Parks and the outdoors in Guadalajara

14 parks, gardens, beaches and walks in and around Guadalajara.

Ranked with the travel guide's picks and well-known places first.

See
Blue Water Park
Parque Agua Azul
Open air concerts, a butterfly enclosure, an aviary and plenty of greenery are some of the things that can be enjoyed at Agua Azul. This is a good place to take a break from the often dry, dusty and crowded environment of the city. The park houses a museum of paleontology, and there is a museum of regional archaeology just across Calzada Independencia. The 1.5 km from the Centro Histórico to the park is quite walkable, but it is also accessible via the 62A and 62D buses along Calzada Independencia.
Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00
Eat
Bruna
Contemporary upscale restaurant serving nouveau Mexican cuisine in an elegant dining room overlooking a sculpture garden that is part of the art gallery housed in the same building. Reservations suggested as this is one of the city's top restaurants.
Daily 14:00 - 00:00M$300
See
Chapalita Roundabout
Glorieta Chapalita
A verdant gathering place in a lovely neighborhood (colonia) in the suburb of Zapopan, this "garden of art" sees local artists showing off their creations every Sunday while local residents show off their dogs. Raucous celebrations take place here on national holidays.
See
Colomos Forest
Bosque Los Colomos
This lovely, family-friendly green space is a 92-hectare urban forest that boasts 30,000 trees of diverse species. Its mission is to conserve a beautiful example of a native woodland in an urban environment and educate visitors on ways for humans to better coexist with nature. In terms of visitor amenities, Colomos boasts lovely gardens including a Japanese garden and a cactus garden, goldfish ponds where children enjoy feeding the fish, and horseback riding. Smoking is strictly prohibited.
Mon-Fri 09:00-15:00
Do
Estadio Akron
formerly Estadio Omnilife
This is the stadium where most of the outdoor events for the 2011 Pan-American Games were held, and—more importantly—where the most popular football team in the city and the whole country. The stadium's home team, Deportivo Guadalajara (Chivas), has played since 2010. Chivas plays here every other Saturday at 19:00, unless otherwise specified. If you happen to be in Guadalajara on a Saturday, you are most likely to find either a Chivas football game in this stadium, or an Atlas game at Estadio Jalisco (below). Big games to watch out are Chivas vs. Atlas (which can be held in either stadiums depending on which one is scheduled as the home team) and Chivas vs. América—the "National Superclassic" (superclásico nacional)—as these teams are bitter rivals. Either of these match-ups are sure to sell out the stadium and treat those lucky enough to get tickets to an intense atmosphere. Estadio Akron is a difficult place to reach by public transport. It is close to the Periférico Oriente, so taking a taxi is the best option. Alternatively, use any bus that will go around Periférico and you'll eventually get there, just ask the driver to let you know when you are there, since the stadium's visibility from Periférico is very limited. Two museums inside Estadio Akron should not be missed. Museo Chivas is a soccer museum focused on the stadium's home team, Chivas, who are widely regarded as the most popular football team in Mexico. The museum chronicles the team's long history, with bios, statistics, and outstanding achievements of its players. The second museum is Jose Vergara Museo, known as JOVEM. This museum has nothing to do with soccer, making it an unlikely resident of the stadium. It is a design museum, focusing on the intersection of art and architecture. Guides are available to walk through the museum with you, explaining humanistic values comprising design elements.
Do
Estadio Los Charros de Jalisco
Estadio Panamericano
Modern, state-of-the-art baseball stadium that is home field for both the Charros de Jalisco (Pacific League, winter) and the Mariachis de Guadalajara (Mexican League, summer). The stadium is modern with unobstructed sight lines. Small, intimate park seating just 8,000 fans. Very clean and comfortable. Beware: Inconvenient, fan-hostile payment policies. The stadium requires you to buy their own payment card and use it for any purchases in the stadium (though credit cards are accepted for ticket purchase). The stadium is also difficult to reach as there is no parking and nearby access roads are blocked on game days. Take public transit, taxis, or Ubers and don't be surprised if they drop you off in an oddly uninviting neighborhood.
See
Guadalajara Zoo
Zoológico Guadalajara
The modern Guadalajara Zoo is next to the Barranca de Huentitán-Oblatos. It's worth visiting for its view of the canyon, and for its collection of animals, its safari ride, aerial cable cars, and its panoramic train. Other highlights include a reptile house, an arctic habitat, a nocturnal environment exhibit and a tropical forest simulated environment. Special packages available for different combinations of access to panoramic train, safari, aerial cable cars, and/or aquarium
Wed-Sun 10:00-18:00 when school is in session, daily 10:00-18:00 during summer break and on holiday weekendsvaries by packet, M$200-400 (Nov 2024)
See
Independencia Overlook Park
Parque Mirador Independencia
This lovely park is at the northern terminus of Calzada Independencia adjacent to the Barranca de Huentitán-Oblatos, with beautiful views of the canyon. Pretty gardens and benches are peppered around the park, allowing visitors to sit and enjoy the different views the park has to offer. This is also the starting point for many of the hiking trails that traverse the canyon.
Buy
Liberty Market
Mercado Libertad
Known by locals as Mercado San Juan de Dios because of the river that used to pass through the area, the Mercado Libertad is a very busy, multi-story enclosed market; with hundreds of vendors, it's the largest market in Latin America. The market also houses a very popular and very good food court featuring everything from seafood to local favorites like birria (goat stew) and pozole (hominy and pork stew). It's a great place to get souvenirs. Unfortunately, it isn't the safest place in town, so make sure to always keep on the lookout for purse-snatchers.
Daily 06:00-20:00
Buy
Plaza del Sol
This mall, Guadalajara's second-largest, is near the corner of Avenidas López Mateos and Mariano Otero. The mall boasts a multi-story car park and an open layout, with big, open spaces in the middle, surrounded by hallways. Served by bus routes 357, 101, 24, 258, 626, 629, 645 and 701, as well as the longer-distance buses that connect the nearby town of Santa Anita with the metropolitan area. The Torrena Tower, measuring 336.5 m in height, is under construction next to both Plaza del Sol and Plaza Torrena, a smaller, underground mall nearby that can be recognized by its white concrete dome.
See
Rotunda of Illustrious Jaliscans
Rotonda de los Jaliscienses Ilustres
This lovely circular monument of fluted columns is a mausoleum containing the ashes of 98 important men and women born in Jalisco. The bright and busy atmosphere of the park around it contrasts with the serious aspect of the Rotunda. On the southern side (across the street from the cathedral) is the bus stop for the TuriBus.
Eat
Suehiro
Laid-back Japanese restaurant whose gargantuan menu encompasses excellently prepared cuisine in the teppanyaki, nabemono, and tempura cooking styles, as well as a huge selection of sushi and sashimi. Quality and service are beyond compare. Outside is a beautifully landscaped garden complete with koi pond.
Mon-Sat 13:30-17:30 and 19:30-23:30, Sun 13:00-19:00
See Not mapped
Cross of Plazas
Cruz de Plazas
These four plazas are laid out in the form of a cross, with the Catedral at the center. Any of them offer a nice spot to walk through or rest in for a few minutes, and most have plenty of food vendors nearby. The plazas that make up the Cross are:
See
Calaverandia - Parque Temático
A thematic amusement park.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Guadalajara (CC BY-SA 4.0).