Solo Travel In Mexico City + Female Safety Tips

Since I live here, I decided a guide to solo travel in Mexico City was well overdue. Even though I know it’s a fantastic and safe destination for women travelling alone, it seems not everyone knows this.

I know this because of how many people ask me ‘How’s the safety there?’ or ‘Wait, is that safe?’ as their first response based on me telling them I live here. Honestly, it’s astounding how many people ask me this… Including men who aren’t even travelling alone! So given that they’re concerned, I can understand why women travelling alone to Mexico City need reassurance.

Read next: guide to solo travel in Mexico (not just Mexico City!)

Seriously, I don’t know why Mexico City (and the whole country) has such a bad rep. But I guess biased media with a specific agenda and dramatic cartel movies designed to attract viewers rather than do destination marketing!

Read next: my top Mexico City travel tips

Why to plan a solo trip to Mexico City

• A wide range of tourist activities from riding colourful boats along the canals to museum hopping, market shopping and eating your heart out!
• Frida Kahlo history and art – Casa Azul (the Blue House) in Coyoacan is the main attraction but you can find her art in various places in the city
• Incredible museums covering Mexican art, history and culture (from the Mayans and Aztecs to contemporary history like the Revolution) – some say CDMX has more museums than Paris!
• FANTASTIC food – more than just tacos! (see my guide to what to eat in Mexico)
• Amazing coffee and cafe culture
• Easy access to other places in Mexico – so, if you’re wondering whether to tag CDMX on to part of a longer trip, I say YES.

Best areas to stay in Mexico City for solo travellers

These aren’t necessarily the best places for sightseeing (I’ll share the top attractions in Mexico City later) but these are the BEST places to stay for safety and nice vibes. All these areas are lovely places to wander with wide, tree-lined streets and plenty of coffee shops.

Condesa – this is one of the poshest areas of the capital and it’s undeniably lovely with Art Deco architecture, leafy parks, and countless nice restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries and bars. The only downside is that it’s expensive and gentrified these days.

Roma (Norte and Sur) – the quirky cousin of cool Condesa is right next door. Keep walking north from Parque Mexico and you’re there. Roma Norte (North) is home to some of the best coffee shops in Mexico City plus boutiques, cool bars and all the other hipster features.

Roma Sur (South) is more chilled and residential but you might get a better deal on accommodation, plus it’s a quick walk to Roma Norte and Condesa.

Juarez – just north of Roma Norte, this is another safe place for solo travellers in Mexico City with great cafes and restaurants. It’s also home to Zona Rosa, the LGBT party area (perhaps don’t stay in this section of Juarez neighbourhood if you want an early night!) and Koreatown. Also, it’s closer to Centro than the areas mentioned above so saves time on transportation.

Escandon / San Miguel de Chapulpetec – close to Condesa (Escandon is just south and SMC is just west), these quiet residential areas are good choices if you want to be close to the action while escaping the crowds and benefiting from cheaper prices.

Polanco – okay this wouldn’t be my choice but if you love fine dining and shopping malls, you may like Polanco. I find it a bit boring, personally not to mention expensive.

Best hostels in Mexico City

For solo travel to Mexico City, I recommend the following…

• Casa Pepe – a fun lively hostel suited to meeting others. Check availability from $16.
• Viajero – I have stayed in several of these chains of hostels and they’re always great with immaculate facilities and all kinds of events. Check availability from $35.
• Casa Pancha – a family-run hostel ideal for co-workers and older backpackers in the heart of Condesa. Check availability from $39.
• Wanderlust – in a great location between Roma Norte and Juarez, this is a stylish hostel with dorms and private rooms, rave reviews and free breakfast. Check availability from $36.
• Hostel Cuija Coyoacan – a great option if you want to enjoy the lovely Coyoacan neighbourhood. Check availability from $22.
• U-Co Roma Co-Living – for longer stays of co-working and co-living, this is where it’s at! Check availability from $36.
• Browse all hostels on Hostelworld.

Top things to do solo in Mexico City

If you’re a tourist in the capital wanting to tick off the top attractions, here’s where not to miss.

• Alameda Central – a nice park area where you can observe local life
• Chinatown – although not the best Chinatown in the world, it’s an iconic feature of the city centre
• Casa de los Azulejos – the ‘House of Tiles’ is worth admiring from the inside and outside
• Templo Mayor ruins – the remains of the important Aztec city of Tenochtitlan can be viewed from the outside for free but it’s worth paying to enter the museum underneath
• The Metropolitan Cathedral – the oldest cathedral in the Americas built with rocks from Templo Mayor
• Torre Latinoamericana – with a viewing deck at the top and a bar on the 41st floor, this tower offers the best views in town
• See Diego murals at the National Palace – line up at 9.30am to try and get a ticket for the free daily 10.30am tour (remember to bring an official ID)
• Secretariat of Public Education – there are more amazing Diego murals and they’re free to visit
• See the ornate ceiling of the Gran Hotel – pop inside to snap photos for free. It’s amazing!

