📅Mexico City: 5 daily itineraries that will maximize your time
Whether you have a day or a week to spend in Mexico City or a week, follow these 5 daily plans (plus bonus excursions) to minimize travel time and maximize experiences
Mexico City is big. Really big. And it’s notorious for its gridlocked streets. So, you can’t just know what you want to see and do. You need to plan your days with an eye toward seeing sights and visiting restaurants and bars that are in the same area, minimizing your travel time and maximizing time spend doing the things you want to do.
Here are five ways we suggest spending your days in Mexico City.
🏛 Day 1: Centro Histórico
🏛Centro is a big area that consists of several neighborhoods and most of the city’s traditional tourist sights. Most people will need at least two days to see the best of them. The first of those days should center—sorry—on 🏛Centro Histórico, the area around the 👁️Plaza de la Constitución (Zócalo).
This includes:
🏛Catedral Metropolitana y Sagrario Metropolitano - Both cathedrals will require up to an hour of time each.
👁️Plaza Manuel Gamio - spend 10 to 20 minutes enjoying the indigenous activities and maybe getting (and paying for) a photo-op.
🎨Museo del Templo Mayor - You can walk by the free, ground-level models in just a few minutes, or spend an hour in the museum proper.
🏛Palacio Nacional - This site requires you to acquire tickets for later in the day, so be sure to start the day by trying to get those first.
🚶Avenida Francisco I. Madero - This pedestrian-only street has lots of shopping, but be sure to walk the entire street and pop into the 👁️ Casa de los Azulejos. The walk should take less than 30 minutes, unless you’re a shopper.
That’s a lot of sightseeing, but be sure to check out the lobby of the 👁️Gran Hotel and, if possible, get drinks or a meal at its 🍴 Terraza Gran Hotel restaurant and bar, which offers sweeping views of the Zócalo. If you can’t, 🍴Primer Cuadro is a terrific alternative right next door with equally good views.
Our favorite taco stand in Mexico City, the iconic 🍴Taquería Los Cocuyos, is also nearby and should not be missed. The equally iconic 🍴Café De Tacuba (classic Mexican) and upscale 🍴 La Casa de las Sirenas (Mexican) are good choices for dinner.
🌳 Day 2: Alameda Central and Monumento a la Revolución
To the west of Centro Histórico is another big area full of interesting tourist sites, most of which are next to or near the 🌳Alameda Central Park. Ideally, visit the park once during the day, spending about 30 minutes wandering its interconnecting paths, and once at night, when you can watch (or participate in) the dancing that breaks out there. The 👁️Plaza de la Solidaridad has weekend markets worth checking out.
Key sights here, and just to the west, include:
👁️Torre Latinoamericana. This skyscraper has an observation tower on the 44th floor that offers vista views of the entire city. Figure on about 30 minutes.
🏛Palacio de Bellas Artes. You’ll want to take many photos of Mexico City’s prettiest building, but consider going inside for about 30 minutes to check out its incredible murals as well.
🏛Palacio Postal. Tucked on a corner just behind Bellas Artes, this gorgeous functioning post office and tiny museum can be seen in just 15 minutes.
👁️Monumento a la Revolución. Located a short 10-minute walk to the west of Alameda Central, this unique monument is worth seeing, but if you have 30 to 40 minutes, we recommend going to the top as well.
The Sears building across from Bellas Artes has a ☕Finca Don Porfirio coffee shop with an outdoor terrace on the 8th floor, and it shouldn’t be missed. But two of our favorite restaurant/bars are in this area, too: 🍸La Azotea next to Alameda Central park and 🍸Terraza Cha Cha Chá across from Monumento a la Revolución.
