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Mexicali
Capital city of Baja California, Mexico

Mexicali

Mexicali is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California.

Plan a trip to Mexicali→From Tijuana

The city, which abuts the Mexico–United States border and the U.S. city of Calexico, California, is the seat of the Mexicali Municipality. It has a population of 689,775, according to the 2010 census, while the Calexico–Mexicali metropolitan area is home to a combined population of 1,000,000. Mexicali is a regional economic and cultural hub for the border region of The Californias.

Get in

Getting to Mexicali

Mexicali is accessible from the United States through Calexico on Highway 111 (from El Centro and points north) and Highway 98 East (Yuma) and West (San Diego) via I-8. Either park at the border and continue on foot or drive into Mexico. Driving from the US to Mexico usually requires no stopping.

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    Mexicali's International Airport
See

Worth seeing

The Asociación China de Mexicali (中華會館), located on Avenida Benito Juárez near the intersection with Altamirano, is one of Mexicali's primary and oldest Chinese associations. Upstairs, there are portraits of dozens of Chinese immigrants who have lived in Mexicali. There are also murals celebrating Mexicali's Chinese heritage, dragon costumes for use during festivals, and numerous classrooms.

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    Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe
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    Museo Interactivo Sol del Niño

    Scientific and Interactive Museum fun for children and adults.

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    Plaza de Toros Calafia

    Bullring with frequent bullfights with toreros from around Latin America and Spain.

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    Bosque y Zoologico de la Ciudad

    Mexicali's biggest park along with its city zoo.

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    Parque Vicente Guerrero

    Mexicali's second biggest park with lake.

  6. 06
    Centro Estatal de las Artes

    State Art Center: see art exhibitions, musical concertos and recitals among other things.

Do

Things to do

Aguilas de Mexicali – Go and see Mexicali's own baseball team in the

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    Estadio Casas Geo

    Soles de Mexicali – Come and see Mexicali's renowned basketball team.

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    Club de Golf Campestre
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    Bol Bol Boliche

    Cinepolis Movie Theaters (Centro Civico, San Pedro, Galerias, Nuevo Mexicali).

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    IMAX Theater

    Live Mexican music (norteño and mariachi) can be requested from bands for hire at the Plaza Mariachi on Avenida Zuazua, located in the southern part of the La Chinesca area.

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    Musicales y Joyeria "Iris"

    Av.

  6. 06
    Banda de Música Regional de Guamúchil Sinaloa

    Zuazua y Altamirano #586,.

Eat

Where to eat

The selection of cuisine in Mexicali is very diverse. The Chinese contributed greatly to Mexicali cuisine with a very ample variety of dishes. Their food is as traditional to Mexicali as carne asada and its Chinese food is labeled as the best on the country, on par with that of San Francisco, and many tourists come to taste it.

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    Applebees

    Starbucks Coffee, McDonalds, KFC, Burger King, Carl's Jr, Thrifty Ice Cream, Little Caesars, Dominos Pizza and Dairy Queen.

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    Restaurante Victoria

    Open since about 1938, this is everybody's beloved Cantonese hole-in-the-wall restaurant.

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    Las

    Benito Juárez 131.

  4. 04
    Tortas El Chavo

    Av Reforma 414.

Text adapted from Wikipedia and Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0. Photograph: Satdeep Gill (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikimedia Commons.