Best 13 Free Things to Do in Mexico City (CDMX)

Looking for the best free things to do in Mexico City? Mexico’s capital is packed full of fascinating history and has an amazing food culture – and you don’t need to spend a fortune to experience it. There’s free museums, colourful markets, beautiful parks and historic neighbourhoods to explore – plenty of amazing things to do in Mexico City without spending a single penny – meaning more to spend on 🌮 tacos!

If you’re a budget traveller – or even if you’re not and just want some free stuff to do – enjoy 13 of the best free things to do in Mexico City.

1. Join a Free Walking Tour 🚶🏽

We constantly harp on about Estación Mexico, who operate free walking tours throughout Mexico. Why? Because they are amazing!!

They operate 5 tours in CDMX: Roma Condesa, Centro Histórico (Historic Centre), Chapultepec, Coyoacán and San Angel. We joined every single one – excluding San Angel – and found each absolutely fantastic. The guides have so much knowledge on the areas, which means you get both in-depth history about the area as well as some excellent recommendations for what’s going on locally at the time, where to eat or drink, and plenty more.

2. Visit the Metropolitan Cathedral ⛪️

Mexico City’s Metropolitan Cathedral is the oldest and largest of its kind in Latin America and is located on the edge of the Zócalo in the Historic Centre (Centro Histórico). It was even built on top of the sacred precinct of the ancient Aztec capital city ‘Tenochtitlan’, and was even constructed using building materials from the torn-down temples on that site.

It’s steeped in history and is well worth a visit, even if it’s just to escape the heat of the city for a short while! Inside, you’ll find ornate altars, historic chapels, and impressive religious art. 

If you’re interested in Aztec history, you can visit the Templo Mayor Museum for a small fee. FYI, the actual museum is found about halfway around the preserved ruins – we found it hard to find! It’s included in the ticket price, and is one of the best museums in the city – definitely give it a look while you’re there.

Mexico City Travel Guide: Things To Do & Day Trips

Mexico quickly became one of our favourite countries in the world, with Mexico City being one of the best capital cities we’ve been to! Mexico City (CDMX or Ciudad de México) is currently the 5th biggest city in the world, so we found it hard to know where to start when planning our trip. Luckily, […]

Read more

3. Visit Museums when they’re FREE on Sundays 🆓

Many museums offer free entry (yes, FREE!) on Sundays, which we’d strongly recommend taking advantage of! Our list of favourites include:

• Templo Mayor
• Museo de Arte Moderno
• Museo Tamayo
• Museo de Arte Popular
• Tamayo Museum
• Carrillo Gil Art Museum
• Museum of Modern Art

This list is up to date as of 2025, but just check on their official websites before you visit to double check it’s still free on the Sunday you plan to go.

4. Chapultepec Park 🌳

Chapultepec Park is one of the largest urban parks in the world, covering over 1,600 acres right in the middle of Mexico City. It makes a fantastic escape from the endless bustle of the city, where you can simply follow your feet, breathe in the fresh air and recharge your batteries ready for more city-exploration. There’s even a really cool Botanical Garden to explore while you’re there, too!

Paid things you can do at Chapultepec Park: Museo Nacional de Antropología, row boats, street food, and Chapultepec Castle.

5. Explore Coyoacán ⛲️

The charming neighbourhood of Coyoacán is well worth a visit, even if you aren’t planning to visit Frida Kahlo’s famous home – which now serves as the Blue House Museum!

The area is renowned for its beautiful cobbled streets, colonial buildings & stunning churches you could get lost walking around for hours! The Coyoacán Market and the Bazar Artesanal Mexicano are also worth a look too – remember, window-shopping is free!

6. Murals at the National Palace 🖼️

The Diego Rivera murals at the National Palace, near the Centro Histórico area, cannot be missed.

Diego Rivera might be better known as Frida Kahlo’s husband, but his art vividly depicts Mexico’s complex history, from pre-Hispanic times to the Mexican Revolution.

His most famous work there, an amazing mural titled ‘The History of Mexico’, spans an entire wall! All of the murals are located in the palace’s central staircase and upper corridors.

