Five Days Mexico City Itinerary
Mexico City is a magical place that is filled with history and culture. Make sure to check out Mexico City Travel Guide for some tips and important before this itinerary
Day 0:Travel Day
From a personal experience, always the first and the last travel days usually get lost. Even if you time your flights or travel time perfectly, usually you can’t do much. This itinerary doesn’t count them.
I have a separate blog post about our adventure from Boston to Mexico City and how we chose our flight. If you are interested to read it, please click here.
We arrived in Mexico City at 9 pm. I guess there is nothing more magical than landing in a big city like Mexico City on a Friday night. Once we exited the airport, we were able to order Uber. Our Uber asked us to wait next to Gate 4 for pick up. We Ubered from the airport to our Airbnb in Roma Norte, rested for a bit, and then had pizza at Farina in Roma and that concluded our day 0.
Day 1: Roma, Condesa, and Bosque de Chapultepec
The first day is always special during my travels. I usually wake up super early ready to explore (I was up by 6:30 AM). In case you are curious, Mexico City follows the central time zone. I was so excited to have coffee on our Airbnb balcony while the sun was rising. Okay, enough about me and let’s talk about what to do in your day#1
I call day one “Get to know the City”. Mexico City is a walkable city. Plan to walk as much as you can to explore the hidden gems of the neighborhoods and appreciate the architecture. Roma and Condesa have very cool coffee shops with delicious coffee- especially “Flat White”. Our Airbnb was right at the start of Roma Norte which is perfect. Plan to stop by for coffee or brunch when you want to. We had coffee and then kept walking till we stumbled at a cute place for brunch called Cafe Toscano.
After brunch, we walked through Condesa to Bosque de Chapultepec park. The park is huge and there are many things to do including museums visits. Make sure to plan time to visit Museo Nacional de Antropología.
Museo Nacional de Antropología is a must visit in my opinion. It is the largest museum in Mexico and it has items from the time pre-Columbus. One of the coolest pieces is the “Stone of the Sun” which was the Aztec calendar. The museum entry is around $4. The museum is huge and honestly, it needs almost at least 5 hours. We spend 3 hours.
The Stone of the Sun
Ocelotl-Cuauhxicalli
The museum closes at 5 PM, I would recommend going to your accommodation to rest before going to dinner.
Nights in Mexico City are magical. You can spend it however you like it…
PS: Dinner in Mexico starts at 7 PM. For dinner, we had tacos from El Califa taco and we went after to Mercado Roma
That concluded day 1
Day 2: Centro and Museums
Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral
Our Day 2 was Sunday! and there is no better way to start Sunday than a delicious traditional Mexican brunch at El Cardinals! This place was recommended many times by locals and it didn’t disappoint.
Plan to have breakfast at El Cardinals during your visit. If you decide to go on Sunday, be early. We walked from our Airbnb to the El Cardinals at the Hilton Hotel in the Centro. There was a line and the wait time was about 40 minutes. Once we were seated, pastries were served along with the hot drinks. The pastries were freshly baked with butter and they were very delicious. We also tried the hot chocolate and it was delicious.
After the delicious breakfast, get lost in the heart of the historic Mexico City center. There are endless things to do in Centro and many places to explore especially if you like art and museums.
Things to do in the Centro and worth visiting:
Palacio de Bellas Artes: The Palace of Art- It is the national theatre of Mexico. It is one of Mexico City’s landmarks and it is beautiful to look at it from the outside. If you love art and murals, you can visit the museum from the inside. The admission ticket to the museum is about 70 Pesos ($3.35 USD). The museum is free on Sundays.
Alameda Central: The oldest public park in the Americas next to Palacio de Bellas Artes.
Templo Mayor Museum: Aztecs’ main temple. The museum admission ticket is 80 peso ($4 USD)
Metropolitan Cathedral: It is located next to the Templo Mayor Museum. is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico. It is free of charge to visit
Zocalo (Plaza de la Constitución): It is the main square in Mexico City. The square is surrounded by attractions and it has the giant Mexica flag in the middle. Also, it was the main ceremonial center for the Aztecs.
