The Frequent Visitor's Vista of Monterrey...
Written: Jul 30 '02 (Updated Oct 19 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Spectacular mountain setting, lots to see and do
Cons: Big city that can be crowded and smoggy
The Bottom Line: I love the vitality and energy of Monterrey, which has a surprising number of tourist sites despite its sometimes negative image in foreign media.
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| mrkstvns's Full Review: Monterrey, Nuevo Leon |
One of my earliest reviews at epinions was a brief overview of Monterrey -- one of my favorite cities in Mexico. Since then, I've written other reviews that delve into various sites, hotels, or aspects of city, and do you know what? My view of the city changes as I visit more often. Now that our new category leads have added some new categories, including one specifically for this fascinating industrial city, I can dust off the keyboard and tackle the topic with new perspectives and insight.
The Tourist's Monterrey...
The better I get to know Monterrey, the more surprised I am at Mexican travel guides that either ignore the city completely or recommend against a visit. Monterrey is actually a very enjoyable place to visit and it reminds me of how some of the smaller, traditionally industrial U.S. cities (like Cleveland or Pittsburgh) can pack some wonderful surprises to the tourist who gives them a chance. I have never been bored on a trip to Monterrey and I can easily find dozens of things to do, sights to see, places to eat and so much more.
I think Monterrey could be a great weekend getaway destination for a lot of people who would like to experience a little bit of Mexican culture but without the hassles of trying to deal with Mexico City (which is a great place, but can be intimidating) and without the longer travel times of more southern destinations.
From the tourist perspective, the city's top attractions are:
* Macroplaza: Stroll through the city's huge, wide-open, central park with fountains, monuments, benches, strolling vendors, and plenty of people to watch -- especially on Sunday afternoons.
* MARCO Art Museum: Monterrey's biggest museum is a spacious modern art museum -- but more about this place in the next section where I get into the local arts scene!
* Cathedral: Come pray in a beautiful traditional spanish architecture with plenty of churriguesque features and a fabulously opulent interior. A lovely house of worship, even for those who aren't believers...
* Museum of Mexican History: Stroll through collections of ancient Mayan and Aztec artifacts, explore the new world with Cortez, see the turmoil of the revolution, and see my detailed review of this fine museum at: http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-2780-20705F73-3A2C34A3-prod2
* Obispado: That the bishop managed to snag one of the best pieces of real estate in the city speaks volumes about the power of the church in 19th century Mexico. Check out the commanding view of the city and stroll through the lower level, which is a museum chronicling the history of Monterrey and the state of Nuevo Leon.
* Canon de Huasteca: Monterrey calls itself "the city of mountains" and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why. Take a drive up into the canyon and marvel at the sheer cliffs and the imposing majesty of this part of the Sierra Madres.
* Chipinque: If you want to unwind and get back to nature, head up to the mesa at the top of Chipinque. Picnic, hike, mountain bike, or spend the night at the rustic lodge...I did, and I loved it! See my review of Chipinque Lodge at: http://www.epinions.com/lodg-review-53E3-1FED8369-39EBCA25-prod3
* Cascada Cola de Caballo (Horsetail Falls): About 30 minutes from downtown is a waterfall that's a popular weekend daytrip for locals.
* Grutas Garcia: It's probably a good hour drive from downtown, but it's one of my favorite natural cavern tours. Maybe I just love a good cave, or maybe I like riding the funiculars (incline trams) up the side of the mountain...
Of course there's plenty more to do, and I haven't even mentioned that the city has two professional soccer teams (the Tigres and the Rayados), a bullfighting stadium, and a AAA-class baseball team (the Sultanes) that plays in the spring and summer months. Heck! I could write a whole review just about sports in the city. But then I'd have to write about arts, doing things with kids, shopping, dining, etc. Instead, I'll just include a few short summaries of those topics here...
Monterrey for the Arts Lover...
Mexico has an incredible range of artists and artistic traditions, and while I think the country's very best museums and galleries are unquestionably to be found in Mexico City, there is still plenty more art than can fill even the biggest capital gallery.
Monterrey is the third largest city in Mexico, and I'd probably rank it number 3 in terms of its artistic community as well. Sadly, the city lost one of its best arts museums (Museo de Monterrey) over a year ago when the wonderful galleries inside the old cerveceria were shuttered, but fortunately there are still plenty of places to see and buy good art. An artistically minded tourist should find plenty to see and enjoy in Monterrey.
Here's where I'd look...
* Museo de Arte Contemperaneo (MARCO) is beyond question the class act in Monterrey's art community and the city's number one museum. The large imposing red-brick structure on Zuazua (next door to the Cathedral) houses a permanent collection of modern latino art and features a range of internationally known modern artists. When special exhibits are featured, they can be exceptional. The museum has an excellent bookstore and a stylish restaurant.
* Museo Metropolitano is a low-slung yellow colonial style building on Zaragoza at Plaza Hidalgo. Over the past couple years they have provided some excellent small exhibitions of significant regional artists. The current exhibit features an artist who creates incredible displays using glass bottles (I love that enormous glass apple in the courtyard). Best of all for cheap-minded tourists like me, admission is free.
