Are you wondering, “is San Miguel de Allende worth visiting?” Here’s why this charming city should be at the top of your Mexico travel bucket list.
San Miguel de Allende has been an expat hot spot and a top tourist destination in Mexico for decades. Just a four-hour drive from Mexico City, its somewhat remote location in Guanajuato requires a bit of effort to reach.
If you have limited time to explore Mexico, you may wonder, “Is San Miguel de Allende worth visiting?”. You’ll be happy to hear the answer is a resounding, YES!
San Miguel de Allende is, without question, one of our top 10 destinations to visit in Mexico. As you’ll see in this post the effort of getting to San Miguel de Allende is more than worth it and should be at the top of your travel bucket list.
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1. Voted the “Best Small City in the World”
San Miguel de Allende has been voted the “best small city in the world” by Condé Nast Traveler for 5 years (in 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022).
This award is hardly surprising if you’ve visited San Miguel de Allende before. The city has a small-town feel, yet is packed with fun things to do. Oh, and did I mention it’s stunning? 🤩
One step into the historic center and the charm, cobblestone streets, colorful doors, and rooftop restaurants and bars will sweep you off your feet.
Less than 200,000 people are living in San Miguel de Allende, many of which are expats who have immigrated to Mexico. The area’s favorable weather, international food scene, safety, and gorgeous streets are just a few reasons it’s gained such a wonderful reputation as a small city.
Most tourists stay in the historic center but there’s a lot more to San Miguel de Allende. Check out the Murales Guadalupe in the Guadalupe neighborhood. There are dozens of incredible murals painted on every street. There are also good restaurants and cafes there too!
2. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site
San Miguel de Allende is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town was established in the 1600s to protect the “Royal Route”. Jesuit missionaries, who founded several missions in Texas and the Baja California Peninsula at the time, built much of the historic city.
The ParroquiaSan MiguelArcángel has a beautiful pink hue and is the most famous building in San Miguel de Allende. It towers above the rest and can be seen from almost anywhere.
Take note of the beautiful Baroque architecture when walking around the centro histórico. This is one of the big reasons San Miguel de Allende became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008.
San Miguel de Allende was formerly a pueblo magico, but it no longer holds that designation. There are 6 other pueblo magicos to visit in Guanajuato if you have extra time when visiting.
3. It’s in the heart of Mexican wine country
Valle de Guadalupe, Baja California is the most well-known wine region in Mexico. It’s the oldest and largest region for wine-making in the country. Guanajuato and Querétaro, while small in comparison, are gaining notoriety for their incredible wine making San Miguel de Allende the perfect place for a day of wine tasting!
Querétaro is closer to more wineries, but San Miguel de Allende is still within a 20 to 30-minute drive to several fantastic wineries on the Ruta del Vino y Queso. A few of the wineries we recommend:
Book a car service with tastings at two of the top wineries with the tour below.
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4. Luxury Spas
San Miguel de Allende is one of Mexico’s more expensive destinations. Its semi-close proximity to Mexico City makes it a popular destination for Mexican Nationals (many Mexicans get married here 💒). This, combined with its popularity amongst American and Canadian ex-pats has pushed prices up.
While that’s one thing we don’t love about San Miguel de Allende, we do love the luxury amenities like hot springs!
We’re obsessed with hot springs and seek them out wherever we go. While there are several hot springs to visit like La Gruta and Escondido Hot Springs our favorite was the Mayan Baths.
We spent all day relaxing by their infinity pool, moving from cave to cave, and enjoying the natural hot springs. The best part was their drink service, which comes to you while soaking in the pools. They also have massage and spa treatments there, too.
5. Incredible food
Given the number of tourists and expats San Miguel receives it’s got a very diverse food scene compared to other small cities in Mexico. You can find virtually every type of restaurant from Japanese, to American, traditional Mexican, Italian, Steak Houses, and everything in between.
We love the food scene here and enjoy the often upscale spin in many of the restaurants in the historic center. We also like that we can drive 5 minutes out of the centro and get some authentic, cheap street tacos or gorditas in the morning.
