Mexico City Hop-On Hop-Off Double-Decker Bus Tour

Historic Downtown route: Zócalo, Reforma and the Angel

The Historic Downtown route is the backbone of the network and the most popular way to start a Mexico City bus tour. Buses run daily from about 9:00 to 19:00, roughly every 30 minutes, linking the Zócalo, the great square of the Historic Centre, with the elegant Paseo de la Reforma, the tree-lined boulevard laid out in the nineteenth century to connect the city with Chapultepec Castle.

From the upper deck you pass the golden Angel of Independence, a column raised in 1910 to mark a century of independence, the Monument to the Revolution with its domed lookout, and the leafy Condesa and Roma districts with their Art Deco buildings and cafes. The audio guide tells the story of each area as you ride. Hop off at the Zócalo to visit the Metropolitan Cathedral and the Templo Mayor ruins, then pick up the next bus when you are ready.

Chapultepec Park and the National Museum of Anthropology

Several stops on the Downtown route serve Chapultepec Park, one of the largest city parks in the Americas, with lakes, woodland, a hilltop castle and some of the country's finest museums. The star is the National Museum of Anthropology, opened in 1964, where the Aztec Sun Stone and treasures from the Maya, Olmec and other civilisations fill halls around a courtyard sheltered by a giant umbrella-shaped fountain.

Plan at least two to three hours if you hop off here. National Museum of Anthropology opening hours are Tuesday to Sunday, from morning to early evening, and it is closed on Mondays, so schedule your bus day accordingly. The nearby Museum of Modern Art and the Auditorio stop, where the Polanco route begins, are also within easy reach, making Chapultepec the natural midday break on your ticket.

Polanco route: shopping avenues and modern architecture

The Polanco route is the newest and most fashionable of the four. It departs from the Auditorio stop at 10:00, 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, 16:00 and 17:30, and takes you through the upscale Polanco district, with its designer boutiques, leafy residential streets and restaurants that make it the city's best-known dining quarter.

The route also passes some of the most striking contemporary architecture in Mexico City, including museums with bold modern facades that have become symbols of the new city, and a children's museum popular with families. It is a good choice in the afternoon if you want to shop, eat or simply see a different, modern face of the capital after a morning in the historic centre. The audio guide explains how the area grew from former hacienda land in the twentieth century.

South route: Coyoacán, San Ángel and University City

The South route runs daily from about 11:00 to 19:00 and reaches the bohemian neighbourhoods of the south, which keep the feel of colonial villages. Many travellers ask how to get to Coyoacán without a long taxi ride: this route stops right in its historic centre, with cobbled streets, the coyote fountain in the Jardín Centenario, a lively market and churches dating back to the sixteenth century.

Further on, San Ángel charms with flower-filled squares and a weekend art bazaar, while University City, the central campus of the national university, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2007 for its modernist buildings and the vast mosaic murals covering its central library. The route also passes the Botanical Garden and the Roma market. Allow a half day if you plan to hop off in Coyoacán and San Ángel.

Basilica route: Garibaldi Square and the Basilica of Guadalupe

The Basilica route leaves the Zócalo at 10:00, 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, 16:00 and 17:30 and heads north through the pre-Hispanic, colonial and modern layers of the city. It stops at Garibaldi Square, where mariachi musicians in traditional dress gather to play for passers-by, and passes colonial palaces on the way.

The final stop is the Basilica of Guadalupe at the foot of Tepeyac hill, the most important Catholic shrine in the Americas. You can visit the old basilica, completed in 1709 and visibly tilting, and the modern circular basilica opened in 1976, then climb the gardens to the chapel on the hill for city views. Is the Basilica of Guadalupe worth visiting? Even for non-religious travellers, the scale and atmosphere are unforgettable, especially around 12 December, the feast day.