San Miguel de Allende

Set at the convergence of four arroyos—El Atascadero, Las Cachinches, La Cañadita and El Obraje—the town’s water is collected in the nearby Ignacio Allende Dam. The UNESCO designation, granted in 2008, includes a 43‑hectare core zone of the historic centre, where streets are lined with stone buildings from the 17th and 18th centuries, and the Sanctuary of Jesús Nazareno de Atotonilco, located 14 km to the north, with its own .75‑hectare core and a 4.5‑hectare buffer.

The early‑20th‑century arrival of foreign artists sparked the creation of the Instituto Allende and the Escuela de Bellas Artes, institutions that still host art students and Spanish‑language schools. Notable painters such as David Alfaro Siqueiros taught there, reinforcing the town’s reputation as an artistic hub. Tourism drives the local economy; in 2002, 250 000 visitors spent roughly US$8.4 million, and the town now hosts 149 hotels, nine of them five‑star, accounting for over 9 % of Guanajuato’s hotel capacity. Despite lacking an airport or casino and being 640 km from the nearest beach, magazines such as Travel and Leisure and Condé Nast Traveler have ranked it among the preferred places to live and visit.

The UNESCO‑listed historic core, a 43‑hectare enclave of preserved colonial streets, continues to attract artists, retirees and visitors alike, making San Miguel de Allende a rare blend of heritage architecture and vibrant expatriate life.