Mexico City Hostels

I loved Mexico City -- felt very safe.

The great thing about Mexico City is that you can get your own hotel room for about 200 pesos (about $20 USD), which is only a little more than the hostels, if you want more privacy. Though I believe most of them are in the Centro Histórico, which tends to die down at night (though that's great if you want to sleep in peace and quiet), as opposed to a place like the Zona Rosa (where I would have preferred to stay, since it's close to the gay clubs) where the hotels are more expensive. Of course, meeting people is much easier in the hostels. If you get tired of all the craziness of the city, and your feet are tired of walking through all the street markets (which are fun) and museums and stuff, I can also recommend taking half a day at Xochimilco, south of the city (or is it north? -- I just know it's outside the city) and renting one of those crazily painted boats. Don't forget a bottle of Tequila, some limes and salt, so that you can take shots while floating lazily down the river. A quite enjoyable experience. And be sure to eat tacos at the "Los Calmantes" stand at Mercado Hidalgo. They were the best I've had! Oh, and eat a nice (and cheap) dinner at the beautiful Sanbourn's in the Casa de los Azulejos. The other Sanbourn's are only ok, but the service and ambience at Azulejos was outstanding. If you are interested in books, your best bets are the three big bookstores near the Coyoacán metro (El Sótano, Gandhi, and FCE) and all the used bookstores on Donceles street in the Centro Histórico (the books are packed in those stores so tight that you won't be able to see what they all are :-)). Have fun in Mexico!