Mexico City
20 Carrochan Rd, Balloch, Alexandria G83 8EG, UK
A trip to Scotland isn't complete without renting a car and driving on the undersized roads through the countryside. Enjoy the various terrains, small hidden towns, and the numerous lochs along the way. (My family did this going cross-country on...
Primera Sección del Bosque de Chapultepec S/N, San Miguel Chapultepec I Sección, 11580 Miguel Hidalgo, CDMX, Mexico
The magnificent Castillo de Chapultepec is surrounded by 1,695 acres of trees and wildlife on a high hill in the heart of Mexico City. I boarded the small tram in the middle of Chapultepec Park in downtown Mexico City, the former home of Mexican...
San Ángel Inn, Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
This used to be a hacienda, but it was turned into a restaurant almost 50 years ago. The food is phenomenal and the margaritas are famous—in fact, they’re my favorite thing on the menu. There is always a band or a pianist playing. 50 Diego Rivera...
Av. Pdte. Masaryk 390, Polanco, Polanco III Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Mexico City has no dearth of luxurious boutique hotels, but Las Alcobas is a special option. Designed by famed firm Yabu Pushelberg, the hotel is full of gorgeous details, from hand-stitched leather wall coverings to a spiral staircase that surges...
Paseo de la Reforma, San Miguel Chapultepec I Secc, 11100 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
So you say you're the kind of traveler who would never take a tour bus. I know. Me too. But Mexico City's Turibus is different because it gives you a sense of the capital's scope that's really impossible to experience in any other way. Take a ride...
Av. Veracruz 15, Condesa, 06140 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Mezcal has almost substituted tequila as the spirit of choice in high-end restaurants and simple bars alike. Recently a couple of mezcal specialized boutiques opened across the city. One of them is Sabrá Dios Mezcalería, where you can buy bottles...
Bahia del Espiritu santo 21 Local 2, Anáhuac I Secc., Anáhuac I Secc, 11320 Miguel Hidalgo, CDMX, Mexico
There are multiple outposts of the popular pozoleria La Casa de Toño all over Mexico City, but only a few of them are open 24 hours, including this one in the Zona Rosa neighborhood. Whether you've worked up an appetite dancing or need to soak up...
Calle de Motolinia 20, Centro Histórico, Centro, 06010 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Mexico City's Centro Histórico has some fine bars, clubs, restaurants, and hotels where you can enjoy a copa or a cocktail, but if you're looking for a side of good jazz to go along with your drink, then, the place is Zinco. Housed inside the...
Havre 83, Juárez, 06600 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
The owners of El Tercer Lugar take their coffee very seriously. The beans are brought from the states of Guerrero, and Veracruz, roasted on the spot, and each variety is infused using a different method. The roast from Guerrero, for example, is...
Colima 145, Roma Nte., 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
It's a somewhat awkwardly named museum, but Museo del Objeto del Objeto, has a charming, fascinating collection that tells the history of modern Mexico through both extraordinary and everyday objects it has made and used. Though it has a solid...
Aristóteles 8, Polanco Chapultepec, Polanco IV Secc, 11560 Miguel Hidalgo, CDMX, Mexico
Tienda MAP, the Museo de Arte Popular store, offers folk art from from different regions of Mexico. You’ll find a typical hand-woven shawl from Estado de México, huichol bracelets made in San Luis Potosí, or even maque from Michoacán. In total,...
Andrés Bello 29, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
The famed Brasserie Lipp in Paris has only one international outpost. No, it's not in New York; it's in Mexico City. Located in the JW Marriott in Polanco, Brasserie Lipp is a late-night bistro, open until 2:00 am every day but Sunday, when it's...
the Presidente Intercontinental Hotel, Campos Elíseos 218, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, 11550 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Maybe it's not French food you've got a hankering for when hunger strikes in the Mexican capital and money is no issue, but the fact that Au Pied de Cochon is open 24-hours may persuade you to head to Polanco's Hotel Intercontinental for a plate...
