Mexico City Travel Guide: 16+ Things to See and Do

Find out where to stay, what to eat, and the best ways to experience this beautiful, vibrant city.

By: Felicia Feaster

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Mexico City's Palace of Fine Arts

Traveling to Mexico City feels more like visiting a cosmopolitan, culture-rich European city (with no jet lag, and a blissfully short 3-hour travel time from my home base in Atlanta) than like the tourist-centric resorts Mexico is more often known for. Gay couples openly hold hands on the street, fashionable types in black leather and sky-high heels duck into trendy shops and restaurants; luxury chains and car dealerships dot the chic Polanco and hipster-thick Condesa neighborhoods and an incredible array of street art and sculpture demonstrate locals’ high regard for weaving art into daily life.

Speaking of the arts, the gorgeous Mexico City Palace of Fine Arts (Palacio de Bellas Artes), shown here, is the city's premier cultural center and houses a collection of art and plays host to a number of cultural events. Its stunning gold-domed exterior incorporates art deco and art nouveau styles.

Angel of Independence Statue in Mexico City

Some American travelers experience a certain level of trepidation when thinking about travel to Mexico. Beyond the usual resorts like Cancun and Cozumel, the rest of the country can feel like unknown territory. Television news stories of drug cartels and kidnappings haven’t helped reassure travelers. I received plenty of concerned looks from strangers and my own teenage son when sharing news of a trip to Mexico City. And while I appreciated their concern and desire not to see my face on the front page of the New York Times, I can report after five days in this incredible city, that I would return in a heartbeat, with son and husband in tow.

Editor's Note: If you are concerned about travel to Mexico or any other country, check in regularly at the State Department's website.

Mexico City's Glamorous St. Regis Hotel at Night

The check-in ritual at the St. Regis Mexico City includes a glass of bubbly or water to let you know right away — if the white gloved, top-hatted valets didn’t clue you in — that your escapist immersion in comfort has begun. The same check-in experience extends to small fry who every night can find an assortment of candies decanted in Willy Wonka-evocative glass jars for their own winding down (or up) treat after a day of sightseeing and pavement pounding.

View From the St. Regis Hotel Rooftop Helipad

The 189–room skyscraper that houses the St. Regis offers stunning city views that make you feel at the center of all the action in one of Central America’s most vibrant, fun-packed cities

At the luxurious St. Regis Mexico City you get a little bit of two worlds, both luxurious and dynamic. The hotel's location is close to some of Mexico City’s most interesting neighborhoods and the staff rightly describes this soothing, service-centric oasis as a resort within the city. With an in-house Remede spa and one floor given over to an array of health club offerings, including a juice bar, weight room, swimming pool and Kinesis and Pilates studios this is the kind of amenity-rich location that can make it tempting to hole up like a pampered rock-star-in-recovery and just treat mind and body to some amazing food and spa treatments. Instead, I’d recommend treating the St. Regis as a luxurious launching pad, a place to begin and end your day in extreme, goose-down buffered comfort, before venturing out to your next adventure beyond its shimmering glass walls.

Celebrity Guests Have Made the St. Regis Mexico City a Home Away From Home

You’ll be in good company at the St. Regis Mexico City: Bono, Madonna, Christoph Waltz, Monica Bellucci, Daniel Craig, Gerard Butler, Sofia Vergara and Colin Farrell have all stayed at the hotel.

The Sangrita Maria Bloody Mary

Even those who aren't fans of the Bloody Mary may change their tunes after sampling the St. Regis Mexico City’s version of this signature drink, the Sangrita Maria, infused with the hyper-local spirit mezcal and a delicious chile pasilla puree.

Sangrita Maria

1/4 ounce chile pasilla puree*
1/2 ounce premium mezcal
1 pinch black pepper
1 pinch salt
5 dashes Worcestershire sauce
5 dashes Maggi Seasoning sauce
1/2 ounce lemon juice
8 1/2 ounces cold tomato juice
Agave salt
1 lemon wedge for garnish

*For chile pasilla puree, blend a pasilla pepper with a little water. Mix all of the ingredients in a tall 12 ounce glass rimmed with agave salt. Garnish with a lemon wedge.

