Mexico City Travel Tips You Need To Know Before Visiting

Last updated on March 28th, 2026

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If you’re planning a trip to the Mexican capital and want to feel as prepared as possible, here are my top Mexico City travel tips—from someone who’s visited multiple times and lived there on occasion.

Mexico City is an incredible city to visit—it simply has it all: big city vibes, charming, colorful neighborhoods, rich history, incredible food, and lovely people.

Which is why I keep coming back to it over and over again.

Luckily, one of my best friends lived there for many years, so I always had a place to crash in La Roma neighborhood—hands down, the best neighborhood to stay in Mexico City.

While it’s true that “big city rules” apply to every major city—keep your belongings close to you in the metro, don’t leave your phone out on a restaurant table, and things like that—there are also many Mexico City–specific things you might not think about before your trip.

From the physical effects of the city’s altitude to the expansive city layout, to earthquake protocol, there are a few things that are important to keep in mind to make sure you’re not caught off guard during your trip.

So without further ado, here are some of my top Mexico City travel tips for first-time visitors.

Mexico City Travel Tips You Need To Know Before Visiting

Anti-nausea pills are your friends

Even after visiting Mexico City more times than I can remember, and having lived there for some short seasons throughout my life, I somehow always, always, ALWAYS completely forget about the altitude.

Mexico City is located 2,240 m above sea level, making it quite a high destination to visit, and the way you physically feel might take you by surprise.

According to the Mexico City government’s website, some of the common symptoms of altitude sickness include:

• Extreme shortness of breath
• Dizziness
• Headache
• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite

This is not to scare you, as it isn’t super serious. The important thing is to be aware of what it is, so you can identify it if you start feeling weird upon arrival in Mexico City.

The best you can do is to give yourself time to rest when needed, stay hydrated, and I would highly recommend traveling with anti-nausea pills in case you get dizzy.

I like the Dramamine ginger ones, as they don’t make me feel drowsy at all and are still very effective.

Tap water is not potable, buy water bottles

On the note of staying hydrated while in Mexico City, you should know that tap water is not drinkable anywhere in Mexico, so make sure to stock up on water bottles for your hotel and for your adventures.

You can obviously find water bottles in any supermarket. If you’re out and about, our go-to corner store is OXXO, a Mexican convenience store with all the snacks and drinks you could need.

If you’re feeling a little dehydrated, make sure to grab an Electrolit drink from Oxxo; this is the country’s hungover cure.

My favorite flavors are lemon and strawberry-kiwi. They are so tasty, it makes staying hydrated super easy!

Stay aware of earthquakes

A “fun” thing about Mexico City… ish, is that it’s quite prone to earthquakes.

I’ve had the surprise of experiencing a few throughout the years. Luckily, none of them were too aggressive.

According to Earthquakelist data on earthquakes in Mexico City, there are around 95 earthquakes a year within 300 km (186 mi) of Mexico City, which comes down to one every 3 days. All varying in strength, with most of them being barely noticeable in the city.

Again, this is not to scare you, but just to make you aware.

If it happens that during your trip to Mexico City, you hear a city-wide siren and you see the locals exiting buildings, follow them to the safety meeting point. They know what they are doing.

On this note, last time I visited Mexico City, there was a loud party going on next door, and I was desperate to sleep, and I had to stop myself from trying to go to sleep with my noise-cancelling headphones on.

Because… exactly, if there were an earthquake in the middle of the night, I want to be able to hear the alarms clearly and immediately.

It was actually that same night that I realized I should write this post about Mexico City tips, because anywhere else in the world I would’ve gone to bed with my headphones blasting a relaxing playlist, but not here.

I did have a midnight earthquake scare once while in Mexico City, so I know that you want to be quick to exit your building if needed.

Long story short: be aware of earthquake protocols, follow the locals, don’t sleep with noise-cancelling headphones on, think about your evacuation route at your accommodation, and if you’re paranoid like me, don’t stay in skyscrapers overnight.

Mexico City is massive; choose your base wisely

One thing that you might underestimate is just how big Mexico City truly is and how far and wide it spreads out.

If you’re doing a full Mexico City itinerary: exploring the best places to eat in La Roma, admiring the beautiful houses in Polanco, and exploring the Historic Center, you need to understand that they are all on different sides of the city.

No matter what you want to visit during your Mexico City trip, it’s important to choose your base wisely.

For this, everyone’s favorite contenders are always the La Roma neighborhood and La Condesa.

