Mexico City Popular Art Museum (Museo de Arte Popular)
The Basics
Mexico City’s Popular Art Museum is one of the few art spaces dedicated solely to traditional Mexican folk art. Visit the Popular Art Museum as part of a hop-on hop-off bus tour, and avoid the hassle of walking or figuring out public transit options. Alternatively, get there on your own on a self-guided walking tour of the city center.
Things to Know Before You Go
Signage at the Popular Art Museum is in both Spanish and English.
The museum’s nonprofit gift shop is well known for its high-quality souvenirs and artisanal Mexican products.
The museum holds weekend workshops for children.
How to Get There
While handy hop-on hop-off bus tours often pass close by the Popular Art Museum, this historic-center attraction is easily reached on foot or by public transit. Metro station Juárez (Line 3) is two blocks away; Hidalgo (Lines 2 and 3), Bellas Artes (Lines 2 and 8), and San Juan de Letrán (Line 8) are also close.
Trip ideas
When to Get There
The Popular Art Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, morning till evening, and is busiest on the weekend. To beat the crowds, visit on a weekday, get there as soon as the museum opens, or stop by around 2pm, when many locals go to lunch. Verify the museum’s hours online. If possible, visit during the annual Alebrije Parade in late October, and learn about the alebrijes before they’re paraded through the city in oversized Technicolor.
The Night of the Alebrijes (La Noche de los Alebrijes)
Every October, the Popular Art Museum teams up with the Mexican government to put on a free parade of hundreds of enormous papier-mâchéalebrijes, which are then displayed in the city center. Some of thealebrijes are more than seven feet (two meters) tall, and you can watch them make their way to the Angel of Independence, on Reforma Avenue.
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