Budget Travel - Hotel Review

Hotel Fontan Ciudad De Mexico

This Paseo de la Reforma hotel is 1 km (a half-mile) from the Mexico City’s Historical Centre; Alameda Park is a block away.

Property Amenities

Breakfast at Hotel Fontan is complimentary; the hotel also offers a restaurant, a bar, and a business center that offers faxing and copying.

Guestrooms

Hotel Fontan Ciudad De Mexico guestrooms offer TVs with cable, hair dryers, and wireless Internet access at a surcharge.

This smart little hotel is located close to many important sites and points of interest. The staff are friendly and the rooms are basic yet clean and tidy. I am including this as a budget/mid price range hotel as i feel it may meet the needs of a low budget traveler not wishing to stay in a hostel and share a dormitory and also the hotel offers a good alternative for travelers on a mid budget that would rather spend thier money on seeing the city. The hotel has no luxuries but serves its purpose well. Its a place to sleep after trecking the city streets. I have stayed here once with some friends after a party, not wanting to return home and wake the house at 4am and it really isnt all that bad.

Hotel Rating : 4/5

Hotel Comfort : 3/5

Hotel Rooms and Cleanliness : 4/5

Rooms cost between $290 to $360 Mexican Pesos ( roughly 29-36 US dollars or 15-19 British pounds) but you may find the lower rates online.

Budget Travel : First Things First... Where to stay on a budget in Mexico city.

Suprisingly - staying in the city on a budget does not mean that you have to stay far out of town. Many cheap hotels and hostels are located close to the touristic sites and the downtown Reforma Area. Unless you are lucky enough to have a friend in Mexico City that can give you a place to stay - here are some good options when you don´t have a lot of cash to spend!

• Hostel Mexico City, Republica de Brasil No. 8. Mexico City Hostel offers economic, comfortable accomodation for the backpacker or budget traveller during a backpacking trip to Mexico, they offer both private rooms and comfortable dormitory style accomodation.Located very close to the Zócalo in the Historic Center of Mexico City. For 120 pesos you get breakfast, free internet and one bed in dorms.
  

• Hotel Tuxpan, near intersection of Republica de Brasil and Republica de Colombia in the Historic Centre. Great, cheap hotel that is a few blocks away from the zocalo. Foreigners usually don't venture over here but it doesn't seem dangerous at all. For 110 pesos you can get your own room with cable TV!

• Hotel Habana, Rep De Cuba No. 77, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, CP. 06010, 5555181591. The Hotel Habana in the Calle República de Cuba has well-appointed rooms for a good price.

• Hotel Rio de Janeiro, Republica de Brasil, near intersection of Republica de Colombia. Decent rooms and a good location near the zocalo. You can get a room with a TV and a shared bathroom for 70 pesos for a single person...90 for two.

If you are on a low-budget, you can find hotels as low as $7 USD if you take a room with a shared bathroom. Most are centred in the Centro Historico and are very decent.

The cheap hotels are not listed on the internet and many foreigners jump into the hostels for a much worse value than the low budget hotels. The hostels are a good place to meet people but you should only stay there if you dont mind noise, complete lack of privacy, sharing a bedroom with people who will be coming and going at all hours of the night, and a sometimes dirty restrooms and showering facilites. There are plenty of other places to meet people besides hostels so be sure to look around before deciding to stay at one just because it has a sign in English or offers a low price.

There is a medium sized hotel located close to Reforma that i will also be writing about which offers a double bed and a clean private bathroom/shower for around $320 Mexican pesos per night ( around 30 US Dollars, 15 British Pounds) and would be a good alternative for anyone wishing to stay closer to the zona rosa or have slightly more security/privacy. Rooms include a TV and radio and are in an ideal location for anyone wishing to stay in the living party area. Contact us for further details or look out for an upcoming post.

Understanding Mexico City

Mexico City (Spanish: México, Ciudad de México, or D.F. (pronounced deh eh-feh)
is the Capital of Mexico and one of the world's largest and most populated cities.
Greater Mexico City has a population of over 20 million and is spread out roughly in a circle.
Mexico City has everything to offer the traveler on a low budget to the travel that wishes to experience the nations capitals most expensive and luxury venues and dining.
No matter if you are looking for where to buy the best tacos for less than $2 or if you are wanting to find out where to get the best martini and mingle with the beautiful people, you are sure to find everything you need to know here in this blog.

