Guadalajara

Guadalajara

The city of Tapatios. Tequila. Mariachi

📅 When I stayed: Feb - March 2025

⏳ Duration: 2 weeks

🛜 WiFi: eSIM Available, many US carrier will provide data in mexico

🛂 Visa: 180 day tourist visa for U.S Passport Holders

🌎 Best for: Big city Amenities, food, history, cool day trips

Intro – Who This City Is For

Guadalajara feels like a real livable city. It is not on the typical tourist path, and I liked that. It’s not a resort town or built around tourists like Cabo, Cancun and Puerto Vallarta. There is no beach, but it has many neighborhoods and layers to it. It is busy, but not as in your face as CDMX. It is proudly cultural. Many things people think of when they think of Mexico originate from here. Mariachi, check. Tequila, Check. It’s also the silicon valley of Mexico, or at least my tour guide told me that.

If you want a place that offers various types of neighborhoods, routines, solid food options and a place where Spanish is needed, this is a great choice.

Who will love it

  • Intermediate Spanish learners. You are forced to use it
  • People who like walkable and diverse neighborhood options.
  • Remote workers who need a city rhythm and amenities with minimal distractions

Who should avoid it

  • People that need ocean access or a resort. Though Puerto Vallarta is a 40min flight away.
  • It gets quite hot and dry during the summers. It is not very green.

One personal anecdote As a whole, the city feels like a really big small town. The neighborhoods themselves are spread out and all have their own appeal and differences. I really enjoyed the possible day trips that you can do. Lake Chapala, Ajijic and Teqila to name a few.

canopy GDL

Best Areas to Stay

Colonia Americana

Who it’s for: First time visitors, remote workers, People who want to be at the center.

Pros: Walkable, lots of Cafes, bars, restaurants. Everything you need within walking distance.

Cons:. A bit pricier, louder and prices are creeping up

Tlaquepaque

Who it’s for: Artsy district vibe. People who like charming places and artsy/bohemian feel Pros:

  • Colorful streets, colonial like
  • Galleries and shops
  • Mariachi bands in the evenings by the square

Cons:

  • 30 minutes from downtown Americana
  • Nightlife ends a little early
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Tlaquepaque

Zapopan

Who it’s for: Modern, commercial and polished.

Pros:

  • New new new apartment buildings, restaurants, shopping malls etc
  • Clean and organized
  • Quieter at night

Cons:

  • Feels more corporate than cultural in parts. OUTSIDE of the basillica in my video.
  • Less walkable than the above 2.
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Zapopan

Where I Stayed

I had the opportunity to pet sit during my time for a family, via Trusted House Sitters. This is a sharing economy website where you pet sit and watch their pets, give updates and care for their home in exchange for accommodation. I have been doing this for 10+ years all around the world.

Cat
  • Type of accommodation: 1-bd apartment outskirts of town.
  • Monthly cost: Free via trustedhouse sitters.
  • WiFi speed: Fast and reliable.
  • Noise level: 3/5 - Mexico is loud. Try to stay above 5 floors if noise is an issue.
  • Would I stay again? Yes, in Americana.

Best Mid-Range

This condo is really nice. Close to a metro stop, grocery mart. Has a gym and pool onsite. Hermoso departamento con acceso inmediato al tren! It is from a local owner.

Main Areas & Streets

GDL Map

Americana in the center (by slice NY life pizza) is where the majority of the Nightlife is. The Red, Pink and Green lines are the metro.

Things to Do

🍽 Food & Drink

Carne en su jugo

Carne en su jugo

🏛 Culture

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Mercado San Juan de Dios

I use Baselang for unlimited one-on-one Spanish lessons online. If you want to improve quickly before or during your stay, you can get a discount and try it here BASELANG

🚗 Day Trips

Working Remotely

  • Average WiFi speeds: 100Mbps+
  • SIM / eSIM options: Telcel is most reliable
  • Is it productive or distracting? Productive if you treat it like a city. Distracting if you live on Chapultepec at night.
TLP

Transportation

✈️ From the Airport:

  • Uber is reliable and preferred. 20-35 minutes. $15-25 to Americana.

🚌 Public Transport:

  • Light rail exists and is very affordable. You will have to purchase a card. Fares are $0.50 USD.
  • Busses are available but very confusing. I took one and the “bus stop” was a cardboard square. No one knew the schedule, just that it would eventually come. It went the route I was expecting..mostly. This is normal though here and as my friends say “Welcome to Mexico”.
  • Uber is $3-8 around the city. I always took Uber after dark and the locals stressed uber over taxis.

🚶 Walkability:

  • The city itself is very large and spread out. If you stay in your core neighborhood it is very walkable. Pick your spot like Zapopan, Americana, Tlaquepaque.

⚠️ Things to Watch Out For:

  • Phone could be snatched if not paying attention, traffic is a lot and the air quality can be poor at times. I never felt unsafe and did not walk alone at night.

Nothing extreme but It’s a big city, don’t be careless.

If you’re staying long-term or traveling between countries, I personally use Genki for travel health insurance. Mexico is affordable for healthcare, but accidents happen.

EDM

Even found an EDM concert, Solomon

Cost of Living Estimates

  • Rent: $800-1200
  • Utilities: $40–80
  • Groceries: $150
  • Transport: $50
  • Insurance $73/month with Genki
  • Eating Out:
    • Tacos: $1-$2 USD
    • Sit-down: $5-11 USD
    • Beer: $2-4USD

Pros

  • Real city Amenities, mexican culture and history here
  • Strong food scene and social scene
  • Affordable “big” city
  • Cool day trips Ajicic, Tequilla and Puerto Vallarta is 40min by plane

Cons

  • No beach
  • Traffic and air quality can get to you

FAQ

Is Guadalajara safe?

In good neighborhoods, yes. Use common sense and don’t wander randomly at night. Always use Uber. The places that I stayed at had either a keyed gate or a guard. I would recommend finding accommodation that meets those standards.

GDL Sunset

Would I Come Back?

Yes, but for at least a month. This is a good place if you want to get a lot of work done, build a routine and stay for 1-6 months. There are not a ton of distractions outside of downtown. Fun day trips exist. The coast is a 40 minute flight away. There is a solid social scene based on pretty much any interest. From salsa dancing, language learning to hiking or going to EDM shows.

If you want a deeply varied city, with normal day to day life I would recommend it. If you need a vacation, struggle with big city traffic, noise heat I would skip it. If you want to see a BIG Mexican city I think CDMX has more options to sightsee if you only have 5-10 days.