843 Best Sights in Mexico

Tour operators often combine a trip to Playa Mazunte and its sea turtle center with a visit to Laguna de Ventanilla to see resident and migratory species of birds, as well as crocodiles. Alternatively, you can arrange a 1½-hour tour of Laguna de Ventanilla directly from boat owners from the Ventanilla Ecotourism Cooperative at the lagoon's entrance, about 10 minutes by taxi west of the Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga.

Ajijic is also set along Lake Chapala, Mexico's largest freshwater lake. Boat tours will show you other points of view of the lake. Take some time to enjoy the peace and quiet, as this is what Tapatíos (Guadalajara citizens) come here for.

The tranquil shores of Lake Pátzcuaro are a 10-minute cab ride from downtown. There are two different muelles (docks) from which you can catch a boat to Janítzio, but you should head to the central muelle, which offers far more frequent service. Wooden launches with room for 25 people (but that rarely take that many) depart for Janítzio and the other islands daily from 9 to 5. Purchase round-trip tickets at a dockside office. For those who enjoy bucolic settings, it is absolutely worthwhile to visit La Pacanda, a quiet and peaceful island: amazing flowers abound, cows laze about, and the few inhabitants of the island go about their daily activities—which do not include trying to sell you souvenirs. La Pacanda might be even more idyllic than tiny Yunuen, but most folks won't want to stay more than an hour or so. If you want to linger, however, both La Pacanda and Yunuen offer simple yet clean visitor cabins for stays of overnight or longer.

Lalo Ecotours runs guided kayaking, bird-watching, and phosphorescence tours to Laguna Manialtepec, day trips to Chacahua, and excursions by horseback to Atotonilco Hot Springs. Tours include pickup and drop off at hotels in Puerto Escondido. You can book by phone or email.

Lambityeco was built as the civilization of nearby Mitla was waning. The city flourished until AD 750, when it was abandoned. Many archaeologists believe the inhabitants moved to the better-protected city of Yagul. The Palacio de los Racoqui, or Palace of the Lords, is the last of six larger and larger temples built on top of each other. Here you'll see a pair of carvings of a nobleman and his wife. Between these carvings is the tomb where they were buried. Nearby is the Palacio de Cocijo, dedicated to its namesake, a Zapotec god. A pair of carvings depict the rain god wearing an impressive headdress. The site is clearly visible from the highway.

Baja's oldest wine producers gives tours and tastings at its downtown Ensenada winery and bottling plant. Santo Tomás's best wines are the Alisio Chardonnay, the Cabernet, and the Tempranillo; avoid the overpriced Único. The winery also operates the enormous wineshop, a brick building across the avenue. The Santo Tomás Vineyards can be found on the eastern side of Highway 1 about 50 km (31 miles) south of Ensenada in Santo Tomás Valley, fairly near the ruins of the Misión Santo Tomás de Aquino, which was founded by Dominican priests in 1791. They have a third facility, Cava San Antonio de las Minas, at the entrance to Valle de Guadalupe at Km 94.7.

Spectacular limestone stalactites and stalagmites are illuminated along a 2,475-foot concrete walkway inside the labyrinthine caves known as Las Grutas de Rancho Nuevo (or Las Grutas de San Cristóbal), which were discovered in 1960. Kids from the area are usually available to guide you for a small fee. You can rent horses ($5 per half hour) for a ride around the surrounding pine forest, and there's a small restaurant and picnic area. Many tour operators offer trips here, and that's the option we strongly recommend. The caves are also a quick taxi ride from town.

Todos Santos is an oasis, meaning fresh water naturally runs through the desert into the ocean. Greenery blooms alongside cracking stretches of hardened sand, with palm trees and cacti living as neighbors. Within the heart of the oasis sits Playa Las Palmas, one of the only swimmable beaches in Todos Santos. You need to walk through a corridor of lush plant life (and potentially an ankle-deep stream) to reach the ocean, which feels so surprisingly out of place, you'd think it was planted by a gardener. It's a quiet, beautiful place to spend some time, although beware of horse droppings and sand fleas. There are no amenities, so bring your own umbrellas and snacks. Amenities: none. Best for: swimming.

Feel the ordinary world fade away with a trip to the decidedly off-the-beaten-path Las Pozas, the extraordinary sculpture garden of the late, eccentric English millionaire Edward James (1907–84). A friend to artists Dalí and Picasso and rumored to be King Edward VII's illegitimate son, James spent 20 years building 36 Surrealist concrete structures deep in the waterfall-filled Xilitla jungle. These astonishing structures are half-finished fantasy castles, gradually falling to ruin as the rain forest slithers in to claim them. The castles don't have walls, just vine-wrapped pillars, secret passageways, and operatic staircases leading nowhere.

