Mexico City Home >   Mexico City Hotels >   Mexico City Arts & Culture >

Mexico City Activities

Arts and Crafts
This was a village that gradually became a residential area. Set between two colonial monasteries, the Saturday Bazaar sells selected handicrafts while opposite, the Jardín del Arte is an open-air picture galley. Altavista Street offers international fashion, contemporary art.

Cuisine
The only limit to cooking in Mexico City, one of the main gastronomic capitals of the world, is personal taste. This vast city offers a generous sample of eateries ranging from small stalls in markets and in the city’s plazas, to intimate, personal restaurants specializing in dishes of many different origins. Many of these restaurants can be found in the Condesa, San Ángel, and Polanco neighborhoods, in the Historical Center, among other places; there are, of course, the bigger, world-class restaurants where gastronomy has taken on ritualistic dimensions.

Ecotourism
The City of Mexico is surrounded by national parks and ecological reserves where major efforts are being made to conserve the local flora and fauna. The Chichinautzín Ecological Reserve, just south of the city, is one of the most interesting for the number of volcanic craters there and the unique vegetation growing in the lava beds. The Dinamos, Ajusco and Desierto de los Leones National Parks are also very attractive parks.

Festivals
On the night of September 15, thousands of people go to the Zócalo (the Main Square) in the city center to listen to the traditional “Cry of Independence” and to watch the firework display and other events in celebration of Mexico’s independence. Another famous celebration that takes place in Ixtapalapa during Holy Week is the Vía Crucis (The Way of the Cross) that includes a reenactment of the Crucifixion of Christ.

Golf
Some of the best golf courses in the country can be found in different areas of Mexico City, starting with the Lomas Country Club, the Club de Golf Bosques, the Club Campestre Chiluca, the Chapultepec Golf Club, the Club de Golf México and the Club Campestre de la Ciudad de México, among others. All these courses are equipped to hold national and international golf tournaments.

Hiking & Climbing
The peaks that most attract mountain climbers are the Iztacchihuatl and Popocatepetl volcanoes (5,230 and 5,465 meters high respectively), located about 70 km east of the city. Climbers are not allowed on Popocatepetl due to the volcanic activity of that volcano. But there are lower mountains, also of great beauty, on the outskirts of Mexico City like Ajusco, (3,930 meters), with its Pico de Águila (Eagle’s Peak) sheer vertical rock face, as well as Los Dinamos, a big canyon with vertical rock faces surrounded by forests.

Horseback Riding
Less than an hour away from the city, the nearby mountains provide an ideal setting for riding, mountaineering or cross-country cycling, simply enjoying nature or testing your climbing skills.

Night Life
There is an avenue in the Federal District that runs north and south splitting the city down the middle – Avenida Insurgentes. This is the longest avenue in the city and the location of a wide assortment of fun night spots and discotheques, especially in the south. The Condesa district has a wide variety of coffee shops and restaurants offering an intimate, cozy atmosphere and a selection of fine wines.

Performing arts
The most important place for national and international classical concerts and the other performing arts in Mexico City is the beautiful Palacio de Bellas Artes (The Palace of Fine Arts). Other important venues include the Teatro de la Ciudad (The City Theater), the Auditorio Nacional (the National Auditorium), the Juan Ruiz de Alarcón Theater and the Nezahualcoyotl and Ollin Yoliztli concert halls.

Shopping
One of the most interesting places for shopping for handicrafts from the remotest corners of the country is an open air market that is set up on weekends alongside the main square in Coyocacán. You will also be able to find everything you want at the Bazár de los Sábados in San Angel, another picturesque village that has been engulfed by the big city. If you are looking for more elegant shops, then those in the Zona Rosa ( the Pink Zone) are sure to satisfy. You can buy clothes, jewelry and costume jewelry there; beautiful Indigenous handicrafts can be found at Fonart.

Spas
Saunas, massage services and spas are available at the Camino Real, Four Seasons, Marquís Reforma, Nikko and Calinda Quality Geneve & Spa hotels.