Museo Nacional De Arte MUNAL: It is the National Art Museum. It is located next to “Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes”. The admission ticket is 75 pesos ($4 USD)
Casa de Los Azulejos or The House of Tiles: It is a Spanish Baroque palace that has a unique exterior design; it is covered with blue and white tiles. It used to be a private palace but now it is a restaurant. You also can enter it and walk around it for free
Church of San Francisco: It is located in one of Mexico City the busiest street (Madero Street) in historic Mexico City across from the house of Tiles. It is a small old church and nice to visit if you are nearby.
Francisco I. Madero Avenue (Madero Street): It is a busy pedestrian street and a thoroughfare in the historic city center with shops. It connects Palacio de Bellas Artes to Zocalo.
Francisco I. Madero Avenue (Madero Street)
Citibanamex Culture Palace, Palacio de Iturbide: It is located on Madero Street. It is a historic palace that was built in 1779. It was named after Agustín de Iturbide who lived in the palace and was Mexico’s first emperor. In 2022, the palace houses the Fomento Cultural Banamex. During our visit to Mexico City in Feb 2022, the palace hosted an exhibition Interconnections and Independence through the Great Masters of Mexican Popular Art for the Mexican artist Yvonne Domenge. There wasn’t any fee to enter the palace or the gallery. Here is some of the beautiful art by Yvonne Domenge.
Mercado de San Juan: If you love public markets like me, you will enjoy San Juan Market. It is specialized in gourmet and exotic food. The market sells fruits, vegetables, juice, street food, and exotic food. I love going to Markets wherever I travel.
Paseo de la Reforma (Sundays): On Sunday, one of Mexico City's main streets- Paseo de la Reforma closes for cars and becomes only for bikes, and pedestrians. It is about 9 miles. We didn’t take advantage of that because we didn’t have much time.
You don’t have to explore everything in Centro on the same day. We went to the Centro twice after our first visit because we enjoyed it so much.
Day 3: Polanco
Before heading to Polanco, have breakfast in the neighborhood you are staying in. We stopped by“ Cafe Curado” for coffee and breakfast. The coffee shop has a lovely vibe and is suitable for working. It also has healthy food options.
After breakfast, head to Polanco (we Ubered to Polanco) to explore the neighborhood that is called “Mexico City Beverly Hills”. Polanco has many high-end restaurants, luxury houses, and chic shops. It is considered one of the upper-class neighborhoods in Mexico.
To give you a perspective on where it is located, Polanco is boarding Bosque de Chapultepec from the northwest.
I recommend starting at the Sumaya museum and walking to the park. We didn’t explore the museum itself but the museum building is one of Mexico City’s landmarks. Enjoy the walk around Polanco, explore its fancy malls (make stops as you wish at Antara mall, and/or Galerías Polanco), and the fancy houses. Then stop by El Moro for some delicious Churros and hot chocolate.
Have lunch at any of Polanco’s fancy restaurants. The food is good but you will pay higher prices than the norm. After exploring Polanco, you have two options, either going to the Bosque de Chapultepec park and visiting Chapultepec Castle or taking an uber to explore more of the historic part of Mexico City in the Centro.
We decided to explore more of Centro and headed to Mercado de San Juan. It is a gourmet market that has everything from groceries to food to juices. We also stopped at Café El Cordobés o El Chavalete to buy some coffee beans and stopped at the Plaza Del Artesano (if you love natural crystals, you can find some handmade jewelry with crystals for 60 Pesos/ piece). Another place that is so local and worth visiting is Pasteleria Ideal; It is a huge bakery that was founded in 1927 and serves traditional baked goods. They display all of the pastries and you can pick what you want and then buy (self-service bakery). I couldn’t resist the smell of freshly baked pastries and it was so hard to choose. You will notice many in Mexico City are carrying the bakery's paper bags or boxes (it reminded me of Mike’s pastry in Boston)
Around 6 PM, head to your accommodation for some rest and then get ready for dinner.
We felt homesick and wanted some Middle Eastern food, we found El Jamil in la Condesa and the food was so fresh (they bask their own pita bread) and everything we ordered was so delicious.
Day 4: Teotihuacan Pyramids and Centro
You can’t come to Mexico City and not visit Teotihuacan. This place shouldn’t be missed. Teotihuacan was the largest city during the pre-Columbian era.; it is unknown who built the city and there are many theories about it. It is also debatable who inhabited the city.