The districts of Mexico City - Understanding the layout a little better.

The city is officially divided into 16 delegaciones (boroughs) which are in turn subdivided into colonias (neighborhoods), of which there are around 250.
Many older towns like Coyoacán, San Angel and Tlalpan have been merged into the city but each of these "old towns" still manages to preserve some of there original charm and character.
Understanding the area of Mexico City can be alittle complicated to visitors as the city sprawl has spread out over time taking with it many boroughs and "towns" that were once, a very long time ago not considered part of the city. Most travelers will infact only move around in what is legally know as the Federal District which covers a much smaller area.

Main Areas the you may visit on your trip :

• Centro Historico - The Historic city centre that is focused on and around the Zócalo (main square) or "Plaza de la Constitución" as it is formally known and extends in all directions for a number of blocks. The Zocalo is the largest square in Latin America and the second largest in the world after Moscow’s Red Square.Here you will find many points of interests for tourists interested in history and some of Mexico Cities oldest examples of fine arquitecture.

• Chapultepec/Lomas de Chapultepec - The Bosque (woods) of Chapultepec is one of the largest urban parks in the world, its name means grass hopper hill and hosts the the main city zoo,lake, many museums and is closely located to one of Mexicos most important Musuems. Lomas de Chapultepec or Lomas for short is the wealthiest area in the city very close by and located as the park ends. Here live some of Mexico Cities most wealthy residents and many foreign government buildings are located in this neighbourhood. The "paseo de las palmas" is an important avenue that runs through this part of town towards Santa Fe.
  

• Polanco - Polanco is also one of the wealthiest residential areas in the city with some of the most expensive boutiques and shopping facilities, upscale restaurants, night clubs and hotels. The Avenida Presidente Masaryk (President Masaryk Avenue) Known as Masaryk to locals is a wide tree lined avenue crossing some of polanco and offers many places to buy luxury goods at stores such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci. There is also a very lare number of wedding stores located along the avenue, many restuarants and also some of the cities finest hotels including Mexico cities first "boutique" Hotel.
  

• Zona Rosa - The Zona Rosa is better known to tourists as the "Reforma" area because it embraces Paseo de la Reforma avenue with its very many statues and one of Mexico cities most famous landmarks. The Zona Rosa is also animportant business and entertainment district with many cinemas and arts centre, high raise office blocks and a string of new mid range hotels. There is a strong gay presence in the Zona Rosa. You can find many Gay clubs and bars in this part of time which are very busy at night and welcome a varied crowd.

• Coyoacán - Coyoacán was a small town swallowed by the city sprawl but still managed to keep its colonial feel. There is a large shopping centre here but the area really thought of as "coyoacán" is the older part of the area located a 10 minute walk from the Metro Centre which has a park, a church and many laid back restuarants and bars. The weekend market in this part of town is extremely popular with mexicans and tourists alike. Here you will also find the famous home of well known Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. In the past few years the area has turned into a neo intellectual centre with many galleries and study centres appearing.

• Condesa and Roma - The area was recently reborn after a long time in the shade. Restaurants like Rexo are credited with bringing people back into the area, now with plenty of trendy restaurants, bistros, clubs, pubs and shops. Condesa is the fast becoming the choice place for mexico cities "up and coming" to live and work and is an area frequented by many travelers whilst staying the the capital.
  

• San Angel - Its a wealthy residential area as well as a fashionable, gentrified area lined with cobblestone streets, upscale boutiques and many, many restaurants.

• Xochimilco - Is better known for its extended series of canals — all that remains of the ancient Xochimilco lake. Xochimilco has kept its ancient traditions, and is probably most famous for the canal boats that are frequented by mexicans for parties and also many tourists hoping to see what the capital may have looked like in years gone by.

• Santa Fe - Santa Fe is a business district at the city western tip that consists mainly of highrise office buildings and many new luxury apartments and "complex" style living areas. The area is home to many diplomats whilst working in the country, aswell as Mexicos largest shopping mall, a cinema, many schools and also more than one university.

