Contrary to what many may think, Monterrey is not only a city where people come for business reasons or to visit relatives, but it also comes for its many attractions, since it has an excellent infrastructure for tourism and growing cultural and entertainment offers
FRIDAY
When staying in this city of growing industrial fame, we suggest you look for a central hotel such as the Hotel Río, since from here you will have more possibilities to visit the most famous corners of the “North Sultana”.
To start, you can take a walk around the Macroplaza, one of the largest in the world where most of the emblematic monuments and buildings of modern Monterrey meet, such as the Faro del Comercio, a 60-meter rectangular structure considered the monument highest in the country, with a bright orange color that lights up a laser beam at dusk that projects its light across the Monterrey sky. At the southern end you will find the Municipal Palace, built in the early 70s, as well as the MARCO (Museum of Contemporary Art), built in 1991 and the Cathedral, erected at the end of the 18th century. See images
On Avenida Zaragoza you will find the old Municipal Palace, which today houses the Metropolitan Museum of Monterrey and near there you will have the opportunity to know what is called the Old Town, an area of sui generis charm in which you will find excellent restaurants , bars and other places to listen to music or go dancing.
SATURDAY
After having breakfast in the authentic Monterrey style, a delicious crushed with egg and chile del monte, you can start your day visiting in more detail those places that you could distinguish the night before during your tour of the Macroplaza.
Start your tour at the MARCO, the work of the renowned architect Ricardo Legorreta, and which has served to exhibit works by contemporary national and foreign artists. At the main entrance is the sculpture of La Paloma, created by Juan Soriano and symbol of welcome.
After your visit to MARCO, head towards Zuazua Avenue, until you reach the Neptune Fountain or also called De la Vida, from which you can fully appreciate the symbolic Cerro de la Silla. See images
From this point you have two options: stay in the city and visit Fundidora Park, an extraordinary cultural center that brings together different recreational, sports and business spaces, or live an extraordinary experience in the La Huasteca Ecological Park, in the municipality de Santa Catarina, a very popular and inexpensive park, surrounded by vertical and very eroded rocky massifs, where many families and groups of friends go to spend the afternoon, as well as runners or mountain bikers. See images
Upon returning to Monterrey you can rest at the hotel, although we recommend that you do not miss the opportunity to discover another corner of peculiar charm in Monterrey, the Paseo Santa Lucía, a beautiful urban concept in which you can see beautiful-looking fountains and monuments, as well such as the Museum of Mexican History, an institution that covers in only five rooms the most important aspects of the history of Mexico, from pre-Hispanic times to the present.
SUNDAY
To start this day, we suggest you first visit the Palacio del Obispado, now the Nuevo León Regional Museum, one of the most important viceregal architectural structures in northeastern Mexico and which currently functions as a space for the dissemination of the regional history of the state. See images
You now have the option of visiting the facilities of the Chipinque Ecological Park, which is part of the Cumbres de Monterrey National Park. This site will allow you to explore the beautiful wooded areas of the parts of the Sierra Madre Oriental that are closest to the city through well-traced trails and with signs indicating the various degrees of difficulty. This is an ideal place to practice adventure sports such as mountain biking, or also to observe native species such as birds and mammals of different species.
After satisfying your craving for adventure, you may consider a visit to the Alfa Cultural Center, located in the municipality of San Pedro Garza García. This site is better known as Planetarium Alpha, an interactive science museum with five levels arranged in a circular manner in which different devices and cultural spaces are distributed, with a strong playful accent.
Outside you will see the structure of the observatory, in which various presentations are made; In this area there is also the El Universo Pavilion, with an impressive stained glass window designed by Rufino Tamayo; the Garden of Science, with interactive science games; the Pre-Hispanic Garden, which exhibits replicas of numerous archaeological pieces from various Mesoamerican cultures, and finally the Aviary, with many species of native and migratory birds.
Another important center within Alfa is the Multitheater, which shows films focused on science, with an Imax projection system and the ImaxDome, both of very high fidelity.
How to get
Monterrey is located 933 km north of Mexico City, following federal highway 85. The city is communicated through highways 53, to Monclova, Coahuila; 54, to Ciudad Miguel Alemán, Tamaulipas; 40, to Reynosa, Tamaulipas and Saltillo, Coahuila.
As an important business center, Monterrey has two international airports: the Mariano Escobedo International Airport, located in the municipality of Apodaca, and the Norte International Airport, on the highway to Nuevo Laredo.
The bus terminal connects the city with various parts of the country and the United States. It is located on Av. Colón Pte. S / n between Rayón and Villagrán, in the center.
Internally, since 1991 the streets of the Sultana del Norte have been run by the Metrorrey, the most modern urban electric rail transport. It has two lines: the first crosses the city from East to West and part of the municipality of Guadalupe. The second one crosses from North to South, joining the Bellavista neighborhood with the Macroplaza.
Distance table
Mexico City 933 km
Guadalajara 790 km
Hermosillo 1,520 km
Merida 2046 km
Acapulco 1385 km
Veracruz 1036 km
Oaxaca 1441 km
Puebla 1141 km
Tips
A good way to get to know the Macroplaza is in the Cultural Walk in Tram, which offers a narration with the most important facts of the places to visit. The tram can be taken at any of its seven stops. One of them is in front of the MARCO, another is in the Old Town (Padre Mier and Dr. Coss) and another one is in front of the Museum of Mexican History. The complete tour is usually 45 minutes.
About three kilometers southeast at the corner of Eugenio Garza Sada and Luis Elizondo avenues is the headquarters of the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Studies, popularly known as "Tecnológico de Monterrey" or simply as "El Tec." This prestigious study center was founded in 1943, but it was moved to this space in 1947. Apart from its various buildings dedicated to teaching and research, it has here the Technological Stadium, where the famous Monterrey teams play (the striped ones, soccer professional soccer) and the SAlvajes (college football) sheep.
A fun way to get to know the Fundidora Park is by bicycle through its 3.4 km main circuit. If you don't bring yours, you can rent one (or a pedal carpool) at Plaza B.O.F., which is located next to the park's main entrance on Avenida Madero. There are also free guided tours on the Fundidora Express.