* Pinacoteca de Nuevo Leon (portrait gallery) is a smallish museum in the Parque Ninos Heroes. The portraits are very much oriented towards the spanish and mexican traditions, which makes it a fascinating glimpse of an artistic tradition of which very, very few Americans are aware.
* Museo del Vidrio was recommended to me as a place to see something of the roots of Monterrey's glass industry, but the small museum also displays a range of stunning modern glass art. It's small, extremely well laid out, and a fascinating look at one of Monterrey's traditional local industries.
* Museo Estatal de Artes Populares (State Museum of Folk Arts) is a bit hard to find, tucked away on a side street in the Barrio Antiguo, and it is also a bit small, providing just a tantalizing glimpse of Mexican folk art -- like the proverbial tip of the iceberg. On one recent visit, a Huichol family was demonstrating their intricately patterned traditional bead work.
Monterrey with Kids...
If your kids are like mine, they don't want to spend their whole trip looking at art museums, historical sites, or government buildings (BO-RING!). They want to do kid stuff!
Well, here are a couple of suggestions for places in Monterrey that cater to the "kid stuff" mentality:
* Bioparque Estrella is a safari-type zoological park located about 45 minutes from downtown, near the town of Linares (stop at the small shops along the road to buy glorias and carne seca). Open-sided buses take you through the park and food is provided so you can feed the animals (and those ostriches seem to get downright ornery if you don't feed them). The park is far more open and informal than similar parks in the United States, and I like that the petting zoo includes baby zebras -- not just typical farm animals.
* Planetario Alfa is a good place to go when you want to feel like you're doing something educational for the kids but that's fun too. Hands-on science-oriented exhibits with a huge IMAX theatre. Located in the Valle area (San Pedro/Garza Garcia).
* Parque Plaza Sesamo is the same as the Sesame Place theme parks in the U.S., except that there is a huge emphasis in Monterrey on the water park. Stroll through the shops, snap a few pictures of your family standing next to your favorite Sesame Street characters like Ernie, the Count, or Big Bird, then doff your duds and do the splash down! Located off Constitucion near Cintermex and Parque Fundidoras.
Bargain Hunter's Guide to Monterrey...
Like any big city, you can find places to shop with unusual items or better prices than you can find anywhere else. I prefer Guadalajara for shopping in general, but in Monterrey, there's nothing quite like strolling through the shops along Morelos on a Sunday afternoon, and I've always loved wandering around in the city's various flea markets (called "pulgas").
For the more upscale shopper, stick to the malls. The biggest malls are:
* Galerias Monterrey (which seems to be referred to as simply "Liverpool", which happens to be its biggest store), located on Gonzalitos just off Constitucion.
* Plaza Fiestas San Agustin, located in el Valle (San Pedro/Garza Garcia).
These are both similar to upscale shopping malls in the U.S. so I won't belabor the point. Big stores in these malls include Liverpool, Fabricas de Francia, and familiar U.S. chains like Sears and J.C. Penny. For more info, see my detailed review of shopping in Monterrey at: http://www.epinions.com/content_49918873220
Lodging: An Overview of Monterrey's Best Hotels...
Monterrey has a huge range of hotels to fit every taste and budget and I really couldn't pick one single hotel that will be the right recommendation for everyone. But here's three that I feel stand apart from the crowd:
* Best value: Howard Johnson Gran Plaza Monterrey
* Top hotel bar no expense: Quinta Real
* Quiet and rustic: Chipinque Lodge
* Family friendly: Holiday Inn Parque Fundidores
Over the past couple years, I've posted at least a dozen individual reviews of specific hotels in Monterrey and I'll probably post another dozen over the next couple years.
Some of the downtown hotels that I recommend include: Radisson Gran Ancira, Sheraton Ambassador, Santa Rosa Suites, Howard Johnson Gran Plaza, Plaza de Oro, and the Fiesta Americana Centro. Some downtown hotels that other people recommend but that I don't care for as much are the Rio Doubletree (needs an upgrade), the Best Western Safi (nice, but I don't like the location), and the Crowne Plaza (too expensive even when they have "deals").
Near Cintermex, I recommend Holiday Inn Parque Fundidora or if you want to save a few dollars, Antaris Suites. There's also a new Fiesta Inn there, and the new Arena Monterrey is a huge draw for the neighborhood.
In the Valle area (San Pedro/Garza Garcia), I recommend Antaris Suites Valle or the newly opened Ibis for value, or Quinta Real for "luxury bar no expense" (and believe me, "expense" is putting it mildly). Presidente Inter-Continental is also very upscale, but perhaps a scant notch below Quinta Real. Friends have recommended the Fiesta Inn Valle in this part of town, but I feel it is overpriced for its level and its location.
There are no hotels near the airport that I recommend. Except for the current spate of intro deals as new hotels spring up, the area is overpriced and is woefully inconvenient to anything other than maquiladora warehouses.
