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Morelia

The state capital of Michoacán and its most beautiful and dynamic city, Morelia is an increasingly popular destination and rightly so: the colonial heart of the city, with its gorgeous cathedral at its center, is so well preserved that it was declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 1991.

Elegant 16th- and 17th-century stone buildings with their baroque facades and graceful archways line the downtown streets and house museums, hotels, restaurants, chocolaterías (chocolate shops), sidewalk cafes, a popular university and cheap-and-inviting taquerías (taco stalls). There are free public concerts, frequent art installations and relatively few foreign visitors. Those who do make it here often extend their stay and enrol in classes to learn how to cook or speak Spanish. Word will almost certainly get out, but for the moment unspoiled Morelia is like a Oaxaca waiting to happen.

Explore Morelia

Morelia Cathedral
Morelia’s cathedral, considered by many to be the country's most beautiful, dominates the city center, where it flanks rather than faces the central plaza…
P
Palacio de Gobierno
This 18th-century palace, originally a seminary and now housing Michoacán state government offices, has a simple baroque facade. Inside, its soaring…
C
Centro Cultural Clavijero
From 1660 to 1767, the Palacio Clavijero, with its magnificent minimalist main patio, imposing colonnades and pink stonework, was home to the Jesuit…
M
Museo Regional Michoacano
Housed in a dozen rooms of a renovated late-18th-century baroque palace, this museum contains an impressive array of pre-Hispanic artifacts, including a…
S
Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe
A standard baroque structure on the outside dating from 1708 to 1716, this hushed sanctuary to Mexico's patron is a different story within. Get ready for…
C
Colegio de San Nicolás de Hidalgo
This building is now part of the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, which produced such scholars as Morelos, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and…
M
Museo Casa de Morelos
This museum, arguably Morelia's best on the subject of José María Morelos y Pavón, resides in the former house of the independence hero, who bought the…
M
Museo de Arte Colonial
This ambitious museum contains five rooms chock-a-block with religious paintings and sculptures, including more than 100 depictions of the crucified…
M
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Alfredo Zalce
Modern-art fans might find something interesting at this art museum in Morelia's city park named for the Michoacano artist and muralist Alfredo Zalce …

Morelia Cathedral
Morelia’s cathedral, considered by many to be the country's most beautiful, dominates the city center, where it flanks rather than faces the central plaza…
P
Palacio de Gobierno
This 18th-century palace, originally a seminary and now housing Michoacán state government offices, has a simple baroque facade. Inside, its soaring…
C
Centro Cultural Clavijero
From 1660 to 1767, the Palacio Clavijero, with its magnificent minimalist main patio, imposing colonnades and pink stonework, was home to the Jesuit…
M
Museo Regional Michoacano
Housed in a dozen rooms of a renovated late-18th-century baroque palace, this museum contains an impressive array of pre-Hispanic artifacts, including a…
S
Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe
A standard baroque structure on the outside dating from 1708 to 1716, this hushed sanctuary to Mexico's patron is a different story within. Get ready for…
C
Colegio de San Nicolás de Hidalgo
This building is now part of the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, which produced such scholars as Morelos, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and…
M
Museo Casa de Morelos
This museum, arguably Morelia's best on the subject of José María Morelos y Pavón, resides in the former house of the independence hero, who bought the…
M
Museo de Arte Colonial
This ambitious museum contains five rooms chock-a-block with religious paintings and sculptures, including more than 100 depictions of the crucified…
M
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Alfredo Zalce
Modern-art fans might find something interesting at this art museum in Morelia's city park named for the Michoacano artist and muralist Alfredo Zalce …

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Morelia.

See
Morelia Cathedral
Morelia’s cathedral, considered by many to be the country's most beautiful, dominates the city center, where it flanks rather than faces the central plaza…
See
Palacio de Gobierno
This 18th-century palace, originally a seminary and now housing Michoacán state government offices, has a simple baroque facade. Inside, its soaring…
See
Centro Cultural Clavijero
From 1660 to 1767, the Palacio Clavijero, with its magnificent minimalist main patio, imposing colonnades and pink stonework, was home to the Jesuit…
See
Museo Regional Michoacano
Housed in a dozen rooms of a renovated late-18th-century baroque palace, this museum contains an impressive array of pre-Hispanic artifacts, including a…
See
Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe
A standard baroque structure on the outside dating from 1708 to 1716, this hushed sanctuary to Mexico's patron is a different story within. Get ready for…
See
Colegio de San Nicolás de Hidalgo
This building is now part of the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, which produced such scholars as Morelos, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and…
See
Museo Casa de Morelos
This museum, arguably Morelia's best on the subject of José María Morelos y Pavón, resides in the former house of the independence hero, who bought the…
See
Museo de Arte Colonial
This ambitious museum contains five rooms chock-a-block with religious paintings and sculptures, including more than 100 depictions of the crucified…
See
Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Alfredo Zalce
Modern-art fans might find something interesting at this art museum in Morelia's city park named for the Michoacano artist and muralist Alfredo Zalce …

Guidebooks

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