Mexico City’s Main Square – Zocalo, Cathedrals, Museums, Tacos, Restaurants, Legal Zones to Smoke Weed, and everything you need to know to make the most of your day in Mexico City’s Main Square.
One of the most Iconic images associated with Mexico City is the Cathedral Metropolitana. It is located in El Zocalo, the Main Square of Mexico City. It is a must see on many tourist’s to do list and I’d say it deserves it’s spot there.
However, Downtown Mexico City is a very complicated neighborhood. It is jam packed with people of all walks of life and if you don’t know where you are going it can be overwhelming.
Proper Planning is key to properly discovering the story that Downtown Mexico City (El Centro), has to tell. This self guided tour will expose you to the fascinating history of Mexico City through its architecture, its museums, its artists, its food, its commerce, and its thousands of people.
When is the best time to do the Zocalo Walking Tour of Mexico City’s Main Square?
The Morning!!!!
Many make the mistake of wandering over to the La Cathedral in the middle of the day, assuming that there will be plenty of fun activities to stumble upon in a spontaneous and care free way. Let me tell you why this is a horrible idea.
Whenever you go to a popular tourist site, there will be tourist hustlers trying to take advantage of your lack of planning, and trying to entice you into tourist traps. Downtown Mexico City is no exception. Proper planning is a must if you plan to avoid tourist traps.
You may have heard that Mexico City is one of the biggest cities in the world. This reality is more obvious in some neighborhoods than others. Downtown Mexico City is overcrowded, and bursting at the seams. It is simply not able to accommodate all the people who flock there every day.
For this reason I recommend that you arrive as early as possible. La Cathedral Opens at 9:00AM. I encourage you to get there between 9 and 10. This will allow you to arrive to downtown before the crowds come. Mexico City gets started late. This is something you should take advantage of if you’re going to downtown.
Here is a general timeline that I suggest you stick to for this walk.
| 9AM-10AM | Walk around inside La Cathedral Metropolitana and admire its beauty. You may finish before an hour, which will leave you more time for the next stop. |
| 10AM-10:30 AM | Look at the three outdoor models of the Valley of Mexico City, and the Island of Tenochtitlan, |
| 10:30-11:30 | Museo Templo Mayor |
| 11:30-12:30 | Smoke Weed at the Legal Weed Smoking Zone in Zocalo. This can also be done before you begin the tour. |
| 12:30-1:30 | Museo Ex Teresa Arte Actual |
| 1:30-2:30 | Walk deep into Mexico City’s Downtown on Calle Moneda and Calle Talavera (Add an additional hour if you want to stop and eat at Dali’s Pizza or That’s Oaxaca.) |
| 2:30-3:30 | Enjoy a coffee at Cafe Bagdahd and gaze at the Plaza de la Aguilita |
| At this point the tour is over. Follow Calle Mensones back Zocalo and Metro Zocalo Tenochtitlan. It is not recommended to use Metro La Merced, because it is very hard to access. Metro Pino Suarez is another alternative. Gay Travelers Can spend the rest of the afternoon in my favorite Bathhouse Steam Room, Banos San Ciprian, or Begin the Downtown Mexico City Art and Gay Cruising Tour. (If you choose to do this tour, skip MUNAL, and begin at Cine Savoy) |
What to Wear on the Downtown/Zocalo Tour
Larying will be very important. Mexico City is chilly in the morning. This is a mountain town. The mornings are really cool here. I wish I woke up for more of them.
I usually wear a sweater, with a t-shirt, and possibly a short sleeved, button up shirt under the sweater. Over the sweater I wear a sleeveless vest. This will do the trick. You’ll want to be just a little chilly as you step out of your house. this way your body heat will not cause you to overheat. You also don’t want to bring a heavy jacket becasue you’ll be taking it off in the afternoon. In the afternoons you’ll be down to your t-shirt and sleeveless vest.
How to Arrive to the First Stop on the Tour?
If you’re staying in Tracey Parker’s Recommend Neighborhood for Gay Travelers, you can walk to La Cathedral Metropolitana in about 20 to thirty minutes. Otherwise, take Metro to Metro Zocalo – Tenochtitlan. Or Uber to La Cathedral Metropolitana Ciudad de Mexico.
