A Day in Polanco: Walking Tour of The Neighborhood
Welcome to Casai’s walking tour of Polanco. This is one of Mexico City’s most upper-class neighborhoods. It is teeming with trendy restaurants, world-class chefs, contemporary art galleries, and high-end shopping malls. Everything you need is just steps away from your Casai apartment. Polanco is made up of four main avenues that run parallel across the entire neighborhood — making it incredibly easy to find your way around.
In this guide, we take you on a walking tour of the neighborhood and share with you some of our favorite places to visit in this beautiful part of Mexico City. Read on for our list of what to do in a day in Polanco.
A morning in Polanco
As many of Casai’s apartments in Polanco are located near to Calle Arquímedes (A), we will start our walking tour from here. Enjoy a lazy morning over breakfast at Cafe Toscano (B), only minutes away from your door. Choose between chilaquiles, french bread or eggs anyway you can imagine. This cosy cafe also exudes a vintage vibe, with an array of velvet lamp shades and bird cages hanging from the ceiling.
From here, take a stroll along Avenida Emilio Castelar until you reach Lincoln Park (C), the first park to be designed in Polanco. The Clock Tower is an icon of the park, as well as the statutes of Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, and it’s where you’ll see many art exhibitions. On Sundays, you can rent a remote-controlled boat and let it set sail while you hang over the water’s edge.
Calle Arquímedes (A) to Cafe Toscano (B) is a 2 minute walk.
Cafe Toscano (B) to Lincoln Park (C) is a 10 minute walk.
How to spend the afternoon in Polanco
Once you are ready to leave Lincoln Park, traverse all four main avenues of Polanco until you arrive at Blvd. Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. You won’t be able to miss this next stop. This silver wave, tiled with thousands of hexagons, is home to Museo Soumaya (D)— one of the most iconic museums in Mexico City. Here you will be able to admire up to 66,000 pieces of artwork from legendary artists, such as Diego Rivera and Rufino Tamayo.
Just next door is Museo Jumex (D), another stop on our walking tour of Polanco. This museum houses one of Latin America’s largest private contemporary art collections. Including works by Andy Warhol, Martin Kippenberger and Damien Hirst. The 15,000 square-foot white-concrete cube with a sawtooth top was designed by British architect David Chipperfield — his first commission in Latin America.
Lincoln Park (C) to Museo Soumaya and Museo Jumex (D) is a 25 minutes walk.
Time to refuel and fortunately one of Mexico City’s favorite eateries is located in the grounds of the Jumex Museum. Eno (E) is a product of world-famous chef, Enrique Olvera — the chef behind Pujol and New York’s Cosme and Atla. Eno is the perfect lunch spot, with gourmet burgers, over-spilling quesadillas and attractive salads all on the menu. Grab a refreshing coconut atole or a horchata — we’d recommend throwing in an espresso shot to keep you going for the rest of the day.
Polanco is home to Mexico City’s retail therapy
Polanco is most certainly the best district in Mexico City for those who crave a shopping spree. Antara Fashion Hall (F) is right in front of the museums so after a spot of lunch, you can walk over to discover some of your favorite brands. Alternatively, if you prefer to browse boutique stores, walk back towards Parque América (G) where you will find some local designer shops. After exploring this area, take a stroll down the cosmopolitan Avenida Presidente Masaryk, one of the country’s most famous shopping streets and considered as Mexico’s Champs-Élysées.
Eno (E) to Antara Fashion Hall (F) is a 1 minute walk
A night in Polanco
End the day with a Dirty Dandy on the rooftop patio at Ivoire (H) before heading out for dinner. This little slice of Paris remains firmly attached to its Parisian roots, offering a bohemian vibe in an urban oasis overlooking Park Lincoln.
After a full day exploring and walking around Polanco, we imagine you are ready for a feast. This stop requires some planning ahead, as it’s one of the best restaurants in Mexico and a reservation is certainly necessary. Our final stop on the walking tour of Polanco has got to be Pujol (I).
Enrique Olvera — the chef behind the aforementioned Eno, among many others — offers two different dining experiences at his highly acclaimed Pujol. Choose between a multi-course tasting menu in the formal dining room. Or a “taco omakase” meal at the low-slung bar featuring various tacos, antojitos, and botanas. It’s most likely you’ll get to taste Olvera’s famous mole madre dish no matter what.
Antara Fashion Hall (F) via Parque América (G) to Ivoire (H) is a 22 minute walk
Ivoire (H) to Pujol (I) is a 6 minute walk
Pujol (I) to Calle Arquímedes (A) is a 10 minute walk
As you can see, you can easily spend a day or more discovering what Polanco has to offer. Of course, not all has been mentioned in this guide. To the south of Polanco is the entrance to the Bosque de Chapultepec. This in itself requires a full day in order to be able to fully appreciate its beauty and tranquility. It’s a must see for first-time visitors to Mexico City.
Ready to experience this incredible neighborhood? Check out Casai’s top 5 units in Polanco:
