Travel Guide to Mexico City

Uncategorized by Karen AndersonApril 13, 2025April 13, 2025

I’m excited to share a Travel Guide to Mexico City (CDMX). I spent one week there and it captivated me. I’m quite sure the people, food, beauty, and activities will pull me back for the rest of my days.

Do you have a list of objections in your head right now? Things like, what about the size? Isn’t it crowded? It must be hard to get around. I bet it’s polluted and dirty. Won’t I get sick? Isn’t it dangerous?

Read on. I hope my experience and this Travel Guide to Mexico City can bust some of these myths. Forbes magazine named CDMX the cultural capital of the world a few years ago. I now consider it one of the most beautiful and enjoyable places I’ve ever visited.

Size matters

It’s true. There are officially 29 million residents in CDMX. Flying into the airport at midnight, the stars twinkling overhead seemed to mirror the number of street lights below. They were twin milky ways seeming to stretch for an eternity.

The good thing about landing at midnight is the drive to our hotel was a breeze. The city slumbered around us as we whisked along the well-kept freeways. There are also three ring roads in the city to keep things flowing at peak times.

Waking in the city center, I was surprised to find trees everywhere. The parks and boulevards are like oxygen tanks for the city. They also protect from noise and pollution. CDMX is 7200 feet above sea level. The daily temperatures during my visit in February were a pleasant 20 to 22 Celsius. I felt calm and peaceful as, Google Maps in hand, we strolled the streets to meet up with a guide. The low-rise, centuries-old architecture left room for the blue sky and morning sun to light our way.

Our guide showed us to the underground subway system. The many lines on the map once again revealed how big the city is. And, how important this mode of transportation is. Our ride was clean, comfortable and most importantly, we covered a lot of ground quickly.

A few days later, we drove out of the city to the Teotihuacan pyramids. I again got an understanding of the size of this place. The hills that surround the city team with houses. They look like never-ending Lego structures in pastel hues. Gondolas run from hill to hill to transport these suburban dwellers into the city to work. It saves them a lot of time and the city, a lot of pollution.

Staying in the heart of the city is a unique experience. The oldest and most gracious neighbourhoods – Polanco, Condesa, Roma, Roma Norte, Coyoacan, San Angel – are clean and beautiful. One simply does not feel the crush of people you expect. I’ve certainly experienced far worse in the mega cities of India and South America.

I went to CDMX with a long list of things I wanted to do. I came away with an even longer list of things I want to return for. So, here goes. Here’s my Travel Guide to Mexico City. Here’s the things I truly loved on this first of what I hope will be many trips to Mexico’s capital.

Food Tours and a Cookbook Store

Of course, I’m starting with food tours. Here’s my number one travel tip. And, not just because I own Alberta Food Tours. Start every visit to a new city with a food tour.

You’ll meet a local.
They’ll lead you to all the best food.
They will also give you many other tips on things to do and places to eat.
You can relax and soak it all up without fretting over maps, subways, and where to eat.

Hungry Nomads

We spent seven hours on a street taco tour with Hungry Nomads owner John Chavez (left in the photo above). This was on our first day in CDMX. It was one of my most relaxing days exploring a massive city ever.

We met John in the Historic Center. He started the tour by showing us how the metro system works. That was super helpful. We hopped on a train together and whisked up to the Jamaica (pronounced high-make-ah) barrio to tour the market there. It was massive and very clean. John is well-liked by the vendors. We were grateful for his navigation through the warren of aisles.

My favourite stops were a fruit market where we tried at least a dozen fruits. Five or six of them were things that I’d never seen or tasted in my life. One was like chocolate pudding meeting an avocado. Incredible. I also loved the Esquites (street corn) at the Esquites “la Guera” stall. We also tasted seven different moles including pipian, adobo, verde, poblano, and almendrado. At a tortilla shop, we learned about the process of nixtamalizacion. This is where corn is made digestible with lime. We also tried a tortilla fresh from the machine.

As we toured, we savoured several kinds of tacos. We tried tacos de carnitas at the Carnitas Paty inside Jamaica Market. Back in the historic centre, we tried tlacoyo de frijol. It is a blue corn tortilla stuffed with beans and topped with nopales (chopped cactus). We also had quesadillas filled with that super melty Oaxaca cheese. At Tacos de Canasta (Basket Tacos) we tasted tacos from huge baskets filled with small, pre-made tacos. Here, the counters were lined with fresh guac, salsa, and pickled jalapeños and carrots for toppings. We all loved the beef brisket tacos at Taqueria Los Gueros de Lopez. And, at El Huequito, we enjoyed arguably the city’s best El Pastor tacos.

We finished our delightful day with John at the city’s best place for churros, Churreria El Moro Centro. Sipping silky smooth Mexican hot chocolate, we dipped our churros in both cajeta (caramelized goat milk) and chocolate sauce. Totally recharged, we left our dear guide to set on on a new quest he set for us. Where to find a great margarita and sunset view. (Spoiler Alert: We went to the rooftop bar at Circulo Mexicano. See places to stay below.)

Eat Mexico Food Tours

With Eat Mexico, we toured La Merced. Built in 1957, this market covers 54 city blocks and even has its own metro, police, and school systems. I kid you not. Eat Mexico has been giving tours here for 15 years. They keep their groups super small at four guests per guide. Their mission is to create value for and an increased understanding of their culture. They respect their vendor partners and have even created programs to help in the development of their businesses. All the guides are chefs.

From our guide Clara, I learned something REALLY important. She said, “CDMX residents can’t drink the tap water. So, all restaurants and market stalls have to use filtered water.” This seemed to be true wherever we went. Nobody in my group got sick and we travelled for 2 weeks throughout the country. There’s another myth to cross off your list. It is not inevitable that you will get sick if you visit Mexico. Be as careful as the locals and you’ll do very well indeed.

Other notable things I learned on the tour with Eat Mexico were:

1. Mexico grows about 80 different chilies with the habanero being native.

2. One chili can have three different names depending on whether it is fresh, dried, or smoked. Jalapeño to morito to chipotle is an example of that rule.

3. We also learned that tacos are not a dish. They are a way to eat the food in front of you. They will be served along with just about everything.

In the banquetón, or prepared food area, we tasted different tacos, a quesadilla, agua fresca, and fresh tamales. We ambled through the gigantic fruits and vegetables building, and even tasted prehispanic ingredients, like grasshoppers and agave worms. The grasshoppers were quite good, if a bit crunchy for my liking. The agave worms had the texture of a gummy worm. Not bad at all. Both are hand-plucked from crops. These crops might otherwise succumb to infestation. These were smart and sustainable protein sources for the Indigenous people.

Sabores Mexico Food Tours

These food tours are one of the things I ran out of time to do. But, Sabores is definitely on the must-do list for my return. Rodrigo Lopez Aldana, a long-time colleague of mine in the Global Food Tours Association, owns these tours. I am sure they will be fantastic.

Latin America’s First Cookbook Only Bookstore: Gallina de Guinea

Owned by former Rosetta pastry chef, Andrea Arbide, this addition to CDMX’s food scene was a delightful find. I bought a copy of the Rosetta cookbook and had a brief conversation with the owner/chef Elena Reygadas. She was paying her former employee a visit and left with a few new cookbooks for inspiration as well. Andrea stocks mainly Spanish language cookbooks but also has an excellent English language section. Speaking of Rosetta, it and its bakery, Panadería Rosetta, are on my bucket list for my return. And, mine is not the only list they are on as you’ll see when you read on.

Where to Eat – Restaurants

There are seven Michelin star restaurants in CDMX. They are:

Two-Star Restaurants:
- Pujol
- Quintonil
One-Star Restaurants:
- Esquina Común
- Rosetta
- Sud 777
- Taquería El Califa de León
- Em

There are 62 CDMX restaurants listed in the Michelin guide. You can find that HERE.

We enjoyed an incredible seafood feast at Entremar in Polanco. Contramar, the sister restaurant, will be on my list for my next visit. At Entremar, we enjoyed the Fish Tiraditos and Tuna Sashimi. We also had a large grilled fish with both red and green moles. It is a must eat. The desserts were stunning as well. Order any of them, but if there’s anything with guava, go for it.

At Azul Historico just a few blocks from the Zocalo, we enjoyed a feast. We delighted in the traditional dishes of chef Ricardo Muñoz Zurita. I had Mole Poblano over native turkey. It was a deeply satisfying dish. The setting for the restaurant is an open air courtyard with towering trees and twinkling lights. You could walk by on the street a thousand times if you didn’t know it was there. Truly it’s a hidden charmer.

Twice I enjoyed breakfast at El Cardenal. Here, I tasted my first, and best, Concha. The Concha is a large round pastry as light as a cloud. A little icing is stenciled to its exterior to give it the look of a sea shell. The service at El Cardenal is attentive, the building beautiful, the omelettes sublime. Don’t leave without trying the true Mexican hot chocolate. It is frothed to perfection in large clay jugs tableside. I liked the jugs so much I bought one at a market and cradled it until safely home. Reserve at El Cardenal if you are going on a weekend. It’s truly a local’s favourite and bustling on weekends for sure. Yum.

