San Miguel de Allende

Why San Miguel de Allende is special
It is a small, picturesque colonial town with broad cultural offerings.

San Miguel de Allende tips & insights
Transformation
I had the good fortune to live in San Miguel de Allende for a half year when I was a child and to revisit the town in my adulthood. So I have seen it change, transforming from a quiet into a somewhat touristy town. Still, it has retained its Mexican charm, aura, and colonial architectural purity.

Tourism
The town has a quality reputation for its restaurants, art galleries and craft shops. It also is a center for art, music, cooking and language schools.

Ex-pats
Roughly one-seventh of the population are ex-pats from Canada and the USA, many of them retirees. The town is also the getaway home for wealthy Mexican actors and other celebrities

San Miguel's icon
It is the pink-toned La Parroquia (Parish Chuch) on the main plaza. Its facade and twin spires are "bastardized" Gothic, but nonetheless enchanting. In 1880, the local architect relied on picture postcards of European Gothic cathedrals as his muse when he restored the church.

Cobblestoned streets
One of the pleasurable activities is following your nose as you explore the narrow cobblestoned streets lined with dwellings bearing photogenic colonial facades, doorways and iron-wrought grilled windows.

View
For a panoramic view of the historic center and distant mountains, go up the hill to the El Mirador vantage point. (The photo above was taken from there.)

Festivals
Many festivals take place. Hardly a week goes by without one. The most notable is the Fiesta of the Archangel San Miguel held near the end of September. Events include a running of the bulls, Pamplona style.

Shortcomings
San Miguel de Allende is not without deficiencies. For instance, the residents today have too many cars. They clog the narrow quaint streets, even when parked. This degrades the look and feel of the town.

Shoes
Wear comfortable shoes with thick, non-slip soles because the streets in this hillside town are cobblestoned and sometimes steep.

Climate
It is usually quite pleasant, though you are most likely to encounter hot days in May, cold nights from mid-November through mid-March. However, during the winter period, skies are typically clear. June through September is the rainy season.

Getting there
San Miguel de Allende is 4 to 5 hour drive from Mexico City. It has no airport. The nearest one is in Leon, 90 minutes away by car.

Map Location