Guanajuato

Alfredo Dugès Natural History Museum

Museo Alfredo Dugès

Small but interesting collection of animal and human specimens. Many stuffed animals and some grisly body parts in jars of formaldehyde.

10ː00 - 18ː30 (until 14ː00 on Tue)

Alhóndiga de Granaditas

Regional Museum of Guanajuato

This building is where the independence revolutionaries burned the Spanish troops, and now houses a museum devoted to the history of the region, as well as an important photographic library.

Tue-Sat 10:00-14:00, 16:00-18:00; Sun 10:00-15:00·A fee for adults, free for students/teachers/seniors/children under 13

Antik Café

They have bagels, Mexican food, coffee drinks and teas. It is not expensive and it has its own bar. They often have live music at night.

Mon-Fri 07:30-12:00, Sat Sun 09:00-02:00

Bar Fly

Has a younger crowd. The staff is friendly and gets to know their customers. There is reggae music as well as lamp shades made out of solo cups. A definite must-see. If you are young and female, the staff will flirt unabashedly, but they're harmless and worth getting to know. If they know you are in Mexico to learn Spanish (whether you tell them or your teacher does) they won't speak English to you at all.

Basilica of Our Lady of Guanajuato

Basílica Colegiata de Nuestra Señora de Guanajuato

Built from 1671 to 1696. Inside this church there is a 1000-year-old statue donated by Spanish King Charles I who tried to protect it from the Arab invasion in Spain.

Bostom Bar

Speakeasy style bar where you need a reservation and secret code to get in.

20ː00 - 02ː00 (or 3, or 4)

Café Tal

Coffee, tea, a mixed foreign and Mexican crowd, and high speed wireless internet access. It's between 5-10 minutes from Teatro Juarez up the main street towards the baseball stadium, just up the street from Bar Fly. The owner, an American expat, plays French horn in the city orchestra. Although it serves some distinctly Mexican drinks and snacks, it also has a much wider selection of tea and coffee drinks familiar to Americans and difficult to find in Guanajuato. (Tea is pretty unsatisfactory in the city, not so here. And they understand the concept of iced tea.) They also have low cost international calling and tasty snacks. Before lunch, a bakery a few doors down has a wider selection of pastries and rolls.

Daily 08:00-24:00

Callejon del Beso

Alley of the Kiss

Two balconies separated by only 69 centimeters is home of an old love legend. For a few pennies some children will tell you the story.

Cantina La Botellita

Known for having giant, delicious margaritas and good food. They also do 2 for 1 drinks on Tuesdays, but if you're a girl, or at least with a girl, you pretty much get 2 for 1 drinks all the time.

Caronte Bar

Lively bar with DJ spinning the tunes and frequent drink promos.

20ː00 - 03ː00

Casa Museo Gene Byron

From 1962 to 1987 this was the home of Canadian artist Gene Byron.

Mon-Sat 10:00-15:00, last admission 14:30·M$30, free on Mondays

Casa Ofelia

Traditional Mexican restaurant with cozy dining room filled with quirky decor. Excellent food with several regional dishes. House specialty is the enchiladas.

Daily 08:00 - 22:00·M$200

Casa de Tía Aura

Sort of house of horrors that's sweet in its corniness. Inside this house a woman was buried alive inside the walls. The tour is conducted (appropriately enough) in Spanish and will be difficult to understand for those not fairly fluent, though the sights are self-explanatory and the gasps and screams comprehensible in any language.

Daily 11:00-18:00·M$35

Cave San Ignacio de Loyola

To there it takes about half an hour. OsmAnd or Mapy.cz shows a long trail from the cave to the mountain top. You can also take a shortcut that begins behind the cave with concrete steps. On the mountain top is an amazing view of the city and the nature of the region.

Centro Acuático en Macrocentro

Facilities include an indoor Olympic-sized pool, a diving pool, and an on-site gym.

Mon-Sat 06:00-21:00·Multiple swim: single swim not available to travelers. There is a one-time registration fee

Church of San Cayetano Confesor

Templo de la Valenciana / Templo de San Cayetano Confesor

Built from 1765-1788 with funding from the rich silver mines, this is considered to be one of the best examples of Mexican Churrigueresque architecture. Particularly noteworthy are the finely-carved, elaborate altars covered in gold leaf.

Tue-Sun 06:30-18:00

Church of San Diego

Iglesia de San Diego

This is the only surviving building from the original 17th-century convent, with a splendid rococo exterior.

Daily 08:00-20:00

Comida China

Chinese food. It has a big variety of meat that you can choose from. You get a main dish with spaghetti and/or rice with one kind of meat for M$70. There is another for the same price opposite of the Sr. Spaguetti that is open daily 11:00-19:30.

Daily 12:00-19:30

DelSol

If you need to get all your basics at once, check out this place which is similar to a Wal-Mart.

Daily 09:00-21:30

Delica Mitsu

Delica Mitsu serves up homemade Japanese delicatessen "sozai", sushi rolls, grilled chicken, and more. Many of the dishes are made from vegetables only, so vegetarians will also feel at home at this tiny restaurant owned and operated by a sweet Japanese couple. Popular with tourists and locals, there are new items on the menu everyday which are sure to keep you coming back time and time again.

Mon-Sat 11:30-18:30

Don Olé Karaoke

Try out your Spanish, but don't worry, they have songs in English too.

Thu-Sat 12ː00 - 03ː00, opens Mon-Wed at 18ː00, Sun at 10ː00

Don Quixote Iconographic Museum

Museo Iconografico del Quijote

Small, but very well done. Art exhibits focused on Don Quixote.

Tue-Sat 09:30-18:45, Sun 12:00-18:45·M$30, free on Tuesdays

El Cubilete

This is your one-stop store for confectionery, established in 1955. It sells all sorts of local sweets, including such specialties like 'Charamuscas', figures made of caramel resembling the mummies. Try also 'Cajeta', similar to Dulce de Leche but made of goat's milk.

El Pípila

A 28-m-tall statue of an independence hero. Juan Jose Martinez, or also known as El Pípila, was a legendary hero who wore a stone slab on his back to protect himself while burning the Spanish troops holed up in the Alhóndiga, or granary, in September 1810. The view is beautiful, particularly at night.

Free

El Zopilote Mojado

The beautiful Plaza Mexíamora host this unique café, where you can find peaceful atmosphere with an excellent coffee, classical music, interesting books in English and Spanish, and delicious desserts and baguettes. A very Mexican place with an international taste.

Escuela Normal Superior Oficial de Guanajuato

Teacher's school. The building also houses an English language lending library open Tuesday and Thursday.

Mon-Sat 08ː00 - 21ː00 (closed Sun)

Ex-convent Museum Dieguino

Museo Dieguino

The underground excavated remains of the original 17th-century cloister, of which the Templo de San Diego is the surviving remnant today. Occasionally photography and art exhibits are also hosted in this space.

Tue-Sat 10:00-18:30, Sun 10:00-14:30

Famoso Bar Incendio

FBI

A typical Mexican cantina, one of the oldest in Guanajuato. Lately they have a students environment. They are famous for their mezcales.

M-Sa 10:00-23:00

Fante Bar

A small dive bar with a psychedelic video on loop near the main church. It's notable in that it has the best pulque in town. Well worth a visit if you haven't tried the local drink.

Festival Medieval de Guanajuato

An annual event since 2005, this festival celebrates music, dance, and art from the 5th to 15th centuries, with participants hailing from across Mexico.

Late April