The ULTIMATE Mexico City Solo Travel Guide (Written by a Solo Female Traveler)
Traveling to Mexico City alone as a woman?
You’ve landed on the right article for Mexico City solo travel tips and advice — because I used to in Mexico City!
That’s right, I spent about a year in Mexico City as a solo female, and have a lot of info to share with you about how you can visit this amazing city and stay safe, just like I did.
In April 2018, I relocated to Mexico on a whim… basically falling in love with the country at first sight!
After Mexico City, I lived in the state of Oaxaca, before relocating a third time to my current home, Merida, the safest city in Mexico.
Besides those three places, I’ve been to half the states in the country, so I have a good idea about general Mexico travel safety.
However, Mexico City — the sixth largest city on Earth and the largest in North America — has its own unique set of safety tips and recommendations.
In this article, you’ll discover the best neighborhoods in Mexico City, the neighborhoods in Mexico City to avoid, using public transport vs Uber in Mexico City, what to pack for Mexico City solo female travel safety, and more.
Ready to get to these solo female travel Mexico City tips? Let’s start with the #1 question on everyone’s mind, which is of course, Is Mexico City safe to travel?
Is Mexico City safe for tourists?
Given the mainstream media’s demonization of the entire country, Mexico solo female travel safety is likely on your mind.
If you’re wondering, Is Mexico City safe to visit for solo female travelers?, the answer is YES — for the most part, it is.
The thing with safe travel in Mexico, and anywhere in the world, is that safety is not a guaranteed anywhere on Earth.
As someone who’s lived there, I will say that I believe I stayed safe because I made my own safety in Mexico City my highest priority.
For me, this meant listening to my intuition, avoiding unsafe people, places and things, and these other 30 Tips for Solo Female Travelers.
One of the easiest ways to stay safe in Mexico City was by always taking Uber home at night, instead of walking by myself. (More on Uber in Mexico City later.)
What do the experts say?
While I’m just one person, know there are plenty of other women who have safely traveled to Mexico City and loved it.
Check out this article, 20 Best Solo Travel Mexico Destinations to Visit, to hear from Erin about her Mexico City solo female travel experience.
🎧 Mexico City podcast
In this Mexico podcast you’ll hear from Leigh, who has visited Mexico City twice as a solo traveler.
In it, she offers tips and advice about Mexico City travel safety — and admits she rarely goes to the same place twice, though says Mexico City was worth it!
Besides myself and these ladies, let’s hear from 25-year FBI veteran Carlos Barron. In this Forbes article, he offers some great insights on what’s really going on with the statistics.
Millions of Americans go to Mexico on vacation every year, so if we play the numbers game, the number of incidents is very small… When I’m asked if Mexico is a safe place to go travel on vacation, my response is yes.
Carlos Barron, 25-year FBI veteran (Source)
According to Barron, there’s no denying that bad things happen in Mexico, as they happen everywhere.
However, the statistics tend to paint a skewed picture, because while there are incidents of crime, tourists aren’t any less safe in Mexico than pretty much anywhere else.
What’s the verdict — Is Mexico City safe for solo travel?
As a Mexico blogger, I know people want a definite answer about Mexico travel safety. Sadly, there just isn’t one.
Personally, having lived there solo for about a year, I do feel confident saying it is. However, the caveat is that YOU have to do your part to make it safe.
The good news is there are plenty of ways to do so, and we’re about to explore them.
These include a Mexico City packing list with safety items, where to book your Mexico City VRBO, hotel or hostel, safely getting around the city, and the bad neighborhoods in Mexico City to avoid.
Mexico City Packing List
Mexico SIM Card
While in some places, you can get away with just using free WiFi throughout town, Mexico City isn’t there (yet). For this reason, you’ll want a Telcel SIM card in Mexico.
Telcel is the largest service provider in Mexico, so you’ll have the best reception possible.
OUR PICK
📲 Best Prepaid SIM Card for Mexico: 2gb Telcel Mexico SIM Card
With a SIM, you’ll prepay for a certain amount of data so you always have the ability to call an Uber, use the Google Translate app, access your Mexico City map, check in with family and friends through texts and calls, etc.
To gauge the amount you’d need, for a 4 day Mexico City trip, an 8gb SIM card should be more than enough. Below are options for Mexico City SIM cards in different sizes.
Anti-Theft Purse & Backpack
For added peace of mind, consider this anti-theft purse and/or this anti-theft backpack.
