10 of the best hotels in Mexico City, from style icons to neighbourhood hangouts

Best for wow factor: Andaz Condesa

Neon-lit cacti and magenta-mirrored escalators form a striking entry to this luxury hotel. It opened in January 2023 in Condesa, one of Mexico City’s trendiest locales, known for its art deco buildings. The aesthetic flows through to the first floor where guests are greeted. Beyond this, blonde timbers form deco-esque curves, and pastel velvet-covered seating fills the in-house matcha bar. Meanwhile the 213 fresh, light-filled rooms are a complete contrast, washed in soothing whites and greys, with vinyl record players and papier-mâché figurines as novel additions to the otherwise minimalist setting. Fashionable Condesa locals like to hang out on the hotel’s top-floor terrace. It offers expansive views, a swimming pool and the Cabuya Rooftop restaurant — a relaxing spot serving seafood and dishes inspired by the food of Tulum on the Yucatán Peninsula.
Rooms: From £280 per night, room only. 

Best for socialising: The Red Tree House

For years, hosts of this stylishly converted 1930s home have treated visitors like friends. Guests rave about feeling like they’ve been invited into someone’s beautiful home, where the living areas are decked out with art and global travellers mingle over sociable happy hour drinks. The building’s layout is labyrinthine, with 22 rooms of all shapes and sizes, and others spread around the attractive garden courtyard. There are also generously sized apartments in a separate building next door. Stand-out breakfasts include omelettes and local dishes such as sopes (fried corn flour shells with toppings such as onion, cheese and refried beans). The icing on the cake is the hotel’s location, near Parque México in the leafy neighbourhood of Condesa.
Rooms: From £135, B&B.

Best for design lovers: Durango219

The exterior of this hotel is built out of pink Cantera local stone. Interiors showcase a great eye for design, which is reflected in the 12 contemporary rooms, each of which has a hero feature, such as a refurbished vintage chair or unfussy sculpture. Opened in December 2022, Durango 219 is excellent value — even the smallest suites feel expansive, thanks to the neutral white, beige and grey colour palette, married with natural woods, large windows and, in some cases, a balcony. The plant-lined roof terrace bar is ideal to relax over a cocktail, and the hotel is located at the sweet spot between Mexico City’s lively Roma and Condesa neighbourhoods, meaning guests are also close to Contramar, the ultra-popular Mexican seafood restaurant, and Rosetta, a sublime bakery-cafe.
Rooms: From £105, room only.

Best for small budgets: Hostel Barrio Downtown

This buzzing and attractive Mexican-themed central hostel opened in September 2022, spread over several floors and popping with images of comic skeletons, lucha libre wrestling masks and neon lights. It’s neat and offers small, private rooms with chic shared bathrooms, as well as pod-like dorm beds with privacy dividers, each equipped with a reading light, safety box and handy storage area. The addition of several glass-walled offices (available on a ‘first-in’ basis) makes it popular with digital nomads. Other perks include delicious breakfasts of fruit, Mexican sweet breads and chilaquiles (crisp tortilla triangles topped with a salsa and other trimmings) as part of the standard rate, and a tour desk that can arrange cultural experiences or trips. 
Rooms: From £37, B&B. 

Best for soothing the soul: H21 Hospedaje Boutique

One of the best-value hotels in Mexico City, H21 is just a short hop from Coyoacán’s neighbourhood highlights (the beautiful plaza, market and Frida Kahlo’s Blue House), yet feels like an oasis of calm. Built in 1928 by the owner’s grandfather, it’s been converted into seven unique guest rooms that respect the original house layout. This means the rooms come in different shapes and sizes, but each is tranquil and inviting. The elegant decor blends greys and beiges with quarry stone floors and distressed white woods, and there is an evident love of aesthetics reinforced by photography books and vintage figurines. A continental breakfast is supplied; you help yourself in the kitchen and enjoy it wherever you like.
Rooms: From £150, B&B. 

Best for romantics: Pug Seal Anatole France

Located in the upmarket neighbourhood of Polanco, this boutique hotel, a renovated 1940s mansion, is as delightfully quirky as its name suggests. The interiors blend rococo and mid-century styles with a colour palette of rich purples and bottle greens. The 26 rooms are tastefully filled with a sophisticated and eclectic mélange of vintage furniture, which complements the contrasting wallpapers, wood panelling and massive round mirrors. The hotel also drips with contemporary art, and everywhere guests go, there’s the dreamy aroma of expensive perfume. The breakfasts are superb, taken in the garden or breakfast room —  just the ticket to prepare for days spent enjoying the neighbourhood’s Spanish Revival architecture and fashion boutiques.
Rooms: From £290, B&B. 

Best for unique features: Umbral Curio Collection

This beautifully converted 1920s office building in the centre is one of Mexico’s City’s most intriguing hotels. The original art deco staircase, leading up to the hotel’s five levels, overlooks the centerpiece: a hollow atrium surrounded by a bank of balconies with original 1930s glass-tile floors. The rooms are designed so guests enter through a darkened vestibule, to increase the impact of the minimalist bedrooms beyond. There’s a heated pool and jacuzzi on the roof, and the hotel’s Nardo Cocktail Club features a piano designed to look like a giant alebrije (a Mexican folk art creature).
Rooms: From £175, room only.

Best for solo travellers: Capa Pepe 

Vibrant and welcoming, and located bang in the middle of the historic centre, Casa Pepe is among Mexico City’s best hostels. Spread over five floors of a renovated historic building, it has dorms with neat bunks or curtained pods, as well as private rooms, with some suitable for families. The sleek co-working space is watched over by a sculpture of La Catrina, a famous personified skeleton that’s often associated with Mexico’s Day of the Dead celebrations. There are also fabulous pop-art murals that depict Mexican luminaries including philosopher-writer José Vasconcelos, whose nickname ‘Pepe’ was the inspiration for the name of the hostel. The rooftop terrace keeps things lively with margaritas and regularly changing Mexican meal specials. 
Rooms: From £55, room only. 

Best for afternoon siestas: Casa Tuna

Bougainvillea and traditional piñata decorations greet you as you enter the gate of this sprawling property in Coyoacán. Its location is a big selling point — in a leafy street close to Frida Kahlo’s Blue House and Coyoacán Market, and a short taxi ride away from the museum-house-studio of Mexican mural painter Diego Rivera. Set around a courtyard garden, the 12 guest rooms feature exposed concrete walls and tasteful artisan crafts such as palm wall hangings. The rooftop terrace is strung with hammocks and scattered with wicker chairs. Breakfasts include coffee from Oaxaca and chilaquiles.
Rooms: From £120, B&B. 

Best for local living: NaNa Vida

The term ‘nana vida’ is an expression of pleasurable surprise in the indigenous Zapotec language and this stylish property deserves the name. It opened in the fashionable Roma district in December 2022 with 14 rooms, all of which have timber finishes and colourful furnishings. Staff provide a never-ending supply of pastries, coffee and tea that can be enjoyed on the rooftop terrace. And there’s plenty for guests to do on the hotel’s doorstep as it’s close to the popular Madre Cafe and La Nuclear, a tavern specialising in the traditional alcoholic beverage, pulque. 
Rooms: From £137, room only.