Things to Do in Mexico City
1 experience in Mexico City
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About Mexico City
Mexico City doesn't ease you in gently. It's 22 million people spread across a high-altitude valley, ringed by volcanoes, layered with 700 years of history — Aztec temple foundations sit beneath colonial churches sit beneath Art Deco apartment blocks sit beneath contemporary galleries. This is a city that rewards walkers and wanderers, where the best afternoons happen by accident: a mezcal bar you stumbled into, a mural you weren't looking for, a torta stand with a line of taxi drivers outside it.
The food scene alone justifies a trip. Mexico City has more Michelin-caliber restaurants than almost any city in the Americas, but its real strength is the informal stuff — the fondas, the taco stands open until 4am, the markets where breakfast costs 40 pesos and outclasses meals five times the price elsewhere. Add world-class museums (more than 150 of them), Frida Kahlo's cobalt-blue house, Diego Rivera murals covering entire government buildings, and a nightlife scene that runs from mezcalerías in La Condesa to techno warehouses in the Centro, and you have a city that's genuinely hard to get bored in.
It suits independent travelers who like cities with texture and contradiction — glossy and gritty, orderly and chaotic depending on the block. It's less suited to people wanting a relaxing beach-style holiday; this is a city to be worked, on foot, over several days, ideally with a decent tolerance for chaos and an appetite for street food. Families do well in the parks and museums of Chapultepec; couples and solo travelers gravitate to Roma and Condesa; history obsessives could spend a week in the Centro Histórico alone.
Good to Know
Altitude: at 2,240m, expect mild breathlessness or fatigue for the first 1-2 days — hydrate and skip heavy drinking on day one.
Tipping: 10-15% at restaurants, 10-20 pesos for bag help or valet, small change for street food isn't expected but appreciated.
SIM cards: Telcel and AT&T Mexico both have airport kiosks; a prepaid tourist SIM with data costs around 150-300 pesos for a week.
Cash: carry pesos for markets, street food, and small taxis — cards are widely accepted at restaurants and shops but not everywhere.
Safety: stick to Uber or app-based taxis over hailing on the street; use common sense in Centro at night; petty theft (not violent crime) is the main tourist risk.
Dress: casual but neat; upscale restaurants and clubs may expect smart-casual, but jeans are fine almost everywhere.
Water: don't drink tap water; bottled water is cheap and sold everywhere.
Spanish basics help: English is common in tourist zones and hotels but not guaranteed with taxi drivers or market vendors.