El Moro Churreria

The famous coffee, hot chocolate and churros destination El Moro has been in Mexico City since 1935. The original location in the Centro Historico is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The Krispy Kreme of Mexico

Mexico City’s answer to Krispy Kreme, El Moro features adorable waitresses in peacock-blue uniforms and crisp white aprons and an old world space whose chilly tile floors and low lights offer a respite from the sun and crowds beyond. El Moro is the perfect way to start your day anytime, but seems like it should be required supping after a night of mezcal-abuse, with its perfect blend of caffeine, grease and sugar. Order the churros, and any of the varities of dipping chocolate — Mexicano, Espanol, Francés — from sugary to more subdued and start dunking. Absolute perfection.

Roldan 37 Restaurant Is an Atmospheric Respite From Mexico City's Vibrant Street Life

After touring the chaotic, must-see Merced Market, a food hall and grocery shopping destination in one, where glistening fruta cristalizada, endless varieties of mole and a food stall crowned with some pseudo golden arches offers tacos topped with a heaping helping of French fries, you’ll want to come down from that melee with a relaxing cocktail and snack from the atmospheric Restaurante Roldan 37. Pictures of Jesus and the last supper set a tranquil tone. The second floor with lovely small balconies and floor to ceiling windows flung open to catch the breeze is an otherworldly experience, a moment to savor the food but also the uniquely lost-in-time atmosphere that often rubs up against big-city amenities in this wonderfully contradictory city. I was especially taken by the rajas con crema, featuring chunky strips of poblano pepper with rich cream, cheese and onion. There is a small hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant located inside a grocery store in my Atlanta neighborhood that makes its own rajas con crema and it felt oddly like going home, experiencing this familiar dish abroad.

La Lagunilla Sunday Antiques Market

You could spend an entire day wandering this incredible outdoor antiques market at the Boxeador Monument Park on Paseo de la Reforma. Tianguis de Antiguedades Lagunilla is held each Sunday in Mexico City and is an incredible, intense treasure hunt and a revealing journey through Mexico's history, filled with the linens, knick-knacks, statues, books and artworks that give you a feel for the interests and decorating styles of Mexican households.

Bazaar Sabado and Plaza San Jacinto

On Saturdays, the San Angel neighborhood explodes with color. The mansion that hosts the Saturday craft market Bazar Sabado teems with artisan crafts and gourmet. Here, you’ll find high-end teas, cacao, spices, and mezcal mixed in among the colorful fabric flowers, mosaic fountain pens, jewelry, sculptures, and more. In the center of the building you’ll find an open-air restaurant that serves up gourmet quesadillas. Don’t skip the calabaza (squash blossom) quesadillas if they’re on the specials menu. Spilling out from the Bazar Sabado, you’ll find rows and rows of paintings from local artists lining park and plaza fences as far as you can see. If you’re hoping to head home with a new piece for your collection, set aside at least several hours to explore. Don’t miss the covered stalls, where you’ll find handmade bags, toys, jewelry, soap, and colorful, painted ceramic skulls.

Teotihuacan

If you're visiting Mexico City, add Teotihuacan to the top of your to-do list as it's one of the country's best archaeological sites. Roughly 25 miles from modern Mexico City, Teotihuacan was the epicenter of Mesoamerica dating back to the first 2 centuries B.C. and flourished until its collapse sometime around A.D. 700. The Avenue of the Dead is the wide main street that divides the city in half from the Moon Plaza stretching beyond the Ciudadela. The Pyramid of the Sun is the third largest in the world while the Pyramid of the Sun is equally impressive. In addition, the city was filled with temples, apartment buildings, artisans' workshops and the enclosed Cuidadel, many of which are visible today.

The Huntress Diana Statue in Mexico City

Mexico City's iconic main thoroughfare the Paseo de la Reforma, is a promenade of grand sculpture and architecture that invites comparisons to Paris. A streetsweeper armed with a solitary broom tends the roundabouts on the street with a calm efficiency and the many traffic circles on this posh avenue are their own meccas of fascinating street life, filled with canoodling young couples and skateboarding kids. The roundabout boasts a fountain crested with a bronze sculpture of Diana the Huntress that was a cause celebre upon its unveiling in 1942 for the model’s very contemporary, Beyonce curves.

La Table Krug Is Foodie Heaven in a Food-Centric City

A special slice of foodie heaven, expect the incredible cheese, butter, bread and decadent sauces of a proper French meal, as well as a menu that changes weekly at the in-house La Table Krug at the St. Regis. The ritual for just 12 people unfolds at a communal table in a jewel box room bustling with a team of hyper-efficient waiters and regular tableside visits from the chef who deconstructs each course. Every possible detail has been thought-through including the special music chosen to pair with each new course. The meal culminated with a remarkable chocolate dessert presented on a bed of dry ice that unfolded like a Las Vegas spectacle; chocolate sauce poured onto its surface melted the chocolate shell, revealing more sweets inside. Just when it seemed like the culinary climax had been reached, a candy “tree” in the Krug lobby featured miniature macarons and chocolates packed by waiters into St. Regis boxes.

