Area in close walking distance to the Frida Kahlo Museum, and the renowned churro place…read more We left the hotel early, got dropped off with one hour before our ticket admitting us in so we walked to a Panera that Doc spotted on the ride there. We entered a church, had lunch in the area and did some shopping. Doc bought a bracelet I liked from a vendor and a T-shirt from a man across the street from the museum for me. I bought some bracelets and pouches from a man on the street. He could speak English and said his family was Aztec. He made the bracelets and his grandmother made the pouches. Many locals with their dogs and tourists were enjoying the nice warm weather. We saw people being blessed with special smoke or sage. Many shops and eateries on nice streets. There was one two story restaurant that looked very pretty and romantic with couples eating on the outdoor balcony.

Fun, lively area! Came on a Sunday and there were tons of people outs and about…read more Pros: -many restaurants to choose from -vendors galore where you can buy souvenirs -there are a few free Wi-Fi spots in this area -we saw performers dancing near the church Cons: -none

Going to Mexico City for the first time as an adult meant that just about everything I was going to…read moreexperience was going to be new. Going to Castillo de Chapultepec was definitely one of those things. Visiting this historic place was not even on my radar, if not for the wife's insistence that visiting this place was a "non-negotiable" -- I probably would've skipped it. I'm so glad I didn't as I would say after my visit to the Anthropology museum, also located in Chapultepec, this was my second most favorite spot I visited on my wonderful trip to Mexico City. The castle is located at a top of a pretty decent hill in Chapultepec, so be prepared to walk a bit to get to the castle. The fee to get into the museum is pretty low, it's about 210 pesos/$12 USD for foreign visitors and about half of that cost for locals.On Sundays locals get in for free. They have a pretty strict bag policy as backpacks aren't allowed, though they do provide lockers at the entrance for 10 pesos for rent. Now let's talk about the castle inside. It's amazing. It's so full of art pieces from so many famous Mexican artists. It has many famous Mexican historic murals. It is also full of many Mexican historic decorative art pieces from the 19th century. What I think I liked the most is the vast amount of beautifully crafted stained glass throughout the castle. It's breathtaking. The pure history of this castle is just out of this world. The hill the castle was built on was sacred to the Aztecs. This was the residence for Emperor Maximilian. Many presidents of Mexico called this castle home. It has served as a military academy and was the site to one of the most famous battles in Mexican history, Ninos Heroes. For a short time it was even an observatory. Those are just some of the many fascinating facts you learn while visiting this incredible historic place. There is so much history, art, architecture and culture packed into Castillo de Chapultepec that it's almost impossible to take it all in during one visit. I went because my wife insisted. I left wondering why I had never put this place on my radar in the first place. No trip to Mexico City would be complete without a visit to Castillo de Chapultepec.

Worth putting on your itinerary for CDMX. Love the architecture of this beautiful castle. The…read moreentrance de for foreigner is $210 pesos (~$10 USD). You can pay at the kiosk and not have to wait in line. To get to the castle, you will have to walk to the top of the hill. CDMX has a much higher elevation than where we're from so you feel altitude sickness particularly when walking up the steps. Recommend to bring some shades as it does get hot when the sun is out. Amazing views, overlooking the city. You can take your time exploring the inside of the castle and the garden area. It wasn't too crowded when we were here or didn't feel like it since it's pretty big.

If you are a Diego Riviera fan this is a must see while you're in Mexico City! At the Palacio…read moreNational you will see his largest and most comprehensive collection of murals. if I remember my tour guides speech correctly, this has 100 of his murals that took him five years of his life. Each mural depicts different ways of life at that time. The murals themselves are studied. All the colors of muted but vibrant. The colors are not vegetable that is, but actual oil put onto wet plaster. As a plaster dried, it locked in the color which has remained all these years. The interiors have multiple courtyards that are very relaxing. .. it is a very peaceful place. If you want or plan to see all the murals, I suggest you plan for at least a few hours. There's multiple levels and as I mentioned at least 100 murals of Diego's alone, as well as multiple other murals done by others.

An absolute must to see the amazing and jaw dropping work of Diego Rivera. You'll need to make…read morereservations for a mandatory guided tour.

As I'm watching the World Cup from my cozy confines back in Sacramento-I see the FIFA Fanfest in…read moreMexico City happening at the Zocalo with over 50k fans packed in the Zocalo watching on big screens their beloved home team Mexico open the World Cup 2026. During my visit to Mexico City earlier this year,I really enjoyed visiting the Zocalo.Its kind of Mexico City's version of Times Square in that it's used as a central location for many events that happen in the city-While also housing the Capital Building where the Mexican President works at on a daily basis. It also houses one of the most historic cathedrals in all of Mexico City.This church is a true must visit for anyone who spends any time in Mexico City. There are also many restaurants and bars surrounding the Zocalo-though be warned,it's pretty much a tourist trap and you will be price gouged at most of those restaurants in the Zocalo area. I remember during my trip we visited the Zocalo almost every day and the trippy part was how much it changed day to day.That trait also reminded me of Time Square-You go to bed with it looking one way and wake up and it's something else-that happens a lot at the Zocalo. Two really good memories standout about the Zocalo during my visit,The first was I got to witness firsthand the ceremony of the military taking the huge Mexican Flag down that is located in the center of the Zocalo-It's like a whole ceremony that is used to take it down each evening and felt very lucky to have been there at the right time to witness it.The ceremony starts at 6pm local time each evening-it's pretty awesome.Its free to attend and I highly recommend it. The second memory I had was I was at the Zocalo the morning that Shakira was giving her free concert at the Zocalo in Mexico City-so I got to witness for a few days watching them setup for the concert and it was a massive project-the concert later that evening set an attendance record for the Zocalo as an estimated 400k people were in attendance for the free concert. That's the kid of things that randomly happen at the Zocalo-it's a very special place and a must-visit for anyone visiting the beautiful Mexico City.

