Mexico is the city with the largest number of museums in the world, to name some of the most popular:
National Museum of AnthropologyChapultepec. One of the best museums worldwide over, it was built in late 1960’s and designed by Pedro Ramírez Vázquez. Notice the huge, impressive fountain in the courtyard. It gathers the best collection of sculptures, jewels and handcrafts from ancient Mexican cultures, and could take many hours to see everything. They also have interesting international special exhibits.
Plaza de las Tres Culturas in Tlatelolco has examples of modern, colonial, and pre-Columbian architecture, all around one square.
Museum of Modern ArtChapultepec. Here you will find paintings from Frida Kahlo, Leonora Carrington and Remedios Varo, as well as a sculpture garden.
Dolores Olmedo MuseumXochimilco. An art philanthropist left her former home, the grand Hacienda La Noria, as a museum featuring the works of her friend Diego Rivera. At least 137 of his works are displayed here, as well as 25 paintings of Frida Kahlo. The premises also feature beautiful gardens full of peacocks and a weird species of Aztec dog.
Fine Arts Palace Museum (Palacio de Bellas Artes)Centro. A concert hall and an arts center, it houses some of Mexico's finest murals and the Art Deco interior is worth seeing alone.
Rufino Tamayo MuseumChapultepec. Contains the works of Mexican painter, Rufino Tamayo.
José Luis Cuevas MuseumCentro. Opened in 1992 and is filled with about 1,000 paintings, drawings, and sculptures from notorious artist, Jose Cuevas.
National History Museum in Chapultepec's CastleChapultepec. The Museum's nineteen rooms contain, in addition to a collection of pre-Columbian material and reproductions of old manuscripts, a vast range of exhibits illustrating the history of Mexico since the Spanish conquest.
Papalote, children's MuseumChapultepec. If you've got kids, they'll love it! Bright, colorful, and filled with educational experiences for children of all ages.
Universum (National University's Museum)Coyoacán. A science museum maintained by UNAM, the largest university in Latin America. Take some time to wander around the Campus.
Casa Mural Diego RiveraCentro. Contains murals of acclaimed artist, Diego Rivera.
National Palace (Zocalo)Centro. You can see some impressive Diego Rivera frescoes. You'll need to carry some sort of ID in order to enter the building.
San Idelfonso MuseumCentro. There are some of Orozco's best frescoes. The temporary exhibitions are usually very good.
Franz Meyer MuseumCentro. Display the collections of Franz Mayer, it holds Mexico's largest decorative art collection and also hosts temporary exhibits in the fields of design and photography.
Mexico City's MuseumCentro. Great place to learn about Mexico City's eclectic history.
Templo Mayor Museum (Zocalo)Centro. Contains the ruins and last remnants of the Aztec empire. attached to the huge archeological site where the foundations of the temple were accidentally found in the 1970s.
San Carlos MuseumCentro. The San Carlos Musuem holds some of Mexico's best paintings and exhibit 15th and 16th century paintings.
National Art MuseumCentro. The National Art Museum, houses a rich collection of Mexican art ranging from the 16th to the first half of the 20th centuries.
National History MuseumChapultepec. Displays a vast range of exhibits illustrating the history of Mexico since the Spanish conquest.
Frida Kahlo Museum, Coyoacán Also called Casa Azul, it is the former house of the painter since she was born to her death, and full of some of her works, and many of her personal artifacts.
Anahuacalli Museum, Coyoacán An impressive modern representation of Mayan architecture, it houses Diego Rivera’s collection of Aztec and other precolumbian cultures' sculptures.
Leon Trotsky MuseumCoyoacán This was the house where Trotsky lived in exile during the last 1.5 years of his life, and was murdered by one of Stalin's agents. Guided tours are provided by members of the Workers/ Revolutionary Party.
The Most Frequently Asked Travel Questions about Mexico City
Where To Stay & Best Hotels in Mexico City - updated Sep 2023
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Mexico City Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.