With the book bags, there are no front zippers, so someone can’t unzip the bag and take something — since the zippers are in the back.
The purses have several measures to prevent theft.
These include: lockdown straps to secure the bag to a stationary object or chair, locking compartments, slash-resistant fabric, slash-resistant straps that have a wire in them, and RFID blocking technology.
When choosing what purse to travel with, a cross body bag is the best option because it’s harder for a thief to snatch and grab it, as it has to fully come over your head for them to take it.
With book bags, you may want to consider wearing them in the front, in some situations.
Altitude Sickness Medication & Bracelet
Overall health is something too few people consider when thinking of how to be safe in Mexico City.
However, when you’re healthy, you have your wits about you, you’re making good judgement calls, your mood is better, etc. — all things that contribute to your Mexico City safe travel objective.
Something many don’t know about Mexico City is the altitude.
It is located about 1.5 miles above sea level (2.4 km), and for those not used to this, you can easily get altitude sickness.
In case you’re unfamiliar with it, altitude sickness is basically like having the flu — and can ruin your trip.
Many travelers will use a non-medicinal chlorophyll drops or an anti-altitude sickness bracelet.
This is a homeopathic treatment where a tiny plastic disc rests on the trigger point in your wrist to prevent you from getting sick.
While those work for some people, these anti-altitude sickness meds work better for others.
Filterable Water Bottle
Beyond Mexico City safety, many ask Can I drink the water in Mexico? The answer is NO, Mexico tap water is not safe for human consumption — unless you boil it, or use this Water-To-Go Bottle to filter your drinking water.
OUR TOP PICK
💧 Filterable Water Bottle
Water-To-Go Bottles filter your drinking water so you don’t get sick in Mexico — and keep you hydrated. It’s a win-win!
Even though no one drinks the tap water, not even locals, not all filtered water is created equal.
Besides keeping you hydrated, which contributes to overall health and safety, these Water-To-Go Bottles provide an extra level of water filtration.
The bottle helps you with how to NOT get sick in Mexico by filtering 99.99999% of the bacteria, microplastics, parasites, etc., from your drinking water.
What to Wear in Mexico City
For the most part, Mexicans are modest dressers. Even in warmer months, pants, jeans and long sleeve shirts are the norm for chilangos (Mexico City locals).
If you don’t want to get too much attention for your clothing, opt for comfy leggings over shorts, and cover up with a light cardigan.
Beyond this, Mexico City’s sidewalks aren’t the easiest to walk on, so you’ll want to opt for comfy flats over heels or wedges. Since this is a very walkable city, consider massaging gel inserts as well.
🌡 Mexico City Weather
Though the country is known for tropical climates, Central Mexico and Mexico City are much cooler than many assume.
Check out the Mexico City weather chart above, where you’ll notice it drops to about 45-50°F (7-10°C) at night in the winter months 🥶
As you can see above, you’ll want warmer clothing for much of the year. This Secret Hidden Pocket Travel Scarf (AKA security scarf) is the perfect accessory to keep you warm and hide your valuables.
👗 Mexico City Outfits
Below are some examples of how to dress in Mexico City. You’ll find options that will work both in the warmer and cooler months of the year, so you’re always following the (unofficial) Mexico City dress code.
Click on any image below to buy, or head here for more Mexico City outfit inspo.
Safest Neighborhoods in Mexico City
Where to stay in Mexico City
When considering the Is it safe to travel in Mexico City? question, a big part of safety comes down to where you stay and spend your time.
Check out this list of 51 best things to do in Mexico City, with amazing sites in all the best neighborhoods in Mexico City.
You’ll also want to pick a hotel, hostel or VRBO in Mexico City’s safest areas.
When I recommend a Mexico City neighborhood to friends, followers and family members, it’s always Roma Norte and La Condesa — two of the safest places to stay in Mexico City.
These two safe Mexico City areas are located right next to one another.
They both have plenty of things to do and see, street food taco shops, restaurants, bars, boutique shopping, great parks, funky street art, etc. Basically, everything you’d need, and a central location in the city.
From Roma and Condesa, you’re just 20-30 minutes by Uber from these other places:
- Chapultepec Park: The largest park in Mexico City
- Polanco neighborhood: An upscale and safe neighborhood
- Coyoacan neighborhood: A safe, bohemian and historic area in the south of the city
- Centro Historico: Historic downtown Mexico City and the Zocalo (Main Square)
Safest hotels in Mexico City
Prefer hotels to a VRBO? Below you’ll find a list of the best Mexico City hotels, all located in or near Roma and Condesa.