Calle de Durango 204, Roma Norte, Hipódromo, 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
If you're missing American diner grub, head out to Barracuda Diner for a late-night burger and fries. This Condesa restaurant is open until 3 a.m. and serves heaping portions to hungry patrons waiting patiently in 1950s-style booths and Formica...
Av. Revolución 241, Tacubaya, 11870 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Not every late-night dining option in Mexico City is upscale. For every Au Pied du Cochon or Brasserie Lipp, there are a dozen dives of dubious cleanliness but immense popularity. One of these—and a perennial favorite—is El Borrego Viudo. While...
Av. Veracruz 102, Roma Nte., 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Mexican hotelier Grupo Habita turned the shell of a 1928 French neoclassical mansion into a wholly contemporary property, CONDESAdf, which immediately became the standard for boutique hotels in Mexico City when it opened to rave reviews...
Av. Tamaulipas 122, Cuauhtémoc, 06140 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
If you're looking for a quick bite between stops on a bar or club crawl in Colonia Condesa, El Tizoncito might just be the spot, especially on a Sunday. Many restaurants in Mexico City close early on Sundays, but El Tizoncito's Condesa branch is...
Eje Central Lázaro Cárdenas 42, Centro Histórico, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
El Moro has been turning out churros and creamy hot chocolate 24 hours a day since 1935. You can have your churros three ways—with sugar, with sugar and cinnamon, or with cajeta, a creamy caramel—and your hot chocolate one of four ways—Mexican,...
Av. 5 de Mayo 10, Centro Histórico, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Please don't swing by this 24-hour spot thinking you're going to satisfy your Chinese food craving; despite the fact that its name might suggest it specializes in Asian fare, it's actually a Mexican restaurant. La Pagoda is an old-school,...
Calle Julio Verne 93, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Jules Basement hosts jazz nights every Tuesday. “Hidden” behind a refrigerator door of a taco joint in the Polanco neighborhood, it is the first speakeasy in Mexico City. Supposedly, the only way to access this very well known little secret is to...
Calle Querétaro 230, Roma Nte., 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Whether you want to learn salsa basics or show off your expert skills, Mama Rumba is just the spot. Every Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, the dancing club at Colonia Roma offers salsa lessons for just 100 pesos. It includes the entrance fee to...
Eje Central Lázaro Cárdenas 43, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
They've been popularized and commercialized in movies and may even seem to be a cultural stereotype of sorts, but visit Mexico City's Plaza Garibaldi on any given evening and you'll soon see that the tradition of mariachis is alive and well and...
Agrícola, Chimalistac, Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
"The architect, Eduardo Mata, was inspired by the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Berliner Philharmonie. I love performing in this monumental building. It was specially designed for symphonic music, and the audience surrounds the musicians...
Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico
Mexico City is often depicted—and not incorrectly—as a capital city teeming with buildings, people, and cars. It also, though, has a surprising number of green spaces and parks, the most expansive of which is Bosque de Chapultepec, right on the...
Bahía de San Hipólito 51, Local 5, Miguel Hidalgo, Col. Anáhuac 1a. Sección, Anáhuac I Secc, 11320 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
It may not be the first musical genre that comes to mind when you think of Mexico City, but the capital does have a robust jazz scene, and Blue Monk has been at the forefront of it since 2003 (when it opened under a different name, Papa Beto)....
Paseo de la Reforma 50, Miguel Hidalgo, 11580 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Initially constructed as a host venue for the 1954 Central American and Caribbean Games, the Auditorio Nacional has seen the top names in sports and the performing arts fill its halls in sixty years since it was inaugurated. The auditorium is an...
Av. Viaducto Rio de la Piedad S/N, Granjas México, 08400 Iztacalco, CDMX, Mexico
Foro Sol, like Auditorio Nacional, is a massive venue for big concerts, and if your favorite group hasn't played Auditorio Nacional, it's probably taken the stage at Foro Sol. Newer than Auditorio Nacional (it was built in 1993), Foro Sol is also...
