Solo travel · Guadalajara · Mexico
Solo travel in Guadalajara
How to enjoy Guadalajara at your own pace.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: ProtoplasmaKid, CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answer
Guadalajara is a straightforward city for solo travellers: affordable, well connected by apps and light rail, and full of students and young professionals. The Americana is the easiest place to meet people over coffee or drinks. Many solo travellers base themselves in Colonia Americana and Lafayette.
Key facts
- Base
- Colonia Americana and Lafayette
- Getting around
- Walking
- Emergency number
- 911
- Language
- Spanish
Solo travel tips
- Stay in the Colonia Americana for walkable cafés, bars and hostels.
- Join a group tour to Tequila to share transport and tastings with others.
- Use ride-hailing apps at night rather than hailing street taxis.
- Language exchanges and free walking tours in the centre are good ways to meet locals and travellers.
- Keep valuables close in the San Juan de Dios market and on crowded buses.
Where to stay
$$$ · Best for nightlife, food lovers, couples and solo travellers
Colonia Americana and Lafayette
West of the centre, the Americana and Lafayette districts were laid out for wealthy families in the early 1900s, and their tree-lined streets still hold Art Nouveau and early modernist houses, including early works by Luis Barragán. Avenida Chapultepec and the streets around it are now the city's liveliest strip of coffee shops, restaurants, mezcal bars and galleries.
- Good
- Best café and bar scene in the city; Walkable, leafy streets; Short taxi ride to the centre
- Watch out
- Bar noise on weekend nights; Prices higher than the centre
- Nearby
- Avenida Chapultepec, Templo Expiatorio, MUSA
Great on your own
Religious site · Centro Histórico
Guadalajara Cathedral
Walk around all four sides of the cathedral; each plaza frames the spires differently, and the Rotonda side is quietest.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Architecture
- History
- Free
Museum · Centro Histórico
Hospicio Cabañas
Lie back on the benches provided in the chapel to look up at the dome; it is the intended way to see the Man of Fire.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Art
- History
- Architecture
- Rainy day
Landmark · Centro Histórico
Plaza de los Mariachis
Agree the price per song before the band plays, and visit in the early evening rather than late at night.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- After dark
- History
- Iconic
Palace · Centro Histórico
Palacio de Gobierno
Climb to the top of the staircase and look back down; the mural is designed to be seen from below and above.
- Time needed
- 30–45 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Art
- History
- Free
- Rainy day
Architecture · Centro Histórico
Teatro Degollado
Seeing a performance is the best way inside; check the programme and buy tickets at the box office for folkloric dance or the philharmonic.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Architecture
- History
- After dark
- Couples
Museum · Centro Histórico
Museo Regional de Guadalajara
Start with the ground-floor palaeontology and shaft-tomb figures, the museum's most distinctive rooms.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Rainy day
- Kids
Meeting people
- Torta ahogada breakfast — Locals often eat tortas ahogadas in the morning; try one at a busy stand with a cold drink, and add the chile sauce slowly — it is very hot.
- Market lunch at San Juan de Dios — The fondas on the top floor of the Mercado San Juan de Dios serve birria, pozole and seafood at shared counters for low prices.
- Colonia Americana — Avenida Chapultepec and nearby streets such as Calle Libertad have cocktail bars, mezcalerías, clubs and LGBTQ+ venues.
- Centro Histórico — Traditional cantinas with botanas and live music, plus the mariachi plaza near San Juan de Dios.
Sensible precautions
Most visitors have trouble-free stays, but watch for pickpockets in markets and on crowded public transport, and stick to busy, well-lit streets at night, particularly east of the Hospicio Cabañas. Ride-hailing apps are a sensible choice for late-night journeys.
- Emergency number
- 911
- Staying connected
- Mobile data coverage is good across the metropolitan area, and many cafés offer free Wi-Fi.
Questions travellers ask
+Is Guadalajara good for solo travellers?
Guadalajara is a straightforward city for solo travellers: affordable, well connected by apps and light rail, and full of students and young professionals. The Americana is the easiest place to meet people over coffee or drinks.
+Where should solo travellers stay in Guadalajara?
Colonia Americana and Lafayette: Early 20th-century mansions, cafés and bars along Avenida Chapultepec.