You may want to put ‘Museo Templo Mayor,’ into your uber app or google maps app. There is only 1 Museo Templo Mayor, and there are multiple Metropolitan Cathedrals. Using Templo Mayor as your destination will minimize the possibility of confusion.
Background Context
What is much less well known is the story behind the Metropolitan Cathedral. Next to the Cathedral was a Pyramid, at least twice the size of the Cathedral. The pyramid was the focal point of the Aztec Empire.
Aztec slaves, at the hands of the Spanish Conquistadores, dismantled the Aztec Pyramid and used the stones to build the Cathedral that stands today. The stones were also used to build the Colonial Style Buildings in Centro Historical Mexico City.
The Museo Templo Mayor is a museum that tells the story of the dismantled temple, The Aztec Empire, and the Spanish Conquest. The Museum is bilingual, English and Spanish. I think it is the only museum in town that does a good job of telling this story.
The much more famous Museo of Anthropologia, is not bilingual and tells the stories of the dozens of tribes that inhabited the Mexican territory over the course of pre-history. It is an impressive place to visit, but in my opinion, The Museo Templo Mayor is far more accessible and informative.
I think it is next to impossible to wander around downtown Mexico City and happen upon something cute and worthy of your precious time. For that reason I have created this list of truly noteworthy non touristy sites to complement your visit to the Metropolitan Cathedral in El Zocalo, Mexico City’s Main Square
La Cathedral Metropolitana and El Museo Templo Mayor – An Essential Pairing of Museums for a Crash Course on Modern Mexico
I recommend that you do this combination first thing because it provides such an important introduction to the History of Mexico. I will explain why these two attractions are so important to developing an initial understanding of the History of Mexico City.
See Planning a Mexico City Itinerary for more recommendations on when and how to work these attractions into your itinerary.
La Cathedral Metropolitana
I had seen many Catholic Churches before I had ever been to Mexico. But the Mexican ones are special. They are a continuation of a key part of the history of the Mexican Civilization.
Mexico Is dotted with pyramids and cathedrals all over. Each temple was the focal point of a tribe or state in the Mexican empire.
These tribes were always at war with each other. Upon winning control over another state, it was common for the winner to build or modify the central temple to represent their own culture that was then imposed on the fallen state.
The temples of mexico are layered with the history of wars and power struggles throughout pre history. the cathedrals are simply the most recent incarnation of the continuous struggle for control over Mexico.
Museo Templo Mayor
Before entering the Museum, the Museum has a free outdoor component that is very cool to look at.
The outdoor Models are situated on top of the entrance to The Museo Templo Mayor. After you look at the models you’ll have to circle back to the entrance.
Be advised: There will be security gaurds tasked with maintaining a flow of people through this part of town. Many times the flow they have in their minds is counterintuitive. Expect to be stopped and asked to turn around. This is where your google maps will come in handy.
Two Pieces of Background are necessary to understand the Museo De Templo Mayor, the Cathedral, and Mexico City’s ancient past.
1. Immediately to the right hand side of the Cathedral you will see the ruins of a pyramid that was built by the Aztecs. When the Spanish arrived, the pyramid was torn down and the stones were used to construct the Cathedral that is now the Cathedral Metropolitana.
2. Modern Mexico City is located in the middle of a circle of mountains. When it is not too polluted, you can see the ring of mountains that surround the city. Before the Spanish, there was a lake in the middle of the circle of mountains. In the middle of the lake was an island, where Tenochitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire was located.
There are three outdoor models of Ancient Tenochitlan. One is a view of the entire valley and the lake in the center, the next a model of the island of Tenochitlan, and third, a model of the aztec version of the main square, which has now been replaced by the Cathedral Metropolitan.
In my opinion, standing in front of these three models, which are located in between La Cathedral Metropolitana, and the ruins of the Templo Mayor, tells you everything you need to know abotu the history of Modern Mexico in one image. Take some time to soak it in.
Next enter the Museo Templo Mayor for a wonderful dive into the history of this incredible multilayered civilization.
After you’re finished with the Museo Templo Mayor, I have some really cool hidden gems for you to experience below. Special detours for potheads or photography buffs are listed below. If you are neither of these, continue on to Calle Moneda, and the Museo Ex Teresa Arte Actual.
