A colorful, small city that I didn’t expect to visit but ended up falling in love with. The city itself is very walkable if you are in decent shape to walk up and down the small hills. It is very easy to get lost wandering between the colorful alleyways soaking up the atmosphere. Here are some things to do in Guanajuato City.
Outline
Guadalajara to Guanajuato
I took the ETN bus from the Nueva Central bus station in Guadalajara to Guanajuato. The ETN bus is very comfortable with air conditioning and the ride took about 4 hours. The bus station in Guanajuato is a bit outside of the city center so I took an Uber to get to my hostel. There is also a local bus that can take you from the bus station to the city center for less than 10 pesos.
Casa Lupita
This hostel was small and cozy. This is one of the hostels in Mexico that felt like home away from home. I stayed in the 8 person dorm which had a bathroom in the room. The lockers were a little small so I only kept valuables in there and left my bag outside. There is a common bathroom near the kitchen, and the kitchen is large and spacious. There is a lounging area as well as tables for dining. There is also a patio in the front of the hostel where I often hung out at in the afternoons. There is a cute but dirty cat that usually hangs around the patio that became my friend.
The hostel is in an excellent location within walking distance to every sight in the city. With that said, the town is fairly small and very walkable. The hostel is along the path the callejoneadas take, so often in the evenings you will hear singing, music and a group of people walking by. This was very entertaining to see and the noise didn’t bother me as much.
Things To Do
Monumento el Pipila
This is an excellent viewpoint to see the whole city and the colorful buildings. I would call this a ‘must-see’ in the city that you cannot miss if you are visiting Guanajuato. There are two ways to get up to the viewpoint: by cable car or walking. The cable car starts at this location and costs 30 pesos one way. It will go up to the Balcon Del Cielo hotel where the monument is a short walk away.
I decided to walk up to the viewpoint so I could also explore the colorful alleyways along the way. The walk up was uphill and about 15 minutes if I hadn’t stopped to take any photos. There was no set path to follow from the city center to the monument, so I started walking in that direction and somehow made it to the monument. I had Google offline maps downloaded and I also had the AllTrails app on my phone, so using both I found my way through the alleys to the top. This is the AllTrails map I tried to follow backwards: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/mexico/guanajuato/monumento-a-pipila?mobileMap=false&ref=sidebar-static-map&u=i. I went down the other way, wandering between the alleys, and reached the city center near Mercado Hidalgo.
Mercado Hidalgo
I stopped here on my way back from Monumento el Pipila and came back here again another day to wander the stalls. This market was not as busy as I thought it would be when I went, but it may have been because I visited during a weekday. There were stalls that sold everything from fruits and vegetables to clothes to smaller items. There was a food court section with vendors selling tacos, tortas, quesadillas and more. There was an outdoor section of the market that was selling souvenirs and more items.
Walk through the colorful alleyways
I can spend a whole day wandering around the city exploring the smallest alleys. The city is so colorful and beautiful, I couldn’t help but take pictures at every corner I turned. Listed below are some of the places I saw on my walk around the city:
- Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato
- Plaza de la Paz
- Callejon del Beso
- University of Guanajuato
- Jardin de la Union
- Teatro Juarez
- Parque Reforma
Mummy Museum
I didn’t go to the Mummy Museum but this was a big attraction for many tourists to see. Entry is 85 pesos and you are able to see mummified bodies from the cholera outbreak in the 1800’s. I’ve heard its very interesting to see how naturally well preserved the bodies were and the museum also offers a video explanation on the history of how the mummies came to be.
Callejoneadas
This was another activity I didn’t get to do, but I did see a ton of Callejoneadas walking by my hostel or on the streets. This is primarily led by students from the local university. They are dressed up in traditional dresses from 14th and 15th century Spain, while playing an assortment of instruments including a guitar, bass and accordion. The Callejoneadas is essentially a walking tour of the city led by this group of students who sing and play music while telling stories about the city. It looked very fun and entertaining, and I would recommend it to anyone coming to this city.
For more information, here is the site that provides more info on these tours: https://www.callejoneadas.mx/
Tickets can be bought through this site (price in pesos), or in person at the Jardin de la Union where you will see several people on the street dressed in the traditional attire.
Nightlife
For two out of the three nights I stayed here I went out to explore the nightlife. The great this about staying in Casa Lupita was that it is a small hostel with only 2 dorm rooms so you end up becoming friends with everyone. Listed below are some of the bars and restaurants we went to:
- Golem Bar: rooftop bar
- La Notaría Terraza Bar: rooftop bar
- El retto: bar/club that is a great time for a night out. mix of American and reggaeton
- Sky Bar Terrasse: rooftop bar
- Bar-Why not: this is a small club, poppin music that is a mix of American and reggaeton, younger crowd
- Oveja Negra Bar: nightclub vibe with a good mix of foreigners and locals
Guanajuato was not originally on my list of places to visit while backpacking across Mexico, but several other travelers had highly recommended I visit it for at least a day. And I am so glad I took their advice because this little city is truly a gem. The next stop on my travels takes me to a remote part of Mexico where I was able to relax in turquoise blue hot springs and swim between a beautiful canyon. Read my next blog post on what I did in Tolantongo.