Guanajuato is one of Mexico’s 31 states. Surprisingly there is a city in Guanajuato named…Guanajuato. It lies about 240 miles (390 KM) northwest of Mexico City. The terrain around Guanajuato is very hilly making this town very unique as it is built throughout the valley. Most alley and walk ways are narrow and quite steep. Another unique feature about Guanajuato are the roads, which are primarily underground. Guanajuato got its start in the mid 1500’s after silver was discovered in the area. Today, the whole town of Guanajuato is listed as a UNESCO site, filled with colorful buildings and historical structures. We were fortunate enough to travel to this beautiful city and got to spend 2 days in Guanajuato.
Not many people have heard of Guanajuato. In fact, most people think of beaches and resorts when Mexico comes to mind. What fun is that? What are you actually gaining just lying on the beach sipping margaritas for days. I mean you can’t really say you’ve been to a place until you really explore a country’s culture, cuisine, and way of life. With that in mind, I wanted to see the “REAL” Mexico. I don’t think we were quite ready yet for Mexico City (We’ve traveled here since and it is quite lovely), we wanted to find something on a smaller scale. I was listening to a podcast and Guanajuato came up. I was curious and looked up the city and was instantly intrigued. I brought it up to Jill and shortly after we booked flights and a hotel.
Getting here
Getting to Guanajuato was easier then expected. We flew from MCI (Kansas City) airport to Dallas and then to Guanajuato International Airport, located near the town of Leon. We found just hailing a cab was the easiest way to get to our hotel from the airport. Don’t worry, the taxis here were safe, cheap, and took about 30 minutes. Price wise, I believe it was 350-400 pesos, so around $20 USD. Personally, I would not rent a car and drive around Guanajuato. Not because of safety, but the underground road network and narrow road ways can be rather confusing to travelers unfamiliar with the layout of the city.
Lodging
I do a lot of the food and attraction planning, I leave lodging up to Jill, she never disappoints. We stayed at Hotel Boutique 1850, and to this date it is still one of our favorite hotels. It was locate on Jardin de la Union, and there were other hotels situated here. Jardin de la Union was a small town square lined with restaurants, entertainment, and beauty, it was quite lively! The location here is central, so you can make frequent stops at the hotel throughout the day before going back out. Hotel Boutique 1850 was pricey for Mexico standards, but very reasonable considering what we pay for in the United States. Each room at the hotel was unique and different, a mix of historical and modern influences.
I always say, the perfect travel day starts off with a great coffee and breakfast. The hotel had free breakfast. Instead of hosting breakfast there, you receive vouchers daily for the restaurant next door. The breakfast was no joke, there was a menu to chose from everything from enchiladas to pancakes, with a bowl of fresh fruit and free coffee/teas. Sitting outside with a phenomenal breakfast watching people go by at the square was some of the best mornings we’ve experienced.
2 Days in Guanajuato
We spent 2 days in Guanajuato, which I feel was perfect. I feel like an extra day or two would be nice though for day trips outside of Guanajuato. But, two days in Guanajuato was all we had so if you want to cover a lot of ground and see the spectacular sites within Guanajuato then check out our itinerary.
Day 1
If your hotel does not provide breakfast as ours did, there are so many small cafe’s and restaurants that serve breakfast around Guanajuato, there are even a few traditional bakeries. After breakfast, take a few hours and walk around the entire downtown area which is very walkable. Explore Universidad de Guanajuato and walk up the stairs to get a view of the city. Basilica of our Lady Guanajuato dominates the cityscape, it is the yellow and red church seen in every photo. This Basilica was build in 1671 and is open to the public. The photo below was taken of the Basilica at night.
Once you get familiar with the layout of Guanajuato I recommend getting a taxi to one of the mines, we visited Mina La Valenciana but there are at least 3 hours to choose from. Mina La Valenciana was nice because it was located near other attractions.
