Melissa Dewalt caught the travel bug a decade ago when she drove from her home state of Pennsylvania across the country to California to visit her then-boyfriend. She then road-tripped north to Seattle.
19.08.2024 - 21:23 / lonelyplanet.com
Aug 16, 2024 • 7 min read
I have known Guadalajara my whole life, traveling here to visit extended family since the year I was born.
As a little girl, it was a place of orange-flavored sodas and chili-covered lollipops, mariachi serenades for my 20-something tías (balcony swooning included) and hours spent making tortillas. The city’s historic center was a place to run and play, to cool off in the Cathedral or under a mural in Hospicio Cabañas, to fill up on chocolate-stuffed cuernos from our favorite bakery.
When I began visiting with my American friends, I started to see Guadalajara through different eyes and appreciate its depth and complexity. It’s a richly colonial city wrapped in a modern metropolis, complete with traffic jams, pickpockets and bustle. A place steeped in tradition yet standing for inclusion. A city where a night out could include world-class cuisine or bacon-wrapped hot dogs, a symphony concert or a raucous lucha libre match.
Guadalajara remains all of this, past and present (chili-covered lollipops included). Here are a few tips to help you make the most out of it.
Sure, you can see Guadalajara’s highlights in a couple of days – most are concentrated in the historic center – but a longer trip gives you time to check out the city’s colonial-to-hipster neighborhoods, wander through dazzling art museums and outdoor markets, take in some live music and maybe even find your favorite late-night taco stand. Check out the tourism office’s cartelera, a comprehensive calendar of events, before you head to town.
The city brims with visitors every October when Guadalajara hosts Fiestas de Octubre, a month-long celebration featuring spectacular live performances, pop-up amusement parks and parades. A longstanding annual pilgrimage to the Basílica de Zapopan draws millions more: devout Catholics who hit the streets in honor of the venerated icon La Zapopanita. Book your hotel early.
Guadalajara is known for its pleasant daytime temperatures, hovering in the 70s and 80s year-round. Evenings are another story, however. In winter, bring warm clothing and a jacket for the sometimes frigid air. In summer, a light sweater will do. Add an umbrella to your summer packing list, especially in July and August, when afternoon showers are a daily occurrence.
Sundays are for vibrant local culture in Guadalajara: plazas bustle with street vendors and performers, major streets close to cars to make room for walkers and bikers (free bikes are available at Parque Revolución), and the city’s largest open-air crafts market fills the streets of Tonalá. For a treat, take in an afternoon charreada or lucha libre match.
There’s no need to rent a car in Guadalajara – the traffic can be crushing, and walking is often the
Melissa Dewalt caught the travel bug a decade ago when she drove from her home state of Pennsylvania across the country to California to visit her then-boyfriend. She then road-tripped north to Seattle.
Clarksville, a historic district of Austin, Texas, has lately emerged as a stylish dining and shopping enclave. Among the area’s most compelling new businesses is La Embajada, a design shop housed in a 1923 Craftsman bungalow. Combining the hospitality and interiors expertise of its founder, Raul Cabra — who has designed tableware for some of Mexico City’s most celebrated restaurants, including Rosetta and Pujol — La Embajada presents a refined, regionally diverse selection of Mexico’s artisanal offerings. A series of small rooms display vintage and contemporary furniture, from stately midcentury armchairs and 1970s glass sconces to a minimalist agave fiber rug by the Oaxaca-based textile artist Trine Ellitsgaard. The house is also an actual residence. Cabra often stays in the bedroom up the creaky stairs, and he’s recently made it available for short-term stays (bookings include a daily basket of baked goods from Austin’s Swedish Hill). Guests can purchase the room’s handmade décor, such as a pair of sleek bedside lamps in milky white onyx, a 1960s La Malinche dresser and a bedspread from a Michoacan manufacturer that once supplied Herman Miller. Downstairs, glassware, candles and gifts fill a section modeled after a typical general store in a small Mexican town. But La Embajada’s heart is its inviting kitchen, where visiting chefs cook elaborate meals and staff prepare ice cream and coffee. In another twist, every bespoke detail — including a hammered copper sink, caramel-colored tiles and waxed pine cabinets — can be custom-ordered for one’s own home.
When Los Angeles–based designer Clare Vivier began decorating the 19th-century house she'd bought in her husband's hometown of Saint-Calais, in France's Loire Valley, she had a particular aesthetic in mind. “I love color and patterns but wanted something peaceful, so the intention was to create a dialogue between those two things,” she says. She wanted the house to have a blend of contemporary pieces, antiques, and textiles from heritage maisons to create a space that, much like her namesake handbag and fashion label, channeled both California fun and French sophistication. She also knew that she wanted her longtime friend Kate Berry, a designer and creative director, to help her make it happen.
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This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Scarlett Kiaras-Attari, a marketing executive and education content creator who moved to the UK for her studies. It has been edited for length and clarity.
Aug 23, 2024 • 7 min read
Between Sri Lanka’s eight UNESCO world heritage sites, its thriving wildlife, and pristine white sand beaches, the “Pearl of the Indian Ocean” has enough glimmer for everyone—and now, visiting the South Asia island nation, located off the coast of India, is about to get easier (and cheaper) for travelers from 35 countries.
I used to think that paying an annual fee for a credit card was a terrible idea and a waste of money.
Since 2015, Going (formerly Scott’s Cheap Flights) has been a go-to newsletter for savvy travelers seeking the best flight deals available. Whether it’s flash sales, competitive price drops, mistake fares with discounts of up to 90 percent, or coveted mileage-saver award seats, this newsletter has informed some 2.4 million members about values spotted by its software and verified by a team of flight analysts.
When Los Angeles–based designer Clare Vivier began decorating the 19th-century house she'd bought in her husband's hometown of Saint-Calais, in France's Loire Valley, she had a particular aesthetic in mind. “I love color and patterns but wanted something peaceful, so the intention was to create a dialogue between those two things,” she says. She wanted the house to have a blend of contemporary pieces, antiques, and textiles from heritage maisons to create a space that, much like her namesake handbag and fashion label, channeled both California fun and French sophistication. She also knew that she wanted her longtime friend Kate Berry, a designer and creative director, to help her make it happen.