Chad and I wanted to stay in at least one pueblo magico between Queretaro and Mexico City and my birthday weekend seemed like a great opportunity for that. Tequisquiapan, or Tequis as it is called, was our first and obvious choice because it’s in the center of the “ruta de queso y vino” (Mexican cheese and wine trail) and had a direct first-classes bus to Mexico City from the company ETN. Since I love wine and cheese, Tequis was the perfect place to turn 45.

Friday Transfer and Arrival

When we planned our trip, I figured we’d take the bus from Queretaro. However, because the two towns are only about an hour apart, it seemed to just be served by regional lines without online tickets and it was unclear whether those busses would have a luggage hold. Social media research pointed to most people with luggage doing a private transfer, which I booked through WhatsApp from a Facebook recommendation before we arrived in Queretaro. However, about halfway through our time there, our driver’s wife messaged me to cancel due to his health problems. Although she offered to recommend another driver, we had met Ivan by that point and I messaged him for about taking us. Though his price was a little higher than the original (1000 pesos versus 750), it still seemed worthwhile to have a low-stress travel day to start my birthday weekend.

We left for Tequis at 1:15 p.m. after being granted a late checkout by our Queretaro Airbnb host to accommodate a Zoom I had for a volunteer project. Ivan was right on time as always and was able to drop us off about a block from our Tequis hotel (review below) in the pedestrian zone. Even though we were about 45 minutes early for the check in time, we were able to get right into our room. 

The hotel we chose was right on the plaza and worked out really well for us, perhaps aside from the church bells I mention in my review. The room was a good size and though it didn’t have an in-room coffee maker, we had our collapsable kettle, tea cups, and aeropress to enjoy morning hot beverages during our stay.

After checking in, we went out to explore Tequis a bit and pick up some local wine and drinking water for the room. That evening we had dinner in a gourmet pizza restaurant in a quiet hotel not far from the plaza. That hotel’s pool was drained and it seemed to have fewer guests so gave an abandoned vibe to our meal, which we enjoyed. We had some really excellent pizza with sundried tomatoes, goat cheese, artichoke hearts, and walnuts, accompanied by a delicious salad and craft beer. It was a great first meal in Tequis. On our way home, a couple asked us to take their photo in the square and offered to return the favor for us. I think it turned out really nice!

Saturday Birthday Fun

The next morning, we woke up about 15 minutes before the church bells began with their rendition of Ave Maria. After my weekly Zoom with my dad and sister, Chad and I went out to breakfast at a restaurant called La Puerta. I chose it for their extensive breakfast menu. They had every option you could want. I decided on a veggie omelet and carrot juice. Chad got an egg sandwich and cafe Americano. We shared everything and it was all excellent. 

After breakfast we went on a long walk hoping to check out the big Tequis reservoir. However, it was pretty blocked off by private property. On our way, we noticed an artisan market, where we stopped on our way back. One booth was offering samples of mezcal-infused juices so we decided to try. She gave us samples of many flavors and we ended up buying two bottles to bring to Mexico City, one cranberry and one passion fruit. 

After a brief rest we went out again to check out the adorable Mexico Me Encanta museum, which was miniatures of Mexican scenes created by a local artist. It was fun seeing the traditions she’d chosen to highlight and how. 

Then we walked to a place offering wine and cheese tastings that we’d noticed on our walk back from the reservoir. Most tastings in Tequis are only offered as part of long (5 to 8 hours) tours, which was more than we were really interested in. This place had a simple tasting of two local wines and 14 cheese for 200 pesos each. Our timing worked out because a small tour group had just arrived so we were able to join a nearby table. The sommelier who led the tasting was kind enough to give the descriptions in English for us in addition to his Spanish descriptions for the tour. The wines were so-so but the cheeses were very interesting. Our favorites were coffee-flavored sheep cheese, an aged goat cheese, and an aged sheep cheese that tasted similar to parmesan. I also liked the manchego with nuts. The tasting closed with a couple of flavored goat cheese served with apple jam and a mezcal cream. It was all very fun and interesting to try. 

