Zacatecas

Acropolis Café Y Restaurante

A good bet for tourists who want a conventional breakfast, if you can find a seat. Founded as a small cafe in 1938. Back in the days it used to be a hotspot for dignitaries, celebrities and artists visiting the city, evidence of whose passage line the walls, although these days it has more of a charmless chain-restaurant feel. That said, the Italian-style coffee is quite nice, and the huevos rancheros come recommended.

08:00-22:00 daily

Alameda Trinidad García de la Cadena

A garden walk in the central city. During the month of April musicians play live music beginning in the early morning.

Antigua Plaza de Toros San Pedro

Quinta Real Zacatecas

This former bull ring has been converted into a luxury hotel. Enjoy a walk around the ring, and if you feel like splurging a bit enjoy lunch or dinner at the Hotel's restaurant, which has a commanding view of the ring.

Birrieria Don Polo

Small food vendor in the town market, known for over 50 years for their distinctive birria de chivo (goat stew). Grab a bowl of birria, served with tortillas, or you can get it drained of liquid and served as a taco.

M$150

Callejoneada

A walking party around downtown's distinctive "callejones" (narrow streets or alleys) complete with live music and a donkey loaded with free Mezcal. Usually everybody is welcomed to join and most likely you won't be the only tourist joining the entourage. Callejoneadas typically begin from the Plaza de Armas.

Cantina Las Quince Letras

Locally famous, one of the oldest cantinas in the city, founded in 1900. Great place to soak up local ambience while admiring the cantina's impressive art collection.

Mon 14:00-00:00 Tue 14:00-00:30 Wed 13:00-00:30 Thu-Sat 14:00-00:30

Cathedral Basilica of Zacatecas

Catedral Basílica de la Asunción de María de Zacatecas

One of the most beautiful examples of Churrigueresque arquitecture in Mexico. It is an elaborately carved red-stone (cantera) structure that was built between 1730 and 1760. It is flanked by two towers with an exuberant ornamentation and has a notable facade that was richly sculpted but its once decorated interior was looted during the civil wars of the 19th and 20th centuries. Its coupula was reconstructed in 1836 and imitates that one of the church of Nuestra Señora de Loreto in Mexico City.

Mon-Sat 06:30-20:00 Sun 06:30-21:45

Centro Platero de Zacatecas

A collection of silver shops within the former silver-processing hacienda, where mercury-based enrichment (developed in Zacatecas and adopted throughout the world) was used for more than a century to get metallic silver from ore. The State of Zacatecas today still mines about half the world's silver, though the mines under the city are abandoned because of the danger of using explosives in an urban area.

Mon-Sat 09:00-18:00

Church of Santo Domingo

Parroquia de Santo Domingo

Built by the Jesuits between 1746 and 1749, this church has a beautiful Baroque facade. Splendid gold wood-carved altarpieces, all of them churrigueresque, as well as 18th-century Francisco Antonio Vallejo paintings that represent scenes of The Passion, can be found inside.

09:00-17:00 daily

El Barretero

has excellent food and usually live music (strings, piano, Mexican popular music, not mariachi). Try the cabrito (baby goat).

Ex Templo de San Agustín

Exconvento de San Augustín

A former monastery from the 17th century. The main church is now used for conferences and cultural events; the monastery still houses the bishop's offices.

Tue-Sun 10:00-17:00

Ex-Hacienda de Trancoso

An impressive former hacienda that was charged with supplying the city of Zacatecas with meat and grain during the 18th century. Note that as of 2024 it is closed to the public and only visible from the outside.

Fuente de los Faroles

Fountain of Lanterns

The centerpiece of a traffic roundabout is a beautifully ornate fountain with wrought iron lamp fixtures. Cobblestone streets lined with quaint shops, restaurants, and colonial hotels attract tourists and locals alike. At night, the streets are softly lit, giving it the feeling of the late 19th century.

Garufa

Argentinian restaurant with beautiful view of the Jardín Juárez.

M$200-400

La Leyenda

This restaurant could more aptly be described as an art museum and gallery where you can share a meal and drinks. It's a place of culture, dreams, and nightmares. There's some beautiful pieces of Huichol art, devil masks, paper maché demons and dragons to name but a few of the kinds of works found here. It is an experience, with nearly every surface is a piece of art. The owner and collector is there most evenings and is very approachable. And he welcomes people to come and view the massive collection.

Tue-Sun 09:30-21:30·M$100-300

La Mina Club

A nightclub located inside the silver mine. Although not many locals frequent the spot, it is fun to go once just to experience the world's only nightclub inside a mine.

