An exceptional host, an exceptional place - stunning experience from start to finish.
This was my first time in Mexico City. Although I'm a relatively seasoned traveler, I'd heard CDMX (as Mexico City is locally referred to) can be dangerous, and I'm not a fluent speaker of Spanish at all (200 days on DuoLingo :-). So my apprehension was heightened.
Teri, the host - was kind, knowledgeable, responsive, thoughtful, creative, flexible, hip and frankly amazing in every way. I had a sensational trip because of her. So let me begin at the beginning.
CDMX is now the fifth biggest city on the planet, 22 million people. Its overwhelming. I had heard that you had to book restaurants ahead of time and I wasn't sure where to start. In addition my traveling companion had a birthday coming up and I wanted it to be a nice experience. I reached out to Teri. In short order she jumped on the phone and recommended some incredible places, called them, booked us in. And then chased down her further favorite options, and rearranged the current bookings to form an itinerary. At one point she hopped onto a chat platform and then we ended up speaking. She sounds more fluent in English than me, and I was born in England! We chatted about options and she steered me. For example there is a famous tourist destination that involves taking a boat journey out to some islands - and she said "look, thats great if you've got a party and the mariachi and you are drinking all day - but for two of you, I think you would have more fun if you did something else". She was totally right.
One thing that got recommended was to see Frida Kahlo's house - but the website wouldn't take my credit card. Teri booked it. I wanted to go see the Luche Libre (also fantastic) but couldn't figure out how to navigate the site. Terri booked it. In fact Teri became my own personal travel agent, and I felt quite guilty about it. And enormously grateful. I tried not to lean on her too much - but I needed a LOT of help. And she provided it cheerfully, quickly, without fuss. It was a complete pleasure. Every booking she made came through - when we showed up, people were expecting us, and we got amazing seats wherever we went.
So lets talk about the location of the apartment. This charming little flat is in The Condesa. The street is both big and quiet, easily accessed, but feels incredibly safe. Within walking distance is the most incredible park that has everything from a stunning castle to an Aztec entrance to the underworld (I only visited the castle). You can walk to Condesa DF which has a rooftop bar for late drinks (check out the lifesize car outside that happens to be a music box, complete with giant key), you can walk to local upscale (and very English speaking friendly) Lardo. CDMX is very walkable, and we walked about 20 minutes in most directions and felt totally safe. Every Uber journey was just a few dollars to get us to and from pretty much anywhere. I couldn't have been better.
The apartment itself is adorable. The style is great - my traveling companion instantly wanted to move in fulltime and claim this as her new home. Its stylish but warm. Comfortable but not cluttered. Just enough use of color. The bed is insanely comfortable, and now I'm back home I'm actually shopping for a new mattress. The pillows are lovely, plush plentiful. The place, while central, is actually very quiet. There are space heaters and extra blankets if the night turns chilly. Teri provided fresh pastries, eggs, coffee - the list goes on. The shower, water pressure, heat - absolutely everything was first class. I had to check in with Terri on a couple of things, and got near instantaneous responses, and swift precise resolution. It was kind of like a mini Four Seasons to be honest. Again, I felt bad how much I needed Terri's help - so please don't use this review to burn her out!
Will I go back to Mexico City? Absolutely. Would I stay here again? A thousand percent yes. If Teri will have me. I can't recommend more highly. The whole trip was a triumph - not least because of how great, and comfortable and safe the home felt, and how looked after I was.