Food

Avoid eating food  on the street. It is typical in Mexico  to eat in stands and taco kiosks on the street, but even if they look clean,  hygiene procedures are never enough. On  the other side, make sure that seafood and fish are fresh, and try to eat them  cooked, because in several places of Mexico there still are outbursts of  cholera. Also, wash fruit and vegetables thoroughly with purified water, and if possible, peel them. Be careful if you are not accustomed to the use of chili pepper in foods; most of Mexican dishes are spicy, so it is worth  asking the waiter about how spicy the dish is, or ask him to decrease the amount  of chili pepper.

Water

In Mexico, water is  not drinkable, so always try to buy bottled water. Most hotels have purified water bottles in the rooms, and in some cases, with indications available, you will be able to drink directly from the tap in hotels where the water has been previously purified. A good care must be observed with ice, especially in discos and nightclubs.

Altitude

Mexico City is 2200 and Cuernavaca 1500. People with heart problem should be careful in Mexico City and in other cities of high altitude.

Airport taxes

The mention XT under tax/fee/charge must be clearly mentioned on board pass. Otherwise, it is almost sure that the airport taxes will be charged (U$13 one-way).

Mañana time

Punctuality is not a virtue of Mexicans, though they have been improving lately, and schedules are  more respected every day; nevertheless, don't be surprised if they make you wait or if the appointment does not occur at the agreed time, so it is preferable to  attend appointments with plenty of time.

Schedules

Stores generally open from Mondays to Saturdays from 9:00 am to 14:00 pm and from 16:00 to 19:00 pm, closing some of them on Saturday afternoon.  Offices, in turn, have a similar schedule, although they don't open on Saturdays. Archaeological sites are usually open every day of the week, from 08:00, 09:00 or 10:00 am to 17:00 pm. Meanwhile, most museums are closed on  Mondays.

Banks

opening hours: 09:00 AM - 15:00/16:00 PM

Free entrance

From Feb. 2003, all museums and archaeological sites are free only for Mexican people. Foreigners must pay normal entrance fee. It is then recommended to avoid such places Sundays, because they are full of  visitors.

Tips / Propina

In general, in restaurants and food stands it is correct to leave a 10% as tip. This amount may increase or decrease according to  the level and quality of the service. You don't tip taxi drivers, but you do with bellboys in hotels or the person parking the car in hotels and restaurants.

Haggling

In markets, fairs and craft or clothes "tianguis"  haggling is a law. When you ask for a price, offer less than what they are  asking for. What is also typical is asking, is it the less I can offer? Salesmen are always willing to deal, though lately haggling is not as common as it used to be. It is also convenient to haggle with taxi drivers; so before taking a taxi, agree on the fare with the taxi driver beforehand.

Vaccination

No specific vaccination is required in Mexico-City and state of Morelos. Though it is not  something indispensable, it is convenient, before travelling, to make sure that you have the anti tetanus, typhus, polio and diphtheria vaccines. Besides, it may be good to get medicine against malaria and a vaccination against hepatitis A, tuberculosis and rabies.

Health risks

Malaria, Chagas' disease, cholera, dengue fever, filariasis, hepatitis, rabies, tetanus, typhoid in the Tropical zone like for instance Chiapas state. Air pollution in  Mexico City is extremely high between November and February.

Sunburn

Not like in Australia, however, always take very good protection in particular between January and May

Heat exhaustion

To be very carefully, especially in south, on coasts

Diarrhea

To avoid Diarrhea first day, to do not eat salad, ice, cold food during the first 2-3 days. Water must be purified.

AIDS

It is true that the number of infected people has soared in Mexico, but this increase belongs mainly to the groups of high risk: homosexuals and drug addicts.

Theft / Robbery

To be very careful in Mexico City. Cuernavaca is quite safe.

Crime

Very high in Mexico city, classified one of the most dangerous city of the world. Therefore, try to keep your jewels or best watch at home.

Measures

Km, meter, degree, liter

Electricity

The electric voltage is 110 volts, 60 cycles. Thus,  those devices designed for 220 volts must use a voltage converter. Travel  devices and portable computers usually have a voltage converter (110 -240  volts), which adapts the Mexican electricity.

Time

Most part of Mexico in within the Center Time (GMT less 6 hours in winter, and  GMT less 5 hours in summer), the same as in the center of the United States.

Radio

Mexico has about 1,000 AM and FM radio stations, many of them owned by Televisa. All of them offer different types of music, to different audiences. Radios  playing ranch and group music (characteristic of the north of Mexico) are very popular, as also Mariachi music.

Television

In Mexico, television is divided into two big companies: Televisa and TV Azteca. The first one is a whole communicational group, has four  television channels (2, 5, 4,and 21), plus a music channel and several domestic channels in different cities. On the other hand, TV Azteca has channels 7 and 13, plus some local representations. Add to this some independent cable TV  channels, most of them cultural ones.