Potheads: Head to the nearest Legal Point to Smoke Weed
Those looking for an efficient walk deep into the depths of Mexico City’s Downtown, continue to Calle Moneda (Or follow google maps directions to Museo UNAM Hoy.)
Enjoy a Legal Smoke of Weed right across the street from the Mexican Supreme Court
Mexico City has begun to create free zones where it is legal to smoke marijuana. This one in Zocalo was one of the first. This is not a legal point of sale, so you’ll need to bring your own.
Legal Point of Sale of Marijuana in Mexico City and a little more background of this topic in another post on Tracey Parker Travel.
Walk deep into Centro, free museums, Oaxacan food, and a look into how this neighborhood has evolved.
This is a simple walk into what I like to call, deep Centro, or deep downtown. Centro is a massive part of Mexico City and most people only spend time between Zocalo, and Alameda Central. Anytime you pass the main square I consider you to be ‘deep’ inside of Downtown.
While downtown originally housed the Spanish colonists, El Centro has long since lost its Colonia luster. As early as 1860, wealthy families began to leave El Centro for quieter newly developed neighborhoods. Many old apartment buildings were turned into low end retail space, and today ‘deep Centro’ has oddly become a wholesale distribution zone for the products sold all over the city by street vendors.
If you pay attention you’ll be delighted by the surreal combination of colonial Mexico, inhabited by the colonized, who have had to embrace globalization by selling the cheapest Chinese goods to the masses. Mexico is rising to the world stage of tourism as a global city for its art and history, but it is this part of mexico that really displays the true effects that the world has had on this ancient civilization.
I try my best to describe all of this but if you’re interested in seeing what downtown Mexico City has become you’ll have to see for yourself. The following walk consists of two streets
Calle Moneda
Calle Moneda is the street you will take from Zocalo, Mexico’s Main Square. This street is very dense with free museums, two of which I have recommended that you stop by. As you pass the museums you’ll begin to see church domes line the street and it will be densely packed with shoppers who arrived Downtown from all over the megalopolis.
Museo ExTeresa Arte Actual
Old meets new in this 17th century Spanish Colonial Cathedral turned Ultra Contemporary Art Space. It focuses on Video installations, performance art and lots of other experimental ideas.
After the dense history of the Templo Mayor, ExTeresa is a ‘mood’ museum where you are encouraged to walk through the colonial church turned art space and soak up the vibe.
The ExTeresa is wonderful for people watching because it attracts the art students from all over Mexico City. It is never crowded becasue it is so unknown, but the programming is always recent and it is an absolute must see on any itinerary of Mexico City’s Main Square.
Museo José Luis Cuevas
I really like this museum. It is the personal art collection of the late José Luis Cuevas. He was an acclaimed Mexican artist.
He famously spoke out against the Mexican Muralist Movement bringing attention to the fact that the Muralists were commissioned by the government.
You may have the entire museum to yourself. It is not well attended. But trust me, it is an impressive collection and Cuevas is a Mexican Artist worth knowing. It is located in the dormitory of a convent, so you’ll get to enjoy more Spanish Colonial Architecture.
Calle Talavera
You’ll want to make a right hand turn onto calle Talavera. Talavera will take you passed dense commerce that is deep central Mexico City.
If you look closely in the pictures you can see the juxtaposition of the architecture suited for an Imperial Empire, being repurposed to sell enormous quantities of cheap Chinese made clothing for a city of 20 Million. This is the juxtaposition that is Modern Day Ciudad Mexico.
This is a part of town that the tourists really don’t know to go because know body tells them about it. It’s right there waiting to be explored and its absolutely fascinating.
Calle Moneda will begin to turn into a ramp where you will begin to decline as you see a beautiful Spanish Church on your left. At the bottom of the ramp you will make a right hand turn onto Calle Talvera and begin to ascend back up to the normal level.
Food Options
Wherever you decide to grab a bite, be sure to take a breadth and calm yourself down while you’re eating. This part of Mexico City is far more stimulating than most places that you’re probably accustomed to. Take a moment to think about what you saw, and to look around you.
