

Politically, the Zona Norte neighborhood is part of the Delegación Centro (Central Borough). The district is also known as La Coahuila for the name of the primary avenue that runs through it.LocationZona Norte is bordered by Downtown Tijuana (Zona Centro) on the south, Zona Río on the east, San Diego and the Mexico–United States border on the north, and colonia Castillo on the west.

Due to its proximity to San Diego, California, it is frequented by US citizens as well as locals. Heroin use and theft, not common elsewhere in Mexico, are rampant here. The geography alone makes it a special place in the world, but thats not even the tip of the iceberg for all the things we can find here. Illicit drug sales are also common to the red light district, but they occur largely out of the public eye. La Zona Norte is sandwiched between Tijuanas downtown and The United States border, making it the first or last ( depending how you see it ) neighborhood in Latin America. These compare in most respects to the hostess bars in Japan.The red light district in Tijuana is also known for highly commercialized street prostitution, particularly behind the main strip clubs on Calle Coahuilla, in a large-high traffic alley named "Primer Callejon Coahuila". Many other bars, styled "lady bars", function as less explicit social clubs where prostitutes and nude sex shows are not accommodated on site, but "lady drinks" are offered at elevated prices, and freelance prostitutes look for clients.

Many bars and strip clubs in Tijuana's red light district in which women are the feature entertainment also operate as brothels, which offer attached hotel rooms for short intervals of time. It is among the largest red-light districts in North America known for its brothels, which present themselves in public as strip clubs and bars, similar to gentlemen's clubs in the United States. Zona Norte is an official neighborhood as well as a red light district located in Tijuana, Mexico.