This part of Mexico is especially known for its sparking wines so we headed next to the Sala Vivé Wine Bar by the Spanish wine company, Freixenet. They have extensive vineyards in the area and sold several of their wines by the glass. We chose the last shaded table on the rooftop and ordered a brut and a sparkling rose. They were tasty but I’d say not really special. 

Even with the shade, the rooftop was pretty hot so we decided to give the hotel pool a try. The water was colder than I like but we managed to swim for a while and then relaxed in a couple of loungers in the sun. It was very peaceful.

That night, I’d made a reservation at Restaurante El Maravillas, which has a rooftop view over the plaza and a very interesting menu. We had an excellent meal there including unique cocktails. We ordered three great dishes, a local plantain croquette dish with mole, a roast cauliflower with peanut and plantain puree, and a grilled arrecherra steak that was very tender. We were too full for dessert but the restaurant provided a little guayaba candy with the bill.

Sunday Chill Day

On Sunday morning I wanted to try the special local pastry, pan de queso. Despite several bakeries claiming to open at 9 a.m. or earlier on Google maps, the only one I saw open was attached to the restaurant La Charamusca. But they had the pastry I wanted and I picked up a cajeta filled pastry for Chad. We enjoyed them at the little Juliet balcony in our room. 

We also wanted to do another long walk so we decided to head out to a neighborhood called La Magdelena. On our way there we walked through an area called Los Clasustros full of big houses built on the site of a former convent or something. I think a number of wealthy expats and wealthy Mexicans choose to live in Tequis. That was certainly reflected in the food and wine prices we experienced all weekend (except for the tasting), though that could also be in part due to its popularity as a weekend getaway destination for people from Queretaro and Mexico City, which is only about three hours away by car or bus. There were certainly lots of tourists in town the weekend we were there.

La Magdalena was much quieter without much to see, but provided a good destination. Then we walked back to Tequis proper and had a delicious veggie sandwich lunch at a cafe called Café Marroquino.

We worked and rested in the afternoon and then went out in the evening. First we visited Parque La Pila, which we hadn’t got to on our other walks. It was a very nice space and lots of couples and families were out enjoying it. Then we went to dinner at a crepe restaurant we’d discovered the day before in the Plaza Relox. We’d enjoyed a kir (white wine and creme de cassis) there ahead of my birthday dinner. We spoke briefly to the chef, who is from France, and he said we must return try the crepes (we’d told him we had a reservation at El Maravillosa, which he approved of). Since I love a good savory crepe, we thought it would be a great Sunday dinner choice. We got kirs again and ordered a chicken pesto crepe for Chad and “petit dejeuner” egg crepe for me, sharing them both. Chad felt they were too bland but I enjoyed the meal. And we both agreed the ambiance in the Plaza Relox is great with its fountains, cafes, and a busker playing saxophone. It felt remarkably like Europe.

Monday Departure Day and Summary

On Monday we just hung out in our room until it was time to get a taxi to the bus station. Chad was starting to feel a little under the weather (in fact, had a fever the next day). I picked us up some snacks for breakfast and the bus at an Oxxo and scouted out the taxi stand on the other side of the plaza. 

I’d booked the 10:30 a.m. ETN bus to Mexico City on their website a few weeks in advance, but after waiting a bit at the bus station, we learned that the bus had been cancelled and we were automatically rebooked on the 12:20 bus. I only learned this from an employee standing in front of the ETN bus to Guadalajara, though he and later the people at the ETN counter insisted I’d received an email about it (I didn’t). Chad and I had no interest in waiting two hours for the next bus so I asked for a refund at the counter, which was finally agreed to, after confirming we could book a ticket on the 10:45 Flecha Amarillo bus. While the bus didn’t have all the amenities of ETN like assigned seats, leg rests, seatback screens, wifi, and on-board bathroom, the seats were comfortable enough and the bus arrived in Mexico City at about the same time our ETN bus had been scheduled. And it was half the price at 250 pesos per ticket rather than 500. I’ll be hesitant to book on ETN in the future (and in fact have already dismissed it for our upcoming trip to Cuernavaca). 

We had a really fun three-day weekend in Tequis celebrating my birthday. I’d definitely recommend it for at least a couple of nights when in the Queretaro-Guanajuato-San Miguel area or as a short trip from Mexico City.