MEXICO CITY (City of Palaces)
TRAVEL AND TOURISM OVERVIEW:
Mexico city is the capital of Mexico and the most important industrial and cultural
center of the country. It is the 2nd largest metropolitan area in the world with
about 9 million inhabitants. Its is a modern, cosmopolitan city situated in an
old lake basin that is surrounded by volcanic mountains and sits at an elevation
of 7400 ft. It is also very famous for its pre-Hispanic remains of the
civilizations which lived here before the 3 decade Spanish rule. Mexico city was
founded in 1325 by the Aztecs who settled in this area with a population of around
100,000 people and later built temples, pyramids, and buildings. You will also
see the murals of Diego Rivera and the paintings of Frida Kahlo. Mexico city is
truly a remarkable travel and tourism destination.
POPULAR TOURISM ATTRACTIONS:
Valle de Bravo:
About 2 hours from Mexico city, this old town was flooded many years ago.
It's a beautiful place usually called the "The Mexican Switzerland". The lake
and large pine forests complete with extensive dirt paths make the area popular
for outdoor activities that tend to have a focus here, including biking,
hang-gliding, sailing, water-skiing, hiking, rock climbing, horseback riding,
and recreational vehicles.
Zona Rosa and Bosque de Chapultepe Area:
Museo Nacional de Antropologia: An archaeological museum, one of the finest in
Mexico.
Monumento a la Indepencia: A beautiful monument which was built to celebrate
the 100th anniversary of the War of Independence.
Castillo de Chapultepec: A famous castle and hosts beautiful artwork and
religious artifacts.
Bosque de Chapultepec: This 1,600-acre park. It has three small lakes, a
botanical garden, a cultural center which hosts free plays, quite popular among
families with children.Last but not least it also has the residential palace of
the President, which is not accessible for tourists.
Other museums to see in this area are Museo Rufino Tamayo and Museo de Arte
Moderno.
Zocalo and Alameda Central Area:
One of the largest public plazas in the world, the Zσcalo is the heart of Mexico
City and is one of the city's most famous attractions for Town center and plaza
and a Historic walking area close by. Popular tourist attractions include:
Mexico city hall built in 1952 called "Ayuntamiento".
Oldest church of Latin America called "Catedral Metropolitana".
The National Palace (Palacio Nacional) built in 1693 with Murals of Mexico's
history, painted by Diego Rivera, adorn the second floor walls.
Templo Mayor: Ruins of the Aztec empire with an historically important
archaeological museum.
"Casa de los Azulejos" Palace of tiles, built in the 17th century decorated by
white, blue and yellow tiles.
Additional places to see in this area are Museums of : Museo del Templo Mayor,
Museo Franz Mayer and Museo Nacional de Arte and popular buildings: Conjunto de
San Idelfonso, Palacio de Bellas Artes, Torre Latinoamericana (47 story
skyscraper).
Coyoacan and San Angel Area:
Museo de Frida Kahlo: Feminist artist Frida Kahlo was born in this house and
was married to Diego Rivera twice. You will find lot of paintings of her in this
house.
Other places to see are Jardin Centenario, a large park is surrounded by
outdoor cafes and Casa del Risco mansion which was built in 1681.
San Juan Teotihuacan:
This famous travel and tourism area located 30 miles northeast of Mexico
City. The ruins in this area are very famous and over 200,000 people vanished
from here in 700 AD. Only two kilometers from this place is found the
archaeological site of Teotihuacan, one of the most important in the Americas.
Its name is translated as "The Place where Men Become Gods".
Among its main constructions are The Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, The
Temple of Quetzalcoatl and Tlaloc, The Palace of the Butterfly Quetzal, The
Palace of the Jaguars, The Citadel and museum .
Xochimilco:
Xochimilco is famous for its floating gardens and is a popular weekend
destination among tourists who visit in boats. Also a point to see ancient
Ruins.
Golf:
18 course Bella Vista Golf Club.
ACCOMMODATION:
Mexico city has over 25,000 hotel rooms with price ranging from $30 to
$1100.
Most budget accommodations are located in the downtown Historic District.
Most luxury and expensive hotels are in the Zona Rosa or Chapultepec Park
area.
POPULAR HOTELS:
JW Marriott, Hotel Catedral, Casa Gonzalez, 6M9 Guest House, Four Seasons
Mexico City, Nikko Mexico, Maria Cristina, Marco Polo Hotel, Galeria Plaza,
Amberes Suites
SHOPPING:
Shopping is no problem, you will find quite a few Malls and sophisticated shops
and even street hawkers. Do checkout the
Zona Rosa area
Bazar Sabado
Mercado Insurgentes and Las Castillo areas.
You will find antiques, jewellery, art galleries, handicraft, leather items,
clothes, shoes, purses, porcelain bowls etc at a very good price. Bargaining is
common.
FOOD:
From authentic Mexican to American, Italian, French, Japanese, Chinese,
Greek .. You can find almost any cuisine here.
NIGHTLIFE:
Nightclubs, Salsa, Old fashion Drinking Bars, Disco, Ballet, Opera and
regional festival shows.
TRANSPORTATION:
You will find a lot of Taxis, buses and subway system. You may alternatively
decide to drive a rental car (usually taken from airport). Mexico city allows
only a certain color license plate car on certain day of the week. Check with
your rental car company.
CLIMATE:
Winters are between December to February and temperature is about 14 degree
Celsius and chilly in the night. Rains occasionally from April to October and
temperature is about 30 degrees.
TOURIST VISA:
Citizens of U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan and most western European
countries do not need tourist visa when the stay is within certain number of
days but are required to have a passport and must fill out a tourist card at
customs. The customs agents are known to be easy going. Citizens of most other
countries need visa, please go to http://www.consulmexny.org/eng/visas_fmt.htm
to know more about most current travel requirements for citizens of each
country.
CURRENCY:
Most hotels and resturants except Credit Cards and US Dollars.
Mexican Peso -MXN ( 1 US Dollar = 11 MXN apx)
You can use Yahoo finance for latest conversion rate
http://finance.yahoo.com/currency/convert?from=USD&to=MXN
RECOMMENDATION:
Tourists are recommended to focus on total personal hygiene from washing hands
and brushing teeth regularly, drinking bottled water and not to buy food from
street vendors. Medicine should be kept to ward off the malarial infection.
