MEXICO CITY : 10 THINGS TO DO

1O THINGS TO DO IN MEXICO CITY

We had a lot of clichés about CDMX; we were imagining a big, grey, and dangerous capital. But we were happily surprised that CDMX was a big, green, and quite safe capital. Obviously, we stayed in the center, and we were careful, as we are in every big city. We took an Airbnb in the Roma neighborhood. We were close to everything: bars, restaurants, shops, the historic center, and the airport, and it was safe, so it was perfect. To move around, we walked a lot, but we also used the underground.

1. Go to Mercado de Artesanías La Ciudadela. This market is next to the center; it’s where you can buy all your Mexican souvenirs. Mexican culture is so rich in craftsmanship that even if you don’t buy anything, it's really nice to discover it. There are also some restaurants inside; we stopped to have breakfast, and it was super good.

2. Visit the Museo de Arte Popular. You will find many museums in Mexico City. Unfortunately, when we were there, many of the art museums were closed… a little advice: check the museum's website to see if it’s open before going. We went to the Museo de Arte Popular; it was Sunday, so the entrance was free. (Many museums are free on Sundays.) We really liked this museum; it was super interesting, and we learned a lot about Mexican culture. We really advise you to visit it!

3. Go to the Palacio de Bellas Artes. If it’s Sunday, you can enter for free; the architecture is super nice. In front of the building, you have the Mirador of the Torre Latinoamericana, where you can get a super view of the city. We didn’t do it because we found it expensive, and the queue was huge. Instead, we walked down the shopping street towards the Catedral Metropolitana.

4. Walk around La Plaza de la Constitución. This square has a lot of activity. There is also the beautiful Catedral Metropolitana, the Palacio Nacional, and ruins from the old Templo Mayor (Tenochtitlan). We found a rooftop to have a drink on top of a library. The view was super nice. The library is called Porrúa.

5. Go to Plaza Garibaldi. On this square, you have the Museo del Tequila and many mariachis. We didn’t go to the museum because we were planning to go to the city of Tequila later. But we enjoyed seeing the groups of mariachis singing around. However, we didn’t stay that long; we felt this neighborhood was a bit dodgy.

6. Have a drink in Roma. Roma is a trendy neighborhood; you will find lots of nice bars and restaurants. We went to Mercado Roma, which is a food court with lots of food choices and a nice bar with good music on the rooftop.

7. Go to Parque Chapultepec. Parque Chapultepec is huge. We first started by visiting the Museo Nacional de Antropología. This museum is super interesting and huge. After that, we walked through the park towards the Castillo de Chapultepec. We couldn’t visit it because it had a maximum number of entrances per day (this was during COVID, so I’m not sure if that’s still the case).

8. Go to Coyoacán. Coyoacán is in the south of Mexico City. We really loved this neighborhood because it retains its authenticity. You can discover La Plaza de Coyoacán, where we stopped to have a beer at La Cervecería de Barrio, the cute Mercado de Coyoacán, and, of course, the famous Museo Frida Kahlo. You absolutely need to book your ticket online a few days in advance.

9. Visit the pyramids of Teotihuacán. We took the underground to Autobuses del Norte, then we took a bus; it’s about an hour's drive. The entrance fee is 80 MXN. The site is huge, and the pyramids are still in good condition; it was really impressive.

10. Have brunch in Roma. There were so many trendy places we wanted to try, but we had to choose. We ate at a super brunch place called Juana Juana. The place is super nice, and the food was super good. We really recommend it.