The capital of one of Mexico’s smallest states was originally conceived as a defensive way station between regional silver mines and Mexico City. Farms and ranches sprang up around it to supply the mining towns, and today the city serves them as a commercial centre. North of town lie its namesake hot springs and the San Marcos Winery, where the region’s grapes are tuned into brandy.

With its shade trees, fountains, and surrounding historic buildings, Plaza de la Patria is a reminder of the city’s colonial past. On the plaza is Aguascalientes’ oldest church, the Catedral Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion. It has endured several renovations, on resulting in its neoclassic façade of pink quarry stone. Behind the cathedral el Museo de Historia Regional has nine rooms’ worth of history.