cities adventure. Read more about some of these destinations below:

Aguascalientes
Founded in 1575 and named after the local thermal springs, Aguascalientes is one of the loveliest colonial jewels in Mexico, with an enviable climate and location. Highlights: Catedral Basilica de la Historia Virgen de la Asuncion, with its Baroque-style architecture, the Municipal Palace and its magnificent gardens, and Museo Posada, which displays the works of Jose Guadalupe Posada, a famous local artist. One of the most popular fairs in Mexico, the Feria de San Marcos, is held there annually. Recommended Hotels: Quinta Real Aguascalientes and Fiesta Americana Aguascalientes.

Guanajuato
The Spaniards built this city’s churches and public buildings with fortunes made from the world’s richest silver mine, the Valenciana (in the 18th century, the one mine accounted for two-thirds of the world’s silver production). Highlights: Iglesia de San Cayetano, Callejon del Beso (Alley of the Kiss), and Teatro Juarez, where plays, ballet, modern dance and opera are performed. The theatre’s interior is a magnificent reproduction of the art of the colonial period. Recommended Hotels: Quinta Las Acacias and Hotel Mission Guanajuato.

Guadalajara
Mexico’s colonial capital and second largest city is revered for its vibrant cultural life. The capital of the state of Jalisco, land of the mariachi and tequila, Guadalajara boasts a world-class university, city squares overflowing with trees and gardens, and shops where artisans produce ceramics, jewelry and leather goods. Highlights: Tiaquepaque, the most important arts and crafts center in Mexico, and the Instituto Cultural Cabanas, an art school and museum, where many of Jose Clemente Orozco’s murals are displayed. Recommended Hotels: Quinta Real Guadalajara and Fiesta Americana Guadalajara.

Mexico City
Mexico City, ancient capital of the Mexican empire, is today a large, cosmopolitan city. An impressive array of palaces, mansions, museums, and churches adorn this mega-city; and the restaurant and entertainment possibilities are endless. Highlights: Historic Center – declared a World Heritage” site in 1987, this section of the city contains Aztec and Spanish cultural icons like the Zocalo and Metropolitan Cathedral, the largest church in Latin America. Another “must see” is the National Museum of Anthropology, perhaps the finest archeological museum in the world. Twenty-six exhibit halls feature Mexico’s 30 centuries of evolution. Recommended Hotels: Four Seasons Hotel Mexico, D.F. & NH Mexico City.

San Miguel De Allende
Founded in 1542 by Fr. Juan de San Miguel, a Franciscan monk, San Miguel de Allende retains a unique colonial charm with its cobblestone streets and Spanish colonial mansions, many of them restored to their former splendor. The city is a protected national monument: all new construction must conform to the existing colonial style. Highlights: El Jardin, the city’s main plaza (zocalo), and La Parroquia, a pink, gothic-style church on the main plaza. Recommended Hotels: Quinta Real Casa de Sierra Nevada and Mission de Los Angeles.

Zacatecas
Like Guanajuato, Zacatecas owes its beauty to the silver extracted from the mines during the Spanish occupation. Fascinating museums, startling architecture and excellent restaurants are hallmarks of this charming colonial city. Highlights: Calderon Theatre, with its wrought-iron accents, the colorful Ortega Market, a magnet for shoppers, Museo de Guadalupe, with its impressive collection of church art, and Museo Rafael Coronel, which contains over 4,500 masks, and an entire wing devoted to handmade puppets. Recommended Hotels: Quinta Real Zacatecas and Emporio Hotel Zacatecas.

Merida
Capital of the state of Yucatan, Merida is the ideal gateway from which to explore Mayan archeological sites like Chichen Itza and Uxmal. Called the “White City” because of its use of whiter stone and marble in its public buildings, many dating to the 17th century, Merida has a distinctive European look. Colonial churches, grand mansions and lively plazas are found throughout the city, with evenings often giving way to free entertainment, from the classical music concerts to folk dancing and mariachis in the streets. Magnificent haciendas of the conquistadors, many converted to hotels, abound throughout the city and its surroundings. Highlights: Canton Palace, which houses one of the premier collections of Pre-Columbian Mayan artifacts, Paseo Montejo, French style boulevard with roundabouts and old mansions, Main Street (calle 60), with the Peon Contreras Theatre, and many parks. Recommended Hotels: Hacienda Xcanatun, Hacienda San Jose, Hacienda Temozon and Fiesta Americana Merida.

To arrange your travel to Mexico's Colonial Cities contact us!