San Miguel de Allende - Tours

San Miguel - Walking Tour

To get a jump start on San Miguel's history, architecture, shops and restaurants, with an insider's view, we suggest you take this tour within the first day or two of your visit to San Miguel de Allende.

Tel: (415) 152-0849 Web: www.helenekahn.com

House & Garden Tour

Every Sunday you can get a glimpse inside some of San Miguel’s most unique homes. Tour departs at noon from the Biblioteca Publica, Insurgentes #25 (between Reloj and Hidalgo); 152-4987. Proceeds from ticket sales benefit the Biblioteca’s educational charity.

Botanical Garden Tour (Charco del Ingenio):

Every Tuesday, the vice-director gives a two-hour tour in English of the 247-acre park on a hillside above San Miguel. Many rare species of plants and cacti are protected and propagated at the Botanical Gardens. Proceeds from ticket sales go to the garden’s work.

Day Trips outside San Miguel:

Dolores Hidalgo: the town where Father Hidalgo gave the famous “grito” (cry for independence) that began the Mexican War of Independence. We´ll stop at several workshops and watch as they work on traditional talavera (hand-painted) ceramics.

City of Guanajuato: It´s been called the most beautiful city in Mexico. We´ll visit the panoramic view; the Teatro Juarez, famous for its detailed interior; Museo Diego Rivera, birthplace of the famous muralist; and the underground streets.

Querétaro: The colonial city famed for its opals and attractive jewelry. We´ll visit the Monasterio de La Cruz, the Regional Museum, the Church of Santa Rosa de Viterbo, the Hill of Bells, and the famous Roman-style aqueduct.

Atotonilco: The main reason to stop in this pueblo 15 minutes north of San Miguel is to see the fascinating Sanctuary of Atotonilco, an important Mexican shrine and a United Nation’s World Heritage site. The walls and ceiling of the church and the six chapels, built in 1740, are adorned with intricate frescoes and folk murals.

Pozos: This old mining ghost town built high in the Sierra Madre mountains.

Monarch Butterflies

The most beautiful and plentiful of the many visitors that come to Central Mexico in the winter is the glorious Monarch butterfly. In the mountains of the state of Michoacan, three to four hours south of San Miguel, are two butterfly sanctuaries open to the public. Hundreds of millions of Monarchs spend the winter clinging together in clumps that look like large growths of Spanish moss dripping from fir-tree branches. They come to this remote and high (10,000 feet) spot from all over the U.S. and Canada to hibernate and, as the weather warms, to mate. The mining town of Angangeuo is the closest staging point to both preserves. The best time for viewing the Monarchs is in late January, February and early March.