Where to eat – Tacos

I’ll repeat it. Tacos are not just a dish. They are a way of eating everything. Thus, tacos represent a way of life.

Here’s a list of spots we tried besides the ones we visited with Hungry Nomads:

Don One Carnitas Michoacanas
Taqueria Arandas
Tacos Domingo Al Carbon
Tacos Mateo in La Merced
El Jarocho Tacos (Michelin listed)
Juan Bisteces – deservedly famous.
Tostadas Coyoacan inside Mercado Coyoacan No 89

Where to eat – Coffee Shops and Cafes

Kahwen Cafe is near Frida Kahlo’s Museum in Coyoacan. Here, I picked up a Pasaporte del cafe de Especialdad CDMX. In it, there are 56 independent coffee shops. They offer discounts or free items when you get your “coffee passport to CDMX” stamped. Another reason to return!

Things to do – Museums

CDMX has more museums than any other city in the world. I made it to about 10. Here’s my favourites (so far):

Frida Kahlo Museum – Book your tickets ahead to avoid long lines. I was deeply touched by this museum. Pro Tip: Watch or re-watch the movie Frida before you go. It will make it so much more meaningful.

Museo Nacional Anthropologia – Prepare to be gob-smacked! Plan to spend most of a day. There’s a coat and bag check, cafe, and a glorious gift shop.

Museo de Art Moderno – Try to find a museum art intern. They are a fountain of knowledge and we learned more from ours than any guide book can share. She was doing a Masters Degree in Art History. Her stories brought every painting to life. We not only learned about the background of painters but also about the times in which they lived.

Things to do – Find Diego Rivera Murals

We went on a Diego Rivera mural hunt and found them in truly fascinating places:

You’ll find the most at the Secretariat of Public Education. Here, all the interior walls of two huge courtyards on two levels are covered in these major works. On one side they depict the struggles of the Mexican people under Spanish oppression. On the other they celebrate fiestas. Allow at least one hour for this.

Be surprised and delighted to find them at Mercado Abelardo L Rodrigues in Cuauhtemoc – Centro. Look in the archway entrance and behind the juice stand.

Check out the interior of the Palace Bellas Artes for some.

Finish with a walk in the Alameda Central park from Palacio de Bellas Artes. Head to the grandest of the murals at Museo Mural Diego Rivera. It was saved from the earthquake.

large cave with tables and chairs inside

Things to do – Go to The Pyramids

Don’t miss a day of exploring the Teotihuacan pyramids. They are stunning. And, if you go, make a reservation to eat at La Gruta. It is an incredibly good restaurant in a massive cave nearby. I know it sounds touristy but it was cool and the food was delicious too.

Things to do – The Floating Gardens of Xochimilco

Sadly, I did not get to do this. I’ll be going back to soak it up. I will undoubtedly need help saying the word Xochimilco. That was not in my Babbel app.

Things to do – Shopping

Not to be missed is The La Ciudadela Handicraft Market. Originally developed for the 1968 Olympics, it holds over 300 artisans. And, here’s the best part, it’s mellow. There’s no hard sell. The items are high quality and handmade in Mexico. It was relaxing and I could have spent hours there.

I absolutely loved Plaza San Jacinto in the San Angel neighbourhood. It’s right beside the big park there. Filled with restaurants and craft artisans, this is a peaceful place to find keepsakes you will treasure. Not a tchotchke in sight. Make a reservation and eat at Oxa while you are there. This is a neighbourhood where you can spend a whole day just wandering around. Soak up the beautiful gardens, historic churches, and stunning architecture. And, on Saturdays, the park exhibits the work of 500 artists. It’s a haven in the city.

Places to Stay

The Gran Hotel – In the Historic Center. This hotel is renowned for its Tiffany stained glass ceiling. It exudes faded glory charm. The location is fantastic.

Circulo Mexicano – In the Historic Center – This hotel has twenty-five rooms. The design combines Shaker-inspired carpentry with the finest Mexican artisan textiles. The food is great and there’s a dining area, bar, and pool on the roof.

The Red Tree House – Condesa – This is the number one BnB in CDMX. Friends have stayed here and loved it. The location is fantastic.

Habita Hotel – Polanco – This neighbourhood north of the historic center is close to museums and art galleries. It also offers great shopping and restaurants. There are 36 rooms of contemporary design. Breakfast is served in the restaurant at street level. A lounge and pool with stunning views are on the top terrace.

I’m going to stop there. Of course, there’s a Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, and all the other best in class. I think the next time I go, I’ll search out an AirBnB in San Angel or Coyoacan. I loved both those neighbourhoods.