10 Mexican haciendas you must visit

Architecture and history of Mexican haciendas

Places where the Mexican beauty is timeless

Mexican Haciendas have been part of the history of our history since colonial times, many of these used to be places where its inhabitants lived and worked for landowners. Nowadays, most of these have been transformed into museums, hotels, farms, and private properties, making their beauty and history accessible for us.

That’s why we’ve made a list of the 10 most interesting haciendas you must visit whether you are traveling or living in México.

1.- Hacienda San Miguel, Yucatan. 

This hacienda was built in 1542, a few years after the foundation of Valladolid city in Yucatan by its owner Gaspar Gonzalez. In these lands, corn, cotton, and beans were harvested, also, the inhabitants engaged in raising cattle and poultry for sale and their own consumption too.

Today, this hacienda is a beautiful hotel with all the services for travelers who want a calm place close to nature.

2.- Hacienda La Noria. 

Nowadays this hacienda is the Dolores Olmedo Museum in Mexico City, a space dedicated to the art and life of two icons in Mexican history: Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. It was built in the XVI century in lands that were occupied by an ethnicity from Xochimilco in the pre-Hispanic era. It was bought by Dolores Olmedo in 1962.

The museum opened in 1994, surrounded with gardens made with endemic vegetation and fauna such as Xoloitzcuintles, peacocks and other birds species.

3.- Hacienda Gogorron. 

This hacienda was property of Pedro Arizmendi Gogorrón, who built it in 1750 in San Luis Potosí, Mexico. This land has over 35 thousand square hectares, making it a place of prosperity with activities like agriculture, textile business and mezcal production.

Nowadays,  Hacienda Gogorron is a hotel with restaurants and swimming pools. A fun fact about this place is that this hacienda was the film location of the Zorro movie.

4.- Hacienda Vista Hermosa.

Located in Cuernavaca, this hacienda was founded by Hernan Cortes in 1529. Due to the lack of wood and iron, it was built with stones as a fortress with 6 feet thick walls. That era used to suffer from great dangers, so this hacienda served as a perfect place to be safe. Inside its lands lived at least 23,000 inhabitants who worked in the main building: a sugar refinery.

After many battles, Fernando Martinez and Fernando Gonzales bought the ruins of this hacienda in 1945. They transformed it into a prestigious hotel which opened in 1947 with the name of Hotel Hacienda Vista Hermosa.

5.- Hacienda Santiago Texmelucan. 

This hacienda was built in 1698 by its owner Matias Rivero, a Spanish citizen who carried precious metals from Zacatecas to Veracruz. During his life in Mexico, he built seven haciendas, one for each of his children. It was Cuauhtemoc Rivero who received the great Hacienda Santiago Texmelucan.

It has an area of 3,000 hectares that used to be dedicated to livestock and pulque production. Nowadays it has become an hotel located in Puebla, perfect for weddings, big events and camping. I think it´s time to explore all this Mexican haciendas.

Read more: 7 pueblos magicos in the southeast of Mexico

6.- Hacienda Argovia. 

This hacienda is located in Chiapas. It was built in 1880 by the Argau family from Switzerland. In the late nineteenth century it was acquired by Adolf Giesemann, nowadays it’s still being managed by his fourth generation.

At the beginning, inhabitants worked in coffee plantations. Nowadays it has been transformed into a hotel with self-sufficiency production of electricity with a hydroelectric plant. It also works on waste recycling,  and by-products of coffee through vermicomposting and reforestation programs, making it an incredible experience for travelers and local people.

7 .- Hacienda La Loma.

This hacienda was built by the Spanish citizen Jose Zambrano in 1798. The whole building and common areas were decorated with the Mexican colonial style. The main economic activity in its 57,000 hectares of lands was the livestock and cotton.

Now, it has become the Museum of the North Division, that keeps alive the history of our country in two halls with the names of the main characters of Mexican Revolution. It’s located in Durango, Mexico.

8.- Hacienda Sepulveda.

Founded in 1648 in Jalisco by its owner Don Juan de Sepulveda, this hacienda was a prosperous land for livestock and agriculture. It is 171 hectares long, where the bean and corn were harvested by the inhabitants in the colonial era.

Now, the buildings have been restored to open a hotel boutique that offers a unique experience. It mixes the history of the place with deluxe services such as spa, swimming pool and temazcal. For many couples it is the perfect scenery for an unforgettable wedding. Can you imagine getting married in these Mexican haciendas?

9.- Hacienda San Cristobal Polaxtla. 

The date of its foundation is unknown, according to the local history, this hacienda could be more ancient than the town of San Martin Texmelucan where it’s located. In the nineteenth century the lands of this property were four ranches with pulque production as the main activity.

Now, this hacienda is one of best museums in Latin America for its collection of European and Novo Hispanic paints, Mexican silver, pottery, and European clocks. One of the most representative feature of this property is the convent and its restored organ used mostly for concerts.

10.- Hacienda Santa Maria Xalostoc 

Founded in the sixteenth century, this hacienda with 3,500 hectares was a large state dedicated to livestock, production of maguey and pulque. The creation of an alternate route with the arrival of the railroad to the area, helped to provide pulque to the states of Puebla and Mexico, helping this hacienda become one of the richest.

After the restoration done by the Architect Luis Ortiz Macedo, the new hotel hacienda was opened retaining each ancient detail in its 8 suites and 10 rooms. It provides a unique experience through the history of the place.

As you may  see, these places are only a fraction of the Mexican haciendas that exist in our country. They are witnesses of the history from Yucatan to Guanajuato, even though they have lived many restorations, they are places worth visiting during your travel across Mexico.

Have you been in a hacienda before? Share your experience in these beautiful Mexican haciendas with us!