Recommend May 2011 - (Page 43)

& Guanajuato ding in its beautifully landscaped gardens. Each room and suite is as charming as the rest of the hotel, with lots of colonial touches, fine artwork and private terraces; most have their own fireplace for cool evenings. The starting rate at Rosewood San Miguel de Allende is $450. Yet another charmer in San Miguel—La Puertecita Boutique Hotel, a jewel of a place on Santo Domingo Street where guests are greeted by sculpted angels, dreamy gardens and trickling fountains. This is an idyllic place for a small wedding, with rates starting at roughly $210 per night. It’s also a member of Tesoros de Mexico, a collection of more than 80 properties located in the states of Guanajuato (home to San Miguel de Allende), Michoacan, Morelos, Puebla and Chiapas. Speaking of Guanajuato, you can’t really visit the state and not spend a few days in the city that shares its name. Couples need to smooch in its Callejon del Beso (Alleyway of the Kiss) for seven years of good luck, after all. The hillside inn Casa Estrella de la Valenciana enjoys a great location with wonderful views of the city and mountains from every room—a lovely and casual honeymoon retreat. Inside, couples will find a friendly ambiance of colorful ceramics, hand-painted tiles, hand-woven bedspreads and carved furniture. Rates at Casa Estrella start at $185 per night, which includes a full breakfast. paintings, furnishings and other creative items to admire and take home. This art and design center is housed in a former textile factory and offers an art walk every first Friday of each month. Clients spending more than a few days in San Miguel can sign up for different art classes with a growing number of artists. Guanajuato is similar in many ways, but perhaps also a bit more traditional, with crooked streets leading to plazas filled with people and many baroque and neoclassical structures built during its heyday as a major silver mining center. Visitors can arrange tours of nearby mines, in fact, or stay close to the heart of the city and explore the childhood home of Diego Rivera, now a museum; the Museum of the Town of Guanajuato, housed in a 17th century mansion once owned by a marquis; the beautiful Teatro Juarez; and the Monumento al Pipila, which honors a hero of the Mexican independence. Even the University of Guanajuato is a masterpiece and also worth a visit. Those who know the city well swear that its Cervantino International Festival is one of those events that should be experienced during a lifetime, with many artistic performances taking place over the course of three weeks; this year, it takes place Oct. 12-30. Sightseeing: The almost outlandishly pretty San Miguel de Weather: The dry climate here means lots of cool days and Allende is one of Mexico’s prettiest spots by far, with many small parks and centuries-old landmarks such as its famous pink-stone parish, which towers above all else. Across from the parish is El Jardin, the central plaza, with balloon vendors always at the ready. Most architectural gems are within walking distance of one another, but visitors wanting a peek into some area homes, can sign up for a House & Garden tour at the local library. Those who become enamored of San Miguel and choose to spend more time here can sign up for Spanish classes at the Instituto de Habla Hispana or for painting, silverwork and other artistic pursuits at the beautiful Instituto Allende. Outdoorsy types will want to hike along the Laja River. Companies like HQM can assist in all matters of events and tours, and there are also wedding planners such as Penzi Weddings or San Miguel Weddings that can put together extraordinary affairs down to the most minute of details—even thank-you notes. Fabrica La Aurora is filled with art galleries, studios and jewelry shops, with artists and artisans there to talk about the local arts scene. Visitors will find a huge array of sculptures, evenings—even the hot days of April and May are actually mild (around 80°). The rainy season is from June through mid-October. l Contact Information Casa Estrella de la Valenciana: (866) 983-8844; mexicaninns.com Hotel Matilda: (855) 628-4532; hotelmatilda.com HQM: hqm.com.mx La Puertecita: tesorosdemexico.com.mx Penzi Weddings: smapenzi.com Rosewood San Miguel: (888) ROSEWOOD; rosewoodsanmiguel.com / rosewoodweddings.com San Miguel Weddings: sanmiguelweddings.com More Destination Wedding Options Casa de Sierra Nevada: casadesierranevada.com Dos Casas: doscasas.com.mx Hacienda Puerto de Nieto: haciendapuertodenieto.com Hacienda Santuario Centro: haciendaelsantuario.com May 2011 M17 http://www.mexicaninns.com http://www.hotelmatilda.com http://hqm.com.mx http://tesorosdemexico.com.mx http://www.smapenzi.com http://www.rosewoodsanmiguel.com http://www.rosewoodweddings.com http://www.sanmiguelweddings.com http://www.casadesierranevada.com http://doscasas.com.mx http://www.haciendapuertodenieto.com http://www.haciendaelsantuario.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend May 2011

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Hotel Desk: Autograph Collection by Marriott
Tour Talk: Avanti Destinations
10 Amazing Golf Resorts
Dominican Republic Greens
Tee off, Barbados-Style
Teeing Up in Bermuda
Mexico Destination Weddings & Honeymoon Planner
A Quartet of Courses
Portugal & Spain Serve Up a Banquet of Great Golf
Touring the U.K. With Rail Europe
Uniworld's New "Super Ship" Antoinette
Savoring Exotic Asia
Coming Back to Egypt

Recommend May 2011