Bumping over cobblestone streets in a 25-year-old Jeep driven by Colleen Sorenson, founder of Street Art Tours, was my introduction to San Miguel de Allende, the colorful colonial-era city 6,000 feet above sea level in the state of Guanajuato in Mexico’s central highlands.
As the Jeep wound through several barrios, or districts, outside El Centro, the historical heart of the city, I craned my neck to catch glimpses of the murals that covered the high-sided walls of homes, restaurants and businesses, transforming the neighborhoods into open-air galleries.
“My focus is on the history and evolution of San Miguel’s street art movement, which I have been documenting ever since permission was secured in 2013 for legal painting on the streets,” Sorenson said.
Colorful murals are found throughout the Colonia Guadalupe art district. Photo Credit: Gay Nagle Myers
The three-hour Jeep tour, priced at $34 each for up to three passengers, takes in approximately 200 murals created by national and international artists. “Many more are continuously popping up in different barrios,” she said.
Sorenson’s tour offerings also include a group walk through the Colonia Guadalupe art district, passing 50 painted and mosaic-tiled murals.
“I suggest lunch at Hierba Santa at Cal de la Aurora 48A, my favorite little Mexican restaurant, tucked behind even more murals,” she said. “It’s open for breakfast and lunch every day, and the open-air courtyard is charming.” The owners opened right before Covid, one of dozens of casual restaurants that have popped up in the past three years.
Both the Jeep and walking tours are offered year-round seven days a week.
“I will definitely work with travel advisors,” said Sorenson, who can be contacted at colleensfsa@yahoo.com.
Colorfully painted homes and shops flank the cobblestone streets that wind throughout San Miguel de Allende. Photo Credit: Gay Nagle Myers
Market days
Fortified with huevos motulenos (fried eggs over black beans on a fried tortilla and served with salsa and plantains), the next stop for me was the Fabrica La Aurora art center, housed in a former textile factory now transformed into galleries housing canvases and artisanal items, antiques, fabrics, home and patio decor, hand-painted furniture and fashion designs.
Walking through the different rooms and galleries was a sensory explosion of vibrant colors, equaled only by the craft stalls in the Mercado de Artesanias, a covered market overloaded with handcrafted items, jewelry stalls, Mexican ceramics, live birds in cages, Oaxacan rugs, hanging lamps and food stalls selling local honey, sweets and herbs. My kind of place!
Mercado Sano, another fun market, is open daily and sells breads, cheeses, jams and coffees. On Saturdays it hosts a farmer’s market with fruits, vegetables and the city’s popular orange doughnuts, which sell out fast — I managed to spear the last one.
I visited the iconic Parroquia de San Miguel Arcangel, the multitowered, 18th-century, neo-Gothic, pastel pink church that is the centerpiece of the city; I ambled along the winding paths in Parque Benito Juarez; I joined a merry parade at a religious festival that began at dawn on streets covered in elaborate colored sand drawings; and I mastered the custom of turning sideways on the narrow cobblestone sidewalks so others could pass.
This magical city, founded in 1542, was designated a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2008. Although compact and very walkable (wear sturdy shoes), its vibrant culture and culinary scene continue to flourish.
The Numu Boutique Hotel, one of the newest additions to the city, blends contemporary design and Mexican art, culture and cuisine. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Numu Boutique Hotel
New places to stay in San Miguel de Allende
Recent additions to the exploding hotel scene in San Miguel’s El Centro district include the 44-room Numu Boutique Hotel, a member of the Hyatt Unbound Collection, which opened in February 2023. The 120-room Waldorf Astoria, a Hilton luxury brand, is expected to open early next year, and SH Hotels & Resorts will launch its 1 Hotel & Homes San Miguel de Allende with 97 rooms and 48 residences in 2027.
The best time to visit is from November through April. I was there in late March, when bougainvilleas overflowed on wrought-iron balconies, days were sunny, evenings were cool and music and strollers filled the plazas at night.
The event calendar is full in the next two months, including Musicians’ Day on Nov. 22; the feast day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico’s patron saint, Dec. 12; Las Posadas, Dec. 16 to 24, a series of nine evenings representing Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem; Noche Buena (Christmas Eve); and New Year’s Eve, celebrated with fireworks, music and dancing.
Carla Hunt, my friend and a fellow Travel Weekly alum, hosted me during my too-short visit in her airy, art-filled apartment above a plant-filled courtyard.
“You will be back,” Carla predicted. “There is so much to experience here. San Miguel is like that: always new and forever old.”
