Museo Frida Kahlo, Central Mexico and Gulf Coast, Mexico

5MECindylou 5:00 PM Jul 22, 2022

Well-run, worthwhile even for non-fans
On our second trip to CDMX, I decided to go to Museo Frida Kahlo, even though I haven't been a fan of her work, simply because this is one of the more popular things to do in the city and I wanted to check it out. First, the ticketing process is fine, once you get the hang of it, but I couldn't get the site to process my US-based Capital One VISA card. When I asked for help at our hotel (Hotel Catedral), one of the staff members kindly offered to use hers and allow us to reimburse her. Problem solved. I was also confused because the site offered a Senior ticket price, but did not specify whether or not one needs to be Mexican. Since we had been offered free admission to the Chapultepec Castle, the Palacio de Bellas Artes, etc., I figured it didn't hurt to ask. One of the hotel staff members told us no, but the other one who ultimately got the tix for us said it would be fine, so we paid the Senior price, which was something like $1.50 pp. She said if it were a problem, we could just pay the difference onsite. When we entered, nobody said a word. The experience: We got to Coyoacan early to be sure we'd be there for our entry time. We had time to visit the park and the market before heading back to the museum. We waited in line for maybe 15 minutes and entered right on time. Upon entering, we each paid 30 pesos (about $1.50) to be able to take photos. There's a prescribed route to enter the inside rooms and, indeed, it can feel like a slowly moving line, but I found I had plenty of time to look at the various paintings (in the first few rooms) and then take my time in the furnished rooms (studio, bedrooms, etc.). We were never made to feel rushed. Staff was polite and really good at making sure the rooms didn't get too crowded. I had to wait a few minutes, at one point, to enter the next room, but I didn't mind. I didn't find the museum or gardens too crowded; I think they do a good job of gauging how many tickets to sell, and staff was pleasant and helpful throughout. After getting back into the garden area, we continued on to watch the movie that runs continually and to see the exhibit of Frida's clothing and medical assistive devices. All very interesting, even for the non-Frida devotee. I heard, later, that there is a free bus running from the Kahlo Museum to the Anahuacalli Museum (the volcanic stone building housing Rivera's collection of Mesoamerican art), which is free with the Kahlo ticket. We had actually walked to the Trotsky Museum, which is quite close to Museo Frida Kahlo, so ended up taking Uber from there to the Anahuacalli, also worthwhile to visit. We rounded out the day with an Uber to Xochimilco (again, mixed reviews and I wanted to experience it for myself). If it's helpful to note, we bought our tickets on a Wednesday for the following Saturday at 11:30AM.

4Angela H 5:00 PM Aug 7, 2022

Highly recommend. Book early!
If you will be in Mexico City you definitely need to try to include the Frida Kahlo museum on your itinerary. Please be aware to book your ticket in pretty far in advance and try to book it directly from the museum's website. I have read multiple negative accounts of people who booked through third party vendors who had major issues with their tickets. I would agree with some other reviews that it gets quite crowded - even though tickets are time-stamped it seems at times they let in a little too many people. As you walk through small areas of the house it can take a while to move around to get a good view of things. Part of the charm of the museum is that it is located in Frida's house and the house itself is like an exhibit, showing how she lived and worked in the space, as well as displaying her art throughout. I learned much more about Frida than I ever knew before through the exhibits. Highly recommend!