After visiting the mine, we visited the Temple of San Cayetano and the Museum of Purgatory. The Museum of Purgatory was a little cheesy but super fun! There was a tour guide that explained the museum exhibits to us, mostly in Spanish so I couldn’t catch everything. This was a great attractions to kill an hour and it was very cheap and a bit spooky!
After exploring Valenciana, we flagged down another taxi and had him take us to Museo Exhacienda San Gabriel de Barrera. This was an estate owned by the Barrera family at the end of the 17th century. The admission was $2-3 USD, and you could explore parts of the estate and gardens. The gardens were fascinating, there were 17 of them all unique and different from the rest.
After spending time at the Hacienda we took a taxi back to the center of town just in time for dinner. Dinner options are widespread throughout Guanajuato. Our first day we ate at Los Campos to try their Guacamole Azteca. This guacamole was like any other guacamole except it came with a side of grasshoppers! Actually it tasted fantastic. You can read more about Guacamole Azteca in my Bizarre Foods post through this link: Our Take on Bizarre Foods. After dinner, walk around the town at night to see the lights. I always say that every city deserves a walk both during the day and at night. Sometimes cities are even more impressive with the city lights on, and don’t worry! Guanajuato is SAFE!
Day 2
There are a few options, I recommend starting the day off by walking to the statue of El Pipila. There are two ways of getting here, you can take the easy route by boarding the funicular, or take the narrow paths up San Miguel Hill. Once at the top, you get a beautiful view of Guanajuato and surrounding hills. I highly recommend doing this both during the day and at night.
El Pipila – For those wondering who El Pipila is, well he became a hero during the Mexican War for Independence. During the Independence, the Spaniards were barricaded inside Alhondiga de Granaditas, waiting for more troops to arrive. El Pipila performed an act of heroism and strapped a stone on his back for protection against archers, grabbed a bucket of tar, along with a torch. He neared a wooden door, splashing it with tar and igniting it with his torch. The door crumbled and the rioters from outside raced in to claim victory over the Spaniards!!
After hiking to the top of San Miguel Hill, lunch is well deserved. Head over to Mercado Hidalgo for some fresh tacos and fruit. When eating fruit make sure to eat only fruits with a shell (sanitary reasons). Mercado Hidalgo has a nice selection of fresh produce, meats, and souvenirs.
Museo de las Momias - Warning Mummy Photos
After grabbing lunch, it is time to visit one of the most morbid attractions I’ve ever seen. Maybe I am just odd, but I have a bit of morbid curiosity so the weirder the better and this attraction is definitely that! Time for the Museo de las Momias or the Mummy Museum!
This is a sad yet interesting story. In the 1850’s a cholera outbreak struck Guanajuato. The cemeteries filled up quickly and the local government started to tax families for the plots. If the tax could not be paid, their loved ones were dug up and stored in a storage unit. Because of the arid climate and ground soil, the bodies that were uncovered were very well preserved. Locals wanted to see the bodies and eventually the owner started to charge people to view the mummies eventually becoming Museo de las Momias. Some notable burials include a mother who died during childbirth and her fetus was mummified, possibly being the smallest mummy in the world, a corpse that appeared to be buried alive, and a notable doctor. Most of the mummies still had articles of clothing on.
For just $3 USD, you can walk around and view the 59 mummies on display. We got there early, it opens at 9 am, we practically had the museum to ourselves!
After exploring the mummy museum, we ended up just exploring the alley ways and streets throughout Guanajuato. We ended up at Presa de la Olla, which is a lake on the complete opposite side of town. You can paddle boat here or just walk around the lake. We walked by several food stalls that are worth trying out. If looking for restaurant options, I recommend heading back to the town square. Two other restaurants we ate at were Van Gogh, which had great local dishes and Casa Valadez for desserts and drinks!
Guanajuato to this day, is one of our favorite cities. Because of its size, you can come here to relax and enjoy all the sites at a slower pace. The vibrant colors and architecture of the buildings along with the cobble stone streets reminded me of towns in Europe. For a city of its size, there are so many sites to see and the history is rich! 
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