Centro Banamex, Av. del Conscripto 311, Lomas de Sotelo, Hipódromo de las Américas, 11200 Naucalpan de Juárez, Méx., Mexico
Held each February since 2003, typically during the first weekend of the month, ZONA MACO is the city's–and the country's–premier art fair, featuring contemporary photography, sculpture, painting, video, and multimedia. Works are exhibited by...
Paseo de la Reforma, Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Paseo de la Reforma–or just "Reforma" to locals–is Mexico City's principal avenue, and its generous width means there's ample space to maintain large-scale public artworks. Among the best-known artists who have sculptures along Reforma...
Córdoba 100, Roma Nte., 06700 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Galeria OMR, sitting on the periphery of a park in Colonia Roma, has been an art institution in Mexico City since 1983. Among the many artists it has exhibited or represented in the 30+ years since are Rafael Lozano Hemmer, a Mexican artist living...
Gobernador Rafael Rebollar 94, San Miguel Chapultepec I Secc, 11850 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Three friends who found themselves thrown together in the New York of the 1990s—artist Gabriel Orozco, who has been featured at MoMA, the Pompidou Center, and the Tate Modern; Mónica Manzutto, who worked at the Marian Goodman Gallery;...
Calz. Gral. Mariano Escobedo No. 700, Anzures, 11590 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
There's a lot to recommend the Camino Real in Polanco, especially if you're an architecture and art aficionado. The hotel, designed by the late Mexican architect Ricardo Legoretta, is considered one of his master works; the shape of its pink and...
Historic center of Mexico City, Centro, 06000 Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico
Its massive size, centrality to daily life in the capital, and easy accessibility (a Metro station opens up right onto the plaza) makes the Zócalo an ideal place for large-scale temporary exhibits. The government hosts occasional exhibits...
Calle Bajío 231, Roma Sur, 06760 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Over the past few years, an interesting phenomenon has been taking off among Mexico City artists and curators: the apartment gallery. Sometimes an alternative to "The Establishment," other times a way to manage finances more intelligently, and...
Calle Dr. García Diego 157, Doctores, 06720 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
If you have time to visit only one of our picks for stellar street art, Foro Cultural MUJAM should be the spot. Its building, and those surrounding it, are wall-to-wall with murals and pieces by both local and international artists. MUJAM, the...
Historic center of Mexico City, Centro, 06000 Mexico City, CDMX, Mexico
The stations in Mexico City's subway system, the Metro, may not be famous for their century-old mosaics and tile work, as in New York City, or its painted ceilings and walls, as in Stockholm, but the capital's 100+ subway stations aren't devoid of...
Plaza San Jacinto 11, San Ángel TNT, San Ángel, 01000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Once a separate municipality, San Ángel—in the city’s south, nestled into its western foothills—is a leafy, genteel enclave whose relative isolation adds a soigné feel (for better or worse) you won’t find in...
Galería Doce, San Ángel, Mexico Distrito Federal, 01000, Amargura 12, San Ángel TNT, San Ángel, 01000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
My friend’s mother, Teresa Creel, paints these astonishingretablosof gold-plated Guadalupe virgins. They’re incredibly ornate, very Mexican and beautiful. 12 Amargura 52/55-5616-2040 As told to Nathalie Jordi. This story appeared in the...
Calz. Gral. Mariano Escobedo No. 700, Anzures, 11590 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
The creative team behind the edgy cultural magazine Celeste sells clothes and accessories by up-and-coming designers, as well as hats, lingerie, orchids, cigars, antique furniture, and, as one might expect, solid silver lizards and taxidermied...
Av. 5 de Mayo 39, Centro Histórico, Cuauhtémoc, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
An art nouveau stained-glass sign welcomes you into the 140-year-old Dulcería de Celaya, a family-owned sweets shop near the Zócalo. Mexican treats such as aleluyas de pistache (dulce de leche sweets studded with pistachios) and buñuelos...