The ruins location is about 1 hour and 30 minutes from Mexico City. Plan on leaving Mexico City early (around 8 AM) so you arrive at Teotihuacan before it gets crowded.
Be prepared, wear comfortable shoes and be ready to walk a lot. Also, bring with you: a hat, sunscreen, some snacks, and water. The archeological site’s weather gets hot since it is an open area under the sun.
There are many ways to get to the pyramids, we chose public transportation. We got there around 10 AM. You will need cash to buy tickets; make sure to have enough pesos.
Due to Covid and as of February 2022, the Teotihuacan Museum was closed, and going up the pyramids was not allowed. That was really unfortunate and I hope things will change soon.
We stayed there until 2 PM. and then took the bus back to Mexico City.
Teotihuacan- Pyramids of the Sun
The bus will drop you off at Autobuses del Norte and nearby the station is one of the most visited Catholic shrines in the world "Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe”. The basilica was sinking (due to the fact that Mexico City was built on a dried lake) and it was closed to repair. Now it is open for visitors.
Day 5: Coyoacan
It is your last full day in Mexico City, for the first part of the day, I recommend taking it easy and slow by exploring the artistic neighborhood of Coyoacan. Coyoacan is home to the famous “La Casa Azul” also known as Frida Kahlo house which is now a museum.
There are many things to do in this beautiful bohemian neighborhood; most famously Frida Kahlo Museum. Frida Kahlo was a Mexican painter. She is known for her unique self-portraits. She suffered throughout her life and she uses the suffering and the struggle as a strength…and this is how she gained famed
I would recommend visiting the Frida Kahlo museum if you are really a big Frida fan. The museum in my opinion is a tourist trap. You have to book timed tickets online and in advance. The admission ticket is pricier than Mexico City’s museums (about$12/ person + you need to pay extra if you want to take photos). The museum is very small and while it is beautiful, I found it not worth it.
Other than the museum, walk around the beautiful neighborhood, visit Cayoacan Mercado and Bazar Artesanal Mexicano. Walk and connect with nature in Viveros de Coyoacan park, discover Frida Kahlo park, and Chapel de Santa Catarina.
Then, you must have coffee at Cafe Avellaneda; their coffee is AMAZING!
In your second half of the day, visit what you wanted to see again or what you wanted to do. We spent the rest of the day shopping and buying some souvenirs.
Day 6: Travel Day
Get ready for your travel day.
We visited an art place near our Airbnb and then headed to the airport.
More time or days
If you managed to see everything I mentioned and still have some time, I would recommend:
Puebla and Great Pyramid of Cholula: Puebla is a city to the east of Mexico City. It is about 2 hours drive from Mexico City and it is known for culinary history, colonial architecture, and pottery. There are many things to do in Puebla. Also, nearby it, there is the beautiful historic site Great Pyramids of Cholula ” Tlachihualtepetl”. From my research, the Pyramids of Cholula is the largest pyramid by volume known to exist in the world today and it was built over hundreds of years by not only one Mesoamerica tribe; the Olmec and Toltec are one of them
Puebla, Mexico
Queretaro: Another great nearby city. The city is to the North West of Mexico City. It is about 2 hours and 30 minutes from Mexico City and it has a lot to offer
Xochimilco Canal: Xochimilco is about an hour away from Mexico City and it is known for it is canals. The main attraction is the ride of the colorful gondola-like boats called Trajineras. I was told it is ideal for a group of friends and it has a party-like vibe.
Mexico City Coffee Shop List
For delicious coffee and a good vibe
Café Negro: Didn't get a chance to try it but was on my list
For Coffee Bean:
Mexico City Restaurants
El Cardenal: Breakfast, or Brunch. Authentic Mexican food.
Café Curado: Coffee or Brunch.
El Califa: Lunch, or Dinner. Authentic Mexican Taco
Restaurante Rosetta: Dinner. Local Cuisine with a twist
El Jamil: Dinner. Lebanese cuisine.
Café Toscano: Breakfast, Brunch, or Dinner. Was our go to. It has many healthy options
Farina: Pizza
El Moro: Dessert. Mexican Churros
Mercado Roma: Dinner. Similar concept to Time Out Market
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