The more upscale hotels are located on Avenida Reforma (Reforma Avenue). This is a gorgeous, tree-lined, main street in Mexico City’s bustling Reforma neighborhood.
$$$$: Ritz-Carlton Mexico City | Four Seasons Mexico City | St. Regis Mexico City
$$$: Gran Hotel Ciudad de Mexico | Grand Fiesta Americana Chapultepec
$$: Barceló Mexico Reforma | Galeria Plaza Reforma
🏨 Best hostels in Mexico City for solo travelers
One great way to stay on a budget during solo travel to Mexico City is to stay at a hostel. There are many great options to choose from, including the best hostels in Mexico City for solo travellers below:
🚨 Mexico City Travel Tip
The reality with rentals is that numerous staff members do have a key to your room.
For this reason, many doing solo travel in Mexico City will use a Wedge Door Stop Security Alarm with Siren, which makes a loud noise if someone tries to open your door.
Mexico City neighborhoods to avoid
Among the least safe neighborhoods in Mexico City, there’s Doctores and Tepito — both which you unknowingly can stumble into if you’re not paying attention.
Tepito is considered one of the least safe areas in Mexico City. It is located next to Centro Historico, and many locals don’t even go there.
Some other places to avoid in Mexico City include Ciudad Nezahualcóyotl (AKA Ciudad Neza) and Iztapalapa, though you likely won’t be near those two.
For a tourist, there’s nothing you’d want or need and nothing noteworthy to see in Tepito, Ciudad Neza and Iztapalapa, so avoiding them is a safe travel Mexico City must.
🦹♂️ Lucha Libre in Doctores
Located between two of the best areas in Mexico City, Roma Norte and Centro Historico, you can easily wander into the Doctores neighborhood if you aren’t checking your map while walking around.
As this isn’t known to be a very safe area, try to avoid it if possible — unless you’re seeing a lucha libre (Mexican wrestling match) at Arena Mexico.
If you want to see a lucha match, book one of these best Mexico City lucha libre tours.
Seeing lucha libre on group tours, and having a local as your guide, is safer — but also, lucha is so much more fun with a group.
🎟 Best Lucha Libre Tours in Mexico City
🚨 Centro Historico: Use Uber After Dark
While Centro Historico is an absolute must visit on your trip, you’ll want to use Uber to get around after the sun goes down.
There are some amazing bars, restaurants, and even Plaza Garibaldi to see the mariachi musicians — just plan to Uber between places, and Uber home.
🇲🇽 Mexico City Travel Tip
As this is one of the main areas for Mexico City tourists, during the day you’ll see the Policia Turistica (Tourist Police) in Centro Historico. This dedicated police unit is there only to maintain and assist with Mexico City tourism safety.
Mexico City Public Transport vs Uber
Many people ask, Is there Uber in Mexico City? and, Is Uber in Mexico City safe?
The answer to both is YES; you should have no Uber Mexico City safety concerns!
Mexico City has a really great public transportation system, including a metro and buses. At less than $1 USD per ride, it’s hard to beat the prices.
However, I tend to recommend solo female travelers use Uber over public transportation in Mexico City.
If you’ve been to any big city, you may already know public transport is where most pickpocketing occurs.
The same is true of Mexico City — which is why I recommend avoiding it. While it’s inexpensive to use, replacing a stolen wallet, passport or cell phone isn’t.
Also, when converting dollars to pesos, the exchange rate is very much in your favor, making Uber quite economical.
As an example, a 45 minute Uber trip will only cost about $5 USD; that same trip on public transport might only cost $1-2 USD, but it will take closer to two hours.
If your budget doesn’t allow for Uber, check out the three Mexico City transportation safety tips below.
🚺 Female only sections on public transport
If you do prefer public transport, remember to use the female only sections of the Mexico City metro and bus. These are the front cars on the metro, and the front section of the buses, reserved for women and children only.
🚇 Avoid public transport during rush hour
When possible, avoid public transportation during rush hours because they can get incredibly packed. These hours are from about 7am-9am and 5pm-7pm, and people actually pack in like sardines, so pickpocketing is quite common.
