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Stories from Mexico City, Mexico

Every story, long read and guide in the ULTIMATE Mexico City Guide, in one place.

Culture

Arts + Culture

All of Arts & Culture

The murals of San Ildefonso, Rodin at the Soumaya, Rivera’s Anahuacalli and an evening of the Ballet Folklórico at Bellas Artes.

The Art Deco skylight and amber stone of the Palacio de Bellas Artes, seen from belowArts + CultureArts & Culture in Mexico CityMurals, museums, dance and Día de Muertos

Areas

Mexico City, neighbourhood by neighbourhood

Eight neighbourhoods, each with its own guide: the Zócalo and the murals of the Centro, Roma’s mansions and Condesa’s Art Deco, Polanco’s Masaryk and museums, Reforma and Juárez, Coyoacán’s Blue House, San Ángel’s Saturday bazaar and the towers of Santa Fe.

The Catedral Metropolitana and the Sagrario on the ZócaloNeighbourhood guideThe Centro HistóricoThe Zócalo, murals and cantinasCafé terraces under the trees by the Fuente de Cibeles in Roma NorteNeighbourhood guideRomaMansions, mezcal and great tablesThe clipped hedges and tall trees of the gardens of Parque México, CondesaNeighbourhood guideCondesaArt Deco and Parque MéxicoThe silver, hexagon-tiled Museo Soumaya against a blue skyNeighbourhood guidePolancoMasaryk and the museumsThe golden Ángel de la Independencia on its column on Paseo de la ReformaNeighbourhood guideJuárez & ReformaThe Ángel and the speakeasies

On foot

Mexico City is too big to cross twice a day: choose one or two neighbourhoods each day, and walk them.

  1. Neighbourhood guideCoyoacánThe Blue House and the squares
  2. Neighbourhood guideSan ÁngelThe Saturday bazaar
  3. Neighbourhood guideSanta FeThe towers of the west

Practical

Before you go

Arriving at the AICM, taxis you can trust, the altitude on your first day, and three days that work for a first visit.

The Catedral Metropolitana and the Sagrario on the ZócaloBefore you goMexico City essentialsEntry, money, 911 and the altitudeThe modernised platforms of Tacubaya station on Metro Line 1Getting aroundGetting aroundThe airports, Metro, Metrobús and cable carsThe excavated stairways and a carved serpent head at the Templo MayorItineraryMexico City in three daysThe Centro, Chapultepec and CoyoacánThe towers of Reforma rising beyond the trees of Bosque de Chapultepec under a blue skyLuxury guideLUX LivingThe finest addressesA suite sitting room at the Four Seasons Mexico City, with a woven wall hanging and a lit bar cabinetItineraryThe Gold weekendThe Four Seasons, Pujol and Rosetta
  1. ItineraryThe Platinum weekendLas Alcobas, Barragán and Quintonil

Our advice

Take the first day slowly

The city lies high in the Valley of Mexico: walk slowly on your first day, drink plenty of water, and remember that most museums close on Mondays. Mexico City essentials

Day trips

Beyond Mexico City

The pyramids of Teotihuacan lie an hour to the north-east, Puebla and Cholula to the east, the canals of Xochimilco to the south, and silver Taxco and the lake at Valle de Bravo further out.

The Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan under a clear skyBeyond Mexico CityTeotihuacanThe city of the godsThe twin-towered cathedral of Puebla under a blue skyBeyond Mexico CityPuebla & CholulaTalavera, mole and a pyramidA painted trajinera moored on a canal at XochimilcoBeyond Mexico CityXochimilcoThe last canals of the lakeThe pink stone towers of Santa Prisca above a carpet of poinsettias in TaxcoBeyond Mexico CityTaxcoThe silver townA paraglider over the lake at Valle de Bravo, with boats at the shore and wooded hills beyondBeyond Mexico CityValle de BravoThe lake in the hills

Our advice

Be at Teotihuacan when the gates open

The site is wide open and busiest between noon and four. Leave early from the Terminal del Norte, bring a hat and water, and walk the Avenue of the Dead before the heat. Teotihuacan

In depth

Mexico City in depth

The great sights on the old lake, the city’s table, the murals and the stage, the hotels, the transport and where to buy: the stories behind Mexico City.

A chinampa garden of flowers and trees beside a quiet canal at XochimilcoIn depth: nature & wildlifeWild Mexico CityThe axolotl, Xochimilco and the forestTacos al pastor with salsas, onion, coriander and limeThe back storyMexico City at the tableMasa, mole and the starsThe painted ceiling, carved frieze and iron staircase of the MUNALThe back storyMurals and modernismMexico City’s arts

At the table

Eat your main meal at lunch, as the city does, from about two in the afternoon; a starred dinner can wait for another night.

  1. The back storyWhere Mexico City sleepsReforma, Polanco and Roma
  2. The back storyGetting aroundMetro, Metrobús and cable cars
  3. The back storyBuying in Mexico CityNeighbourhoods and the notary
  4. Fun factsMexico City fun factsThings you might not know

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