Centro Histórico de Colima

Colima's Centro Histórico is the core of the state capital: a few flat blocks of palm-shaded gardens, arcades and pedestrian streets around the cathedral. In late June 2024, at the third Tianguis Internacional de Pueblos Mágicos held in San Antonio, Texas, Mexico's federal Tourism Secretariat (SECTUR) named it a Barrio Mágico; it was one of twelve districts recognised at that event, bringing the national total to 38.

The district is a chain of squares. The Jardín Libertad, the main plaza, gathers the cathedral, the former Government Palace and the arcades; behind the cathedral lies the Jardín Torres Quintero, a short walk north is the Jardín Hidalgo, and to the southeast the Jardín Núñez. The cathedral, a minor basilica since 12 October 1998, stands on the plot the Spanish set aside for the parish church around 1525. Its twin towers and dome are the tallest structures in the city, and inside are cedar carvings by Manuel Cedeño and Andrés González, a pulpit by Othón Bustos and an old statue of San Felipe de Jesús, the city's patron since 1668. The Government Palace, in French neoclassical style, went up between 1877 and 1906, and the Museo Regional de Historia occupies the Portal Morelos.

One block west stands the Teatro Hidalgo. Designed by Lucio Uribe, it was begun in the 1870s and opened on 15 September 1883, with a neo-Gothic front, horseshoe balconies and 652 seats. Earthquakes and neglect eventually brought it down, and it served as a venue for boxing, wrestling and even bullfights until it was restored and reopened in 1961; today it is the state's main stage for theatre, concerts and dance.

On the Jardín Hidalgo, the church of San Felipe de Jesús, known as El Beaterio, is where Miguel Hidalgo served as parish priest, and the square has an equatorial sundial with explanations in several languages. The Jardín Núñez, on Calle Madero, is the big park of the centre, with fountains and monuments, busy at weekends with families and food stalls. Linking the squares is the pedestrian Andador Constitución, with a traditional ice-cream parlour and a state-run crafts shop, and the Pinacoteca Universitaria Alfonso Michel on Calle Guerrero rounds off the walk.