A quick Google or TripAdvisor search proves that people are opinionated about San Miguel de Allende.
It's too touristy.
It's not authentic.
The Canadians and Americans have taken over.
We've heard people say all of these things. San Miguel has been growing in popularity ever since it was named Travel and Leisure's World's Best City in 2017 and 2018. Despite all that we'd heard, we decided to spend a few days in the colonial city and form our own opinions.
Man, we're sure glad that we did.
San Miguel is located three hours northwest of Mexico City. With a temperate climate and art galleries lining the streets, the city is undeniably beautiful. The city center is a postcard image of colorful buildings painted in tones of marigold and blush, perfectly manicured shrubs, and a glorious pink church dominating the landscape. We found ourselves covered in goosebumps as we headed out to take some photos at 7:00 AM before the rest of the city woke up. San Miguel's altitude of 6,200 ft (1,900 m) makes for some chilly evenings and mornings. As the sun flooded into the streets in the late morning, we felt our skin audibly saying 'thank you.' The weather reminded us of a late September day in Colorado.
Yes, the city is filled with expats and travelers. However, we didn't find this distracting in the slightest. We are typically drawn to cities that have a harmonious blend of locals and foreigners. As the weekend rolled around, however, we found ourselves outnumbered by Mexican tourists.
San Miguel de Allende isn't where you can expect to eat dirt cheap street food on the side of the street. It's not for travelers who want to pack their itineraries full of museums and art galleries and staying out all night drinking. Life in San Miguel is sloooooow. You'll spend your days wandering the streets, drinking coffee, and exploring art galleries. An afternoon siesta might even be calling your name.
We've traveled a lot of the world and typically try to avoid overly touristic places, but we're here to tell you: go to San Miguel. Daniel couldn't stop starting at the pink church. Bre took hundreds of color palette inspiration photos.
There are hundreds of blogs available about San Miguel de Allende, so this blog wasn't designed to be one of our city guides.However, let us know if you're headed to the city and have any questions about where to stay, where to eat, or how to get there from the nearest airport in Leon. Have you been to San Miguel? What were your thoughts?
Enjoy this short video we put together from an early morning.
For the love and adventure,
Bre & Daniel