2 days in Guadalajara

Day by day

1. Day 1: Guadalajara Cathedral and Hospicio Cabañas

   Guadalajara Cathedral, Hospicio Cabañas, Plaza de los Mariachis and Palacio de Gobierno, then Lucha libre at Arena Coliseo in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Guadalajara Cathedral

      Inside are many side altars and a much-venerated figure of the Virgin. Four plazas surround it, including the Plaza de Armas with its French-made bandstand and the Rotonda of illustrious Jaliscans.

   2. Late morning

      Hospicio Cabañas

      Its chapel is covered with José Clemente Orozco's murals of the conquest and modern Mexico, culminating in the Man of Fire in the dome.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Torta ahogada

      Torta stands and small shops across the city, especially in the centre and around markets; ask for 'media ahogada' for less heat.

   4. Afternoon

      Plaza de los Mariachis

      It is a historic gathering place for musicians rather than a polished venue.

   5. Late afternoon

      Palacio de Gobierno

      Orozco's mural of Hidalgo, torch raised over a scene of struggle, fills the main staircase, and a second Orozco mural decorates the former congress chamber upstairs.

   6. Evening

      Lucha libre at Arena Coliseo

      Buy a cheap mask from the sellers outside and sit in the middle sections, where the atmosphere is loud but family-friendly.

2. Day 2: Teatro Degollado and Plaza Tapatía

   Teatro Degollado, Plaza Tapatía, Museo Regional de Guadalajara and Mercado San Juan de Dios, then Tlaquepaque and El Parián in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Teatro Degollado

      It is home to the Jalisco Philharmonic and hosts opera, ballet and folkloric dance.

   2. Late morning

      Plaza Tapatía

      It links the centre's main monuments into a single walk.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Birria

      Birrierías across the city, the upper floor of the Mercado San Juan de Dios and the specialist birria restaurants in Las Nueve Esquinas, a small plaza south of the centre.

   4. Afternoon

      Museo Regional de Guadalajara

      In an 18th-century seminary beside the cathedral, the regional museum covers Jalisco from prehistory onwards, with a mammoth skeleton, shaft-tomb ceramics from western Mexico, colonial paintings and ethnographic rooms on the Wixárika (Huichol) people, all arranged around a cloistered courtyard.

   5. Late afternoon

      Mercado San Juan de Dios

      The upper floor is a maze of fondas serving birria, pozole and seafood at low prices.

   6. Evening

      Tlaquepaque and El Parián

      Visit on a weekend afternoon to browse the galleries, then stay for drinks and mariachi at El Parián as the evening begins.

Before you go

If it rains

• Swap in MUSA – Museo de las Artes (Centro Histórico): Combine it with the Templo Expiatorio, about ten minutes' walk away, to see more Orozco without the Cabañas crowds.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 12–18 hours of visiting over 2 days, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 10.9 hours in December to 13.4 hours in June.

Getting between stops: Walking. The cathedral, Plaza Tapatía, Cabañas, the San Juan de Dios market and MUSA are all within about 20 minutes' walk of each other.

More or fewer days

• One day in Guadalajara
• 3 days in Guadalajara
• 5 days in Guadalajara

Questions travellers ask