I’m a South African who moved to Mexico City about 3 years ago. These are my tips for those going to the game this weekend (from someone who has been to the stadium 20 times) as well as those looking for sightseeing tips.
With regards to the actual game, getting to the stadium is super easy. There is a metro station right at the entrance and a ticket costs $0.25 from anywhere in the city. However, the metro can be confusing for 1st time travelers and tends to be quite overcrowded.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/FZEbyySAw6Ys3aLv6
Another option is to put “Puerta 8 Ciudad Deportiva” (Sport City Gate 8) in your GPS or Uber. DO NOT PUT “ESTADIO ALFREDO HARP HELÚ” IN YOUR GPS. For some reason this takes you to the other side of the stadium where there are no entrances. You want to go to gate 8.
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However, depending on when you arrive, the lane that takes you to gate 8 fills up super quickly with cars and it can take 1.5 hours just to enter (it’s a single gate for the whole stadium). So either 1) get there very early or 2) ask your Uber driver to drive past the line of cars in that lane and just hop out once you reach the gate.
With regards to sightseeing, in my opinion you have to:
1 – Go to the Castillo de Chapultepec (the Castle of Chapultepec). It has an amazing view of the city and is incredible architecturally. My favourite place in Mexico.
2 – Go to the zócalo (the main plaza in the city centre). Within a couple hundred meters is the Palacio de Bellas Artes (The Fine Arts Palace), the Latin American tower (a skyscraper that you can go up to get the best view of the city), the presidencial residence and a ton of amazing taquerías (like El Huequito – the oldest tacos al pastor restaurant in the city).
3 – Go to teotihuacán. 45 min from the city, it’s an archaeological zone with some of the biggest and most incredible pyramids in the world.
4 – Eat at La Casa de Toño. It’s a chain of restaurants in Mexico City that has amazing and authentic Mexican food. They are super famous for their Pozole (get the maciza (pork) one), their tacos de cochinita (kind of like pulled pork tacos) and their horchata. It’s my favourite restaurant in Mexico, it’s super clean and modern, and the prices are incredible.
5 – Go to the Soumaya. It’s a private art museum owned by Carlos Slim. The building itself is magnificent and the entrance is free. The museum has paintings by Picasso, Da Vinci, Van Gogh, Monet etc and I think it has the largest collection of Rodin sculptures in the world. Interestingly, none of the paintings are behind glass. You can literally touch a Da Vinci painting (although I don’t recommend it). This is a must-see even if you are not an art fan.
Mexico City is super safe and amazing if you use a bit of common sense. If you have any doubts, feel free to DM me