Mexico City's Hotel Oxford Is A Bargain
Old Hotel Has Low Rates, Sufficient Amenities, Central Location
Jul 18, 2008
Hotel Oxford
The Oxford offers the basics (bed, phone, TV, private bath with plenty of hot water), central access to one of the world’s largest metropolitan areas, and its own dash of discreet character. That comes mainly from its little bar, which is usually populated with an intriguing blend of people.
The Oxford’s primary attributes are price (roughly $11-$13 U.S.) and proximity. Tucked adjacent to a tranquil little plaza and scant blocks from the Monument of the Revolution, the Oxford is one of a string of hotels along quiet Calle Ignacio Mariscal that are simple yet safe and offer bargain rates. Across the street at the Hotel Carlton, the restaurant offers a fine multi-course comida corrida for under $5.
Easy Access to the City
You may need a taxi when you first hit the city, but if you stay at or near the Oxford, the only other time you might need one is if you stay out partying too late and too far away and the Metro subway system and peseros have quit running. The Metro and the green and white city microbuses are your best friends: inexpensive and reliable.
The Hidalgo Metro station, where the blue and green lines intersect, is within easy walking distance, as is the blue-line Revolucion station. Follow the Metro maps and you can get anywhere. Paseo de la Reforma, a major thoroughfare, is a short walk, and Insurgentes also is close.
You can cover much of the city’s center on foot.
Easy Walking Distance
Walk out of the Oxford and turn left and you’ll see the Latin American Tower in the distance. Walking toward it will take you to Plaza Solidaridád, where a museum (free on Sundays) houses the famous Diego Rivera mural Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in Alameda Park, then the Alameda, an oasis of green in the maw of downtown. At the far end is Bellas Artes, the national fine arts palace. Beyond is the Latin American Tower.
Several blocks further is the Zócalo, the city’s massive main plaza. The National Palace, with Rivera’s epic mural of Mexico’s history, and the centuries-old Metropolitan Cathedral flank it. The Templo Mayor Aztec ruins and museum are just north.
Along Paseo de la Reforma
Back near the Oxford, peseros on Reforma can take you to the ritzy Zona Rosa playground of nightclubs and restaurants, Chapultepec Park, Chapultepec Castle, the National Anthropological Museum, the zoo and the presidential residence Los Pinos. The museum is world class.
On the way to Chapultepec you’ll pass the beloved Angel of Independence monument, where you don’t have to be that lucky to see a demonstration or a soccer celebration in progress.
Groups sometimes serenade the patrons in the Oxford bar, but Plaza Garibaldi, Mexico City’s rollicking mariachi headquarters, is within reasonable walking/stumbling distance.
The Oxford isn’t for travelers looking for luxuries, but for those seeking a safe, simple, subtly seedy launching pad for seeing the city, it is ideal.
Ignacio Mariscal 67 06030
Tel: 55 5566 0500 (International dialing prefix 011, country code 52)
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