pollyrjohnson

To all,

I have used Fodors before for advice and I have been extrememly happy with your results. Here are my questions and itinerary.

My husband and I are traveling to Mexico July 2 - 25, 2009. I am in education so this is the only time of year that I can take an extended vacation. We have booked our flight using frequent flyer miles. We will fly into Mexico City and fly out of Puerto Vallarta. We have been to Mazatlan and Cancun and we are looking for a beach and colonial city itinerary. We will be in Puerta Vallarta so the beach part of the trip is covered. So far this is what I have


July 2-8 Mexico City with side trips to Teotihuacan, Puebla, and Xochimilco. We may exclude Puebla because we are going to other colonial cities.

July 8 - 18 San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, and Guadalajara. I am interested in the best side trips from those cities. We will have about 10 days to experince these cities. Of the three cities, in which one should we spend more time?

We are slow travelers. We don't like to "drive through" cities. We opt to stay in fewer cities so that we can experience the city.

We love to experience things and stay in lovely but economical locations.

July 18 - 25 Puerto Vallarta - timeshare.

Our preference is to spend $75 - $110 per night in accomodations. I only need AC if it is necessary. We like to stay in the historical city centers. We like to limit our museums and Cathedrals to the most important opting for experiences instead. We like to take the subway and buses when possible to get around the cities and for our side trips. I do understand that we will need to take buses from city to city. We rent a car when necessary.

Should we include Morelia and Patzcuaro or should we stay in the colonial cities experiencing what they have ot offer Of course while in Guadalajara we will take a side trip to Tequelia.

Any suggestions for quintessential Mexican experiences will be greatly appreciated. We are looking for places that are not to be missed while traveling from Mexico City to Puerto Vallarta on a bus and stopping in colonial cities.

Thank you!

Stewbear

I love Michoacan Especially the Mountain Cities of Morelia, Patzcuaro & Uruapan.
Morelia is a possibly the cleanest city in Mexico. Fabulous architecture including the ancient Aqueduct, massive buildings with portals, a huge cathedral but also a most sophisticated, modern city with Ballet, a Symphony, modern theaters, great cafés, museums Etc.
Patzcuaro is unique & special wit it's Dia de Muertos traditional & the many lake villages each with there own craft.
Uruapan has a most lovely National Park filled with Waterfalls, cataracts, flora & fauna. It's a very Mexico city with unique narrow but 3 block long Plaza. Not a Gringo Tourist destination in the unusual sense however as it is the heart of the Avocado growing country lots of US AG Inspectors, buyers etc.
Guadalajara is my first large Mexican City & still is special to us as we honeymooned there. Great city also. You can bus DF to Morelia, Patzcuaro (a side trip via taxi is but 200 pesos each way) then to GLD & on to SMDA.
Feel free to e-mail me with any questions or hotel info.

Junejuly

I am in complete agreement with Stewbear... Michocan is a magical state, and should not be missed. Morelia is UNESCO world heritage city made of stone, with very special architecture (I love the jesuit church with the the mexican -baroque interior). Patzcuaro, only about 45 minutes away, is the "other side" of mexican culture... spanish weren't so great at changing the beliefs and traditions of the people here, and that's what makes it so special. It is paradise for anyone who loves local arts and crafts.
That said, Guanajuato is a truly lovely city, which shows the strong influence the french had on Mexico... so many of buildings are built in the Napolean III(but with a distinctive Mexican flavor). The Diego Rivera museum is kind of fun... you can see his imitations of every big artist before him before finding his own style. San Miguel de Allende is also wonderful, and not too far away, once you are in the area.
Though I love Guadalajara to live in, it probably only deserves one or two days on a whirlwind trip. Be sure to hit the downtown area, where you can see their lovely squares, walking from the impressive cathedral towards the market (there you can buy a bag of "agua de jamaica" - the lovely hibiscus-flower, sugary beverage that they sell on the street to keep you cool and refreshed while you walk), then keep going, and you'll end up at the building with the "man of fire" murals at the end. The other museums are not all that great. If you only have one meal in Guadalajara, definitely go to el Sacromonte. If you have more time, I would also hit la Fonda de la Noche. Tequila only deserves 1-2 hours on the way to Puerta Vallarta (it's literally right off the highway on the way).
I LOVE Puebla, but it's in the opposite direction of where you are headed. You might want to save it for your next trip and do it on the way to Oaxaca. This will give you more time for the other colonial cities.
Though it will be warm in July, it's still better than June. Be prepared for intense rain storms that come out of no where, flood everything for an hour or so, then disappear, leaving the sky sunny and clear.
Regardless of where you end up, I'm sure that you will love your trip... you are going to a wonderful area, and between the people, architecture, and food, I think you'll find you can't go wrong.

suze

If you have any specific questions about Puerto Vallarta, I'm happy to help if I can. I spend a lot of time there. Let me know what types of things you'd like to do and I can make some specific recommendations.

What timeshare are you staying at?

I ask because Vallarta is spread out all around the Bay of Banderas, and am wondering how close you are staying to the city itself?

suze

Fodor's 2008 Puerto Vallarta guidebook is a good one to use imho.

yestravel

U have multiple threads on this. I responded to one of the other ones. click on your names to find all the treads.