• Del Valle and Narvarte - Middle class residential area, business and shopping area in south central city.The area is probably one of the largest residental areas in the capital but currently does not have any hotels.
  

• Tlalpan and Pedregal - Largest of the boroughs and Tlalpan is home of Ajusco, a volcanic mountain peak and National Park, one of the highest mountains in Mexico City.The area is located fairly far from the "downtown" area but is home to many of mexicos rich and famous and is located close by to a large mall complete with a cinema and VIP screen.
  

The outer area of Mexico City includes:

• Ciudad Satelite - The area of Satelite is mainly residental with two large shopping malls and entertainment facilities. Many people come here to shop.
  
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About this Blog

This blog is written with the intention of providing a guide to Mexico city on three different budgets. The information will cover tips and information for the following three types of tourist:

Backpacker/Budget
Wanting to travel with little money ? The Backpacker/Budget travel information is designed to help people on a low budget or backpackers wishing to make the most of thier money in Mexico City and the surrounding areas.


Vacationer/Mid Price Range
Are you planning to have a break in the city or a family vacation ? The Vacationer/Mid Price range information is designed to help travelers on a mid price range budget enjoy Mexico City.


Luxury/High Priced Travel
Do you want to splurge or maybe just try yourself to a weekend break in Mexico city to taste some of the cities finest. The luxury/High priced travel information is aimed to give help to business people or people wishing to see the best of Cosmopolitan Mexico City and sample the variety of the what the city has to offer on a Luxury Budget!



This Blog is written by people from Mexico City to give you the best insider information along with everything else you need to know about enjoying Mexico City, no matter your budget!

Things to do in the City

Here is a long list of things to do in the city - see the other posts for more information on each:

National Palace (Palacio Nacional)

Palacio de Bellas Artes - Theatre

Museo de Arte Popular - The museum of Popular art, a great musuem housing many mexican works

San Jacinto Plaza - San Jacinto Park

Ballet Folklorico de Mexico - Mexican Ballet

National Museum of Anthropology (Museo Nacional de Antropologia)

Plaza de las Tres Culturas - the plaza of the three cultures

Edificio de Correos - The post office building

Museo Leon Trotsky - the house was built just before the mexican revolution and is a great piece of history

Castillo de Chapultepec - Chapultepec Castle

Zócalo - Mexico Cities large plaza, the second largest after Red Square in Russia

Museo del Templo Mayor - Templo Mayor Museum

Monumento a los Ninos Heroes - Famous and Important momument

Central University City Campus (UNAM) - One of the countries best Universities and a great peice of Architecture

Metropolitan Cathedral (Catedral Metropolitana) - One of the cities best sites

Museo Casa Luis Barragan - The musuem and preserved home of famous mexican architect Luis Barragan

Torre Latino - go up to the top floor of the Torre Latino for great views of the city and the worlds highest aquarium located on the 38th floor

Frida Kahlo Museum (Museo Frida Kahlo) - The blue houe where the famed Mexican artist was born and died

Paseo de la Reforma - one of Mexico cities principle streets which hosts various exhibits throughout the year

Museo de Cera de la Ciudad de Mexico - Located in an old mansion, this museum chronicles the history of Mexico's capital city from the time before European contact to present day

Basilica de Santa Maria de Guadalupe - This famous Basilica, located on the site where an Indian claimed to have seen the Virgin of Guadalupe in 1531, contains an image of her that is the most famous religious icon in all of Mexico

Catedral Metropolitana - one of the largest cathedrals in Latin America

Papalote - the childrens museum with lots of things to do and see and complete with an IMAX cinema

Coyoacan - Once a small town outside the capital, it is now well within the city limits but preserves its small-town atmosphere and colonial architecture. A quiet refuge from the hustle and bustle of the city

Museo Dolores Olmedo Patino - the musuem hosts 27 works of Frida Kahlo

Xochimilco - the canals located to the south of the city which can give visitors a view of what the city looked like in pre-hispanic times

La Opera - This old bar still has the bullet holes left by Pancho Villa on one of his visits