It's a six- to seven-hour thrilling but exhausting mountainous drive to Xilitla, with hairpin turns and spectacular desert, forest, and jungle vistas. On the way to Xilitla it's well worth taking the time to stop at the five Sierra Gorda missions established by Padre Junípero Serra in the 18th century. They're a mixture of baroque styles and the local imagination of the Indians who worked on them, with angels, saints, and flora and fauna in great profusion.

Plan on staying at least two nights, as you'll want time to soak up the jungle magic.

If you choose not to drive, you can take a bus to Ciudad Valles (a 1½-hour drive from Xilitla) or fly to Tampico (a 3½-hour drive from Xilitla), and arrange ahead for the staff of Posada El Castillo to pick you up.

Learn how to cook authentic Mexican cuisine from the trained chefs at Casa Caribe's culinary school. After participating in the hands-on making of seven to eight dishes, including guacamole and salsa, you can enjoy the meal you've just prepared. Classes are offered Monday through Saturday, from 10 to 3:30, by reservation only.

This art gallery has spent years mounting group and solo shows from a diverse range of artists, both local and international. 

Protected area Los Arcos is an offshore group of giant rocks rising some 65 feet above the water, making the area great for snorkeling and diving. Its waters are among the deepest in the area, getting to around 1,600 feet. For reasonable fees, local men along the road to Mismaloya Beach run diving, snorkeling, fishing, and boat trips here and as far north as Punta Mita and Las Marietas or the beach villages of Cabo Corrientes.

There was a time when Los Muertos Pier was a sad piece of concrete extending a few meters into the sea, but that changed in 2013 when it was replaced by a beautifully designed pier that underwent years of renovations. The new pier was an instant hit and has become one of the most recognizable landmarks in Puerto Vallarta. It's perfect for a romantic walk, for reading a book while listening to the sound of the waves, and for viewing at night when it lights up the buzzing Los Muertos Beach. Oh, and it also serves as a pier! You can get a boat from here to visit the amazing beaches south of Puerto Vallarta, such as Yelapa, Quimixto, and Las Animas.

An essential stop on any gallery stroll through Roma, MAIA occupies part of one of the more striking mansions on elegant Calle Colima, the Porfirian-era Casa Basalta, with exhibition spaces connected by a long, columned veranda. The gallery represents a mix of up-and-coming and more established contemporary talents, and the shows here make great use of the dramatic architecture. Casa Basalta also houses a handful of other businesses, including a few small restaurants, an ice cream shop, and a couple of clothing boutiques. 

The rock formations around the Majahuitas cove hide many sea caves inhabited by marine creatures in different colors, shapes, and sizes. Moorish idols with striking black, white, and yellow bands are the most common residents of the area, but you may also spot sea cucumbers, parrot fish, puffer fish, schools of surgeonfish, eels, and many other tropical fish.

A long, gorgeous waterfront makes Mazatlán a great city for walking, biking, or rollerblading. The malecón, a sidewalk atop the 10-km-long (6-mi-long) seawall, runs from the Zona Dorada south to Viejo Mazatlán. It bustles, especially in the evenings. The route is filled with a dozen quirky monuments, from a vat from the Pacífico Brewery to a bronzed pulmonía, Mazatlán's beloved open-air taxi. The centerpiece is the massive Monumento del Pescador (Fisherman's Monument), which seems to portray a man preparing to throw a net over a napping woman. The road turns into Paseo Claussen, which continues past several more statues, including the Monumento a la Continuidad de la Vida (Monument to the Continuity of Life), a large fountain on which a bronze nude couple stand atop a large conch shell and a school of leaping porpoises. A few steps more bring you to a seaside plaza where you can buy snacks and kitschy souvenirs. If the crowd gets big enough, which it usually does when tour buses arrive around 11 am, 3 pm, and sunset, young men will dive into the sea from a high white platform.

A broad sidewalk, more than 4 km (2½ miles) long, runs the length of Campeche's waterfront boulevard, from northeast of the Debliz hotel to the Justo Sierra Méndez monument at downtown's southwestern edge. With its landscaping, sculptures, rest areas, and fountains lighted up at night in neon colors, the promenade attracts walkers, joggers, and cyclists. (Note the separate paths for each.) On weekend nights, students turn the malecón into a party zone, and families with young children fill the parks on both sides of the promenade after 7 or 8 pm, staying out surprisingly late to enjoy the cooler evening temperatures.

