Mexico Guide
The Bajío
León
LEÓN, a teeming, industrial city, has a long history of excellence in leatherwork. This tradition is reflected in the scores of shoe factories and, in the centre, hundreds of shoe shops: it's a good place to buy hand-tooled cowboy boots, jackets, belts or just about anything else made of leather.
The area around the bus station, about 3km from the city centre, has the highest concentration of leather and shoe shops, most of which have very reasonable prices, although there are also some higher-class and more expensive boutiques. If you're changing buses in León it's well worth taking an hour to wander round the station's immediate vicinity. And even if you only spend ten minutes in the bus station you'll see stacks of shoeboxes being loaded into just about every waiting bus.
If you're determined to explore the town, stash your bag at the bus station's guardería and head for the partly pedestrianized Centro Histórico. In town, the linked Plaza de los Fundadores and Plaza de los Martíres are not at all what the rest of the city would lead you to expect – spacious, tranquil and elegant, with a fine eighteenth-century cathedral built by the Jesuits and a typically colonial palacio municipal. Little else survived a disastrous flood in 1883, but the plaza is surrounded by broad boulevards lined with shops, and there are a couple of other churches that deserve a look: the Baroque Templo de los Angeles and the extraordinary marble Templo Expiatorio, 500m southeast on Madero. The latter is particularly impressive, with its high-relief copper doors revealing a white Gothic interior illuminated by modern stained glass. You can also visit the crypt (Fri, Sat & Sun 10am & 1pm; M$5). The city's main festival is the Feria de León (Jan 10–20), a big agricultural and industrial fair that finishes with religious festivities on the Día de San Sebastián.
To get into town from the bus station, walk left out of the station along Hilario Medina, pick up an articulated OptiBus ("Linea 1") headed to the right along López Mateos and get off at the "Centro Histórico" stop.
León also has the region's main airport, the nearest to both Guanajuato and San Miguel de Allende, with flights from all over Mexico and Houston, Dallas, LA, Chicago and more. On arrival, many just grab a cab direct to their destination, but there are also very infrequent buses and colectivos (around M$150) to León, and second-class buses ply the highway between León and Guanajuato; wave madly and you may be able to flag one down.
Should you need a place to stay here, you'll find a number of cheapish hotels in the streets immediately opposite the bus station: try the pleasant, clean TV and fan-equipped Niza, Nuevo Vallarta 213 ( 
477/763-3557; Price: M$250-350), or the simple but well-kept Blanquita, Tasco 150 at La Luz ( 477/763-1909, 
771-3303; Price: M$150-200), which charges an extra M$30 for a TV. There are also several decent places to eat.