Parque Bicentenario is a large public park on the border of the Azcapotzalco and Miguel Hidalgo boroughs of Mexico City, built on the site of a former Pemex oil refinery that closed in 1991 due to pollution concerns and was ceded to the federal government in 2007.
Designed by architect Mario Schjetnan and inaugurated in 2010 for Mexico’s bicentennial of independence, the park features thematic gardens, an orchid farm with more than 7,000 plants, artificial lakes and wetlands, an experimental chinampa, and an ecological facility recreating seven of the country’s distinct climates. At roughly ten times the size of the Zocalo in the historic center, it ranks as one of the city’s largest green spaces.
Admission is free and most visitors spend 1.5 to 3 hours walking the gardens and lakes; the park is a short walk from the Refineria metro station on Line 7.