This seaside promenade is La Paz's seawall, tourist zone, and social center all rolled into one. It runs for 5 km (3 miles) along Paseo Álvaro Obregón and has a broad palm-lined walkway, statues of whale sharks, dolphins, sharks, and other local denizens of the deep, as well as several park areas in the directly adjacent sand. You can swim here, but the beaches outside town are of significantly better quality. The center point is Malecón Plaza, which features a white gazebo and small concrete square where musicians sometimes appear on weekend evenings. Paceños are fond of strolling the malecón at sunset when the heat of the day finally begins to subside.

This stretch of beach north of the ferry dock, from Constituyentes to Calle 38, is known to locals as Mamita's, although it also encompasses the Coralina beach club and the Hilton and Mahekal hotels. Independent of the main beach's drop-off (and the sandbags that are sometimes visible there), it's a lovely straight stretch of flat sand and clear water, which you'll share with lots of other visitors. The trade-off is that WaveRunners, which are largely absent from the main beach, are very present here. It's a good spot for fun in the sun, not seclusion. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; toilets; water sports. Best for: partiers; swimming.

Accessible by way of Calle 28, this is Playa's hottest spot to catch some rays. You can rent an umbrella and two chairs (the smallest beachfront package) for MX$600; MX$3,500 will get you a plush, shady couch in the sand (and a refund of up to MX$3,000 if you purchase that much in drinks). Expect to pay around MX$165 for a cocktail and MX$60 for a beer. Guests can relax in the VIP area while a DJ spins trance and techno beside the freshwater pool. Facilities include three restaurants, four bars, two swimming pools, and a second-floor champagne bar. Amenities: food and drink; toilets; water sports. Best for: partiers.

Built in the early 20th century by one of the Yucatán's wealthiest plantation owners, Fernando Carvajal Estrada, this eclectic mansion is a reminder of the city's heyday, when Campeche was the peninsula's only port. Local legend insists that the art nouveau staircase with Carrara marble steps and iron balustrade, built and delivered in one piece from Italy, was too big and had to be shipped back and redone. These days the mansion is filled with government offices—you'll have to stretch your imagination a bit to picture how it once was.

One of the most active marinas in the entire world (many of its 380 docked boats go in and out every day), Cabo's marina is great to stroll along, people-watch, and take in the glittering views. Lined with dining and shopping spots, you can easily spend hours here, and likely will. Expect a few tourist traps—as well as pesky solicitations from vendors—but the inflated pricing may be worth the convenience and scenery.

Pirates are said to have anchored their ships in this lagoon while waiting to ambush hapless vessels crossing the Spanish Main. Today it houses a local marina and provides a safe harbor for boats during hurricane season.

Experience the life and times of the Yucatán’s stingless Melipona bees during an informative one-hour bilingual tour of this site near the center of the island. (The Melipona cannot sting, but it does bite when threatened.) The bees, which have been cultured since ancient Maya times, are known for producing a tangy, slightly acidic honey.

Mayapán, which has an architectural style reminiscent of Uxmal, flourished during the Post-Classic period, making it one of the peninsula's last major Maya city-states. Though it was destroyed in 1450, presumably by war, the city is thought to have once been as big as Chichén Itzá, with a population of 12,000 or more at its peak. Of the site's more than 4,000 mounds, only a half-dozen have been excavated, including the palaces of Maya royalty and the temple of the benign god Kukulcán, where stucco sculptures and murals in vivid reds and oranges have been uncovered.

The site is 42 km (26 miles) northeast of Ticul and 43 km (27 miles) south of Mérida. Be sure you head toward the Mayapán ruins (just south of Telchaquillo) and not the town of Mayapán, since they are far apart.

If you forgot your beach reading, the nonprofit Mazatlán Membership Library will lend you English-language books one at a time for a $15 annual membership fee ($30 for unlimited books). There are also used books for sale.

Built in 1934 as a cultural complex and prototype for modern marketplaces around Mexico, the Mercado Abelardo L. Rodriguez is largely an ordinary neighborhood mercado today, with butchers, vegetable vendors, and juice stalls. The market's real claim to fame is its murals, painted by disciples of the greats in the arched entrances.

Tequis has a well-deserved reputation for high-quality craftwork, from wicker baskets to opals; head to the Mercado de Artesanías for woven goods, wood, ceramics, and jewelry.

More than 100 craft vendors sell their wares in this bustling open-air market decorated with Talavera tiles that's been a fixture of the city center since 1961. It's a fun place to shop for tourist souvenirs, such as toy guitars and colorful sombreros, but you'll also find a good selection of higher-quality jewelry, tapestries, metalwork, and ceramics. 

If you have a sweet tooth, don't miss Morelia's candy market. All sorts of local sweets are for sale, such as ate (a candied fruit) and cajeta (heavenly caramel sauce made from goat's milk). Wooden knickknacks, cheap jewelry, and handcrafted acoustic guitars are among the nondigestible crafts.