# Where to live in Guadalajara



## NCas

Hi everyone,

I'm currently living in Queretaro and would like to start planning to move to Guadalajara. I've never been to Guadalajara, but I would like to move to a bigger city where I can also find a better job in a field that I like. Could anyone advice me in which Colonias would be good to move into? Not looking for anything fancy, just looking for a good neighborhood that it's relative safe and within walking distance to restaurants and bars. Are there any web sites other than Vivanuncios.com that I could used to locate an apartment?

Since I'm only about three hours from Guadalajara I would like to drive up there with a list of Colonias and see the apartments listed there. Any suggesting are greatly appreciated. 

Thanks in advance...


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## TundraGreen

NCas said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I'm currently living in Queretaro and would like to start planning to move to Guadalajara. I've never been to Guadalajara, but I would like to move to a bigger city where I can also find a better job in a field that I like. Could anyone advice me in which Colonias would be good to move into? Not looking for anything fancy, just looking for a good neighborhood that it's relative safe and within walking distance to restaurants and bars. Are there any web sites other than Vivanuncios.com that I could used to locate an apartment?
> 
> Since I'm only about three hours from Guadalajara I would like to drive up there with a list of Colonias and see the apartments listed there. Any suggesting are greatly appreciated.
> 
> Thanks in advance...


First of all, I don't have any suggestions for house hunting online. Most of the people I know found places by looking around in a neighborhood that interested them. Many houses and apartments are not listed anywhere, they just have a sign on them saying they are for sale or rent.

Regarding neighborhoods, that is a short question with a long answer. Walking distance to bars and restaurants is helpful as it rules out many of the more suburban neighborhoods. I suggest you think about being near one of the following places: Centro somewhere on the west side of the Catedral continuing on as far west as Chapultepec. Chapultepec is a popular night spot with lots of euro style bars and restaurants as well as a median filled with tianguis and happenings on weekend nights. Another option might be Providencia but it is upscale and more expensive. 

The Gdl metropolitan area is made of several different cities and the centro area of a couple of them might also be worth exploring. In particular Tlaquepaque (pretty touristy in the central area) or Zapopan somewhere around the Basilica of Zapopan are two possibilities. Both are popular night spots with lots of restaurants and bars. Another option might be near Avenida Tepeyac in Colonia Chapalita. It is a smaller area than the others I mentioned but there are lots of restaurants on Tepeyac as well as others in Chapalita not too far away. 

Colonia Santa Tere is just off the end of Chapultepec and has a great mercado for shopping as well as numerous shops of all kinds in the streets surrounding it and then it is short walk to Chapultepec for night life or dinner out. The area around the Expiatorio is a nice neighborhood as well with lots going on most evenings. Again it is a short walk past many bars and restaurants to Chapultepec.

If US style malls are your idea of a good time, there are lots of those in Zapopan. I won't list them because they don't interest me much but they exist with surrounding neighborhoods. 

The eastern side of Guadalajara, east of Calzada Independencia is more sketchy (except for Tlaquepaque) and it would probably be good to avoid it. It is perfectly safe in most places but has less appeal.

I will stop but if you have questions about particular parts of town feel free to ask. I lived in Querétaro for three months before moving to Guadalajara 6 years ago. I think it was a good change for me, I hope you find it the same.


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## mardonio

*Colonias Guadalajara*

Hi, I moved to GDL for the same reasons as you. There are many good placea to live buy I personally like the Providencia neighborhood around avenida Pablo Neruda. It's between the nicer side of town and downtown. It has many good restaurants and its quite safe with many nice parks and lots of trees. I would stay away from the centro, its a little too rough for me. Chapultepec is also a good place with lots of activities. Chapalita area is another good area. It really depends on what exactly you're looking for. Feel free to ask me specific questions. Good luck and welcome.


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## Hound Dog

I do not wish to apear naive but here is my take. We have lived at Lake Chapala, some 50 kilometers south of Guadalajara, for well over a decade. and, when retiring here form California we chose the lake versus the city because we are dog freaks and wanted an environment where we could walk our dogs along deserted beaches with flexibility and free of the distress brought on by an acompanying congregation of others doing the same. Despite our having chosen Lake Chapala, we have long had an affection for the largely beautiful city of Guadalajara but, here, after 13 years in these parts, is what we would look for if we moved there:
- Live centrally and by that I mean avoid the suburbs and exurbs no matter how fancy they may appear to be. There are many great and pleasant neighborhoods in Guadalajara and you need to explore them yourself to make the right decision but keep in mind access to centro and to public transportation. This is very important. If you are going to seek exurban liiving; move to the shores of Lake Chapala and enjoy the freedom of the endless deserted beaches upon which to enjoy pleasant solitude with your dog amigos.

What´s wrong with Queretaro? It´s a city of which I am not particularly fond but it is big and vibrant and wealthy so why do you want out of there to be replaced with Guadalajara which is also imperfect as are all human setlements. Lots of Burger Kings in both places.


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## NCas

Thanks a lot for all your suggestions, I'll definitely look into all these neighborhoods and I appreciate the offers for further help. I'm planning to go there sometime this week so that I can get a feel of the city. 

