Mexico City

Most of Mexico’s most famous and most important museums are unsurprisingly located in Mexico’s incredible capital city, Mexico City (CDMX).

This is one of my most favourite cities in the entire world and one of the the reasons I love it so much is the seemingly never-ending supply of museums to visit. I’ve been to over 40 of them already and I still have a long list of more to explore.

Here we include some of the most famous, the very best, and one total outlier, that I hope you’ll agree is worthy of this list.

Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology is one of the most popular and famous museums in all of Mexico. I’ve been a few times and I highly recommend you leave yourself a good chunk of a day to explore or you’ll feel rushed and as if you’ve missed out.

On the ground floor you’ll find a history of humans in Mesoamerica and upstairs covers the history of Mexico since the arrival of the Spanish.

→ Buy your ‘skip the line’ tickets & digital guide in advance

Casa Azul  (Museo Frida Kahlo)

Palacio de Bellas Artes

This is one of the most iconic buildings in the city and while most people who visit Mexico City will walk by this gorgeous building, not everyone goes inside. I highly recommend taking the the time to do just that.

Located in the historic centre of Mexico City at one end of the Alameda Central, this incredible building has an art nouveau style on the exterior and a primarily art deco interior. Inside expect to find fabulous murals by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Camarena and others. 

➕ at the other end of the Alameda is the incredible Museo Mural Diego Rivera, home to the magnificent mural, “Sueño de una tarde dominical en la Alameda Central”.

Museo del Templo Mayor

Right in the historic center of Mexico City, by the cathedral on the zocalo is the Museo del Templo Mayor. Your entrance ticket to this wonderful museum includes the opportunity to walk through the Mexica archaeological site.

The collection inside the museum displays political, military and religious artefacts from the ancient city. I’ve visited 3 times and am always keen to go back!

→ Buy your ‘skip the line’ Templo Mayor tickets

Museo de Arte Popular

Just one block from the wonderful Museo Memoria Y Tolerancia is the this Museum of Folk Art. Its permanent collection includes textiles, pottery, piñatas, alebrijes and more from various Mexican cultures and traditions.

The sheer number of museums in Mexico are one of the many reasons homeschooling families love Mexico.

Museo de Arte Moderno (MAM)

One of the many museums in Mexico City’s magical Bosque de Chapultepec, this art museum houses a lovely sculpture garden and modern art mainly from 1930s onwards.

Here you’ll find works from the big names in Mexican art: Kahlo, Siqueiros, Orozco, O’Gorman, Rivera, Tamayo, and many more.

While you’re in the park do not miss out on a visit the Castillo de Chapultepec, the imposing castle on a hill overlooking the park that’s also home to the National History Museum. 

Museo Jumex and Museo Soumaya

Located next to each other in the affluent Granada (near Polanco).

You may have seen photos of the fabulous Soumaya building (above), curved and silver, glinting in the sun. It’s worth checking out just for the exterior, quite honestly. but it’s also excellent inside, too. This private museum (that is also a non-profit organization) houses works from over 30 centuries, from both pre-hispanic Mesoamerica and the European old masters such as Rodin, Salvador Dalí, Murillo.

The Jumex Museum is another great private art collection that includes works by international artists such as Damien Hirst, Andy Warhol, Marcel Duchamp and more. 

Monumento a la Revolución

This fabulous monument to the Mexican revolution is an important place to visit if you’re interested in Mexican history (it also has my favourite gift shop of any museum in Mexico!).

Once you’ve finished exploring the extremely informative museums dedicated to the Mexican Revolution, take an elevator up to the viewing platforms.

Museo Indígena

In the north of Mexico City, near to the important Plaza de las Tres Culturas, you’ll find this small museum dedicated to Mexico’s Indigenous people.

On the ground floor there are two small exhibition rooms with excellent displays and texts about Indigenous life and culture. Upstairs is an extremely thorough look at Indigenous languages, their importance, the threat Spanish can be to them, and why they must be preserved. All in all, this is one of the best small museums I’ve ever visited.

➕ Mexico City’s incredible Museo de Papalote is the best kids museum we’ve ever visited anywhere in the world.

Puebla

Puebla, is a fascinatingly cultural and historical place to visit. It was the first planned city built by the Spanish that didn’t destroy an already existing city.

Museo Amparo

There are many museums in Puebla that are worthy of your time but if we’re talking ‘best in Mexico’, the Amparo Museum is absolutely top of my list.

The collections focus on two main areas: pre-hispanic art/life, and on extremely thoughtful contemporary art. This is one of the most thoughtful collections I have ever experienced.

If you give the museum your full attention, you’ll learn, think, re-evaluate everything you thought you knew about the world and you’ll probably cry. I certainly have.

➕ Don’t miss the oldest library in the Americas, Biblioteca Palafixana, which is just down the road.

Museo de las Momias de Guanajuato

Jalisco

Guadalajara, the capital city of the state of Jalisco is home to numerous museums, many of them truly excellent. Other cities, such as Tequila, the home of the famous Mexican liquor also has a number of wonderful museums to explore.

Museo de Cabañas

This museum, also called the Hospicio Cabañas, is home to a series of murals by one of Mexico’s most famous muralists: José Clemente Orozco. The building was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. Once you’ve managed to tear yourself away from the incredible murals, don’t miss the other collections in this wonderful museum and absolutely remember to enjoy the sculptures by Alejandro Colunga out front. 

Quintana Roo

Quintana Roo might not strike you as a super cultural place to visit but prepare to be surprised. Not only can you visit the wonderful Maya ruins such as Chichén Itzá, Coba and Tulum, but also fabulous museums and even, down in Bacalar, a museum within fort.

MUSA (Museo Subacuático de Arte)

Aguascalientes

Museo Nacional de la Muerte, Aguascalientes

^{by Emily from luxurybackpack.com}

Aguascalientes is a really vibrant city in central Mexico with a very cool and quirky vibe. The most popular museum here is the National Museum of Death. You can’t really get more quintessentially Mexican than a museum dedicated to the dead. The first few rooms explore death in art, the news, history, and religion.

Throughout the the small museum, Mexico’s colourful representation of death prevails, and you’ll see a collection of sculptures, masks, and ceramics.

San Luis Potosí

Museo Nacional de la Máscara – With over 1000 masks on display in the stunning former mansion, the museum takes you through the history of Mexico’s dance and ritual heritage. The display is very well executed with just the right amount of accompanying information to make it educational but still fun to look around. I would definitely recommend this museum as a must visit when in central Mexico!

Chihuahua

Museo del Mamut (Mammoth Museum)

Housed in a former school, this fascinating and eclectic museum is a veritable treasure house of a museum. Begin with the mammoth in room one and work your way around marvelling at the random collection of historical artefacts: from ancient fossils to old musical instruments and an entire reconstructed old shop (my personal favourite), I defy you not to absolutely love this place.

That’s my list! Do you have a favourite museum in Mexico that I haven’t included? I’d love to hear about it as probably I’d love to visit it!