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This basilica honors the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico’s patron saint. In 1531 the Virgin appeared to a native, Juan Diego, requesting a church be built there. Diego convinced the local priest by showing him a cape bearing the image of the Virgin. Antigua Basílica de Guadalupe was built in 1709. The cape is displayed in the new basilica, built in 1976.

Built as a small Jesuit college in 1588, today the building is perhaps best known as the birth­place of the modern muralist movement. Diego Rivera painted his first mural, The Creation, here in 1922–3. The walls inside have works of early muralists. In 1992 the building was restored as a museum.

Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso

Originally built by Jesuit friars in 1588, the property was seized by the Spanish in 1767. After independence it became a National Preparatory School. Elected president in 1920, the reformist Álvaro Obregón wanted art to mend the country and by 1922 muralists were hired to decorate the interior walls. Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and José Clemente Orozco painted some of the best examples of Mexico’s muralist movement here (see Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso ).

When the university was built in the far south of Mexico City in the 1950s, this broad avenue was created to link it with the rest of the city. Avenida Insurgentes today stretches for 28 miles (45 km) and Insurgentes Sur, the southern stretch, is a happening area.

This festive Saturday-only shopping event is housed in an old colonial mansion. Dozens of tastefully decorated booths displaying exquisite decorative and functional art fill the rooms around the courtyard. Intricate silver jewelry, hand-embroidered clothing, papier-mâché figures, hand-carved and painted woodwork, and ceramics are on offer. The mansion’s courtyard is home to the El Bazar de Sábado Restaurant .

One of the largest, prettiest, and most visited urban parks in the world, Bosque de Chapultepec is loved by Mexicans and visitors alike. Many visitors discover the park while visiting the Museo Nacional de Antropología or the spectacular hilltop Castillo de Chapultepec which houses the Museo Nacional de Historia. The park offers miles of paved walkways that lead through woods, past lakes, into lovely gardens, and connect to many more significant museums and attractions. There are lakeside restaurants, picnic spots with tall, shady trees, shops, and places to rent paddleboats.

Lago Mayor, Bosque de Chapultepec

This huge and diverse urban park offers a fantastic selection of activities and makes a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. Most of the major museums and the zoo are located in the first section. Two other sections offer more green space, fewer visitors, and are ideal for walking, cycling, and boating (see Bosque de Chapultepec ).

Constructed in 1524, the first printing press in the Americas was installed here in 1534 by Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza. Today, the house displays a model of the press and hosts temporary exhibits.