At the southern end of the Macroplaza, the red 70m concrete tower Faro del Comercio (Lighthouse of Commerce) soars above the city, its green lasers piercing the night sky. Designed in 1984 by renowned Mexican architect Luis Barragán, it was built to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Monterrey's chamber of commerce. Today, it's a symbol of the city's status as Mexico's industrial powerhouse.
© Elijah-Lovkoff/Getty Images/iStock
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
1.83 MILES
Blast Furnace No 3 in the former industrial site of the Parque Fundidora has been converted into Horno3, an exceptionally impressive high-tech, hands-on…
4.51 MILES
This stunning mountainside reserve is just 12km from downtown Monterrey. There's great hiking and mountain-biking on over 60km of well-marked trails…
0.42 MILES
The stunning 2.3km promenade of Paseo Santa Lucía is a world-class example of urban regeneration. This (artificial) river forms a turquoise ribbon through…
0.4 MILES
This sleek modernist museum on the Plaza 400 Años presents an extensive but easily manageable chronological history of Mexico. In the heart of the museum…
0.19 MILES
A monument to Monterrey’s late-20th-century ambition, this city-block-wide series of interconnected squares, also known as the Gran Plaza, was created in…
1.93 MILES
Formerly a vast steel-factory complex, this once-blighted industrial zone has been transformed into a huge urban park. Designers cleverly retained the…
0.09 MILES
Don't miss the outstanding Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, its entrance marked by Juan Soriano's gigantic black dove sculpture. Inside, its idiosyncratic…
-
1.82 MILES
Four disemboweled red-brick factories compose the Centro de las Artes: Nave Generadores and CONARTE feature rotating modern-art exhibitions; Nave Dos is…
Nearby Monterrey attractions
0.04 MILES
A shady park, Plaza Zaragoza hosts many concerts and special events. The centerpiece of the plaza – and the larger Macroplaza – is a 70m-tall, red…
2. Catedral Metropolitano de Monterrey
0.05 MILES
Just north of MARCO on the Macroplaza is the baroque facade of the Catedral Metropolitano de Monterrey, built in stages between about 1663 and the 1899…
3. Museo Metropolitano de Monterrey
0.06 MILES
A small museum inside Monterrey's original city hall, the Museo Metropolitano showcases the history of the city, from it's founding in 1596 to the present…
4. Museo de Arte Contemporáneo
0.09 MILES
Don't miss the outstanding Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, its entrance marked by Juan Soriano's gigantic black dove sculpture. Inside, its idiosyncratic…
0.19 MILES
A monument to Monterrey’s late-20th-century ambition, this city-block-wide series of interconnected squares, also known as the Gran Plaza, was created in…
0.27 MILES
Monterrey's modernist central library is an architectural landmark along the Macroplaza, bringing to mind a reimagined Roman stadium. It hosts lectures…
0.27 MILES
Public square, forum for art, garden and green spaces all fuse to form Monterrey's unique Parque Hundido.
0.37 MILES
Explanada de los Héroes has statues of Mexican national heroes in each corner. It's the most formal and traditional of the spaces in the Macroplaza and…