Travel Days: Sep 2 – 12, Sep 25 – Oct 3

Located just three and a half hours north of Mexico City, in the state of Guanajuato, stands San Miguel de Allende, dressed in faded sunset hues, spires and domes standing tall against a deep blue sky, surrounded by the serene Mexican hillside. It’s a charming town with beautiful colonial architecture, bustling squares, cobblestone roads, and stunning churches. It’s a magnet for artists from all walks. In recent years, it has thrice been awarded “Best City in the World” by Conde Naste and is UNESCO recognized as a world heritage site. 

San Miguel is unique in that it is home to many retired expats. Approximately 20% of its population are expats, mostly from Canada and the United States. Retirees flock to SMA for the year round mild weather, healing thermal hot springs, beautiful and walkable town center, exciting gastronomy, and thriving artist scene.

The town is full of parks and plazas, both big and small. There are hundreds of beautiful, hidden courtyard and gardens that you would never know were there unless you ventured into whatever cafe or gallery it is home to. You could fill your days by enjoying the museums and art galleries, but also spend hours and hours just wandering around and soaking up the beauty and tranquility.

In 1542, San Miguel was founded by the Spanish as a small river settlement, originally called San Miguel el Grande where Franciscan Friar Juan de Miguel initially established a Catholic Church outpost. Legend has it that, when the river dried up, his dogs led him to a nearby bubbling spring, prompting the mission’s relocation to the town’s current site.

Then, in 1557, the discovery of silver catapulted San Miguel from a small outpost to a bustling center. A fortress was built to protect the Silver Road. Many ranchers, farmers, and wealthy silver barons were attracted to the area. Stunning Baroque and Neoclassical mansions and churches were built by prosperous merchants and hacienda owners. The pink Neo-gothic parish that dominates the main square was modeled after a church in Koln, Germany.

San Miguel el Grande played a pivotal role in the Mexican War of Independence, serving as a key stronghold for the insurgents and home to several crucial battles. Native Ignacio Allende was a staunch advocate of Mexican sovereignty and a prominent leader in the 1810 uprising against Spanish rule. Although he lost his life (and his head!) in the struggle, his legacy endured. In 1826, the town officially adopted the name San Miguel de Allende in his honor. To this day, he is celebrated as a national hero, a revered figure in the fight for Mexican independence.

After enjoying years of prosperity, the town fell into a decline, a ghost town as the silver mines were depleted and people moved elsewhere. Determined to turn this sad fate around, the Mexican government designated the town as a national monument in 1926, preserving its historical buildings and charm. By the late 1930s and early 1940s, the town began to attract artists and writers from around the world.

One of the key players behind this transformation was a Peruvian diplomat Felipe Cossío del Pomar who transformed old army barracks into the school of Bellas Artes. He enlisted the renowned muralist David Siqueiros to help with this project. San Miguel quickly became a budding artist colony. Then in 1937, a Chicago art student by the name of Stirling Dickinson arrived in San Miguel, invited by opera singer Jose Mojica. Like others before and after him, he was profoundly moved by its beauty and made it his home. He later founded another art school, Instituto Allende. Dickinson marketed the town as a haven for GIs, the ideal educational destination for American soldiers eligible for GI bill-sponsored study abroad. By the 1950s, San Miguel had firmly established itself as a global artistic colony and a prominent destination for the arts.

Some people on the internet bash it for being too whitewashed, overly geared towards white tourists, and not truly Mexican, but after spending a total of just over 2 weeks here, and just over a month total in Mexico, I would strongly disagree. Yes, SMA is not your stereotypical Mexican pueblito, yes perhaps it is more gringo-friendly, but that doesn’t take away from its authenticity.

The expat community and how they’ve integrated with the locals is what makes San Miguel uniquely San Miguel. Expats tend to be very involved in the community and find ways to make their mark, whether it’s by opening art galleries, restaurants, sponsoring schools and local students, or participating in the music scene. 

Reading about SMA, I thought I would find an artificial town that only catered to wealthy expats. That is simply not the case, there were always plenty of locals out and about enjoying their town as well as other Mexican tourists. You can find expensive luxury accommodation and high-end gastronomy, and posh rooftop bars with unbeatable views, but just around the corner you’ll also find abuelitas selling homemade tamales, street vendors selling churros, tacos, and esquietes, authentic mercados selling more food things as well as beautiful handicrafts.