Monterrey is currently experiencing a building boom in new hotels. Several new hotels opened in recent months, including a couple downtown, several in the previously under-served airport area, and several in el Valle. Some of these newly opening hotels offer outstanding values right now -- in late July 2002. I don't count on cheap introductory rates sticking around for the long term, but if you are traveling to Monterrey now and you want a great hotel rate, the best intro rates seem to be coming from Ibis hotels (run by Accor).
Ibis is big in Europe, and they're currently expanding into Mexico in a big way. New in summer 2002 are two new hotels in Monterrey -- one in San Pedro and one in Apodaca near the airport -- both are offering grand opening rates of about US$45 per night (NM$440 to 500).
Marriott just opened a new Courtyard location at the airport about 5 weeks ago -- they currently have a grand opening intro rate of about 590 pesos (call it $60). Considering that the neighboring Hampton Inn is about $100 per night, that's a relative bargain.
Fiesta Inn recently opened a new hotel downtown, but the intro rates at that location are already a thing of distant memories...ya gotta snag the deals while you can! The boom should continue for a little while though (I see a new hotel going up on Constitucion near Gonzalitos), so look before you book...
For more recommendations, send me an email, or see my shorty recommendations of a few local hotels: http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-2C38-238971A-38108B9B-bd1
El Sabor del Norte: An Epicure's Guide to Dining and Drink...
If you can't find a good place to eat in Monterrey, you're not looking very hard.
There are lots of great restaurants throughout the city, and while I tend to prefer establishments that specialize in regional cuisine, there are plenty of places to sample any of the world's great cuisines.
My favorite restaurant for great northern Mexican cuisine is the admittedly tacky and marvelously ostentatious El Rey del Cabrito, which I think has the best roast cabrito in the city. I also like the more subdued El Gran Pastor and I've had some thoroughly enjoyable evenings at La Huasteca (where they also serve the full range of Casta craft beers).
My favorite place for a quick and inexpensive lunch is to stop in at any Dona Tota's for a few gorditas.
When I'm heading out for an elegant dinner, I usually head towards the Barrio Antiguo where I prefer Iannilli's with its incomparable Italian cuisine (I love their foccacia bread served with red chili olive oil), or the newer El Che Porteno for hearty Argentinian fare. There are some excellent new restaurants in el Valle, and I'm not talking about that strip of tacky American chain pits like Applebees and Tony Romas!
By the way, I've previously recommended the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company for anyone looking for California brewpub-type fare. Well, Sierra Nevada has expanded and they now have a new location across the street from Liverpool off Gonzalitos. (And I've heard two more locations are in the works...)
Bon apetit!
More thoughts and recommendations are in my detailed review of Monterrey restaurants, at http://www.epinions.com/trvl-review-EC6-BABED87-3828B562-bd3
Getting There, Getting Around, and Getting Out...
Monterrey is an easy trip from much of the United States with at least a dozen daily flights each way. American Airlines flies direct to Monterrey from Dallas or Chicago. Continental offers several daily flights from Houston. Aeromexico offers daily flights from several cities, including Atlanta (connections and code-share arrangements with Delta). Aviacsa flies two 737s each day from Houston. Mexicana flies there from San Antonio.
Bus travel to Monterrey is very easy, and from Monterrey you can get a bus to anywhere in Mexico. Many companies run daily bus routes between Monterrey and various U.S. cities. The larger companies that I know of running direct buses between Houston and Monterrey include El Expreso, Autobuses Adame, Autobuses Americanos, and El Conejo (these companies operate in several other U.S. cities too). Travel guides that tell you that you must change buses or connect to other bus lines at the border are outdated -- that hasn't been the case for at least 4-5 years. Today, it is trivial to find direct buses from most southwest U.S. cities to any major city in northern Mexico.
Getting around in Monterrey is easy. Taxis are very plentiful and generally cheap and safe. I use taxis without qualms.
Monterrey has a Metro subway system (which is generally new and clean), but except for the Macroplaza stop at the corner of Zaragoza and Padre Mier, it doesn't go anywhere a tourist wants to go.
City buses usually look like big school buses in the U.S. They are dirt cheap to ride and they go everywhere, but I find them dirty, uncomfortable (crowded and with no air conditioning), and the routes and connections are not easy to understand. I recommend that tourists stick to the taxis and leave the city buses for the locals.
Details, Details...
I know, I know. This is one of the longer reviews I've posted. The thing that gets me though is that, while I tried to be concise, I feel like I've left a lot of things out. I never even got a chance to mention my favorite sleazy bars (James, you can just tell the cab driver to take you to TVO, Bwa-ha-ha-ha!), my favorite places to hear live music, or anything about cultural events. I guess if you want to know more you can send me an email, or you can search the web for sites about Monterrey. For late-breaking info on things to do, I'd recommend visiting the local newspaper's web site: www.elnorte.com
Until next time, see you on the road!
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Singles
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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