Leaving SMA and returning to the shores of the Pacific

If you go (or are thinking about going) to San Miguel de Allende…

Above: entryway to our hotel in SMA.

We’re on our way back to good old Manzanillo (ZLO) for one more week before we head north. San Miguel de Allende (SMA) is served by two airports, each about a 1.5-2 hour drive away. We flew in and out of Léon (BJX), a modern clean airport near the city of Guanajuato, another interesting city worth a visit, featuring the home and art of Diego Rivera, a major university, and much more.

Léon has international connections to Houston, and other US cities, as well as frequent AeroMéxico flights to MEX (Mexico City (CDMX). We connected through MEX for our flight back to Manzanillo (ZLO). The other airport is Querétaro.

We bought one way tickets on AeroMexico for only 10,000 Skymiles (Delta) each way from ZLO to BJX plus $79, and on the return trip scored first class seats. Aeromexico flies newer Boeing 737-800’s on many of its routes. Very nice planes and great service. On the MEX-ZLO flight we got to ride in a brand new Boeing 737-8 MAX. Yes that’s the one that had all the trouble. If you can read this the flight must have worked out ok. Smooth and quieter than the 737-800’s. I like it!

Above: view of our hotel from the rooftop in the morning. They cover the pool up at 9:00 pm and uncover it about 10 am to preserve the heat.

The hotel arranged our airport pickup and return (highly recommended). The price for four of us from the BJZ airport to our hotel in SMA was $3200 pesos ($160 US), the return trip with only 2 of us was $2000 pesos for the 1 1/2 hour ride. I wouldn’t skimp here. Let your hotel book the airport pickup.

Once in the air today it was only a 45 minute hop from Léon to MEX. We had plenty of time to enjoy a leisurely lunch at our favorite restaurant at the Mexico City airport, Loma Linda’s.

Toledo Ohio friends may remember the old Loma Linda’s on Airport Highway. It may still be there. It was famous for its margaritas. The only downside was the Ohio State Highway Patrol post, only a mile down the road. In my early lawyering days I defended a few customers who were picked up on the way home for DWI (Driving While Intoxicated, as it used to be called). It was easy pickings for the cops back then.

The Loma Linda’s at MEX is one of three in CDMX. The original is downtown. It’s a far cry from the Toledo version. I’d really like to go to the original sometime. They just celebrated their 100 year anniversary. The MEX restaurant features the same real Mexican fare as the downtown place. It’s not your typical airport fare. Highly recommended. It’s right in Terminal 2, and near the gate for flights to ZLO.

Speaking of food, this is where SMA really shines. It’s a foodie’s heaven. Every meal was special. El Manantial (shown above, founded in 1920) serves authentic Mexican in an authentic setting. You’ll be friends with everyone after a few drinks. It’s a real neighborhood place.

The BW loved the shrimp tacos and ordered them every time. My favorite was the Especial de atun tostadas (Tuna tostadas). At 105 pesos you can afford to order two if you’re hungry. El Manatial is just up the street and around the corner from our hotel.

But you must check out the downtown dining scene, with restaurants like Quince Rooftop, above, just off Jardin Allende, featuring live music, fantastic food, and tightrope walkers. Other great places I can personally recommend include The Restaurant and Sollano 18 (pictured in my first post, link below), There are so many more.

“Special” is probably an understatement for the quality of the dining scene in SMA. Dining is one of the main attractions, drawing visitors from all over the globe (although the draw of the art scene is important as well). Plan on paying $100 - $150 US per couple for an amazing dinner including drinks and wine, but I’m sure you can spend more if you try~!

Last night we dined at Firenze, less than a 5 minute walk from our hotel. It’s a small place, not like many of the more famous restaurants. And it’s not on the roof, though many are. It only has 6 tables, and is at street level.

If you go to Firenze, don’t bother with the menu. Just ask the waiter / maitre’d what he recommends. Even though SMA is in the mountains, many restaurants offer delicious seafood, and that’s what we had last night. Tim and I enjoyed the best mussels and pasta dish ever. We couldn’t eat it all. Oh my. And the ladies feasted on sea bass. I tasted it. Amazing! Reservations necessary, as you can imagine.

They don’t have a bar, and the wine list is short, but the four of us really enjoyed the French Chardonnay. It would have cost $80+ anywhere in the US but it was only $800 pesos ($40 US). The bill for four of us came to $2300 pesos ($115 US), plus tip, and that included the wine!

The lunch options are just as varied, and include Los Milagros, shown above. There are too many to list. You may want to share a plate of tacos with your partner, especially for lunch. We enjoyed lunch at several other places, all good.

Side note: I like to pay cash in Mexico unless I’m at a big corporate-type place. First, it saves the merchant 3%. And I’m guessing many work off the books. Many US banks will reimburse you the ATM fees. Just be sure to always reject the conversion and don’t buy the insurance they try to sell you up front on every transaction. It’s usually a $115 peso service fee, but our bank (PNC) always covers it.

My old boss and travel mentor, Jack Gallon, used to say that every trip has three parts: Preparation, the Experience itself, and Remembrance. On the preparation front, a good guide book is always fun. We relied on San Miguel de Allende with Guanajuato and Querétaro, by Julie Meade, published by Moon, available from Amazon.

But when it came to finding our hotel, shown above and in the opening photos, the BW gets the credit. She used Mr. Google and came up big with Hacienda de las Flores. It features a great location, only a ten minute walk from the city center, a cooked breakfast served daily, and nice rooms surrounding a pool and garden with seating area. I asked about the age of the place, it must be at least 200 years old, but couldn’t find anyone who really knew the details. It’s probably been renovated a few times, but our room had an authentic feel with Spanish Colonial furnishings.

The back windows of our room looked out on the old bull ring, shown above. The Hotel was quiet, too, and the price was right. (No bull fights!) We paid $850 US for six nights, which, as I mentioned, included a nice breakfast served on linen in a beautiful old dining room.

Don’t go through Bookings.com, but email them direct for the best price and availability. Many of the residents have been coming here for years, some stay for months at a time.

You can find lots of places nicer, I’m sure, and pay lots more as well.

I dropped in on one that looked promising. Wonderful courtyard, beautiful art and furnishings, and a nice looking restaurant. Here’s the posted price list:

Divide by 20 to get the price in US dollars.

Of course this isn’t meant to be a comprehensive list of hotels or restaurants, but rather a sampling of the many options here.

The Jacaranda trees have started to bloom in the higher elevations now, with clouds of purple welcoming Spring. I could see them as we descended into MEX. March is a lovely time to visit sunny Mexico.

We’re on final approach now to ZLO. It’s a quick flight. I’m on the wrong side of the plane to get a good picture of the volcano, but here’s one from the other side.

Time to enjoy a few more days of Sun and Fun on the shores of the Pacific before heading back North. The days are getting longer! The maple trees should be budding out!

Thanks to all who liked and commented on yesterday’s post. I awoke in the middle of the night thinking maybe I wouldn’t post it, but decided, “what the heck, let it ride.” Your support is so incredibly empowering. Thank you.

As you can tell, I’m back to daily writing. We’ll see how long this run lasts!

Thanks so much for traveling along!

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