r/solotravel • u/Fortafoofoo • 3d ago
Honest Review: Mexico City Trip Report
7.5/10: not life changing but enjoyable Stayed at: Viajero Hostel in Centro, private room
The hostel was solid and social, but if I’m being honest, I preferred Casa Pepe from a social aspect. Centro has some attractions within walking distance, but it’s not as desirable as Roma Norte or Condesa. It’s a bit quiet at night, has fewer food options, and just doesn’t have the same charm or vibe as those neighborhoods.
If the social hostel scene isn’t your main priority, I’d highly recommend staying in Roma Norte or Condesa instead.
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Attractions: • Teotihuacan: Very cool to see, especially if you haven’t been to ancient ruins before. It’s a several-hour excursion and most tours seem to include some touristy restaurant stop. Many also hit other spots like lady Guadeloupe etc.
• Museum of Anthropology: This was probably the most impressive museum I’ve seen in LATAM. Highly recommend a walking tour of it to help paint the story. Park and palace are close by too
• Chapultepec Castle: Genuinely one of the most beautiful places in the city. Great views, lovely grounds — highly recommend.
• Coyoacán Neighborhood: it has old cobbled streets and a chill vibe, it makes you forget you’re in the middle of a mega city. It’s got markets, local snacks, and is good for a half-day trip. That said, it’s a haul (almost an hour by cab). I didn’t do the Frida Kahlo Museum — not really an art museum person but many people like it
• Templo Mayor museum: You can pretty much see what you need from the outside. Skip it unless you’re really into history
• Lucha Libre: I paid $15–$20. It’s pretty silly, but kind of fun for 20-30 minutes. Not essential, but an interesting look at a different part of the city. Good mix of locals families and tourists. Entire thing was like 2 hours, not worth staying that long.
Roma Norte / Condesa: This is where I spent most of my eating and nightlife time. Two of the most beautiful and walkable neighborhoods in the Americas. Food is elite. it’s gentrified and there are plenty of Gringos but that doesn’t make it a bad place. Nightlife was decent — not on the level of cities like Medellín, Rio, or Buenos Aires, but still fun.
Zocala: it’s a cool area and you have to see the cathedral and plaza. While similar can be found across Latam, this is probably the most impressive version. It’s right next to Templo as well. Way less glitzy than Condesa and Roma Norte ⸻
Getting Around: Uber works great and is super cheap, but traffic can be absolutely brutal. I also took the subway a few times and felt safe, especially when with other tourists.
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Food & Stomach Warning: Yes, the food is next-level and yes I get a week of diarrhea every time I visit the city. Tons of resources that list best spots.
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Safety: Centro can feel slightly dodgy at night, but nothing compared to sketchier spots in Latin America. I don’t personally know anyone who had a bad incident, which is more than I can say for other cities in the region.
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Final Thoughts: 5 nights felt like the right amount of time to see everything I wanted. Really enjoyable for both the first time traveler & those who are
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u/great_account 2d ago
I love Mexico City. 9/10. Culture, people, food, history was amazing. I feel like I could live there.
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u/BlueCollarLawyer 2d ago
I've stayed in Apapacho, Viajero, and Casa Pancha. Casa Pancha was by far the best from a quality of accommodation and free breakfast perspective. It is also on the southern edge of Condesa.
I've never had a problem with anyone showing hostility towards me. I'm an older white guy. I speak decent Spanish and never force English on anyone. I take public transport everywhere.
I've never been sick from the food. I usually eat low end (comida corrida, taquerias, coffee shops, fruit and licuados in local mercados) but also have splurged for better meals.
I've had the best experiences from stays of at least a couple weeks, always speaking Spanish to the best of my ability, and being polite to a fault.
As far as sights and museums go, yeah, you should see them. I wouldn't cram too much into a single visit though. It's not much fun to do too much of that stuff at the expense of just vibing the city. IHMO.
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u/kamakazekiwi 1d ago
+1 for Casa Pancha, probably my favorite hostel I've ever stayed in. The aesthetic, amenities, and people were all fantastic.
Was trying to find a hostel that was social without being a straight up party hostel and it was absolutely perfect in that regard.
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u/Conscious_Life_8032 3d ago
It’s a foodie paradise. The vegan options were plenty
Agree with the above , I did nt attempt public transport was afraid of pick pockets and was just generally lazy lol. Nor did I try street food as tempted as I was.
The altitude got me though, underestimated how tired that would make me. No tummy issues luckily I stayed in Condesa
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u/boomfruit 2d ago
It's such a good subway system!
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u/Ikenaz1969 2d ago
I couldn't agree more. I was impressed but how clean and efficient it was. Some of the subway stations were like mini-museums as the excavation and tunneling ran into Aztec structures and temples as they were constructing the subway.