Walking around the historic center, every street and corner boasts a picture perfect view. The buildings and sidewalks are washed in shades of muted pinks, reds, yellows and orange, as if drenched by the sun and bleached to gentle, faded tones over time. This coloring is due to the rose quartz used in the buildings and walkways. Rose quartz is said to have “powerful vibrational energy with a calming and soothing effect“. Bright bougainvillea and other flowering plants climb the walls and sprawl from balconies, vividly standing out against this muted palette. 

It almost feels unreal, dreamlike, as if you are walking in a Disney movie. But the town isn’t just a sleepy fairytale, the bustling streets are very much alive  with locals and tourists, taxi cabs, street food carts, and just slightly too much traffic for the narrow stone streets. The center is fairly flat, but walk 10 minutes in any direction and you’ll find yourself huffing up a steep and uneven road with views of mountains and rolling hills in the distance.

The mountains aren’t dramatic, as SMA is already at a high altitude of 1900 meters (Mexico City is a tad higher at 2240 meters). This arid landscape is ideal for wine production and vineyards have begun to sprout around the area. Though relatively new to the wine producing world and not internationally known, the area produces quality reds, whites and even olive oils.

Our first stay in San Miguel was the week before Mexico’s Independence Day, so we got to see the town decorated for the festivities. For el Día de la Independencia, the town is dressed to nines in red, white and green, the colors of the Mexican flag. Profiles of Ignacio Allende hang above many streets in the center. Every restaurant advertises chiles en nogada, a special celebration dish that consists of a poblano pepper, filled with a mixture of ground meat, nuts, spices and dried fruit, all covered in a creamy walnut sauce and finished with a sprinkling of fresh parsley and pomegranate seeds.

During this time, we also were lucky to experience the fiestas de Loreto, all while we were staying on Loreto street. On the morning of the fiestas de Loreto, we awoke abruptly to gunshots and fireworks at 5am. Small parades and concerts followed the rest of the day. The street was decorated in blue and white, the colors of the Señora Loreto. In Mexico (and other Spanish speaking countries), the fiestas are a popular and common celebration, lasting anywhere from one day to several weeks. They might celebrate a town, a neighborhood (looking at you Fiestas de Gracia!) or even more specifically, a street. It’s such a fun way for the locals to come together, promoting a sense of community. I suppose the closest translation would be an American neighborhood block-party, but the fiestas are 100 times this.

We actually spent Independence Day in Mexico City, but we returned to San Miguel for the fiestas de San Miguel. In addition to the town being adorned in red, green, white and profiles of Ignacio Allende, there was a whole schedule of events. There were lots of free concerts, public blessings, processions and even a day where many indigenous tribes paraded around town in their tribe’s specific traditional clothing.

It was incredible to see these celebrations, a true insight to culture and tradition. When we first looked into visiting SMA we had no idea that we would coincide with these celebrations. Festivities aside, there is plenty to see and do in San Miguel.

One of my favorite things we did (twice!) was walk the botanical gardens, also known as El Charco del Ingenio. It’s an incredibly well maintained nature reserve on the outskirts of town. You can spend hours here walking different trails and exploring the greenhouse.

The trails lead through a variety of landscapes and boast amazing views of the surrounding land as well as the town. If you are a plant lover, you will really enjoy the incredible diversity in the cactus, succulents grasses, trees, and flowers. According to the locals (we did this botanical garden walk twice with our new expat friends!), every time they walk here the landscape is different, it changes all the time with the seasons, rainfall, and animal lifecycles.

The first time we did the walk was after a week of unusual heavy rainfall. Everything was lush and green, budding and bursting with life. There were many different colored butterflies everywhere, flying so quickly I struggled to get a good photo.

Brightly colored cactus fruit (prickly pear, tuna as it’s known in Mexico) dotted the tips of cactus pads and fallen ones stained the sandy footpaths. There were a billion bees buzzing around, all seemingly drugged out on the pollen in the flowers and hyper focused on the sugary juice of the smashed cactus fruit.

We did the walk again a few weeks later. This time I noticed fewer flowers and so less pollinators. The bees and butterflies were replaced by a multitude of grasshoppers in different colors and sizes. I kid you not, some grasshoppers were nearly the size of my hand. They were everywhere, clinging to tall grasses, crossing the paths in front of us, jumping from plant to plant.

I was told that in October, the gardens would transform again, this time into a creepy haunted house landscape filled with spider webs and giant spiders. Yes, there is logic to spiders being associated with Halloween.

Reflecting on my time in San Miguel, I have to mention the expats we met who shaped our time there. As I said, the expat community is a huge part of what makes San Miguel special. James and I were able to stay in right in the center of town, in beautiful homes with gardens and terraces all due to Trusted Housesitters.