The San Juan Market Is a Destination for Gourmet Culinary Offerings

One of Mexico City’s higher-end gourmet destinations, the San Juan Market features an array of fresh seafood, edible flowers and one incredible stand dedicated to an array of specialty cheeses.

Esquites Are a Mexico City Street Food Staple

I stopped for a moment to watch one of the many street vendors along Mexico City’s Paseo de la Reforma prepare this transportable snack served out of a cup: layering roasted corn, mayonnaise, cheese, hot pepper and lime and all over again to the top. “You have to try it,” advised the twentysomething standing next to me waiting on two portions, one for himself and one for his girlfriend who hadn’t yet experienced the esquites in her neck of Mexico. I promised him I would, but was too full from a leisurely lunch of the requisite endless courses, dessert and free-flowing mezcal. I never found another chance to try esquites during my trip, but that man's enthusiastic, eyes-rolling-back-in-his-head endorsement made me anxious to return to Mexico City very soon. Esquites, I'm coming for you.

Mezcal Is the Beloved, Smoky Spirit That Defines Mexico

I am embarrassed to say before I visited Mexico City, I didn’t really “get” mezcal. I had experienced a few mezcal cocktails at hipster boites in Atlanta, but tasting this indigenous, artisanal liquor in its country of origin was a revelation. Mexico City residents drink mezcal straight, the better to appreciate the various gradations of smoky and sweet, smooth and punchy in this liquor distilled from the agave plant. Slowly sipping and savoring mezcal is more like wine tasting than the quickly downed tequila shot. Almost every restaurant has some favorite selections on hand (there are over 9,000 mezcal producers in the country), but one of my favorites was Papadiablo sampled at the brand-new and very hip café, Amaya, created by renowned Mexico City chef Jair Téllez who, along with his lovely wife (fun fact: they met on Tinder!) was the consummate host. Also, mezcal is known as “god’s elixir,” so you can’t really go wrong with an endorsement like that.

Making Mezcal

Made from the fermented juice of agave plants, distilling mezcal involves drawing juice from the agave by using a burro or horse to pull a large stone over the chopped-up leaves.

Agave Plantation in Mexico

While the better-know Mexican liquor, tequila, is by law only distilled from the blue agave, mezcal can be sourced from the more than 30+ varieties of agaves so the flavor varies wildly. Agave plantations in Mexico grow the indigenous plant that both tequila and mezcal are produced from.

Mushrooms at Amaya in Mexico City

Chef Jair Téllez at Amaya is as much an undeniable fan of the pig as any of the Southern-born chefs I love in Atlanta, so expect pig’s ears and other swine delicacies to show up on the menu at this charming Mexico City chef-driven spot. But he also has a particular way with seemingly simple ingredients, offering a rustic, pared-back preparation of mushrooms that allows their true flavor and beauty to shine through. The dish's earthy flavors were the perfect complement to the bracing mezcal Téllez brought out to accompany.

Pujol Is the World Class Restaurant That Makes Mexico City a Food Destination

It doesn’t get edgier, more experimental but also more rooted in local food culture than it does at Pujol, celebrity chef Enrique Olvera’s gorgeous, romantic hot spot, named to San Pellegrino’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants List. Service is exceptional, the staff unobtrusive but incredibly knowledgeable and the dark, velvet-encased atmosphere undeniably sexy. A rotating cast of beautiful couples commanded intimate tables hugging the wall, adding to the seductive atmosphere. Olvera’s food is absurdly clever but the flavors are never upstaged by fussy presentation. A medley of street foods starts the meal, including baby corn on skewers served from a hollowed out gourd so diners could gather around the dish like a warming campfire. A dusting of powdered chicatana (flying) ant, coffee and costeno chile mayonnaise transported street food to the realm of haute cuisine.

