Mexico is a blend of architectural styles relating to different historical epochs. It is a country where pre-Hispanic ruins exist in harmony with colonial buildings, and with the modernism and avant-garde of recent architecture.

As a result, strolling through the streets of its villages and cities is a real feast for the eyes, providing a glimpse into a nation with a past, history, traditions and brave people who have kept the country on its feet.

The architectural traces of the colonial period are there to be seen in the streets and plazas of Mexico, as the Spanish conquest of the country brought with it European style buildings. You can sense this past as you visit old mansions, haciendas and monasteries, putting yourself in the shoes of priests, ladies and workers who together forged the nation’s identity.

Grand houses that today are museums or hotels, with central courtyards, fountains and gardens; churches and cathedrals with all kinds of symbolic detailing; town squares with bandstands, benches and resting places with the same layout as in the Old World.

Similarly, many buildings show details corresponding to the Baroque period. This style is one well-liked by many tourists, as the cathedrals make a powerful impression with their angular belltowers and the elaborate detailing of their ironwork. These edifices also display the murals that decorate their walls and domes, usually with images of angels, cherubs, Virgins and Saints.

Exploring these sites is is also a great way of getting to know contemporary Mexico, the eclecticism of which is just as worthy of photographs as are the historical buildings, in which wars and treaties were decided, the sick were cured, faith was nurtured and spectacles of all kinds were shown.

Some of the cities whose historic centers have been declared World Heritage Sites due to their architectural value include Mexico City, Oaxaca, Puebla, Guanajuato, Morelia, Zacatecas, Querétaro and Campeche. The great cities represent the modernity of a country that never rests, while the famous Pueblos Mágicos program of “Magical towns” is at the heart of national tradition.