Why did I decide to live in Querétaro?
I decided to come back to Mexico after living in Asia and even though we could’ve chosen any place in Mexico, we came back to the same city we got married: Querétaro.
But why? What does this city have that makes not only Mexicans but foreigners want to move here?
I’m going to be telling you about the safety, weather, architecture, and other curious aspects of this beautiful city.
Queretaro is a city located just in the middle of the country. This is a huge advantage because you basically have access to Mexico city which is about 3 hours away by car but also, we can go to some beautiful places around this state.
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We have Guanajuato, one city located in the state with the same name that’s very popular between the foreigners and Mexicans because it's simply gorgeous and it’s only 2 hours away from here. In this state, we’ll find San Miguel de Allende, another popular destination and very well known because loads of retired people are living there.
We also have Pueblos mágicos. I mean, places with lots of history, culture, traditions and great food.
Querétaro has 6 magic towns and all of them have their charm. They are quite unique. I have some videos about some of them on my channel if you want to check them out. We can easily go to some of them from here for a day if we want.
But what’s exactly a pueblo mágico en México? It’s an initiative developed by the Mexican government to recognize the cities or towns around the country that have loads of cultural wealth and are well preserved. It’s called magic because they transmit that feeling of being in a fairytale.
But wath about the city centre?
Querérato has beautiful architecture and walking through the streets, you can't help but think about all the history.
Can you imagine going to a cafe in a casona (big house) where rich people used to live a hundred years ago? You don’t only get a nice cup of coffee with some tasty enchiladas, you get the experience as well.
I can’t stop admiring this beauty. There are also a lot of museums, squares and the churches are magnificent architecture.
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This square is very closed from my house and I think this is beautiful scenery. You can come here and have breakfast for 3 dollars and having this amazing view.
We love to be outside just sitting on a bench and admiring the city. I personally love to walk here around the centre because is covered with flowers, beautiful and ancient doors. The colours of the city are amazing.
And I haveln’t mentioned it but this city is very clean. There are people sweeping every day in the morning ad they pick the garbage every night.
In this city, the president Santa Anna signed the treaty which gave more than half of Mexico’s territory including the states of California, Nevada, Utah, Nuevo Méxio, Texas, Colorado, Arizona y partsde Wyoming, Kansas y Oklahoma.
Safety
Having said this, I think I should mention safety. Querétaro is considered one of the safest cities to live and I don’t say it. According to National Institute of Statistics, people living in this state feel safe. Here you have a link where you can check it by yourself.
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https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/programas/ensu/doc/ensu2020_diciembre_presentacion_ejecutiva.pdf
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There's a low crime rate, low violence and good tourism infrastructure. Because of the economic growth, it's an attractive city for loads of Mexicans to live in. For its appealing standard of living.
Personally, I’ve never felt unsafe.
Cost of living
When compared with other big cities around the world, the cost of living in Querétaro is very affordable, but inside the country, I would say that it's relatively high. Some things like rents are higher than in other parts of the country.
It depends on how you look at this. Mexico is very diverse when it comes to prices. This could be very vague but we usually spend 1000 on groceries per week but we basically buy everything in the market where things tend to be cheaper.
An uber for a 5km here could cost 30 pesos. We can find menús del día that are sets of lunch that cost a minimum of 50 pesos. You can have a nice and very romantic lunch eating there with that beautiful church there. I usually complain about why I don't like living in such a country but I have not found a complaint about this place.
In case you want to compare between cities, you can get an idea on numbeo.com It’s a good page. My husband and I relied on this page when we went to Vietnam and we found it accurate. It mentions how much it costs basically everything.
Actually, I’m planning on making a video of how much I spent this month, February so I can share my expenses with you. I’m going to be uploading this video in March.
Weather
The temperature in here is between 10°c and 30° on average. 10° celcious on winter but still, it’s very sunny during the day.
I usually complain about why I don't like living in such a country but I have not found a complaint about this place.
Would you move to Queretaro?
Why do some mexicans look Asian
I've been receiving comments on my YouTube channel asking if I'm Vietnamese or Asian.
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When I was living in Vietnam, I had a ton of questions from Vietnamese people asking me if at least one of my parents was Vietnamese.
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I was interested to see that many people were shocked when I said I was Latina. And some of them tried to convince me I had Vietnamese parents.
So, in some way, that caused an identity crisis in me. And I started to wonder...
Will I be Asian?
How cheap is living in Mexico?
While some are scared away by horror stories and negative stereotypes, a growing number of retirees, digital nomads, and professionals are choosing Mexico as their home for its culture, weather, and of course, low cost of living.
But is it really possible to achieve a comfortable lifestyle on a budget?