🌳 Day 3: Reforma and Chapultepec
🚶Avenida Paseo de la Reforma bisects much of Mexico City, but the stretch between the 🏛El Ángel de la Independencia monument and the gates to the🌳Bosque de Chapultepec park is the prettiest, with fountains, modern skyscrapers, and seasonal outside exhibits. It’s worth a walk on any day, but try to visit on Sunday morning, when the street is closed to traffic so locals and visitors can walk, bike, or rollerblade on the street itself. There aren’t any major sights right on Reforma. But that’s what the Chapultepec area is for:
🌳Bosque de Chapultepec. You could easily spend half a day or more at this sprawling park that includes ponds, walking paths, food and drink stands, entertainment, and its own castle, the Castillo de Chapultepec which offers a good museum and sweeping views up Reforma.
🎨Museo Nacional de Antropologia. Then, you can spend the rest of the day at our favorite museum in Mexico City. It’s stunning.
There’s not much in the way of eating and drinking along this stretch of Reforma aside from some hotels—we like 🍴Amici (Italian) at the Sheraton near El Ángel de la Independencia, and the rooftop brunch at the nearby 🏨Sofitel is widely-known—but🌺Juarez, to the south, is worth exploring on foot. We recommend🍸Melina (bistro) for drinks or a meal when you need a break.
If you’re feeling adventurous, you could also visit nearby 🛍️Polanco for its upscale shopping, great restaurants—we recommend 🍸Cuerno Masaryk (bistro) and 🍸Dante Brasa y Fuego (grilled food)—and beautiful walks.
And then there’s the 🎨Museo Soumaya, which is free but a bit of a hike: Take an Uber.
🌳 Day 4: Condesa and Roma Norte
🌳Condesa and 🏠Roma Norte are quiet neighborhoods with apartments, coffee shops, bars, restaurants, and parks, but little in the way of sights. Start in Condesa, which has one of our favorite walks—the oval 🚶Avenida Amsterdam with a pedestrian walkway in the middle—and some of Mexico City’s best parks, 🌳Parque España and 🌳Parque México.
Condesa has no shortage of bars and restaurants, including many of our favorites. Do not miss🍴El Tizconcito, which invented Tacos al Pastor.
🍸Baltra Bar is routinely rated one of the top bars in the world, so get reservations in advance or show up right before it opens and try to squeeze in before it gets busy. If you strike out, the 🍸Diente de Oro whiskey bar is two doors down and is also terrific.
Our favorite restaurants in Condesa are🍴Azul Condesa (Mexican)—get at least one of the moles—🍴Merotoro (Baja Californian), and 🍴Xel-Há Bar (Yucatan). We visit each regularly.
Roma Norte doesn’t have any specific walks per se, though bustling Avenida Álvaro Obregón does have a pedestrian walk in its middle with fountains and some minor sights. But it’s worth walking Roma Norte from top to bottom. And at least two of its parks are worth seeing, 🌳Plaza Rio de Janiero for its El David replica statue and 🌳Plaza Luis Cabrera for its beautiful fountains.
What Roma Norte does have is a fun museum, 🎨MODO Museo del Objeto del Objeto, which is worth about an hour. And an incredible upscale shopping experience called 🛍️Palacio de Hierro that’s worth visiting for 30 minutes or so just for the extravagance. And just outside its northeast corner, you’ll find the 🏟️Arena México, home to Lucha Libre, an iconic, can’t-miss entertainment experience. Book tickets in advance.
We spend most of our time in Roma Norte, and it is full of terrific restaurants and bars. So many that it’s difficult to pick just a few favorites. But we strongly recommend:
🍴La Chicha (breakfast, lunch, or dinner)
🍴Gin Chan (sushi/Japanese)
🍴Nican Nican (lunch)
🍴La Oliva Tapas Bar (tapas)
🍴Taquería Álvaro Obregón (tacos)
🍴Taquería El Jarocho if you can get in—there’s usually a line
If you want something upscale, book a table at:
🍴Aleli Rooftop
🍴Em
🍴Fonda Fina (Mexican)
🍴Pargot Restaurante (Pargot just moved across the street from its former location so look for it there.)
🍸Licorería Limantour is routinely voted one of the top bars in the world, and deservedly so. It’s always busy and very loud. 🍷Vigneron is a small wine bar but it’s also one of our favorite places for dinner.