Below are some of the top restaurants in San Miguel de Allende to add to your list:
- La Doña San Miguel
- La Mezcaleria
- Casa Nostra (great rooftop bar)
- El Manantial (traditional Mexican food in an authentic cantina – cash only)
- Lunas Tapas Bar (great rooftop bar)
- Tostévere
- Don Taco Tequila (vegan tacos – we’re not vegan, but their tacos are great)
💳 Most San Miguel de Allende restaurants and shops accept debit or credit cards (a nice change from the cash-only establishments in many other parts of Mexico). Just make sure your card will not charge an international fee. The Capital One Venture X charges no international fees and allows you to earn miles and points on your purchases. If you want to see the other top travel credit cards right now, click here.
6. It’s extremely safe
San Miguel de Allende is one of the safest places in Mexico. They have a special police force dedicated to protecting tourists in the centro historico and have very few tourist-related crimes there. Of course, you still need to be aware of your surroundings and not make yourself vulnerable to opportunistic petty theft.
But typically you don’t need to worry about safety in San Miguel de Allende.
➡ Read Next: The 15 Safest Places in Mexico to Visit ⬅
The shopping in San Miguel de Allende is fantastic. We don’t normally spend our day walking from store to store, but there is something about the shops in San Miguel de Allende that lures you in. The prices are on the higher end, but there is amazing shops all around town for anything you could want or need.
We found the coolest hand-painted hat for Dennis there that he still wears 4 years later. You can find gorgeous handmade bags and dresses at Luna Mía or Etnea Boutique and awesome hand-stitched stuffed animals for the kids at Meigas.
8. Beautiful outdoor spaces
San Miguel de Allende is a colonial city at its heart, which means narrow cobblestone roads and colorful old buildings tightly packed in. However, you can find several beautiful natural areas sprinkled in and around the city. Parque Benito Juárez is the largest park near the city center and is a great place to find shade or relax in a green space.
Charcol de Ingenio is a botanical garden about 15 minutes outside of town. It has gorgeous views of the mountains with loads of native plant species including succulents and cacti.
9. Cultural experiences
San Miguel de Allende sometimes gets a bad rap for not being as “authentic” as other places in Mexico. The number of expats and tourists that visit here does make parts of the town a little more “gringo-friendly” than other cities.
But San Miguel de Allende is still incredibly authentic with loads of amazing cultural experiences. To start, it’s an awesome place to experience Dia de Los Muertos, which is the Day of the Dead celebration that happens at the beginning of November every year.
If you aren’t visiting during Dia de los Muertos, don’t worry there are still/ loads of cultural experiences you can enjoy.
A must-visit in San Miguel de Allende is La Fábrica La Aurora. The building was originally a textile factory, but after 9 decades it was converted into a large indoor art gallery. There are dozens of shops selling a variety of handmade crafts and art pieces. They even offer classes and workshops there!
Another fun cultural activity is to take a cooking class or go on a food and history tour. There’s loads of unique history in San Miguel de Allende that most tourists never learn about. A food and walking tour is such a great way to get to know Mexican cuisine better and try spots you may not have visited on your own.
10. Unique things to do
Coyote Canyon Adventures will take you on a horseback ride through the stunning canyons outside of San Miguel de Allende. We’re not horseback riders, per se but this is at the top of our list for our next trip!
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You can also book an epic hot-air balloon ride with them. If you’ve never done a hot air balloon ride, it’s amazing! There’s nothing like floating through the sky in a balloon.
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If you want more of an adrenaline rush you can rappel down a mountain or go for an ATV ride through the canyons. There’s seriously no shortage of unique and unusual things to do in San Miguel de Allende.
When is San Miguel de Allende not worth visiting?
If you only have a day to visit San Miguel de Allende and need transportation to or from Mexico City, I wouldn’t visit San Miguel de Allende.
San Miguel warrants at least two or three days. While you can enjoy the historic center, one of the prettiest areas in San Miguel de Allende on a day trip, the transportation to and from other regions would take up most of your time. You’d also be missing out on so many amazing places!
If you’re ready to plan your trip to San Miguel de Allende, check out our perfect 3 day itinerary. And don’t miss out on our other Mexico content. If you’ve visited San Miguel de Allende before, let me know your thoughts on the question “is San Miguel de Allende worth visiting?” below.