You can only visit as part of a free tour (since it’s where the President lives and works), so a little bit of planning is required to visit. Although the English & Spanish tours are free they are limited to 15 people, can’t be booked online and often get reserved in-person quite fast. The best thing to do is head to the palace information area and inquire about the next available tour.

7. Voladores de Papantla 🪈

Although the Museum of Anthropology is not free (but so good!), just outside you will find a traditional aerial ritual performance known as Voladores de Papantla. Translating to ‘The Flying Men of Papantla’, it’s a long-standing Mesoamerican ceremony that involves a group of men tied to the top of a tall pole and swinging down in a circular motion while performing all sorts of impressive feats – music-playing, acrobatics, you name it!

It’s an amazing ritual to witness, and we just happened to stumble onto this one on our way into the museum, but we’re so glad we did.

8. Paseo de la Reforma 🚴🏼‍♂️

Paseo de la Reforma is arguably the main thoroughfare through the city, running from Chapultepec Park and connecting to many popular areas and landmarks. It’s a beautiful, tree-lined avenue that often hosts events and celebrations – including the famous Day of the Dead parade – which makes it a great central hub of activity within the city!

A few of the notable sights along the avenue include the Angel of Independence, the Diana the Huntress fountain, and the monument to Cuauhtémoc.

9. Enjoy the Art at Museo Soumaya Gallery 🖼️

The Museo Soumaya is a completely free art gallery, which hosts artwork by Mexican painters as well as the heavy-hitters like Dali, Monet, Renoit & Van Gogh.

It’s a little far out of the city (close to the neighbourhood of Polanco) but it has great public transport routes!

10. Explore the UNAM campus 🎓

A university campus? Yep! UNAM University campus is home to some truly breath-taking murals by famous Mexican artists such as Orozco, Rivera and Siqueiros. We became fascinated by Orozco’s murals in particular. His style is so striking and each work contains so much story-telling, it’s honestly amazing.

If you weren’t convinced already, it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site too and hosts to one of the biggest murals in the world! You could easily stroll through the grounds and admire the art here for a few hours.

11. Take in the vibes of Roma & Condesa ☕️

Roma & Condesa are two of the most walkable and enjoyable neighbourhoods within the city. Both were originally upper-class residential areas, but are now brimming with boutique shops, charming cafes & art galleries. All you need to do is get there and put one foot in front of the other.

If you’re looking for a list of the unmissable things to see and do in Roma Norte, read our One Day Roma Norte article.

These neighbourhoods are often the highlight of those visiting the city, and we understand why. The leafy, tree-lined streets and wide avenues have an almost European feel to them. Keep an eye out for colourful street art here too!

Oh, and if you haven’t decided where to stay during your Mexico City trip, Roma & Condesa are perfect candidates for first-timers. We wrote all about the best areas to stay in Mexico City in our recent article, so we’d recommend giving it a quick read as well!

12. Visit Parque Mexico 🌳

Yep, it’s another park, but Mexico City just knows how to do parks well! Like we said before, we love a park walk to recharge our batteries and get a bit of nature during city stops. Parque México is a perfect choice, being one of those places where you really feel like you’re not even close to a major city.

Bursting with leafy trees and countless dogs, you could people-watch (and dog-watch) here for hours. Why not have a morning walk with a coffee? It’s the perfect way to start a day in CDMX, especially if you’re staying close-by.

13. Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe 🙏🏼

Out towards the north of the city, you’ll find the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe. It’s a major Catholic pilgrimage site which contains a cloak said to be imprinted with the real image of the Virgin Mary as she appeared to St Juan Diego.

Whilst you’re here you can also take a short walk up to the top of Sagrado Tepeyac Garden for a fantastic view over the city!

We actually visited here on the way back from our Teotihuacán tour, which we’d highly recommend if you’re looking for a guide to explain the full story and significance of each site.

And that’s a wrap on the best free things to do in Mexico City! Hopefully this list provides a useful set of sites to see in Mexico City without having to spend a penny.

If you have other free things to do in Mexico City not in this list, or want to tell us how you found the city, let us know in the comments below!

Happy travelling ✈️🧳