Pueblos Mágicos
Mexico's official register of storybook towns. The designation is uneven — some earn it, some coast on it. We say which ones are worth the drive and which are a tour-bus trap.
Northern Mexico
Álamos
Restored colonial silver town where snowbirds and birders winter
Worth itPuebloCreel
Rough-and-ready Rarámuri town and the main gateway into Copper Canyon
Worth itPuebloEl Fuerte
Quiet riverside colonial town and the western jump-off for El Chepe
Worth itPuebloParras de la Fuente
A wine oasis in the Coahuila desert, home to the Americas' oldest winery
Worth itCentral Mexico
Atlixco
Flower nurseries, volcano views, and a big Christmas glow
If nearbyPuebloCholula
A church on the world's largest pyramid, and beer after
Worth itPuebloHuasca de Ocampo
Mexico's first Pueblo Mágico, quiet base for canyons
If nearbyPuebloReal del Monte
Cornish miners left the pasties; the fog stayed
Worth itPuebloTepoztlán
Cliff-top pyramid, a famous market, weekend gridlock
Worth itPuebloValle de Bravo
Lakeside pine town, paragliders, and winter monarchs
Worth itYucatán Peninsula
Colonial Highlands
Bernal
A giant rock monolith over a tidy weekend Pueblo Magico
Worth itPuebloPatzcuaro
Purepecha lake town and the home of Day of the Dead
Worth itPuebloReal de Catorce
A silver ghost town at 2,750m through a one-lane tunnel
Must-seePuebloTequisquiapan
Cobblestone wine-and-cheese town for a Queretaro weekend
If nearby