What & where to eat in Centro

• Tacos at Taqueria Los Coyocos – featured on Netflix!
• Tacos de canasta (‘basket tacos’ commonly eaten in the morning) at Los Tacos de Canasta Los Especiales – choose frijoles, papas or chicharron OR get one of each
• Breakfast at Cafe Tacuba or any branch of El Cardenal (I like the Hilton one with a big Diego mural on the wall) – go early for either place as they’re classic, historic establishments that get very busy
• Cakes at Pasteleria Ideal – an absolute cake palace!
• Lunch at Cafe Regina – a cute cafe away from the crowds with generous, healthy portions
• Sweets at Dulceria de Celaya – a historic sweet shop open since 1874 selling all kinds of goodies
• Churros at El Moro – this famous churreria has branches around the city but this is the atmospheric original open since 1935
• Speciality coffee at Casiopea Café – my favourite place for a flat white away from the crowds!

Things to do in Roma

• Tour small museums and galleries like OMR Gallery, the Object Museum, MAIA inside Casa Basalta, and the Salon of Mexican Fine Art
• Wander Mercado Medellin (Roma Sur) for an authentic market vibe and try local dishes in the food court. Alternatively, eat at modern pop-ups in Mercado Roma
• Go craft beer tasting at Falling Piano, La Roma Brewing or Cyprez Tap Room
• Treat yourself to a cocktail at famous Licoreria Limantour, Bar Las Brujas or Salon Rosetta. For somewhere you don’t need a ressy, try Gin Gin or Cafe Nadie
• Drink quality coffee at Quentin, Cumbe, Memorias de un Barista, Forte or Cucurucho
• Take yourself on a taco tour – some of my faves are Orinoco, El Califa, Frontera (casual restaurants), Tacos El Gato Volador, Tacos Los Juanes (food stands), Compita Birria de Res (lunchtime birria), and Tacobar (tacos and cocktails).
• Head to Panaderia Rosetta early for a guava ricotta roll! Trust me.

Things to do in Condesa

• Walk Avenida Amsterdam, a circular path lined with trees and cafes. In the early evenings, it’s busy with runners and dog walkers
• Explore Parque Mexico where locals walk dogs, take dance classes and relax in the peaceful Audiorama space
• Eat at one of the lovely brunch restaurants like Maque or Freims
• Shop at gorgeous boutiques
• Enjoy cafe culture at Borel, Quentin, Orquidea and Chiquitito. Don’t miss El Pendulo, a famous bookshop cafe
• Line up early for famous chilaquiles tortas (sandwiches with tortilla chips and salsa) at Le Esquina del Chilaquil
• Eat the best tacos at Don Juan (meaty), Hola El Guero (lots of veggie options), Taqueria La Hortaliza (featured on Netflix), Taqueria El Greco and El Pescadito (the best fish tacos in the world!).

Xochimilco is an iconic place to visit in CDMX but not the easiest place to visit as a solo traveller in Mexico City. This is because the prices for trajinera rides (the colourful boats pictured above) are per boat not per person so they’re expensive for a solo traveller, around 600 pesos an hour.

So, one option is asking around in your hostel (if you’re staying at one) and trying to get a group together. Another option is heading to the port and waiting to see if there are people you can share with. But a more reliable option is visiting as part of an organised activity with GetYourGuide, Viator or similar.

Best tours: book a lunchtime boat tour with drinks or, if you’re in a rush and want to combine several locations, a tour including Coyoacan and UNAM. Alternatively, try a boat tour with a mezcal mixology class or, if you’re feeling confident, a party cruise!

Another option is an ecotour to the Xochimilco chinampas (where locals grow fresh produce) to learn how these islands have been harvested since Aztec times. Some companies like Arca Tierra offer the chance to eat a delicious meal made with food grown there.

There are a few ports to choose from. Nativitas is the busiest and most popular (good for a party vibe) but I prefer Embarcadero Cuemanco which is more peaceful.

Getting to Xochimilco: for public transport, ride the blue metro Line 2 to Tasqueña, then change to the Xochimilco Light Rail which takes around 30 minutes. It’s quite a time-consuming journey, to be honest, so I prefer Uber for around 250 pesos.

This is a hidden gem as far as tourists are concerned! It’s always lively and busy but mainly with locals. So, to see a gorgeous part of the city that most tourists miss, don’t sleep in on Saturday (well, actually, you can because it gets going around 11am).

The neighbourhood is historic and charming, comparable to Coyoacan and very safe for solo female travellers in Mexico City. But the real appeal is the sprawling Bazaar Sabado selling art by local artists, jewellery, trinkets, food products and more.

