San Miguel de Allende: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
San Miguel, founded in 1542 by a Franciscan friar on the silver road from Zacatecas, is a colonial hill town of cobbled lanes and coloured walls. After the Second World War American veterans came here to study art on the GI Bill, and it has had a large community of foreign residents ever since — among them an active Jewish congregation. With the sanctuary of Atotonilco it became a World Heritage site in 2008. Half a day; the streets are steep.
A short history of San Miguel de Allende
In 1542 the Franciscan friar Juan de San Miguel founded a settlement on the road that carried silver from the mines of Zacatecas to Mexico City. One of the town's sons, Ignacio Allende, was among the leaders of the independence revolt that broke out in 1810, and that year the town was one of the first to go over to the rebels. In 1826 his name was added to the town's name. After the Second World War American painters and discharged soldiers came here to study art, and so began the large foreign community that lives there today. In 2008 the town was declared a World Heritage Site.
The ten best sights in San Miguel de Allende
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1El Jardín
The main square before the pink church
2Casa de AllendeBirthplace of the independence hero
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3Bellas Artes
A convent of art schools and a Siqueiros mural
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4Oratorio de San Felipe Neri
A baroque church of pink stone
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5Templo de San Francisco
A churrigueresque facade
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6Biblioteca Pública
A bilingual library and cultural centre
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7Fábrica La Aurora
A textile mill turned art galleries
8Instituto AllendeThe art school of the American veterans
9Parque JuárezA shady park on the hillside
10El ChorroThe spring where the town began
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in San Miguel de Allende →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in San Miguel de Allende:
Free walking tours in San Miguel de Allende
The pink church and the hero
San Miguel, founded in 1542 by a Franciscan friar on the silver road from Zacatecas, is a colonial hill town of cobbled lanes and coloured walls. After the Second World War American veterans came here to study art on the GI Bill, and it has had a large community of foreign residents ever since — among them an active Jewish congregation. With the sanctuary of Atotonilco it became a World Heritage site in 2008. Half a day; the streets are steep.
- El Jardín · The main square, shaded by laurels clipped into cubes, before the Parroquia, the pink church whose Gothic spires were added in the 1880s by Zeferino Gutiérrez, a self-taught indigenous stonemason said to have worked from postcards of European cathedrals.
- Casa de Allende · The house where Ignacio Allende was born in 1769, a captain who plotted with the priest Miguel Hidalgo and led the first rising of the war of independence in 1810. He was executed in 1811, and in 1826 the town added his name to its own.
- Bellas Artes · A former convent turned art centre, around a courtyard of old trees. In one room is an unfinished mural of 1948 by David Alfaro Siqueiros, who left after a quarrel with the director.
- Templo de San Francisco · A church of the late eighteenth century with a facade in the churrigueresque style, the most extravagant form of Mexican baroque, its stone carved so densely that it seems woven.
- Oratorio de San Felipe Neri · A church of pink stone whose older facade was carved by indigenous workers, mixing local motifs with the saints; inside hang paintings of the life of the saint.
- Mercado de Artesanías · A lane of crafts from across Mexico, with tinwork, blown glass and the mojigangas — giant papier-mâché puppets that dance at San Miguel’s weddings and festivals.
Springs, artists and gardens
Below and above the centre are the spring where the town was born, the art schools of its foreign residents and a canyon garden of cacti. Half a day on foot and by taxi.
- El Chorro · The spring where, the story goes, the friar founded the town after dogs led him to water. Below it, the old public washing basins are still used by local women.
- Parque Juárez · A park of old trees along a stream, laid out in the early twentieth century in a French style, where herons nest in the treetops.
- Instituto Allende · An art school opened in 1950 in an old hacienda, which brought in American veterans studying under the GI Bill and started the town’s long life as a home for foreign artists.
- Biblioteca Pública · A bilingual library founded in 1954 by a Canadian resident, run by volunteers and funded partly by its house and garden tours, with a café in its courtyard.
