Begin at the Casa Luis Barragán, the former home and studio of one of Mexico's most influential modernist architects. The UNESCO-listed house is a study in color, light, geometry, texture, and the relationship between architecture and landscape. Advance reservations are essential.

Optional add-on: Head to Casa Gilardi, one of Luis Barragán's final residential projects and a vivid expression of his use of color, water, light, and geometric space. Visits require advance planning.

Continue to the Museum of Modern Art or Museo de Arte Moderno, whose collection traces the development of Mexican modernism through works by Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Rufino Tamayo, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and other major twentieth-century artists. The museum's sculpture garden and Chapultepec setting are also part of the experience.

Optional add-on: Visit the Tamayo Museum, devoted to modern and contemporary art including artists like Rufino Tamayo and international artists. Its striking 1980s building is itself worth seeing.

Pass by the National Museum of Anthropology to witness its modernist architecture, especially El Paraguas, the massive cantilevered concrete umbrella over the central courtyard.

Visit the Museo Soumaya, whose dramatic silver-clad structure by Fernando Romero has become one of Mexico City's architectural landmarks. Inside, explore its eclectic collection spanning European and Mexican art, including works by Rodin and other major European artists.

Continue to the Museo Jumex, one of Latin America's leading contemporary-art museums, housed in a distinctive David Chipperfield-designed building to observe the architecture as well as the rotating exhibitions.

Stay in Polanco for dinner and an evening walk, taking in the neighborhood's contemporary architecture, galleries, public art, and design-oriented shops.

Optional add-on: If schedules align, attend a performance at the Auditorio Nacional or another major Mexico City venue.

Begin at the Palacio de Bellas Artes, taking time to appreciate both its Art Nouveau exterior and Art Deco interior. Focus on the building's important murals by Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, David Alfaro Siqueiros, Rufino Tamayo, and other Mexican masters.

Visit Palacio Postal, one of the city's great architectural interiors, with elaborate stonework, ironwork, staircases, and decorative details.

Continue to the Museo Nacional de Arte, housed in one of Mexico City's finest Beaux-Arts buildings. Its collection provides a broad overview of Mexican art from the colonial period through the early twentieth century, while the grand staircase, galleries, and interior architecture are attractions in their own right.

Walk through Alameda Central for a brief stop at the Museo Mural Diego Rivera, home to Rivera's monumental Sueño de una tarde dominical en la Alameda Central, a vivid panorama of Mexican history and society that brings the country's muralist tradition to life.

Visit the Museo Franz Mayer, one of Mexico City's best museums for decorative arts and design with its collection of furniture, ceramics, textiles, silver, and other objects.

Optional add-on: Explore the Museo de Arte Popular for a survey of Mexican folk art and traditional craftsmanship.

Continue to Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso, a former Jesuit college where historic architecture and courtyards provide house some of Mexico's earliest major mural works. The building's murals by José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and others help explain the emergence of the Mexican muralist movement.

Walk through the surrounding streets to see the layers of architecture that define the Historic Center of Mexico City, from colonial churches and Baroque façades to nineteenth-century buildings and early twentieth-century modernism. Have dinner in the neighborhood.

Optional add-on: If schedules align, attend the Ballet Folklórico de México at the Palacio de Bellas Artes. Another option is to head to Plaza Garibaldi, where mariachi musicians gather to perform and create one of Mexico City's most recognizable evening scenes.

Begin at the Frida Kahlo Museum, housed in the vivid blue former family home where the artist was born, lived, and worked. The collection includes personal belongings, artworks, and rooms preserved to evoke Kahlo's life and creative world. Advance reservations are strongly recommended.

Continue exploring Coyoacán, one of Mexico City's most atmospheric historic neighborhoods. Wander through Jardín Centenario, admire the colonial architecture, and browse cafés, markets, artisan shops, and local food stalls.

Optional: Visit the Museo Nacional de Culturas Populares, which explores Mexico's diverse indigenous and popular traditions through exhibitions of crafts, textiles, festivals, and material culture.

Visit the Museo Anahuacalli, Diego Rivera's volcanic-stone building designed to house his collection of pre-Hispanic art. The architecture itself is a highlight, while the collection reveals the ancient artistic traditions that influenced Rivera and other Mexican modernists.

Wander through Ciudad Universitaria, the UNESCO-listed campus of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). See the mosaic façade of the Biblioteca Central by Juan O'Gorman and explore the campus's integration of architecture, murals, sculpture, and landscape.

Optional add-on: Head to Xochimilco to board a traditional trajinera for a ride through the historic canals and chinampas, or floating gardens, that preserve part of the pre-Hispanic agricultural landscape.

Optional add-on: Browse the Artesanías Coyoacán or other local craft shops for textiles, ceramics, papel picado, jewelry, and other Mexican handicrafts.

Return to Coyoacán and explore galleries, artisan shops, markets, and cafés before dinner.

If schedules align, experience the colorful spectacle of lucha libre at Arena México with its masked wrestlers, theatrical rivalries, and enthusiastic crowds.