Lope de Vega 330, Polanco, Polanco V Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Housewares designer Maggie Galton works with Mexican artisans to create clay bowls, woven rebozos (shawls), and hand-etched lacquer trays (pictured). Find these items at Galton’s showroom, along with pillows inspired by huipiles, tunic-like...
Paseo de la Reforma 116, Cuauhtémoc, 06500 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
If you're concerned about the provenance of handcrafts and whether your purchase will genuinely benefit the craftsperson or artist who made it, then confine your shopping to FONART. This government-sponsored project ensures that all of its...
Plaza San Jacinto 15, San Ángel TNT, San Ángel, 01000 Álvaro Obregón, CDMX, Mexico
While shopping in the San Ángel district, make sure to check out the fabulous store Tocamadera. Doug and I could have gone absolutely crazy in here, spending our hard-earned dinero on the amazing artisan objects, one-of-a-kid woodwork furniture...
Alejandro Dumas 81, Polanco, Polanco IV Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
El Péndulo elevates the café-bookstore concept exceptionally well, inviting you to linger for hours over coffee and pastries in its large, two-level cafe (there are even tables on the second floor's balcony). Books in Spanish and...
República de Chile 25, Centro Histórico, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
One of the lovely traditions that persists in Mexico City is that vendors of certain niche items–sponges, say, or stationery, or car spoilers–tend to sell their wares on the same street or zone, making shopping easy and convenient. One of the most...
Paseo de la Reforma 222, Col. Juarez, 06600 Cuauhtemoc, CDMX, Mexico
Over the past few years, Avenida Reforma has seen a handful of new skyscrapers soar up on choice lots, with nearly all of them, including Reforma 222, combining luxury rentals with upscale retail. Reforma 222 is a megaplex, with movie theaters,...
Anatole France 100, Polanco, Polanco III Secc, 11560 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Never underestimate the power of shocking pink. The intimate but lively dining room at Dulce Patria—the smash hit by celebrity chef Martha Ortiz—feels not unlike a stage set. Soon after 2 p.m., it starts to fill with high-powered...
Paseo de la Reforma 439, Cuauhtémoc, 06500 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
If the city has you overwhelmed, whether by its chaos or its abundance of choices, and you want to take refuge in the familiarity of a hotel bar, you can't do much better than St. Regis's King Cole Bar. Sit inside at the bar or on one of its...
Claudio Bernard 149, Doctores, 06720 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
This spot makes up in authenticity what it lacks in charm; in other words: it's a dive bar, and one that's best visited with a local friend, if you have one. La Hija de los Apaches is a decades-old bar that specializes in pulque, the fermented...
Av Nuevo León 66, Condesa, 06140 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Mexico doesn't lack exceptional domestic wines—in fact, if you love wine, make it a priority to search out a bottle or two from Baja California—but if you're looking for a little bubbly, this xampañeria might fit the bill. The spot is trendy, the...
Luis Moya 31, Colonia Centro, Centro, 06000 Centro, CDMX, Mexico
A few years ago, Bósforo was a nondescript bar in the capital's Centro Histórico (Historic Center) neighborhood. Its decor was nothing to write home about; in fact, it was so dark it was hard to make out whether there was any decor...
Calle Isabel la Catolica 30, Centro Histórico, Centro, 06000 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Whether you're new to mezcal or have already added it to your repertoire, you'll probably like La Botica, a mezcal bar among The Shops at Downtown in the Downtown Hotel in Centro Histórico. The bar is on the smaller side, with all tables for two,...
Av, Juan Salvador Agraz 37, Sta Fé, 05300 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
The 2009 opening of Distrito Capital-one of several properties in Mexico City owned by boutique hotel trendsetters Grupo Habita-was a welcome event in the business-oriented neighborhood of Santa Fe. Though the area has a number of hotels, Distrito...
5 de Mayo 10, Centro, 06000 Cuauhtemoc, CDMX, Mexico
Mexico City has hundreds of watering holes, but perhaps none is more well-known than La Opera, which opened in 1876. Since then, a parade of famous, infamous, and not-so-famous guests has graced its bar (which was imported from New Orleans) and...
