Things To Do / Que Hacer
Day Trip: San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende is known for its beautiful Colonial and Spanish architecture built in the style of Mexican Baroque. The tallest building in the city, with a façade of pink limestone, is the Parroquia de San Miguel Archangel. This city is about an hour drive from Queretaro, is rich in Mexican culture, has great shops and places to eat, and is just all around a great place to visit when in Mexico.
Half Day Trip: El Cerrito
This pyramid dates back to around 700-900 AD and was used as a place of worship among Mesoamerican civilizations spanning an entire millennium and is an important historic site in the Toltec World! El Cerrito Entrance Fee: Free 🕒 El Cerrito Hours: 8:00 am – 2:50 pm. 🚕 Getting to Cerrito: It’s a 20-minute drive from Queretaro centro, approximately $80-peso Uber fare. ⌚ Time Spent: About 45-minutes, maybe longer if lingering at the museum.
Day Trip: Peña de Bernal
Great Day Trip to see one of the largest monolith's of it's kind (similar to Australia’s Ayers Rock and the Rock of Gibraltar). It only takes about an hour to reach the historic colonial town of Bernal and while you do need proper climbing gear to reach the peak, but you can easily trek 80% of it and see some amazing views without any gear. Plan for around a 2hr hike- easily can be a half day or full day trip. Peña de Bernal Entrance & Hours: Free. No regulated hours - plan for hiking in daylight 🚌 Queretaro to Bernal Bus: Flecha Azul ($57-pesos) and Flecha Amarilla (AKA Coordinado) ($46-pesos) have buses with regular departures from Terminal de Autobus Quaretaro (TAQ), terminal B. Departure times (as of July 2018) are on the :35 of every hour beginning at 6:35 am. 🚐 Bernal Tour from Queretaro: For a Peña de Bernal climbing tour, you can book online at: https://www.viator.com/tours/Queretaro/La-Pena-de-Bernal-Rock-Climbing-and-Abseiling-Adventure
Wine Tasting at Local Vinyard: Finca Sala Vive
The most popular of Queretaro’s wineries, Finca Sala Vivé opened back in the late 70’s by the Spanish producer, Freixenet. They produce ~2M bottles of wine annually - their specialty is sparkling wine! There is even a dedicated wine and cheese route (ruta de vino y queso) in which you can spend a really delicious day touring around the vineyards and fincas (farms) surrounding the city of Queretaro. The vineyard is relatively close to Bernal if you wanted to make a day of hiking and wine. 💵 Finca Sala Vive by Freixenet Tour Price: $110 pesos for 45-min visit, includes tasting & glass. 🕒 Hours: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm, tours hourly on weekdays (excluding 2:00) and every 30-min on weekends. 🚐 Finca Sala Vive by Freixenet Tour: Wine & Cheese Route tours depart daily from Queretaro at 9:00 am, returning at 6:30. Cost is $830 pesos per person for this all-day Queretaro tour. You can book here: 76000, C. 5 de Mayo, Santiago de Querétaro, Qro., Mexico (next to the dancing conchero statue).
Walking Around the City Center
A great way to spend the day is walking around the center of Queretaro, visiting its gardens and many monuments. Many of the streets and alleyways throughout the historic center are car-free, and pedestrian-friendly. Gardens: 1) Zenea Garden: lively & scenic and right in front of the famous San Francisco Church. 2) Plaza de Armas is another popular gathering spot. 3) Alameda Higalgo: a tree-filled Community Garden right outside the center and well worth a 5-minute walk to have a sense of nature from right within the city. There are 1,400 monuments in QTO - the most notable being these 4: El Danzante Conchero – Dancing Conchero statue showing an important traditional dance Fuente de Neptuno – Fountain of Neptune, Roman God of the Sea (1797) Fuente de los Perritos – The puppy fountain dedicated to the benefactor of Queretaro Monumento de La Corregidora – Large statue of female Mexican independence hero doña Josefa Ortiz, holding a flame
Cerro de las Campanas
Cerro de las Campanas (Hill of the Bells) is a beautiful National Park within walking distance of the center. It is full of history and well worth a visit. History: The park is on the hillside where Mexican Emperor Maximilian I surrendered and was later executed in in 1867, signifying the end of the French Intervention and the fall of the 2nd Mexican Empire. An Austrian chapel is built on this hillside honoring Maximilian I. Further above the chapel, is a huge statue of Benito Juarez, who maintained he was President during Maximilian’s reign and ultimately ordered Maximilian’s execution. There is also a museum further in the park explaining the history in addition to other notable events in Queretaro, spanning many centuries. 💵 Entrance Fee: $5 pesos 💵 Museum Entrance Fee: $15 pesos (buy the museum ticket at the park entrance, not museum) 🕒 El Cerrito Hours: 6:00 am – 6:00 pm. 🚶 Getting there: 20-30 min walk from Centro, or 5 min by car (~$40-peso Uber) ⌚ Time Spent: 1hr
Mercado "La Cruz"
Exploring Queretaro's vibrant open air market, Mercado La Cruz, is great way to get a feel for the local vibe, soak in the local atmosphere, and potentially grab a delicious taco lunch. Here, you'll find anything from produce, a new pair of shoes, a piñata, to the popular taco stands.
Mirador de los Arcos- Aqueduct
This Roman-style aqueduct was built in the early 1700's. It is nearly 2KM long and remains one of the few colonial aqueducts left in Mexico today. Looming 100 feet (30 meters) high, the 75 arches have been delivering water from the surrounding mountains into the city center for centuries. You can get up close to the aqueduct by taking a stroll down to Calzada de los Arcos, but the best panoramic views of the aqueduct are from the lookout point on the eastern edge of centro: Mirador de Los Arcos.
Top Museums
The top recommendations of the 20 museums in QTO (all museums closed on Mondays): 🏛️ Art Museum of Queretaro – Ornate building with impressive architecture that used to be a monastery- many paintings displayed within. WORTH THE VISIT! Cost: $30 pesos. Hours: 10-6. 🏛️ Museo de la Casa Zacatecana – Mansion displaying period furnishings showing what wealthy life was like in 19th-century QTO. The journey through this mansion reveals a tale of murder. Great mirador (viewpoint) too. Cost: $60 pesos. Hours: 9-6. 🏛️ Mucal Calendar Museum – Dedicated to TIME- exhibits ranging from ancient Aztec time-keeping devices to vintage calendars spanning the past few decades. Cost: $30 pesos. Hours: 10-6. 🏛️ Museum of the City – Displays edgy & humorous contemporary artwork throughout a baroque mansion. Cost: Free. Hours: 11-7. 🏛️ Queretaro Regional Museum – Another atmospheric monastery containing historical artifacts with significance to Queretaro’s past. Cost: $60 pesos. Hours: 9-6.
Top Churches
If you were to visit only one church in Queretaro, we suggest Templo de Santa Rosa de Viterbo. This 18th-century baroque church is perhaps the most visually interesting and elaborate of them all. It’s also where you can easily find the city’s colorful sign to snap a pic. Meanwhile, the interior of Templo de Santa Clara is almost dripping with gold from floor to ceiling, making for an interesting sight. The Templo y ex-convento de la Santa Cruz is another worthwhile visit. The grand convent offers a short 20-minute guided tour (in Spanish). Yet it’s the storied “tree of the cross,” and the cross-shaped thorns it grows, that further captures much fascination.