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Explore Tijuana for the First Time

We've rounded up everything you need to know about navigating Baja's biggest city, from border waits and taxi rules to the best tacos and cervecerias. No more excuses—ándale!
Reloj Monumental on Avenida Revolución

By Derrik Chinn

Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Mercado Miguel Hidalgo

Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Foodgarden | Photo by Luis García

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Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Illustrations by Livi Gosling

Illustrations by Livi Gosling

  • Better known locally as “Las Tijeras” for its scissor-like form, the Monumento a México greets new arrivals to Tijuana at the first major traffic circle after crossing at San Ysidro. Designed by Mexico City artist Ángela Gurría, its two-toned blades are said to represent the union of European and Aztec cultures that make up the modern Mexican people.

  • Designed by Guerrero artist Alfonso Casarrubias, Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma, the 11th and final ruler of the Aztec empire, stands tall over the second traffic circle south of the border, gazing north toward the U.S.

  • Straddling the north end of Avenida Revolución just three blocks from the border fence, Tijuana’s cousin to St. Louis’s Gateway Arch—the Reloj Monumental
    or Monumental Clock—was built to commemorate the arrival of the new millennium in 2001.

  • Tijuana Tercer Milenio, known as La Mona, was built to commemorate the city’s centennial by self-taught artist Armando Muñoz Garcia in 1989. The hollow concrete structure measures 50 feet high and weighs 18 tons. It’s appeared everywhere from Playboy to Japanese primetime TV, and is arguably Tijuana’s most iconic piece of public art.

  • A mix of Mexican Colonial, California Mission, and Neo-Islamic designs, the Agua Caliente Minaret was designed by 19-year-old architect Wayne McAllister and served as the chimney at the original Agua Caliente Hotel and Casino, which opened in 1928, making it one of the oldest structures in the city. It now stands on the grounds of Tijuana’s largest high school, Escuela Preparatoria Federal Lázaro Cárdenas.

  • One of the most defining sites of not just the city or country but all of Latin America is its northwesternmost corner, the point where the U.S. border fence trails some 100 feet into the Pacific in Playas de Tijuana. Views include the Coronado Bridge and the San Diego skyline.

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Explore Tijuana for the First Time

Reloj Monumental on Avenida Revolución

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