It’s not your typical Mexican market: it’s boujee and upmarket but great for browsing (and free samples) in the indoor upstairs section.

See my guide to San Angel Market for more.

Getting to San Angel: an Uber will cost 150 pesos from the centre but it’s easy to arrive by public transport. The metrobus heads all the way down Insurgentes past Roma and Condesa and only costs 6 pesos.

The most famous day trip from CDMX is to the Teotihuacan Pyramids. This archaeological site is known for its enormous Pyramid of the Moon and the Pyramid of the Sun, connected by the Avenue of Death (not as spooky as it sounds: in fact, it’s hot and exposed so bring a hat and suncream!).

While it’s worth exploring from ground level, I highly recommend a Teotihuacan hot air balloon ride if you have the budget! I did this a few years ago and it was such a Mexico bucket list experience to remember.

Go for a Sunday bike ride on Reforma

This isn’t a top sightseeing activity but it’s one of my favourite things to do solo in Mexico City on Sundays. The whole of Reforma closes to cars and turns into a big bike riding/roller skating lane!

It’s easy to whiz from Chapultepec past the Angel statue to Centro (and the museums are free when you get there because it’s a Sunday).

Hire a bike using the EcoBici app. You can purchase a pass for 1 day (118 pesos), 3 days, 7 days or 1 year.

Mexico City solo travel itinerary – how long to spend?

I’d suggest around 5 days in Mexico City; I have a 5 day itinerary to help you plan that. I suggest splitting up the activities like so:

Day 1: Visit Teotihuacan Pyramids. If you do an early balloon ride, return to chill in Roma/Condesa for the afternoon.

Day 2: Chapultepec Park then Polanco for the galleries (or more time in Roma and Condesa).

Day 3: Centro for museums and galleries. Eat amazing tacos for lunch!

Day 4: Coyoacan and, if you can time this day for Saturday, San Angel Market.

Day 5: Xochimilco canal day. If you didn’t do Coyoacan already, you could combine it here.

The food in Mexico City is world-class. You can try high-end, experimental food at classy restaurants or enjoy the classics at inexpensive street food stands (and there’s so much international food, too). It’s a food wonderland!

The good thing about street food for solo travellers in Mexico City is that you don’t feel awkward dining in a restaurant solo. This no longer phases me but if you’re new to travelling alone, you may feel more comfortable getting street food to go.

Taxi apps – for safety, I recommend these rather than hailing taxis on the street (the local ones are pink and white). Uber and Didi are reliable; I usually compare the two to see which is cheaper.

Although they’re undeniably good value, prices surge at peak times so I sometimes use InDrive instead which is cash-only and works by the rider entering a price that local drivers can accept or suggest a new offer. This is usually cheaper but, based on the quality of the vehicles and drivers, I feel safer in Didi and Uber.

Metro – costing 5 pesos to get anywhere in the city, this is a very affordable way of getting around. Although it can be busy and crowded with the risk of pickpockets (especially at peak times of 7am-9am and 5-7pm), I often take the metro, opting for the women’s & children’s carriage. Buy a metrocard and top it up at any counter.

Getting around tip – sometimes the Citymapper app is better than Google Maps.

The Metrobus and trolleybus, travelling along electric lines above ground, are ideal if you feel claustrophobic at the thought of the metro crowds. Journeys cost 6 pesos using your metrocard and show on Google Maps (MB and T symbols).

Buses – I find regular buses confusing and rarely use them as a solo female traveller in Mexico City. If you decide to, pay in cash.

Open-top tourist buses – the Turibus is an open-top bus journeying between the key tourist attractions.

Ride an Ecobici bike – if you feel confident riding in CDMX traffic! Luckily, there’s usually a bike lane. Buy a pass online and unlock them via the app.

Google Maps shows you how to get around. The ‘M’ shaped symbol means Metro, the ‘MB’ symbol shows Metrobus and the T shows Trolleybus. Everything else is likely a local bus.

The two airports and getting downtown

The main airport is Mexico City International Airport (also called Benito Juárez). Although it’s connected to the city by metro, if you’re travelling with your luggage/valuables, I suggest getting an Uber. These are fairly cheap: I’ve got 80 pesos rides between Roma and the airport before.

Tip – this airport is busy and crowded so arrive early even for domestic flights!

The new airport, Santa Lucia (also called Felipe Ángeles), is an hour’s drive from the city. Ubers cost 300 pesos so it’s ok to get a flight out of there (although a bit expensive for solo travellers in Mexico City) but I don’t recommend flying in. Uber isn’t allowed to pick up and the official airport taxis are 1000 pesos.