Queretaro is nice and I do like it, however, one of the main reasons for moving is so that I can find work in a field I like. Since Guadalajara is a much bigger city I know I'll have a much better opportunity of finding something I like there. Furthermore, I would also like to explore a new city I've been living in Queretaro for two years now. So I think a change of scenery would be nice.


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## bhtrip

We are semi-retired and exploring Mexico for places to live. We have been to Lake Chapala and find it may be a little too sedate for us.

We wonder if Guadalajara might be an area to consider. We are looking for an area where will we will find some welcoming expats, a safe, friendly area with moderate home rental rates, but close to shopping and restaurants. We have spent time in Merida and enjoy how people come out at night to stroll and socialize in the Main Plaza. Being in walking distance to an area that has a similar "feel" to it, but offers some serenity at home, would interest us.

Does anyone have any suggestions which areas of Guadalajara might be better for us to explore?


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## TundraGreen

bhtrip said:


> We are semi-retired and exploring Mexico for places to live. We have been to Lake Chapala and find it may be a little too sedate for us.
> 
> We wonder if Guadalajara might be an area to consider. We are looking for an area where will we will find some welcoming expats, a safe, friendly area with moderate home rental rates, but close to shopping and restaurants. We have spent time in Merida and enjoy how people come out at night to stroll and socialize in the Main Plaza. Being in walking distance to an area that has a similar "feel" to it, but offers some serenity at home, would interest us.
> 
> Does anyone have any suggestions which areas of Guadalajara might be better for us to explore?


Guadalajara is a wonderful place to live for all the reasons you mention. Not that I am biased or anything. 

I suggest you consider two areas. One would be somewhere between Centro (the Cathedral area) and Avenida Chapultepec. Centro has lots of plazas and restaurants and lots of people walking around but it gets very quiet after about 9 pm. Chapultepec comes awake at 9 pm has more upscale coffee shops and European style restaurants. It has a wide median that is filled with sidewalk stands, cinema, rock bands etc in the evenings. The Plaza Expiatorio is halfway between them and is always filled with people, offers free dance classes on Saturday nights and is often filled with tianguis (stands selling things). There are several mercados in this area for buying food (Mercado Santa Tere, Mercado Garibaldi, Mercado Alcalde). I live in this area and it is a great place to live.

The second option would Chapalita/Avenida Tepeyac. This is a more sedate area, a lot more suburban, but along Tepeyac there are lots of restaurants and cafes. The clubhouse for the American Society of Jalisco is located in Colonia Chapalita and is a hangout for English speakers.

Then of course, there are lots of suburban areas with fancy malls but it doesn't sound like that is what you are looking for.

If you visit, drop me a line and I would be happy to show you around for a day sometime.


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## TamiJ

I would first think about the location of your job, then the location of where to live. You don´t want to get stuck living far away from where you work. Traffic can be horrid and your living location to your job location will be important. I agree with one of the posters about the Providencia area. It´s a bit pricey, though, so I guess it depends on how much you want to spend.


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## bhtrip

Job location is not a factor for us. When we work, we work from home. 

Any suggestions for places to stay if we come to Guadalajara for a few days in January so we can begin to get a flavor of the area and which areas might be best suited for us for living? 

Which areas are US and Canadian expats most plentiful?

Also, what would you estimate the full-time US/Canadian expat population to be?


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## TundraGreen

bhtrip said:


> Job location is not a factor for us. When we work, we work from home.
> 
> Any suggestions for places to stay if we come to Guadalajara for a few days in January so we can begin to get a flavor of the area and which areas might be best suited for us for living?
> 
> Which areas are US and Canadian expats most plentiful?
> 
> Also, what would you estimate the full-time US/Canadian expat population to be?


First off, if a high density of US/Canadian residents is a priority, Guadalajara may not be the best choice. In a metropolitan area of more than 5 million people there may be 2000-5000 English speaking foreigners (1 in a few thousand). Even if I am off by a factor of 10 in the estimate it is still a small fraction of the population. 

Having said that, my guess is that the largest numbers might be found in Chapalita, Providencia and maybe Bugambilias.

There are a number of groups that get together often or occasionally. The American Society of Jalisco is one. Internations, while not limited to US/Canadian, also organizes gettogethers in English.


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## zapfilms

Guadalajara is a very large cosmopolitan city so doesn´t break down into expat USA sectors like say San Miguel or Ajijic. If you are city people who enjoy all sorts of international flavor within a Mexican context it is great. I work there about 2x month and the fashion scene is interesting, lots of music, theatre, dance both int´l and national, great restaurants - in short - one of the 3 real cities in Mexico (DF & Monterrey of course are great too). Traffic is killer. Public transit good. Bus station and airport a ways out of town. Fun Sunday "ViaRecreactiva" cycling in the streets.


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## jim42

*American Vets Posts*

Any American Legion/AmVets/VFW in the area? Thanks, Jim


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## RVGRINGO

There is an American Legion Post 7 in Chapala and there may also be one in Guadalajra. The one in Chapala has a restaurant run by the ladies and is open to the public with several activities each week, mostly centered around food, like the Sunday hamburgers, occasional BBQ or Pasta feeds, etc.


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## jim42

Thanks RV I appreciate it. I will research Post locations in Mexico.


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