👜 Travel with an anti-theft purse
If you are taking the metro during rush hour, consider holding your book bag or purse in front of you.
Going one step further, an anti-theft purse or anti-theft backpack comes with added protections that make removing items from them near-impossible.
Mexico City Travel Guide & FAQ
Where is Mexico City, Mexico?
Check out the Mexico City map above for an exact location, but it’s more or less in the center of the country.
Central Mexico is an amazing area to explore, and beyond the city itself, there are great Mexico City day trips.
If you’re wondering, Is it safe to drive in Mexico City to get to these places, the answer is YES — and here’s everything you need to know about renting a car in Mexico.
What airport do I use for Mexico City?
To get to Mexico City, you’ll want to fly into Mexico City International Airport (code: MEX).
Wondering, Is Mexico City airport safe? For the most part, YES. However it is a large, crowded airport, which might throw your confidence off.
To get from the airport to your accommodation the easiest, safest way possible, consider Uber or a Mexico City airport transfer service, like the ones shown below.
🚗 Best Airport Transfers in Mexico City
How many days in Mexico City do I need?
You could realistically spend a year there and not see everything.
There are just so many things to see in Mexico City, and as a big, dynamic city, the hot spots and must see Mexico City sites are always changing.
As travel time is a precious commodity, and most people don’t have a year to visit, you’ll find some shorter itineraries below.
These offer a great way to see everything in CDMX (as Mexico City is also known) in only a few days.
🎧 Prefer podcasts? This Mexico podcast has the 4 day itinerary mentioned above in audio form.
Do I need to speak Spanish to visit Mexico City?
From my personal experience after living there almost a year, I found 50% of people in Mexico City spoke English (at least conversational English), and 50% spoke no English at all.
For this reason, you’ll want to brush up on your Spanish with the Duolingo app.
Rocket Spanish is the best way to learn Spanish online — and you can try Rocket Spanish for free to see if you like it.
If can’t find the time to learn some Spanish before your solo trip to Mexico, save this infographic to your phone.
This way, you have access to many of the most important everyday Spanish words and phrases even when you’re off-WiFi. Having a cheat sheet like this is a great female solo travel Mexico City travel hack.
Do I need a visa for Mexico City?
No — United States, Canadian and nearly-all European passport holders do not need a Mexico travel visa.
This is just one of several reasons to visit Mexico, one of the best international travel destinations for Americans.
As with going to another country, you’ll fill out an Immigration form, which in Mexico has two parts. You can see the form in the image above.
The top two-thirds of the form will remain with Immigration in Mexico, and the bottom one-third goes back to you.
This bottom portion is called the Forma Migratoria Múltiple, or FMM (sometimes called FMT).
The FMM is a 180 day (6 month) Tourist Card, so you can legally stay in Mexico for up to six months.
🚨 Don’t Lose Your FMM!
You have to keep your FMM on you at all times, as it proves your legal status in Mexico.
When departing Mexico, you’ll return it to an Immigration officer at the airport so you can you leave the country.
If you lose your FMM, there’s a $600 pesos ($30 USD) fine and some paperwork you’ll have to fill out at the airport to replace it.
You’ll need to arrive to the airport about one hour earlier than normal to do this.
⚠️ FMM Vias Update
Many airports are now using the passport stamp in lieu of the paper FMM card.
This is making it much easier to not lose your FMM!
Mexico Travel Insurance
If you still have travel in Mexico City safety concerns, put your mind at ease once and for all by purchasing travel insurance for Mexico.
Just as you insure your car and home, so too can you insure your belongings and health while traveling with a policy from World Nomads.
They are one of the biggest names in travel insurance. Keep in mind your U.S. insurance likely doesn’t cover you in Mexico — so get your FREE quote here.
Final Thoughts: Mexico City Solo Travel
While Is it safe to travel to Mexico City alone?, and How Safe is Mexico City? have no definitive answer, you now have plenty of suggestions and tips on how to have the most safe trip you possibly can.
What can definitely be said in terms of travel safety: Mexico City comparable in safety to most other big cities.
If you’ve traveled to a big city before, you’ll be fine with what you already know about travel safety, plus all the Mexico City-specific tips here.
If this will be your first time in a big city, they all have good and bad parts, so avoiding the least safe parts of Mexico City is key.
Staying in one of the safest areas in Mexico City mentioned above will also go a long way towards overall solo travel Mexico City safety.
