Ciudad de México

Ciudad de Mexico, or Mexico City, is the capital of Mexico and one of the largest cities in the world, a federal entity in its own right. Built on the site of the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, it is the political, cultural and economic heart of the nation. Its blend of ancient, colonial and modern is unmatched in the Americas.

Mexico City sits in a high mountain basin at over 2,200 metres elevation in central Mexico, ringed by volcanoes including Popocatepetl. The former lakebed on which it stands makes it prone to subsidence and earthquakes. The climate is mild and subtropical highland.

The city is a global cultural capital, home to world-class museums, the historic Zocalo square, the murals of Diego Rivera, and a renowned culinary scene. It blends deep Aztec and colonial heritage with cosmopolitan modern life.

Founded by the Aztecs as Tenochtitlan around 1325 and conquered by the Spanish in 1521, the city became the capital of New Spain and then independent Mexico. It was reorganised from a Federal District into the autonomous entity of Mexico City in 2016.