🐺 Day 5: Coyoacán and San Ángel
🐺Coyoacán and San Ángel aren’t quite next to each other, but they’re close, and both are roughly 30 minutes by car south of the areas noted above. But it’s worth the Uber drive: They both feature terrific parks with outdoor art markets each weekend, and Coyoacán is home to one of Mexico City’s best sights.
So let’s start there. 🎨Museo Frida Kahlo requires reservations in advance and will take at least an hour, and it’s a great way to begin the day. Nearby 🎨Museo Casa de León Trotsky is also worth seeing if you like history.
After that, visit the traditional 🛍️Mercado de Coyoacán market and the little 🌳Jardín del Arte Allende park out front, which hosts art fairs on weekends. Then, walk south two blocks and explore the adjoining parks, 🌳Jardín Hidalgo and 🌳Jardín Centenario, the latter of which features the iconic 🏛Fuente de los Coyotes fountain.
To the west in San Ángel, you’ll find the quirky 🎨Museo Casa Estudio Diego Rivera y Frida Kahlo. It’s right next to🍴San Ángel Inn, one of our favorite fine-dining experiences in Mexico City and worth strolling through even if you aren’t hungry.
San Ángel has some incredible shopping experiences at 🛍️Bazar San Ángel and the surrounding area, including outdoor Saturday art markets (El Bazar Sabado) at 🌳Plaza del Carmen and🌳Plaza San Jacinto. They’re close to each other, and the surrounding area is pretty and worth a stroll. One of our favorite restaurants, the open air 🍴Oxa (Mexican) is right next to Plaza San Jacinto too.
🚗 Day trips and splurges
Some of the best experiences you’ll have during a stay in Mexico City are located outside the city, in some cases well outside the city. But each is unique and memorable, and if you have the time, we strongly recommend doing as many as possible.
They are:
Hot-air balloon ride above the pyramids. The pyramids of 👁️Teotihuacán are impressive from the ground, but they are transformed into the backdrop for one of the best experiences you’ll ever have when viewed from a hot-air balloons. There are dozens of companies launching hundreds of balloons over Teotihuacán every morning. Here’s our detailed review:
Boat ride on the canals of 👁️Xochimilco. The canals of Xochimilco are all that’s left of the lake that Mexico City was originally built on, and they’re best seen by boat. Or, more specifically, trajineras, rainbow-painted low boats you can rent with a crew of one or two for an hour or more. There are two options here, a quiet, serene morning or midday ride, or a louder, party-like experience in the later afternoon, when the canals are clogged with boats, some selling food and drink or offering live music.
Sunrise tour of Xochimilco. Separate from the trajineras, you can tour Xochimilco in the predawn hours, watch the sunrise over Popocatépetl (El Popo), and enjoy an authentic breakfast. We recommend Exotik City Tours.
Additionally, Mexico City is the home of two Michelin Star-awarded restaurants,🍴Pujol and🍴Quintonil. Both are located in 🛍️Polanco, and each is incredibly expensive and requires reservations well in advance of your trip. But these are truly immersive culinary experiences if you’re a foodie.
Here’s what we thought of Quintonil:
🌮Taco tour
Mexico City and tacos are indelibly linked, and you could easily eat world-class tacos every day, at street stands and in restaurants, without breaking a sweat. Not surprisingly, there are many taco tours available in Mexico City, though we recommend Exotik City Tours.
But you could also roll your own, by planning days around notable local taco places. Or by making a day of it, like a taco crawl, and maybe rent an 🚲Ecobici to work off the excess calories between stops.
Some of our favorite taco places are:
🍴Taquería Los Cocuyos in 🏛Centro
🍴El Tizconcito in 🌳Condesa
🍴Taquería Álvaro Obregón and 🍴Tacos los Alexis in 🏠Roma Norte
🍴Café Tacobar del Sur and 🍴Taquería Los Parados in 🍸Roma Sur
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This is incredibly helpful. Gracias!
I accidentally did all of this yesterday 😆😂😆