A Front and Center Mole

One of the singular Pujol experiences is a hyper-conceptual pre-dessert offering of two moles, a “baby” mole nuevo and a “mother” mole madre arranged like an enticing bull’s eye on the plate, with the dark brown mother encasing the nutty brown baby within. The particular madre mole we were eating was a 990-day old classic, and had a nutty, dense depth of flavor utterly different from its babe. Not too sweet, it was the perfect punctuation to the restaurant’s signature, singular six-course feast.

Blue Corn Tortillas Are a Mexican Street Food Delicacy

Street vendors in Mexico City and some restaurants feature this gorgeous, flavorful spin on the traditional tortilla, but in this case made from ground blue corn. Seek them out whenever and wherever you can. You won’t be sorry. Part of Mexico’s pre-Hispanic food traditions, the diamond-shaped blue corn tlacoyo is cooked on a small metal griddle with a shelf inside for the hot coals and often holds a mash of fava beans and cactus salad and cheese. But it is that magical taste and color of the blue corn that transports this dish to another place entirely. Look for the lovely women, Rocio and Yvonne, hunched over their cook stove and handing over these tlacoyos at a street stand near Calle Lopez, to experience some of the most memorable tlacoyos in the city.

Blue Corn Tortillas

The tortillas de maiz azul, or blue corn tortillas are an incredible Mexican variation on the classic corn tortilla.

The Lively Los Danzantes Restaurant Offers Vast Dining Options

Mexicans celebrate the other protein. No, not chicken: bugs. They are for sale at local markets, and pop up in a variety of dishes, as an add-in to guacamole, a taco filling, a coffee-like puree sprinkled on dishes. If you need a bit more psychological distance when eating bugs, and the idea of a crispy grasshopper peeking out of your taco gives you the willies, then you might want to try the giant ant eggs on the menu at the convivial, buzzing Coyoacan neighborhood restaurant Los Danzantes. This spot stocks an incredible array of mezcals (many of them sourced from their own distillery) to sample but be sure and ask for the buttery, crunchy, corn-like ant eggs (genus Liometopum), each about the size of a ball bearing and harvested from the root of the agave. This insect caviar, considered a delicacy by the Aztecs, epitomizes the unique foodways of the country, both ancient but also well-suited to the needs of a changing planet embracing new forms of protein.

Turkey Torta Is Another Street Food Classic to Try

The incredible turkey tortas at the street food stand Tortas Tortas (54 Dolores Street in the downtown historic center) operated by Luis “Luigi” Buenrostro come accessorized with avocado and homemade chipotle salsa and like all great street food, demand to be eaten standing, right then and there, salsa dripping down your arm, as soon as they’re dished up. But just in case, there are plastic benches to perch on if you want to savor this local delicacy with a modicum of dignity.

Fonart Offers High-Quality Handicrafts in Mexico City

You’ll often see much of the same at handicraft markets around Mexico City — same colorful skulls, tapestries, bowls, masks, even, often, the same paintings. At Fonart stores, run by the government agency National Fund for the Development of Handcrafts, you’ll find a more curated selection of handicrafts of higher quality. Everything at the Fonart stores is guaranteed to be made by local artists paid a fair, living wage.

Mexico City Travel Guide: 16+ Things to See and Do

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Mexico City's Palace of Fine Arts

Angel of Independence Statue in Mexico City

Mexico City's Glamorous St. Regis Hotel at Night

View From the St. Regis Hotel Rooftop Helipad

Celebrity Guests Have Made the St. Regis Mexico City a Home Away From Home

The Sangrita Maria Bloody Mary

El Moro Churreria

The Krispy Kreme of Mexico

Roldan 37 Restaurant Is an Atmospheric Respite From Mexico City's Vibrant Street Life

La Lagunilla Sunday Antiques Market

Bazaar Sabado and Plaza San Jacinto

Teotihuacan

The Huntress Diana Statue in Mexico City

La Table Krug Is Foodie Heaven in a Food-Centric City

The San Juan Market Is a Destination for Gourmet Culinary Offerings

Esquites Are a Mexico City Street Food Staple

Mezcal Is the Beloved, Smoky Spirit That Defines Mexico

Making Mezcal

Agave Plantation in Mexico

Mushrooms at Amaya in Mexico City

Pujol Is the World Class Restaurant That Makes Mexico City a Food Destination

A Front and Center Mole

Blue Corn Tortillas Are a Mexican Street Food Delicacy

Blue Corn Tortillas

The Lively Los Danzantes Restaurant Offers Vast Dining Options

Turkey Torta Is Another Street Food Classic to Try

Fonart Offers High-Quality Handicrafts in Mexico City

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