Living in Portales

Life in Portales moves at a walkable, unhurried pace. Everyday errands stay close at Mercado Portales, toward the San Simón Ticumac edge, while the antiques tianguis on nearby Rumania is more a weekend outing than an errand, drawing antique hunters from across the city. Metro Portales, on Line 2, runs along Calzada de Tlalpan on the eastern edge of the neighborhood, with its poniente exit feeding into Portales. Weekends center on Parque de los Venados, home to a small planetarium. The character stays residential and middle-class; anyone after a livelier café-and-restaurant scene, even at a higher price, gravitates instead toward Narvarte, while Portales keeps its traffic noise on those avenues, not the interior blocks.

What to consider before renting

Apartments make up nearly everything that comes up for rent in Portales; houses barely appear, so anyone set on a rental house should look at houses for rent in Narvarte, a few blocks north, at a higher price to match. Rents here also run below apartments for rent in Del Valle, where the higher price buys leafier streets, and about level with apartments for rent in Letrán Valle next door. Drivers should expect steady traffic on Calzada de Tlalpan and Eje Central at rush hour; interior streets away from those avenues are calmer and easier for parking.