Tequila- More Than Just a Spirit

While cruising Mexico on board our 51-ft sailboat with our kids and Great Dane, we took a side trip (in late January of 2020 prior to the onset of COVID) to Tequila, Mx…just to check it out and tour a tequila distillery.  This proved to be a once in a lifetime experience.

We started this as a trip up to Guadalajara because my parents were flying in from the United States to visit us….so we added a couple days to include a quick visit to Tequila.  We had expert advice from one of the expats who lived in La Cruz, helping us find a rental van and giving us great advice for clean and inexpensive hotels in Tequila and Guadalajara.

Driving from La Cruz (Banderas Bay) up to Tequila proved to be way easier than expected.  There’s a new and modern highway running through the mountains up to Guadalajara, with the town of Tequila just off a clearly marked off-ramp.  But more markedly, you just cannot miss the changes in climate zones as you approach Tequila, as the miles and miles of lush Blue Agave are simply everywhere.

Arriving in Tequila, it became very obvious the town was colonial old.  This means the streets are very narrow, mostly coblestone and most of the boutique hotels didn’t have parking.  So…you have to drop stuff and people off at your hotel, then drive up to 6 blocks to find a pay parking lot and walk back to the hotel.  This was easy enough and Tequila felt safe and friendly.  I even stopped for a cold beer on the walk back to the hotel….thirsty work.  We stayed at the cute and inexpensive Hotel Casa La Gran Senora on Nicolas Bravo Street for two nights.  We loved it, they had a great breakfast and clean rooms with hot showers.  (Remember, this was late January in the mountains so it was cold and rainy coming out of Banderas Bay.)  In the evening we walked through the popular town square and found a great meal made with local foods and flavors.

That afternoon, we walked across the street from the hotel and arranged a tequila distillery tour for the next day.  They didn’t have tours open for some of the tequila tourist brands we knew, but we did get a tour of a premium brand, Destileria Orendain.

The Orendain Brand owns the premium Gran Orendain, as well as brands like Cutty Sark, Ollitas and Batanga.  The tour allows children and involves some walking, but mostly fun and the ability to learn how this fine spirit is made using the old ways.  We learned how to really drink and enjoy Tequila on this tour and my youngest daughter can now walk you through the proper way to drink and enjoy a Tequila shot.  We were the only gringos on the tour, but the engaging tour guide gave the tour both in English and Spanish and spoke both languages perfectly.

Here’s a few pics from the tour:

Travel Advice For Tequila:

– We took the kids with us to Tequila and felt completely safe and comfortable throughout this trip.  Tequila is a “Pueblo Magico” (see my story), so there’s tourist infrastructure and plenty of English.  This town has original buildings and streets, high quality restaurants and both family owned and corporate distilleries that are hundreds of years old.  Old World Charm meets the modern generation.

– Climate- Pay attention to WHEN you are doing this trip.  The town is at a higher elevation off the coastline and gets rain, cold, heat ect.  Take appropriate layers if it’s winter time.

– Partying- Yep, there’s ALOT of tequila around and we still have one of the traditional large pottery mugs they sell full of potent tequila punch.  Don’t let this stop you from bringing the kids, as most of the folks were respectful and tended to hang around the main square, not rouring it up in the small boutique hotels.

– Make sure to book a hotel room before you go and be prepared to leave the car in a parking lot some blocks away.  That’s just how it is.

– I would do this trip again and I would take the kids again if we had the chance.

What can I say?  This post was supposed to go up late Saturday but it wasn’t finished and I didn’t want to publish without more editing.  

Here’s a few of our other stories related to this trip: 

Mexico’s Pueblos Magicos- More Than Meets The Eye

From The HelmsMistress: Roadtrip: Tequila, Tonalá and Guadalajara

We love to travel with our kids and write about it- keep reading this website for more stories.