I have been dreaming of traveling to Mexico City since I spent a month in San Miguel de Allende in 2019 for school. I had an amazing time immersing myself in the culture and learning the history and language of Mexico while living there. However, San Miguel de Allende is a very small town, so I couldn’t wait to experience what the grand Mexico City would be like. 

Fast forward to 2025, and I was planning a Mexico City trip with my boyfriend, my cousin, and her boyfriend. I dove into the research and somehow almost everyone I know has been there, so I got lots of advice. My goal with any trip is to simply experience and observe a different culture and way of life. The specific ways I wanted to do that in Mexico City were through eating, dancing, drinking coffee (and mezcalitas), visiting museums, and walking as much as possible.

We were able to accomplish all of that, besides the dancing. It was a fantastic journey nonetheless. We traveled at the end of January, and had beautiful 75 degree weather the whole time.

When we landed at the airport, we were able to get through their customs pretty quickly just by scanning our passports. We needed a ride to our Air BnB. When you get to the rideshare area, there will be a lot of people offering you taxis and rides, but don’t get intimidated. It’s easy to simply call an Uber and wait there. If you do take a taxi, just make sure to ask the driver how much the ride will cost before you get in the car so they don’t rip you off. Once you arrive, I recommend the first thing you do is head to the closest corner store and get enough water jugs to last your entire trip, plus a small water bottle per person to carry around with you.

After checking into our Air BnB, we wanted to do some taco tasting. We went to the well-known Taqueria Orinoco in Roma Norte for steak and al pastor tacos. They were good, but not as good as the reviews would say. If you’re a New Yorker, I’ll put it like this: it was the Upside Pizza of Tacos. Worth a stop on the tour, but won’t be the best. Next, we walked a few blocks to Cariñito Tacos. These are tacos inspired by Southeast Asian flavors, and although non-traditional, extremely worth it. The Cochinita Thai taco was my second favorite taco on the trip. 

To familiarize ourselves with the area, we walked throughout Roma for hours, admiring the beautiful architecture, restaurants, and greenery. Mexico City has some of the most aesthetically pleasing restaurants I’ve ever seen that almost make you forget where you are. Sometimes these restaurants have small mom and pop taquerias nestled right up next to them. You can find any cuisine here, whether casual or fine dining.

After walking off our lunch, we dressed up for dinner at Blanco Colima, which might be one of the most beautiful restaurants I’ve ever been to. It’s a multi-level establishment with different dining rooms that overlook a bar and a DJ booth. The service here was excellent; everyone was so kind and took great care of us during our meal. The food was outstanding as well, especially the tuna tostada and pork fried rice. After dinner, we dashed over to our next reservation at Handshake Speakeasy, rated the best bar in the world last year. We had such a fun time deciding on the drinks and tried nearly every one of them on the menu. I don’t think there’s any single drink I would have ordered again, but if you can get a reservation, it’s worth it to go.

The next day, we ventured away from Roma into Coyoacan for Casa Azul (Frida Kahlo’s house) and tacos. But, not before grabbing some pastries from Odette in Condesa, which you MUST do! Order the ham and cheese croissant and honestly anything else. We actually got back in line for more after we finished our first box of pastries. Anyway, the Frida Kahlo Museum was excellent. I thought it was fascinating, and I loved that each room’s purpose was preserved and the art displayed accordingly. I definitely learned a lot from this museum. Be sure to check out the small pyramid, and the display of Kahlo’s dresses once you exit the house.

We walked down the street to Mercado Coyoacan. This is a very traditional Mexican market, with food, drinks, clothing, edible scorpions, embroidered bags, fruit, pinatas, everything. My cousin was very overwhelmed there, but I thought it was very fun and one of the most authentically Mexican things you can experience. It’s something you should definitely check out, just be prepared for some sensory overload.

The taqueria we wanted to try wasn’t yet open, so we stopped at Cantina La Coyoacana nearby for a drink, but honestly I would not recommend it. We then found out that the taco spot we planned to go to, did not exist, at least where my map said it was (a common issue we had on this trip), so we settled for La Casa de los Tacos which were solid. Coyoacan is a beautiful area, and much more calm than Roma. I recommend planning to spend some time here exploring the parks and cafes.

That night, we had dinner in Polanco at Ticuchi. This restaurant has an interesting vibe. It’s very dark with only lounge or bar seating and loud music. The food, though, was really great. They have some seafood options, but no meat here. We enjoyed a tlayuda, which is like a mexican pizza – think large tostada – smoked Oaxacan cheese with tortillas, and octopus. We had to get churros at El Moro for dessert, which were worth the stop. You can find an El Moro almost anywhere around the city. 

The city is very spread out, so to get from Roma/Condesa to Polanco, you do have to Uber. Polanco may be worth checking out for a bit if you have dinner reservations, or want to do some shopping, but it’s not a place I would recommend staying, as it has more of a commercial feel than Roma and Condesa.

