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MORELIA MEXICO HOLIDAY

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Morelia and cathedral printed on T-shirt
Morelia and cathedral printed on T-shirt
Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll

Morelia is a beautiful Mexican colonial city, located in Michoacan State, a four-hour drive (315 kilometers) west of Mexico City. Flights to Morelia, from Mexico City, are 45 minutes long.

Morelia hotel

Green ivy-entwined stone vases overflowed with pink bougainvillea at Villa Montana, our hotel in Morelia. Jacaranda blossoms fell like purple confetti on stone pathways that wove between raspberry-red villas with tiled roofs. Locally made statues and ceramics adorned wall niches.

A panoramic view of Morelia spreads out below Villa Montana. When the sun sets, like a glowing tortilla in the west, golden rays illuminate the city's colonial buildings.

UNESCO World Heritage

Morelia became a UNESCO world heritage site in 1991. Rising above the historic center are the two Baroque towers of La Catedral (Morelia Cathedral). It houses an impressive pipe organ with 4,600 flutes.

Arches and colonnades decorate the nearby State Government Palace. In the gilded and cherub-filled 18th-century Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadeloupe, we watched a bride and groom exchange vows below an ornate dome.

Dome in Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadeloupe
Dome in Sanctuary of Our Lady of Guadeloupe
Photo © Barb & Ron Kroll

Afterward, we visited the Morelia Candy and Handicrafts Market, which displays a mind-boggling assortment of sweets. Dinner was at San Miguelito restaurant, where St. Anthony provides matchmaking services for singles.

Morelia weather

Because Morelia, Mexico, is located at an altitude of 1,921 meters (6,302 feet), night temperatures are very cool even though daytime temperatures are warm. Rainfall is heaviest in the summer months.


TRAVEL INFORMATION

Mexico Tourism Board: www.visitmexico.com

More things to see & do in Mexico's colonial cities:

Queretaro Mexico Travel Guide

Patzcuaro Mexico Vacation

Guanajuato Vacation

San Miguel de Allende Mexico Tour

Mexican Food Cookbook