I’m personally a La Roma fan, through and through, and I think it’s the best area to stay in Mexico City, as it makes for a walkable holiday, with great food, amazing coffee, and close access to everything else by a short Uber ride.

Whatever you decide, make sure your base for the trip matches your intention.

Look down while walking

This one is from personal experience.

As dumb as it sounds to give this as a Mexico City travel tip, you’ll understand it once you visit: make sure to pay attention to the floor while walking.

None of that texting while walking, or checking maps while speedwalking your way through the city, because you will trip.

Whether it’s because of earthquakes or/and due to trees’ roots pushing through the pavements, the sidewalks of Mexico City—also in La Roma—are more of an obstacle course at times than a smooth stroll.

So, very simple, just pay attention to the ground under your feet, you never know when it might just give you a speed bump.

Skip Starbucks and go to Cielito Querido

If you’re in a rush while exploring the city and don’t have the time to hunt for one of the best specialty coffee shops in Mexico City, but need a caffeine fix, skip Starbucks and go to Cielito Querido instead.

Cielito Querido is a Mexican family-owned business turned local coffee shop chain with folkloric decor and really good marketing—I love their puns in Spanish—and most importantly, the coffee is good.

If you want to try a local coffee, make sure to order café de olla, a naturally sweet coffee with piloncillo, a traditional Mexican unrefined raw cane sugar, and a touch of cinnamon—black coffee, Mexican style!

Enjoy the city’s museum offerings

While there’s so much to eat and drink in Mexico City—to try it all, make sure to book one of these top Mexico City food tours—this is not the only activity to spend your time on.

Museum fans will be happy to know that Mexico City has one of the highest concentrations of museums in the world, being up there on the lists with Paris and London, boasting over 190 museums.

And what’s even better is that many of those are free to visit! So make sure to consider these if you’re looking for free things to do in Mexico City:

• Museo Soumaya: Incredible European and Mexican art inside a modern building.
• Museo del Banco de México: History of the country’s economy in a historic building.
• Museo del Estanquillo: Carlos Monsiváis private collection.
• Museo Kaluz: A strong collection of Mexican works of art in the Historic Center.
• Museo de la Cancillería: One of the top contemporary art museums in the city.
• Palacio de Iturbide (Fomento Cultural Banamex): High-quality rotating art exhibits in a historic building.
• Museo de la Ciudad de México: Mexico City’s urban history housed inside a colonial palace.
• Archivo Histórico de la Ciudad de México: Local archeology, regional artifacts and more.

These are only a few of the many free museums available. For a full list of the free museums in Mexico City, check here.

The article is in Spanish, but you can translate it with the browser, or just check out the names of the museums and Google them.

Use Uber to move around easily and safely

I’ve always used the metro system while in Mexico City, and never had any issues with it— there are even metro wagons that are women and children-only—but I understand that some first-time visitors might be nervous to do the same.

For this, you’ll be happy to know that Uber works in Mexico City—and generally in most big Mexican cities—making it super easy to move around the city during your trip.

If you have the app already downloaded—who doesn’t?—it should automatically relocate to Mexico City once you open it, and you should be able to call an Uber at any time of the day.

Making it easy, hassle-free, and safe to move around the different neighborhoods of Mexico City while exploring.

Avoid rush hour at all costs when moving from one place to another

Something to consider when getting by car from point A to B is: when are you ordering the Uber? And how far are you planning to go?

Like in any big city, rush hours are to be avoided at all costs. Or you will spend most of your evening stuck in a car.

A drive that would normally take 30 minutes to get somewhere on empty roads can take up to 2 hours if you choose the wrong time to leave.

So if you need to get to the other side of town between 5:30 pm and 8:00 pm, be aware that traffic will be slooooow. So, I’d recommend getting where you need to be before or after this time window.

Final thoughts on Mexico City travel tips

After having lived in Mexico City on and off for short periods of time throughout my life, I find it hard to think of travel tips to give, as the city just feels like home to me.

However, it was on one of my short stays where I realized I couldn’t fall asleep with my headphones on that gave me the idea to write this post of Mexico City travel tips for travelers that might not think of these things.

I’ll keep updating this post with more tips as they keep coming to me, and with my many visits in the future, as Mexico City is a place I tend to visit at least once a year on my way home to the North of Mexico.

I hope that, while short, you found this list of Mexico City travel tips useful. Let me know if there are any other specific travel tips you need help with.

Is there anything completely new in this blog post that you’ll need to consider for your upcoming trip to Mexico City? Let us know in the comments.