The modern Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City opened in 1976.
The building was constructed to replace the old basilica, which could no longer safely accommodate the large number of pilgrims and had suffered from structural movement on Mexico City’s soft ground. Architect Pedro Ramírez Vázquez designed the new basilica with a broad circular plan and a distinctive green-and-gold roof.
Its layout allows visitors to see the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe from a moving walkway beneath the main level. The building’s completion in 1976 made it possible to continue accommodating major pilgrimages at the Tepeyac site.
The basilica is relevant to quinceañeras because some families incorporate a visit or Mass there into a religious celebration. That connection is devotional rather than mandatory: a quinceañera does not have to take place at this basilica or even include a church service.