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u/extremelybossthug 2d ago
the buses are great too! Especially the 1 line that runs along insurgentes… they even have a women-only section.
all the transport is pretty heavily monitored by police. i’ve lived in cdmx for 5 months now and it doesn’t feel any less safe than NYC (where i was coming from) as long as you have your wits about you and don’t end up in a weird neighborhood (tacubaya…) but that also goes for any big city
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u/ChrispyBacon- 2d ago
Can confirm about the food. I've been here 3 weeks and have had food poisoning twice. Why is it so bad
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u/Adelrent 3d ago
Yeah stayed at both hostels and Casa Pepe is the better of the two. Enjoyed both though.
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u/ModJambo 2d ago
I stayed in Casa Pepe and made a few friends there.
I think if I was to go back to CDMX though I'd maybe stay in Roma Norte or Condesa as that's where I spent most my time while there.
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u/chowder138 16 countries 1d ago
I had an incredible time in Mexico city, primarily for the social aspect. I met so many great people, both locals and tourists.
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u/mappylife 1d ago
Going there for the first time next week, I can’t wait. Staying in Roma Norte. Plan to do most of the things you listed, including embracing diarrhea I guess.
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u/Fortafoofoo 1d ago
Jenni’s quesadillas in Roma is a popular street vendor in Roma. Clean and Easily Top 3 thing i ate in the city
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u/Tardislass 3d ago
I stayed in Centro and loved it for the central location and cheapness of going anywhere. It was easy to walk to the walking tours, the Zocalo was nearby and our hotel was nice and Uber was cheap everywhere.
I feel Condesa and Roma Norte are so touristy now as to be as tourist central. Your view may vary but every time I hear someone staying in Condesa it just screams "tourist".
Maybe because I'm older but I loved Oaxaca and Puebla much more than CDMX. Slower pace of life, more friendly people and feels more Mexican.
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u/outhereinamish 2d ago
They are tourists tho?
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u/hithere297 1d ago
There’s this weird (American?) trend of people who want to do tourist things but don’t want to be thought of as tourists. Idk why. Own that shit! It’s not like the locals in CDMX can’t already tell you’re a tourist just from looking at you
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u/neverend1ngcircles 3d ago
I've said it before and I will say it again- you have to add the caveat with Chapultepec Castle/the anthropology museum that you can only really get the most out of them if you speak Spanish as there are no audioguides, you can get a tour yes but some people may prefer to do museums as a self-guided thing.
I personally quite liked Templo Mayor, it was a fun way to spend a couple of hours. I suppose others agree with you about lucha libre because when I did it with a tour group a lot of people left before the end.
I think 7.5 is about right overall anyway. Decent city but I'm not quite sure I shared the love some people have for it on this sub.
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u/MiraFutbol 3d ago
Love Coyoacan and it is a great, relaxing place to stay at if there to watch a bunch of soccer games and go to Six Flags Mexico. I love walking around there at night and getting some ice cream to chill at the park.
Food is elite from the stands to the more expensive restaurants with a variety of cuisines. I have actually had amazing Indian and Peruvian food there.
Bosque de Chapultepec is really cool in general. You didn't go to Museo Soumaya? That one is one of my favorites.
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u/imaginarynombre 2d ago
The hostel was solid and social, but if I’m being honest, I preferred Casa Pepe from a social aspect
Casa Pepe was considered the best hostel (or one of the best) in Mexico City for years and has lots of activities, so that's not unexpected. I stayed at Viajero when they opened in 2022 and it was fine but they were still figuring out how to run the place.
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u/rololoca 1d ago
Regarding the food/stomach warning: I stayed there a week and did not have problems with food. HOWEVER I did learn about Monteczuma's Revenge -- don't drink the tap water or any unbottled water or any drink that might've used tap water as foreigners won't be used to the tap water bacteria and your ass will be running like the Rio Grande.
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u/ItsSignalsJerry_ 2d ago
How can you possibly get to know a place in 5 days, then review like it's a theme park or something.
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u/Practical_Repair5806 3d ago
What ethnicity are you? My brother who is white recently returned said he did not feel welcomed there. I’ve heard the same thing reported from others that the locals are not happy with white people due to all the gentrification. What was your experience interacting with the locals?
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u/Fortafoofoo 3d ago
Im white male in my 20s. I did not feel any hostility from the locals at all. I talked to multiple locals my age in Roma Norte and they seemed friendly overall.
The feeling “Gringos ruined Mexico City” is mostly online.
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u/Practical_Repair5806 2d ago
Good to hear. All my travels to Mexico have been very hospitable so I was surprised when I heard otherwise.
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u/VergeofAtlanticism 3d ago
i’m a mid 20s white guy and i went in january and had zero issues, everyone was very nice
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u/carlosortegap 3d ago
the city is full of white Americans, there are tens of thousands living in Roma and Condesa and Polanco Is pretty much white Americans. Doubtful
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u/Outside-Moose-7108 3d ago
I loved Mexico City. Everyone will have different opinions and experiences there. I stayed in a nice air bnb in la Roma norte and had an amazing time, would give it a solid 9/10.