- Fábrica La Aurora · A cotton mill opened in 1902 that closed in 1991 and was turned into a complex of galleries, studios and design shops, with some of the old machines left in place.
- Charco del Ingenio · A botanical garden on the edge of town around a canyon and a reservoir, with one of the largest collections of Mexican cacti and succulents, and ruins of an old mill.
The road of independence
North of San Miguel run the roads where Mexico’s war of independence began in September 1810. A full day by car.
- Atotonilco · A sanctuary of 1748 whose walls and ceilings were painted over some thirty years by the local artist Antonio Martínez de Pocasangre — the Sistine Chapel of Mexico. On 16 September 1810 Hidalgo’s rebels took a banner of the Virgin of Guadalupe from here as the first flag of independence.
- Dolores Hidalgo · Where, at dawn on 16 September 1810, the priest Miguel Hidalgo rang his church bell and called his parishioners to rise against Spain — the Grito, re-enacted by every Mexican president on the night of 15 September. The town’s ice cream sellers offer flavours such as avocado, shrimp and beer.
- Mineral de Pozos · A mining town that had tens of thousands of people around 1900 and emptied after the mines failed in the revolution, leaving roofless haciendas and mine shafts in the desert.
- Cañada de la Virgen · A pyramid complex of the Otomí people, used from about 540 to 1050, oriented to the movements of the moon and stars, opened to visitors only in 2011; visits are by guided tour.
- Mercado Ignacio Ramírez · Back in town, the market where locals shop, with stalls of fruit, flowers and the gorditas stuffed with beans and cheese, named after Ignacio Ramírez, a nineteenth-century writer born in San Miguel and nicknamed the Necromancer.
- El Jardín · At dusk the square fills with mariachis for hire, and at the end of September the festival of Saint Michael begins with the Alborada, a night-long battle of fireworks that ends at dawn.
Getting to San Miguel de Allende and getting around
- Bus Station · Buses to Mexico City (about four hours) and Guanajuato
Cheap eats in San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel eats from carts and counters: gorditas, thick masa pockets stuffed and griddled; tacos de carnitas from the market; enchiladas mineras, the miners’ enchiladas of Guanajuato with potatoes and carrots; elote, corn on the cob with mayonnaise, cheese and chilli; and churros with hot chocolate at night. A plate of tacos costs about two or three dollars.
- El Jardín · Corn carts and churros
- Mercado Ignacio Ramírez · Carnitas and gorditas
- Dolores Hidalgo · Strange ice creams
Museums in San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel is a town of art schools and galleries, with history in its houses.
- Casa de Allende · The hero’s house
- Bellas Artes · The Siqueiros mural
- Fábrica La Aurora · Galleries in a mill
Nature and day trips near San Miguel de Allende
A high desert of cactus and canyons around a green hill town.
- Charco del Ingenio · The cactus canyon
- Parque Juárez · Herons in the trees
- El Chorro · The spring
Things to do in San Miguel de Allende with kids
With children: giant puppets, a park playground, cacti and a ghost town.
- Parque Juárez · The playground
- Mercado de Artesanías · Mojiganga puppets
- Mineral de Pozos · The ghost mines
Holy places in San Miguel de Allende
A town of baroque churches and the painted sanctuary of Atotonilco.
- Atotonilco · The painted sanctuary
- Templo de San Francisco · The carved facade
- Oratorio de San Felipe Neri · The pink stone church
Nightlife in San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel’s nights are rooftop bars facing the lit church, mariachis on the square and festivals with fireworks.
- El Jardín · Mariachis and rooftops
- Bellas Artes · Concerts in the courtyard
Frequently asked questions about San Miguel de Allende
What is there to see in San Miguel de Allende?
The top sights in San Miguel de Allende are El Jardín, Casa de Allende and Bellas Artes. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in San Miguel de Allende?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of San Miguel de Allende without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in San Miguel de Allende?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in San Miguel de Allende, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The pink church and the hero.
How do you get to San Miguel de Allende and get around?
The main ways are Bus Station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in San Miguel de Allende, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in San Miguel de Allende that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in San Miguel de Allende for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.