Sat 21:00-2:00 (nightclub) Thu-Fri 16:00-23:00 (bar only)

La Quemada

Archeological ruins of mysterious origin. There is an on-site museum that provides a panoramic view of the ruins.

09:00-17:00 daily·M$70

Los Dorados de Villa

One of the best spots for enjoying a traditional dinner. Expect a little wait as the place is popular and small.

Mausoleo de las Personas Ilustres de Zacatecas

Mausoleum of the Illustrious Persons of Zacatecas

Nothing very exciting about this structure unless you are extremely interested in researching the history of the city, but since you are up there why not spend a few minutes here?

Meowka-Café

Cat Café

A cat cafe! Sit with your coffee and play with friendly cats.

Tue-Sun 12:00-21:00

Mercado González Ortega

Mainly a collection of your typical tourist shops, but there is one shop that sells native Huichol artifacts, some of which can be relatively hard to find elsewhere.

Mon 09:00-21:00 Tue-Sun 09:00-20:30

Mina El Edén

This old silver mine in downtown Zacatecas closed in 1960 and was re-opened as a historical site and museum in the mid-1970s. The tourist facilities were extensively updated in the mid 2000s and today El Eden is Mexico's largest and most popular mine tour. You can go into some of the mine shafts where there are depictions of mining activities and an underground mining train. There's an on-site nightclub that's open on weekends and a big rocks and minerals museum featuring a collection donated by Juan Manuel Navarro. If there's ever a cave-in, don't count on Superman to come save you — the museum has a kryptonite display!

10:00-18:00 daily·M$150 adults, M$80 under 11 years old, M$120 students, M$80 seniors

Museo Francisco Goitia

Showcases artworks of contemporary artists from the Zacatecas region.

Tue-Sun 10:00-16:45·M$30

Museo Pedro Coronel

Located next to the "Santo Domingo" church, it houses a colonial-era library and a large eclectic collection of European, African, American, and Mexican art.

Museo Rafael Coronel

Ex Convento de San Francisco

Set in a partially restored convent dating back to the 16th-17th centuries, this museum houses a large and diverse collection of masks drawn from several regions of Mexico and from other cultures around the world. Masks from different regions and eras are grouped together by themes and uses, including masks used in Carnival and in religious pageants, such as those commemorating the Reconquista. Particularly interesting is the alternate incorporation and subversion of pre-Hispanic symbols. The Diablo room is not to be missed. The museum is extensive and although most famous for its masks, it houses more than 16,000 other pieces of folk art (obviously not all on display). Portions of the convent grounds that could not be restored have been converted into a garden, with crumbling walls, standing arches and greenery. The museum was established by surrealist artist Rafael Coronel and does include some of the artist's works.

M$30

Museo Zacatecano

Casa de Moneda

A museum located across the street from San Augustín with exhibitions all about Zacatecas, notable residents and its long history. Of note is a large section of exhibits, crafts, and other artifacts belonging to the Huichol culture, whose members still maintain a pre-Columbian lifestyle in the mountains between Zacatecas and Nayarit.

Wed-Mon 10:00-17:00·M$30

Museo de la Toma de Zacatecas

Houses weapons, documents, photos, and other artifacts relating to this decisive battle of the Mexican Revolution. The Battle of Zacatecas took place on June 23, 1914 when the Division del Norte under the command of Pancho Villa won a decisive victory over the federal army led by General Luis Medina Barrón. The battle led to the resignation of President Huerta.

Adults M$12, children free

Museum of Guadalupe

Museo de Guadalupe

Occupies the Franciscan monastery from which missionaries were sent out to Christianize the inhabitants of Texas, New Mexico, and California – it was the mother of the Spanish missions in the United States. Much of the old monastery is a museum of colonial religious art, paintings by Indians trained in the European tradition. The paintings are amazing, and the architecture of the cloisters, the church and the Capilla de Napoli is unforgettable.

Tue-Sun 10:00-16:00·M$65

Museum of Modern Art Manuel Felguerez

Museo de Arte Abstracto Manuel Felguerez

One of the best museums in Zacatecas. The large building, which once housed a Seminar and later a prison, now houses a large collection of Abstract paintings and Sculptures. The museum was restored in a minimalistic aesthetic, complementing the more than 100 works by Felguérez as well as works by more than 110 other artists from around the world. The room housing the murals that Felguérez made for the Mexican Pavilion at the Osaka World's Exhibition of 1970 is breathtaking and one of the highlights of the Museum's collection.

Wed-Mon 10:00-17:00

Plaza de Armas

The square beside the Cathedral, interesting murals inside the government buildings, such as the Palacio de Gobierno.