On Saturday morning, we had planned to do some dancing at Parque Mexico, but we also wanted to eat at Contramar, and the only reservation I could get was at 11:30, just before the dancing starts at the park. Contramar was delicious, though. Of course we had to get the famous fish with the chili and parsley rub. It was good, but honestly I think their fish Al Pastor taco and the sopes were the star of the show. That Al Pastor taco was my favorite taco of the trip. It was a bit early for me to have a cocktail, but I did have a sip of my boyfriend’s margarita and it was one of the best I’ve ever tasted.

A few minutes walk away is Panaderia Rosetta, which is well-known for their Guava Roll. I don’t think this bakery is worth going to. Everything was a bit dry, and not very interesting. The vanilla concha and the cinnamon roll were fine, but overall it’s not worth standing in line for. If you really want to go, visit the main bakery on Calle Colima, not the small off-shoot. You will probably have to wait in a line, but it moves quick, just don’t count on getting a table. We took our pastries to Plaza Rio de Janeiro to eat, and enjoyed the Statue of David replica and the art stands.

We then took a very long stroll to the Museo Nacional de Antropologia. I was really excited for this one because I find Aztec history fascinating, and I prefer looking at ancient sculptures and carvings rather than paintings. There were a few really interesting aspects, but this museum was a bit tough because not all the plaque descriptions included English (my fault for poor Spanish skills), and there was just too much for me to be able to comprehend everything I read in Spanish. Overall, it’s not a must-see for me. Tickets were only USD $5. 

That night, we had a reservation at Restaurante Rosetta, which is related to the bakery. This is an Italian-leaning restaurant. The drinks are really small, but great. The appetizers were delicious. We got the white mole with carrots and the empanadas which I couldn’t get enough of. However, our entrees fell a bit flat. I ordered the tagliatelle with chili oil which was good, but not mind blowing. My boyfriend ordered the short rib with risotto which actually was phenomenal and by far the best dish any one of us ordered. My cousin ordered ravioli which was bland, and her boyfriend got the pork chop which was not good at all. We got ice cream for dessert which wasn’t great either. Rosetta is very hit or miss depending on what you order.

After dinner, we proceeded to have quite a night, filled with tacos, drinks, and homemade tamales at a little bar called Diamantina. Visit Los Parados for some good tacos!

We woke up Sunday morning faced with a big itinerary for the day. We planned to visit Xochimilco, watch a Lucha Libre fight, and grab dinner. Xochimilco is an area in Mexico City that is home to canals containing the only water that’s left of the lake that used to be Mexico City. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and people come to glide along the river on trajineras, or boats. 

First, we started the day with breakfast at Maque, which had outstanding chilaquiles. Highly recommend it! We then stocked up on tequila and pastries (a very college-aged move) to bring to the boats with us. A visit to Xochimilco is something you probably want to do with a big group of people if you decide to go. I wouldn’t have put this on my list, but my cousin was interested in checking it out. I definitely wouldn’t go again, just because I feel I didn’t get much out of it in terms of learning any history or culture about Mexico City, and unfortunately I think it would have been incredibly boring without the tequila.  

We had a bit of time to chill before the Lucha Libre match before we headed over to Arena Mexico for the match. There are two different venues that host the matches. We chose this one because the timing worked for us the best, but I’ve heard they aren’t too different. When you arrive, everyone gets split off into lines to get patted down before entering, and then ushers will run up to you to escort you to a seat, expecting a tip in return. We didn’t stay for the whole match, as it gets a bit repetitive. I think if you have an interest in Luchadores and the history of these matches, you should come check it out. 

Afterward, we headed to Licoreria Limantour, in Roma, which is known for their crafty mixologists and then to Casa de Tono, which is a well-known, fast-food-like restaurant chain in the city. I’m not sure what the hype is around this restaurant. The enchiladas were pretty good, but everything else was below mediocre. It was definitely an interesting last day.

Monday was our departure day, but we had a bit of time, so we got some breakfast pastries at Quentin Cafe, which is a must! Some of the best banana bread and cookies I’ve ever had. We then went to the Historical Center to visit the Palacio Belles Artes, or at least look at it from the outside since it was also closed, and walk around the outdoor market there. Then we headed back to the airport.

Overall, it was a lovely trip, and I don’t think there’s much I would have done differently. There is so much to do here, so I would plan to spend 4 full days at least, with an additional day if you want to do a full-day excursion like visiting the pyramids or the hot springs. Don’t try to do everything in one trip. Get to know one area and then plan on coming back! 

Some other tips I’d like to share are that you don’t necessarily need to have pesos, as most places take card, but it’s smart to have some on hand and you can avoid the foreign transaction fees that way. It’s typically advised not to wear gold jewelry in Mexico (stick to silver), but I didn’t feel like that would be an issue in Roma. Monday seems to be somewhat of a holiday, so I would recommend making Monday a travel day, or avoiding a Monday altogether. Remember not to drink the water, chew ice cubes, or even order a salad which will be washed with tap water. 

Have fun, and enjoy this beautiful city!