It’s an online platform that connects travelers looking for accommodation with people who need someone to watch their home and any animals they might have. It’s basically an exchange of services: accommodation and petsitting. The exchange is free to members, and to be a member of this community you simply pay a once a year membership fee. It’s not for everyone, but if you love taking care of animals and don’t enjoy being out all day while traveling, then this is a great option for affordable travel.

I think it’s excellent for longterm travel where you want some days/weeks to be more restful while you slowly explore the surrounding area, getting the true local experience. James and I really enjoyed feeling “at home” with responsibilities and furry cuddles, much better than staying in a hotel/hostel. I highly recommend checking it out, and if you want to sign up then please use my referral link for a 25% discount!

Staying in nice homes allowed us to really relax and enjoy home cooked meals. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love going out to eat. But for me, one of the best parts of exploring new places and cuisines is by shopping at the local markets and cooking at home.

I know, I’m an odd one. I get really excited about grocery stores. For me, exploring markets and grocery stores in new places is equally fun (if not more so) as visiting a museum. I really enjoy seeing how the locals shop and what their stores carry. On our second visit to San Miguel, we discovered City Market. It’s the best parts of Trader Joes (interesting selection, high quality products, plenty of samples, helpful and friendly staff) and the best parts of Whole Foods (mini restaurants/wine bars to sit and eat, lots of healthy/organic products, freshly ground nut butters), but without the crowds. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a cleaner, brighter, more sparkling grocery store.

City Market in San Miguel is huge, but very well organized and laid out. It is a beautifully designed store and just walking around (and picking up samples!) is enjoyable. The wine section at Trader Joe’s is great, and there is always someone offering samples in little plastic cups. City Market wine samples are on another level, they basically give you a full pour in a regular sized wine glass for you to enjoy as you peruse their wine selection.

The butcher and fish monger section offers only high quality products. The bakery has lots of options. There is even a juice bar, gelato shop, cafe, an Italian restaurant, sushi bar and a Spanish tapas and pinxos bar. There is a monthly calendar of events with things like paella cooking classes and wine tastings. We shopped here a few times and had dinner at the Spanish pinxos bar one night. It sounds silly, but City Market is one of my favorite places I discovered while traveling.

For our first housesit in San Miguel, we looked after a gorgeous, fluffy cat named Mishu, whose owner was Ruth, originally from Canada but spent her life traveling all over the world. She has the most incredible travel stories (she even met the Dali Llama!) and has led a life full of different experiences. Ruth was the first person we met in San Miguel and she welcomed us with open arms and introduced us to the SMA expat community. Most expats in San Miguel are retirees, and so they have time to really create a tight knit community. Compared to expats I’ve met in other places, I would say the ones I met in San Miguel had the most interesting travel tales. Traveling and exploring new cultures seems to be a common trait, one that connects them. It was interesting to learn what brought everyone to San Miguel de Allende.

With Ruth and her friends, we enjoyed many meals in town and out in the countryside, nature walks, neighbor’s happy hour and even a spa day at the local hot springs. For one week we were immersed in the SMA expat community and met amazing people we never would have if we had stayed in hotels/AirBnbs.

This first housesit was right in the historic center of San Miguel, near the artisanal market. This was a great jumping off point for us, with the main square, known as the jardín, just less than a 5 minute walk away. Being right in the center, we were surrounded by lots of interesting souvenir shops, selling clothes, kitchen ceramics, woven textiles and more. Every night, we walked to the jardín where several mariachis were always performing, serenading couples or performing to the general crowd. The jardín is home to the main church of San Miguel, the parroquia. It is breathtakingly beautiful and every time we walked by there was some sort of photoshoot going on, usually for someone’s quinceñera.

On our second housesit, we stayed in Colonia Sant Antonio, about a 10 minute walk from the main square but on the opposite side as we had stayed prior. We looked after a nearly 20 year-old cat named Kosmo for his owners Bruce and Angela, semi-retired musicians from Nashville, Tennessee.

Both neighborhoods were very different and I’m glad we had the chance to experience these different sides of San Miguel. Sant Antonio is definitely less touristy but still full of great restaurants, shops and cafes. A bit edgier and more hip, with a younger population. I think if I were to live in San Miguel, I would like to live in this neighborhood.

As you can see, it is impossible to eat poorly in San Miguel. The food scene is alive and well with everything from humble fish tacos to elaborate tostadas.

I think our food experience in San Miguel can be summed up in two words: margaritas and rooftops. Having a few margaritas (with tequila or mezcal) on one of the numerous rooftops, while soaking up the perfect beauty of San Miguel is the best way to take in this magical city.