Exploring the City’s Layered Histories, Contemporary Culture & International Art Fairs

Featuring Zona Maco, Feria Material & Salón Acme

8-Day Program
January 30 – February 6, 2026

With Optional 1-Day Add-On Teotihuacán

Mexico City is one of the most vibrant and historically layered capitals in the world. Built atop the ancient city of Tenochtitlan and continuously reshaped over five centuries, it reflects a dynamic convergence of pre-Columbian foundations, colonial heritage, and modernist experimentation.

This tour traces how architecture and art have articulated Mexico’s national and cultural identity—through civic landmarks, cultural institutions, public works, and the private worlds of iconic figures. Along the way, we’ll explore contributions from Luis Barragán, Juan O’Gorman, Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Diego Rivera, Mathias Goeritz, Félix Candela, and Max Cetto, as well as contemporary voices like Tatiana Bilbao, Alberto Kalach, and Frida Escobedo. Their work reveals the evolving relationship between space, society, and imagination in one of the world’s great cities.

Coinciding with Mexico City’s Art Week, the tour offers insight into the city’s contemporary creative energy—through exhibitions, pop-ups, and temporary interventions that animate both established institutions and informal urban spaces.

The major Mexican city

Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico City, Adamo Boari

Mexico City is the oldest capital in the Americas. Founded by the Aztecs in the 14th century on a series of islands in Lake Texcoco, the city—then known as Tenochtitlan—was a highly developed, canal-crossed metropolis, often compared to Venice. After the Spanish conquest, the lake was gradually drained in an ambitious colonial engineering project that radically altered the landscape.

Today, Mexico City occupies the dried basin of that former lake, surrounded by hills and volcanoes in a seismically active, semi-arid region. These natural conditions continue to shape how the city is built and inhabited. As Mexico's capital and its most populous city with over 21 million inhabitants, urban growth has radiated outward over centuries—especially toward the south and west—absorbing former towns and creating a vast, decentralized metropolis.

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México UNAM, Mexico City, Mario Pani, Enrique del Moral

Galeria Kurimansutto, Mexico City, Alberto Kalach

With 16 boroughs and more than 1,800 neighborhoods (colonias), the city forms a dense patchwork of histories, architectures, and social life. From the colonial heart of the Centro Histórico to the leafy boulevards of Roma and La Condesa, the intellectual and artistic heritage of Coyoacán, the modernist landscapes of Pedregal and UNAM, and the polished institutions of Polanco, the city reveals itself in layers—ancient, imagined, and continuously reshaped. Understanding this layered topography is key to navigating the physical and cultural terrain of Mexico City today.

The program is designed for independent travelers, architects, art lovers, and culturally curious participants who seek a deeper understanding of how history, identity, architecture, and art intersect in Mexico’s built environment. From monumental pre-Columbian pyramids to the intimate spaces of Barragán, from civic masterplans to the energy of independent art fairs, this journey invites participants to engage with the city’s unique rhythm and richness.

Itinerary Overview

Departure day, Thursday, January 29, 2025
Departure from points of origin in the morning, arrival in Mexico City in the evening.

Mexico City

Day 1, Friday, January 30
The City’s Expansion and Modern Neighborhoods

We begin in the northwest outskirts of Mexico City to see Torres de Satélite, a monumental entrance to Ciudad Satélite by Luis Barragán and Mathias Goeritz, and Cuadra San Cristóbal, Barragán’s equestrian masterpiece co-designed with Félix Candela. In the afternoon, the tour moves into the early 20th-century neighborhoods of Roma, La Condesa, and Hipódromo— districts shaped by modern planning and known for their leafy boulevards and Art Deco flair.

Day 2, Saturday, January 31
The Historical Center: Layers of Architectural Styles

The Centro Histórico is the city’s historic heart—built atop the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan and later transformed by the Spanish into the capital of New Spain. Here, centuries of architecture sit side by side, from the excavated Templo Mayor to the grand Metropolitan Cathedral. The afternoon highlights early modern icons such as the Palacio de Bellas Artes and Torre Latinoamericana, before concluding with a walk along the modern axis of Paseo de la Reforma.

Day 3, Sunday, February 1
Cultural Landmarks and Spacial Poetics

This day begins at Chapultepec Park, home to the Museo Nacional de Antropología, a landmark of 1960s Mexican modernism by Pedro Ramírez Vázquez. We also visit the nearby Museo Tamayo and pass the Museum of Modern Art. In the afternoon, we head to Casa Luis Barragán, a masterpiece of "emotional architecture," and explore his later works and nearby galleries in Tacubaya.

Day 4, Monday, February 2
Pedregal: Modernism in a Volcanic Landscape

Today’s focus is on the southern reaches of Mexico City, where modern architecture and landscape come together in striking ways. We visit Jardines del Pedregal, an upscale neighborhood developed by Luis Barragán atop a lava-covered landscape. Key works include Casa Prieto López by Luis Barragán, where volcanic stone, geometric volumes, and enclosed patios define a distinctly Mexican take on modern living.

We will also explore the celebrated UNAM campus, a major urban and educational project masterplanned by Mario Pani and Enrique del Moral in the 1950s. Its monumental Central Library, covered in mosaic murals designed by O’Gorman, is a high point of Mexico’s synthesis of modernist architecture and national identity.