There are shuttle buses but they don’t depart frequently, plus the Mexibus line that only costs 20 pesos… But I don’t recommend this because it only takes you to Ojo de Agua station which is still an hour from the city! Overall, I don’t suggest flying into this airport; a shame because it’s very clean, new and not crowded.

Know which areas to avoid – the two main areas that are unsafe and close to the places you may be visiting are Doctores and Tepito (including La Lagunilla Market). Doctores is east of Roma and Tepito is north of Centro. Other bad areas are Iztapalapa and Ciudad Neza but these are nowhere near anywhere you’ll be visiting so don’t worry about them.

Don’t walk at night – apart from the main streets around Condesa, Roma and the other popular hoods I’ve mentioned. Elsewhere, Uber is cheap so I recommend using it!

Use the women’s and children’s carriage on the metro – some people will advise you to avoid the metro altogether but, honestly, I think this is overkill because I’ve used it hundreds of times without any problems. But I prefer taking direct journeys because, if there’s a change and I don’t know what that station/area is like, I’m more hesitant.

You can wear whatever you want but this is not the beach! Although it’s not particularly conservative, people tend to be quite covered in Mexico City. I think locals just find it colder than we foreign tourists do! So even if it’s 30 degrees, they wear jeans.

So if you want to fit in, I suggest avoiding shorts and short dresses. You may get the odd weird look if you’re dressed for a summer’s day back home! But it won’t make you unsafe, in my opinion, so really there’s no dress code.

Other items to pack for solo travelling in Mexico City:

• Comfy sneakers – you’ll do a lot of walking
• Nicer sandals for evenings
• Hat, sunglasses and sunscreen
• Microfibre quick-drying towel if you’re staying in a hostel
• Security: A handy bum bag with secure zip
• Combination padlock (ideal for hostel lockers)
• Research: The latest copy of Lonely Planet Mexico
• A Lonely Planet Mexican Spanish Phrasebook & Dictionary
• Technology: a GoPro if you’re making videos – I use the HERO8 Black
• Solo photography pick: Manfrotto tripod and Joby Gorillapod
• A power bank to keep your devices alive
• Sustainability: stainless steel reusable water bottle with straw lid to reduce the use of plastic bottles
• Alternatively, a filtering water bottle that allows you to safely drink tap water
• Reusable coffee cup (collapsable) for hot takeaway drinks
• Metal straw kit with straw cleaner and cloth bag.

I would suggest the following ways to meet people travelling solo…

• Staying in hostels – this is a good tactic anywhere in the world!
• Joining free walking tours around Centro and other areas
• Taking group tours for example to the pyramids, Xochimilco, or simply food tours or cooking classes
• Joining Facebook groups like Girls Love Travel to see who else is visiting CDMX solo
• Staying longer to volunteer with Workaway or take Spanish classes
• Attending language exchange events like the Tuesday Discourse party (find this event and others on the Meetup website).

If you’re starting a bigger Mexico tip, there are tons of places I recommend visiting. Some fantastic places nearby CDMX safe for solo travel include…

• Puebla – just 2 hours from the capital by bus, this is a lovely city with a whole street dedicated to local sweets! Other local staples include Talavera pottery, mole sauce and a unique dish called chile en nogada (chilli in walnut sauce). Other attractions of Puebla include museums, street art and cathedrals.
• Cholula – just a 30-minute drive from Puebla is this gorgeous town known for having the world’s largest pyramid! Despite the historic vibe, it’s become cool thanks to its student population with quality coffee shops and speakeasy bars.
• Tepotzlan (not to be confused with Tepotzotlan but this is also nice) – just an hour from CDMX by bus, this pretty town surrounded by mountains has lovely restaurants, hotels and a scenic hike to an archaeological site.

Many nationalities can benefit from visa-free entry to Mexico for up to 180 days. Border agents write the number of days assigned to you in your passport so double check as they don’t always give the full 180 days (and you can get in trouble for overstaying).

If you want to stay the full 180 days, you may want to have an exit flight or accommodation booked to show them.

You used to be given an FMM (part of the card you fill out on arrival) which you present on exit, but this has largely been replaced now by passport stamps. This is much easier because you don’t have to worry about losing the FMM.

Yes, you need travel insurance anywhere outside of your home country, in my opinion. It’s not just about crime: you could have an accident or illness anywhere and, depending on the country, it could bankrupt you if it’s serious!

For solo travel in Mexico City, I recommend True Traveller which I use myself. I pay around £30 (€40) a month when getting a year’s plan. They cover pre-existing health conditions and will cover you if you’re already travelling and/or don’t yet have your flight home booked. The claim process is really easy; I’ve claimed twice and they’ve paid out within days. Click to get a quote.

True Traveller is just for European residents (including the UK) so, for other nationalities, I recommend Hey Mundo and for long-term digital nomad travellers, I suggest Safety Wing.