Plaza de la Constitución is the current official name of this central square located in Mexico…read moreCity's historic district, with centuries of history, and formerly known by many other names. It's evolved from a site for early Aztec rituals to a venue for modern independence celebrations, concerts, protests and parades, with varied uses in between. Today it's known as "El Zócalo", Spanish for "base" referring to the base of a monument to independence that was never finished in this square. Instead a single flagpole stands in the middle. Built over the ceremonial center of the Aztec city Tenochtitlan previously located in the same spot, you can visit the city's teocalli (sacred precinct) called Templo Mayor in today's vernacular. This is directly north east of the square. To the direct north is the Catedral Metropolitana de la Ciudad de México (Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral), to the east is the Palacio Nacional (National Palace), to the south are city government offices including the City Hall and Supreme Court close by. Over the centuries it's functioned as a public square, makeshift or formal market place, park, gathering place for political uprisings and other major historic events. Nowadays it's still a popular gathering place, there are buskers, organized performances, cultural and civic activities, including the Day of the Dead annual parade. When I was there a few weeks ago there was a city sponsored art exhibit of cactus statues, looked to be designed, and painted/embellished/decorated by local artists. There were around 100 different cacti spread out in the central section around the flagpole. Entrance was free though the exhibition area was fenced with police monitoring the entry points, I suppose to prevent any malicious activity toward the public art. So many designs stood out, I posted some pics of my faves--what talented artists!

An icon of the city and a truly must see-I mean really would you leave NYC without seeing the…read moreStatue of Liberty or leave Paris with visiting the Eiffel Tower?Well you can't leave Mexico City without visiting this beautiful statue. It's located pretty close to Chapultepec Park,in fact you can see the statue from the main entrance to the park-it's a short walk to this statue. When you get to the park they direct traffic so that pedestrians can walk up to the statue and sit on the steps below it,be sure to follow traffic laws though as it's a crazy busy intersection and would hate for anyone to get hit by a car trying to get to the statue. That's all-if u find yourself in Mexico City-get yourself to this statue-it's a beauty.

The Ángel de la Independencia is one of the most iconic landmarks of Mexico City, representing…read moreMexico's independence from Spain. It's a tall column with a gold statue of the Greek goddess Nike on top. It's located in the middle of a roundabout of Paseo de la Reforma, one of the city's most popular streets. There are steps at the base and you'll often find people just sitting there hanging out.

This is a very old still working post office with a lot of history. Beautiful inside and out, you…read morecan send mail/package/postcards and What have you. If you're out in the Palacio de Bella Artes /Park, take a few moments to go in and check it out. I wasn't able to go to the second floor during my visit. Did you know Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote a hundres years of solitude and mailed it to his publisher at this post office? He had loaned/pawned his entire belongings and when he weighed the manuscript he only had money to pay to ship the first half.

This museum is really not impressive The only thing was the…read morestaircase that they only allow you to take the picture on your way. Cost about $5 US not expensive but for me not worth it. Every description is in Spanish. The materials of the museum weren't good. I didn't learn much after the museum visit If you want to take the photo of the grand staircase for your social media then the $5 will worth it.

I would not attempt this climb with a cane or a baby in your arms (we saw both today.) We had…read morehiking boots and were glad, most people had tennies but it was a dry day, I can't imagine how difficult it would be if the rocks were wet. Parts of this climb or steep, rocky stairs, parts of this climb where navigating big rock to big rock it took us a solid hour to get up and that's resting when our hearts were beating too fast, which was about 25 times. Ha! Climb down to 45 minutes. He spent about an hour at the top just recovering doing some meditating at the temple taking some pictures. The cost to get in was 210 pesos a person. There were vendors along the way selling candies, waters Gatorade, and a frozen banana with chocolate and Popsicles most people were wearing workout clothes we were wearing shorts, I agree with the person who said to wear handkerchief, we sweated a lot, and I had to wipe my face on my shirt. We were also grateful for the person who told us to get started at 8 AM so you're at the top when they open at 9 AM. We actually started our climb at 9 AM and I think we beat a lot of the traffic. A beautiful view from the top!

Epic place and epic hike! Definitely need to come and check the experience this place offers. A…read moreheavy hike for those who are not use to incline but the great part is that it's shaded and along the hike people sell beverages and even paletas. The views are worth it and rewarding.