Mexico's Colonial Heartland

(14 Days - Departs Daily on a Private Basis)
Zacatecas, Guadalajara, Morelia & Patzcuaro, Guanajuato, San Miguel de Allende & Queretaro

This private tour is perfect for travelers interested in Mexico's colonial towns. Many are UNESCO-listed and feature beautiful architecture, history and great natural beauty, though each retains its own culture and local flavor.

Begin in stately Zacatecas, perhaps the most beautiful of Mexico's silver mining towns and a UNESCO World Heritage site. With your private guide, learn about the city's important revolutionary history and see its well-preserved urban design and grand pink-stone architecture, including the intricately carved facade of the cathedral. Visit former convents and monasteries that now house some of Mexico's most interesting museums, such as Museo Pedro Coronel, which displays an excellent collection of pre-Hispanic art, and Museo Rafael Coronial, including the world's largest collection of masks. Explore a silver mine and ride a cable car across the entire city to fully appreciate its dramatic setting in a narrow valley. You might also like to browse for local products made from silver, gold and precious stones. Accommodation is at a luxury hotel that was once a bullring.

Next, transfer to Guadalajara, stopping en route to tour the charming town of Aguascalientes. Continue to Guadalajara, a sophisticated modern city that is also home to tequila, mariachi music and the wide-brimmed sombrero. During your time here, take a privately guided tour of the historic center to appreciate the city's beautiful colonial architecture. Visit the cathedral and the plazas that surround it on all four sides, each filled with fountains, monuments and public art. See murals by Jose Clemente Orozco in the Hospicio Cabanas, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If desired, also visit colorful markets and top museums like the Museo Regional de Guadalajara. Explore Guadalajara's most interesting neighborhoods, including fashionable Chapultepec and upscale Zapopan; the Tonala and Tlaquepaque districts offer some of the best craft and folk-art shopping in Mexico. One day, enjoy a private excursion to the tequila region to learn how this fiery drink is made. In the evenings, sample Guadalajara's excellent cuisine at the city's top restaurants and perhaps listen to mariachi bands perform in the Plaza de los Mariachis. If desired, Artisans of Leisure can arrange tickets to a performance of the Ballet Folklorico or Jalisco Philharmonic.

Continue to Morelia, a well-preserved, UNESCO-listed city with an aristocratic Spanish heritage in the lush state of Michoacan. With your private guide, explore the picture-perfect historic center. See the cathedral and the Baroque aqueduct that traverses the city, visit leafy parks and plazas, sit at a sidewalk cafe in the Jardin de las Rosas, and stroll down "Romance Alley," with its fountains, bougainvillea and pink stone buildings. If desired, browse for local sweets in the Mercado de Dulces and handicrafts at the Casa de las Artesanias, or visit one of Morelia's interesting museums, dedicated to Mexican masks, Michoacan history, colonial art, or Jose Maria Morelos, a hero of Mexican independence. One day, enjoy a private excursion to Patzcuaro, a picturesque village rooted in Indian tradition and home to the Day of the Dead festival. Take a private tour of local indigenous villages specializing in crafts such as ceramics, copper, musical instruments and more. If desired, also visit the Monarch Butterfly Reserve.

Spend the next three nights in Guanajuato, once the most important silver-producing town in the world. Today it's known for its Baroque architecture, large university, European feel and romantic atmosphere. Its colorful colonial buildings sprawl up the hillsides that surround the town. During private touring, enjoy charming plazas, cafes, markets and narrow cobbled alleys such as the "Callejon del Beso" ("Alley of the Kiss"). Visit UNESCO-listed Baroque and neoclassical buildings and churches including La Compañía and La Valenciana, and see the city's unique underground streets. Also visit the house where Diego Rivera was born, now an interesting museum. Depending on timing, you might like to join an evening callejoneada, where roving musicians in traditional costumes sing songs about local myths and legends. One day, visit nearby Dolores Hidalgo to learn about Mexican independence, browse for Talavera pottery and taste the delicious local ice cream.

End your tour in artsy San Miguel de Allende, best known for its cobblestone backstreets lined with colorful colonial architecture, historic churches, galleries and crafts shops. See the town's highlights during private touring. Visit churches such as the neo-Gothic La Parroquia, churrigaresque Templo de San Francisco and baroque Oratorio de San Felipe Neri; stroll through the popular main square, known as El Jardin; and see historic mansions like the Inquistor's House and Casa de Allende. Visit El Charco del Ingenio, a beautiful botanical garden; Fabrica la Aurora, a former factory that's now filled with shops, galleries and artists' studios; and the Santuario de Atotonilco, with its UNESCO-protected murals. If your timing is right, also visit the weekly El Tianguis food market. Artisans of Leisure can also make appointments to visit artists' homes, studios and private folk art collections. If desired one day, take a private excursion to beautiful Queretaro, known for its plazas, colonial palaces and gardens, stately monasteries and lively atmosphere. Upon request, Artisans of Leisure can also arrange activities such as cooking lessons, spa appointments, art workshops or wine tastings and excursions to local vineyards.

Booking Information >

All Artisans of Leisure tours are private and depart daily.

Please Contact Us for more information regarding the above tour, or to begin customizing your own itinerary.

The Artisans of Leisure Style of Travel:

• Private touring with your own personal guides and drivers
• Preferred rooms in the very best luxury hotels
• Firsthand, sophisticated destination knowledge and recommendations from our travel specialists
• Itineraries that are customized according to your interests and schedule
• Artisans of Leisure upgrades and amenities
• A seamless travel experience, including all logistics, skipping lines during touring whenever possible, restaurant and spa reservations, performance tickets, private airport transfers, internal transportation, VIP and fast-track airport assistance in many destinations
• Around-the-clock support in each destination during your trip
• Unique, insider travel experiences and access to the Artisans of Leisure network of experts around the world