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Basílica de Zapopan
Built in 1730, the Basílica de Zapopan is home sweet home to Nuestra Señora de Zapopan, a tiny statue of the Virgin visited by pilgrims from near and far. The faithful crawl up the basilica's aisle on their knees to pray for favors at her altar. Throughout the year the statue makes a tour of other churches in Jalisco, eventually reaching Guadalajara.
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Casa-Museo José Clemente Orozco
During the 1940s, the great tapatío painter and muralist, José Clemente Orozco (1883−1949), lived and worked in this house. There's only one of Orozco's murals on display, but at the time of writing an adjacent Orozco museum was scheduled to open some time in 2008.
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Cathedral
Guadalajara's twin-towered cathedral is the city's main symbol and most conspicuous landmark. Begun in 1558 and consecrated in 1618, it's almost as old as the city. Up close you can see that the cathedral is a stylistic hodgepodge. The exterior decorations, some of which were completed long after the consecration, are Churrigueresque, baroque and neoclassical, among other styles.
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Estadio Jalisco
The Estadio Jalisco, the main football venue (seating around 60,000), hosted World Cup matches in 1970 and 1986. Contact the stadium or tourist office for schedule information. Big games will cost you.
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Galería Jorge Martínez
The Galería Jorge Martínez is an interesting modern and conceptual art gallery in the colonial center, adjacent to and benefitting Guadalajara's top art school - Artes Plásticas, operated by the Universidad de Guadalajara.
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Instituto Cultural de Cabañas
Standing proudly at the east end of the brilliant Plaza Tapatía is another of Guadalajara's architectural gems. Inside its Unesco-certified, neoclassical bones are a school, cultural institute and museum. Founded by Bishop Don Juan Cruz Ruiz de Cabañas and designed by Spanish architect Manuel Tolsá, it was built between 1805 and 1810 as an orphanage and home for invalids and remained so for 150 years, housing 450 children at once.
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Museo de Arte de Zapopan
The Museo de Arte de Zapopan is one block east of Plaza de las Américas and is Guadalajara's best modern art complex. Permanent exhibitions of some of Mexico's finest including Manuel Álvarez Bravo, Juan Soriano and Luis Barragán are on display; and temporary exhibitions have included works by Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo and a whimsical showing of Anthony Browne prints that saw the top floor covered with turf, sticks, stones and sand.
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Museo de la Ciudad
This museum has some nice historical details, such as colonial armor, spears and locks, swords and mandolins that tell the history of Guadalajaran laymen.
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Museo de las Artes
Three blocks west of the Parque Revolución at Av Juárez 975 is the Paraninfo (Theater Hall), one of the main buildings of the Universidad de Guadalajara. Inside, the stage backdrop and dome feature large, powerful murals by Orozco. In the back of the same building is the Museo de las Artes , which houses temporary exhibitions that will scratch your modernist itch, once you've overdosed on antigua .
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Museo Nacional de la Cerámica
The Museo Nacional de la Cerámica houses an eclectic array of pots from all over Mexico.
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Museo Pantaleón Panduro
Miniature figurines, as well as enormous, lightly fired urns and other ceramic crafts from around Mexico are on display at the Museo Pantaleón Panduro .
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Museo Regional de Guadalajara
This must-see museum has an eclectic collection covering the history and prehistory of western Mexico. Displays in the ground-floor natural history section include the skeleton of a woolly mammoth. The archaeological section has some well-preserved figurines, along with many fine artifacts of ceramic, silver, gold and other materials.
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Museo Regional de la Cerámica
The Museo Regional de la Cerámica is set in a great old adobe building with stone arches and mature trees in the courtyard. It has a nice collection that exhibits the varied styles and clays used in Jalisco and Michoacán. Explanations are in English and Spanish.
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Museo Regional de Tonalá
The carved wood and ceramic masks at the Museo Regional de Tonalá are outstanding. Many are decorated with real animal teeth and horsehair.
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Palacio de Gobierno
The impressive palacio, which currently houses state government offices, was finished in 1774. Its style mixes simple neoclassical features with riotous Churrigueresque decorations.
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Palacio de Justicia
Across the street from the Palacio Legislativo, to the east is the Palacio de Justicia. It was built in 1588 and began life as Guadalajara's first nunnery. Duck inside to the interior stairwell and check out the 1965 mural by Guillermo Chávez depicting legendary Mexican lawmakers, including Benito Juárez.
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Palacio Legislativo
On the north side of the Plaza de la Liberación, next to the Museo Regional, is the Palacio Legislativo. Distinguished by thick stone columns in its interior courtyard, this is where the state congress meets.
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Palacio Municipal
On the north side of Plaza Guadalajara is the Palacio Municipal, which was built between 1949 and 1952 but looks ancient. Above its interior stairway is a dark mural by Gabriel Flores depicting the founding of Guadalajara.
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Parque Agua Azul
This large verdant park offers pleasant relief from the city hubbub. There are lots of benches on which to rest, so bring a good book or your sweetheart. The grassy and tree-filled areas feature an orchid house, butterfly house, aviary and children's playground. The orchids are at their best in October, November, April and May.
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Parque Revolución
West of the city center, where Av Juárez meets Av Federalismo, is shady Parque Revolución, which has become a haven for pierced skaters.
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Plaza de Armas
The Plaza de Armas, on the south side of the cathedral, is a sweet place to rest and absorb the surrounding history. Frequent free concerts take place on the attractive art nouveau bandstand.
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Plaza de la Liberación
East of the cathedral, the Plaza de la Liberación was a 1980s urban planner's dream project and two whole blocks of colonial buildings were eviscerated for his concrete slab. But it does gush with fountains and overflow with herds of students, solitary suits on mobiles and love-drunk couples kissing in the sun.
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Plaza de los Mariachis
Tucked behind the Templo Santa Eduviges near the intersection of Av Juarez and Calz Insurgentes, just south of Mercado San Juan de Dios, is the birthplace of mariachi music. By day it's just a narrow walking street, flanked by charming old buildings and dotted with a few plastic tables and chairs and the odd uniformed mariachi man chatting on a cell phone. At night it can get lively, when patrons swill beer and listen to bands play requests for about around $100 per song.
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Plaza Guadalajara
Directly west of the cathedral, Plaza Guadalajara is shaded by dozens of laurel trees, has great cathedral views, a few fine cafés and fun people watching.
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Plaza Tapatía
The fabulously wide pedestrian Plaza Tapatía sprawls for more than 500m east from Teatro Degollado. Stroll the plaza on Sundays and you will flow in a sea of locals who shop at low-end crafts markets, snack (from both street vendors and cafés), watch street performers and rest on the short walls of gurgling fountains. The plaza dead-ends beautifully at the Instituto Cultural de Cabañas.