This part of town is like a Museum, a relic to a lost time, several lost times. It can be easy to loose track of all of this while you’re spinning around in circles on the ground. But remember to look up at the architectural story of this city.
Dali’s Pizza
Having a pizza craving in the middle of Mexico City? This is the place to go.
You’ll notice that Mexican’s love pizza, but to be honest, most of it is very bad.
Dali’s does New York Style Pizza very well, and they speak English too.
I recommend you order the personal size pizza. They will tell you that if you’re hungry, it won’t be enough, but the next size up is big enough for a family. The last thing you want is to carry a large pizza box with you for the rest of this tour.
If you’re still hungry, that’s what street tacos are for.
This is Oaxaca – Authentic Oaxacan Thlyudas in Downtown Mexico City
Stop by this is Oaxaca for some delicious Oaxaca food. The thlayudas are a safe choice. They are the equivalent of tacos in Oaxaca and here they are done very well.
There is another restaurant that is located on the second floor. The food is not as good but the seating area is better. If you’re really tired this may be a good alternative. But the food is better downstairs.
Coffee at Cafe Bagdad and hangout in Plaza la Aguilita
After you are finished the Oaxaca food continue along Talavera. This is what I consider Deep Centro or Deep Downtown. The amount of people will be overwhelming. You’ll take this street until you reach Plaza la Aguilita.
It is here where the nomadic Aztecs were said to find a snake eating an eagle. This was the symbol that they were waiting for to notify them that this was the place where they should build their capital city.
Later this city would become the great Tenochitlan, and later Mexico City. Supposedly everything started here.
Now this plaza is a bit of a respite from the crowded streets of Centro. The streets open up to this plaza and give everybody a little room to breathe.
Bagdad Cafe is a cute cafe inside of a colonial building. they have a nice fountain inside or you can sit outside and watch the people.
I recommend you take another breather here. Take in what you have just experienced. I congratulate you for being so adventurous. That was crazy right? Most tourists don’t see this part of Mexico City, but this is where all of the history is.
Ending
This is the end of the tour. If you followed the schedule, it’ll be around 3 or 4 in the afternoon. How to re-emerge from the surreal world of downtown Mexico City?
You can either leave by foot, or by bike taxi. Bike taxis are common in this part of town, because it is so gridlocked, that real car taxi’s or Ubers, cannot get around.
They won’t take you all the way to La Condesa, but they will gladly take you back to Tracey Parker’s recommended neighborhood for Gay Travelers, Baños San Ciprian, Cine Savoy, or Alameda Central (from where you can call Uber or access a number of public transit lines)
Gay Travelers
You guys can spend the rest of the afternoon in my favorite Bathhouse/Steam Room: Baños San Ciprian. Did you like the men in this neighborhood. You’ll find many of them relaxing in San Ciprian in the afternoons.
or
Begin the Downtown Mexico City Art and Gay Cruising Tour. (If you choose to do this tour, skip MUNAL, and begin at Cine Savoy). I think you’ve been to enough Museums for one day. If you’re taking a bike taxi, I would tell him to take you to the Torre Latino. It’s the ‘fake Empire State Building’ that you may have already noticed. From here you can walk to The Cathedral San Fransisco, or to Cine Savoy, using your google maps directions. Follow the tour from there.
Note: If relaxing in a steam room sounds like the perfect thing to do, but you don’t want to skip the gay cruising, don’t worry. You can spend a few hours in the steam room and then go to Funny Love or Sexto Piso after.
Either way, you’ll want to call an Uber to get you out of San Ciprian. Call the Uber from inside, and go outside when the Uber arrives.
Everybody Else
Follow Calle Mensones back Zocalo and Metro Zocalo Tenochtitlan. It is not recommended to use Metro La Merced, because it is very hard to access. Metro Pino Suarez is another alternative. Personally I like the idea of the bike taxi back to Alameda Central, that I mentioned above.
Thank You
Thank you so much for taking this tour. This is one of my favorite parts of Mexico City. I learned about it over the years by being dragged around by various Mexican friends. Your trip to Mexico City will mean more to you now that you have had this experience.
If you’d like to tell me about your experience I’d love to hear about it. Contact Me