Day 5, Tuesday, February 3
Contemporary Architecture and Economic Center Reforma Avenue

We begin the day in the San Rafael, Atlampa, and Buenavista neighborhoods just north of the historic center, visiting key sites of modern and contemporary architecture. First, Casa Wabi Sabino, a new cultural space by Alberto Kalach. This trajectory expands in scale and ambition with Kalach’s earlier work, the Biblioteca Vasconcelos—a monumental public library and cultural center whose soaring, open shelving system defines one of Mexico’s most striking civic interiors.

In the afternoon, we move toward the city’s economic center along Paseo de la Reforma, the grand 19th-century boulevard that continues to attract major urban, commercial, and architectural development. Recent high-rise additions offer a window into Mexico City’s evolving identity as a global metropolis.

Day 6, Wednesday, February 4
Zona Maco: Contemporary Art in Focus

Today marks the opening of Zona Maco, the largest and most influential art fair in Latin America. Founded in 2003 by Zélika García, and since 2024 under the artistic direction of Direlia Lazo, the fair brings together over 200 international exhibitors at Centro Citibanamex, located in the Lomas de Sotelo district. In its two-decade history, Zona Maco has grown into the beating heart of Mexico City Art Week, setting the pace for the city's wider cultural calendar. The day is dedicated to navigating this expansive art world, with time in the afternoon to explore additional exhibitions, openings, or special events tied to the week.

Day 7, Thursday, February 5
Independant Art in Motion: Salon Acme & Feria Material

Today we explore two of Mexico City’s most vibrant independent art fairs: Feria Material and Salón Acme. Both were founded in the early 2010s as thoughtful counterpoints to Zona Maco, offering platforms for emerging artists, experimental formats, and more intimate engagement with contemporary art.

Feria Material, initiated by a group of galleries in 2014, focuses on new voices in international and local art, often blending visual art with performance and publishing. It takes place at Expo Reforma, a striking modernist venue near the city center.

Salón Acme, founded by Archipiélago and Base Proyectos in 2013, which showcases artist-curated sections, site-specific installations, and a strong connection to Mexico’s independent art scene. Held at Proyectos Públicos in the Juárez neighborhood, the fair captures the raw, energetic spirit of Mexico City’s cultural undercurrents.

Day 8, Friday, February 6
Private Initiatives and Architectural Reuse
Return flight in the evening to points of origin

Our final day offers a look at how contemporary art and architecture shape Mexico City’s evolving urban landscape. We begin in Polanco, now filled with dense residential towers and new cultural institutions, such as the Museo Jumex, a contemporary art museum in a refined, geometric building by David Chipperfield.

In the afternoon, visits to Labor, housed in a 1940s building by Enrique del Moral, and Kurimanzutto, a pioneering contemporary gallery in a former industrial space redesigned by Alberto Kalach, complete the program with two influential spaces that highlight how architecture and contemporary art continue to shape Mexico City’s present.

1-Day Add-On

Participants who wish to extend their stay are invited to join a special visit to Teotihuacán, one of the most remarkable archaeological sites in Mexico. Located about 50 kilometers (31 miles) northeast of Mexico City, this vast pre-Columbian complex was once the most populous city in the Americas and larger than ancient Rome at its peak.

Day 9, Saturday, February 7
Teotihuacán: The Ancient City of the Gods

Inhabited for over a thousand years, Teotihuacán is laid out according to geometric and cosmological principles. Its monumental structures—the Pyramid of the Sun, the Pyramid of the Moon, and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl—offer a powerful encounter with the architectural and symbolic sophistication of ancient Mesoamerican civilization. A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987, Teotihuacán continues to reveal the depth and complexity of the cultures that shaped the region long before Spanish colonization.

Program subject to change

Travel information

Included Services

  • 8-day guided architectural program in English, tour leading in English and German

  • 8 nights accommodation in carefully selected hotel

  • Transportation during tours

  • All entrance fees

  • Welcome and farewell dinner and all breakfasts

  • CO2 emission compensation for domestic travel with myclimate.org

Not Included

  • International flights

  • Personal expenses, travel and medical insurances, additional meals

  • Optional tips for drivers, waiters and guides

  • Optional: CO2 emission compensation for intl. flights

Number of Participants
Minimum 10 people, maximum 16 people

Curated Travel Add-Ons
Extend your trip to additional destinations across Mexico: information on request

Organized by
Insight Architecture

Tours are operated by Popeye Ltd Design & Communication (Swiss Commercial Register CHE-104.689.493); Member of Star Swiss Travel Association; Customer deposits protection Swiss Travel Security STS.

Price (excl. international flight)
CHF 3’600 (USD 4,500, EUR 3’750) double room occupancy
CHF 750 (USD 900, EUR 800) single room supplement
Price valid until October 31, 2025

Registration/Booking
If you have decided in participating in this tour, you can book via our booking form.

Insight Architecture has offered in-depth architectural tours in Brazil and other destinations in Latin America since 2013, with each journey carefully designed and personally accompanied by one of our founders or partners. Our tours are guided by architects, curators, and scholars, offering a deeper understanding of how architecture reflects cultural identity, historical shifts, and contemporary life.