What are the best places to visit in Mexico?
The only guide about Mexico that is made for backpackers, written by backpackers.
🇲🇽 Mexico 🇲🇽
The land of:
- Dia De Los Muertos 💀☠️🏴☠️
- Mariachis💃🕺🏿
- Tequila 🍾
- Playas🏖️
- Pyramids🔺
- Witchcraft 🪄🧙🏽
And the most delicious food in the world 🌮🌯
You'll want to visit Mexico for these and many more reasons.
Today you’ll learn what we wish we’d known before going to Mexico.
But before we move on.
We've spent over a year in Mexico.
These are some of the Travel Tips we share with people in the inner-circle @ Spontaneous Backpackers community.
With that said please enjoy the Spontaneous Backpackers Guide to Mexico!
Why don’t we recommend the heavily marketed tourist areas in Mexico?
Everyone wants to go to Cancun, Cabo and Puerto Vallarta (PV)
And why not?
There’s no denying these gorgeous places!
However,
These places are run by organized crime.
But let's face facts, most of Mexico is run by the cartels.
So what makes Cancun, Cabo & PV on our “No Recommendation List”?
The spoiled tourists that refuse to learn 1 word of Spanish.
Which makes it so disappointing in real life compared to the pictures and videos you see in mainstream media.
As an example: You'll rarely meet a local who's born in Cancun, PV or Cabo.
They’ll often be born outside of these tourist traps but live there now for the $$.
Why?
Because to live there full-time you'd have to be wealthy.
Many tourists think they see the real Mexico when they visit Cancun, PV, Cabo etc.
For those who have traveled in other parts.
You know Cancun feels nothing like the real Mexico.
Cancun is a westernized nightmare from hell.
Not the authentic Mexican culture you'll usually get in Mexican pueblos (towns)
(which is more important from a "Was it worth it?" perspective)
So now that we got the No-Go places out of the way.
Let’s discover which places we highly recommend visiting and why!
What are the best places to visit in Mexico?
You can click any of these places linked here to jump forward in the guide. But we recommend reading it all from top to bottom the 1st time for the best experience: It takes less than 5 minutes.
- BONUS: Land of Sorcerers and Magic
In this guide we share what makes these places the best places to visit for Spontaneous Backpackers.
La Paz
Only have a short vacation to get the most beach time and off-grid adventure?
Then La Paz gets you the most bang for your bucks.
You can fly directly to the La Paz airport from: Phoenix, Tijuana, Mexico City etc…
Worst parts about La Paz:
- Internet connection is unstable
- Touristy during the tourist seasons
- Famous beaches are crowded during high season
Best parts about La Paz:
- Great ocean food
- Guy named Sanzon who trains football and boxing to young kids
- That one massage spot outside of the touristic district
- Amazing food. Especially their way of making salsa Macha
- If you want to go off the beaten path there's scooter rentals that rent daily for less than $15/per day
- The beaches outside the town are not just breathtaking but it feels like you're in a space movie. (Nature looks like Mars)
- There are so many hidden beaches where you can swim, sunbathe, see cute lizards and even swim with stingrays!
- They offer whale watching and island hopping.
- Locals here appreciate tourists not like in the scammy “I want to know where you’re from so I can bleed you dry”-way but more like a 'I want to hear your story " way.
-AirBnBs fairly priced less than $10 a night for private accommodations
I could go on but we have 5 more destinations to cover and I want to keep this letter as brief as possible.
La Paz gets 5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Highly recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendations:
Up to 30 days
Next?
⤵️
Mazatlán
Call us biased but we love beaches.
And very few beaches will beat the beaches of Mazatlan.
Also if you're into night life activities then Mazatlan has more to offer than La Paz.
Worst parts about Mazatlán:
Cartels own the city
Parts of the gorgeous beach stink like rotten skunk farts 🦨💨🤢🤮
The beach hustlers will sell you something every chance they get
Best parts about Mazatlán
- The beach is so long and gorgeous it'll take you days to discover it all
- Baby turtles and dolphin lookouts
- If you like parties, Mazatlan has it all
- Friend recommends the BJJ dojo in Mazatlan
- Frutti de Mare (Seafood) vibes.
- The Airbnb's were fairly priced. Easy to find your own apartment for less than $1k/mo
- Because this is a domestic tourist destination you get to learn how Mexicans party
- Well connected bus routes
- Delicious Mexican food
- Surprisingly good internet connection
- Mariachis here can be a blessing and a curse
Mazatlán gets 4/5⭐⭐⭐⭐
We recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendation?
Up to 3 Months
Where to next?
Veracruz
Veracruz is hands down our favorite part of Mexico.
We've lived in Veracruz for over 6 months in total.
If you love beaches then Veracruz is unmatched.
Worst parts about Veracruz:
- Traffic
- Cartels owns the City
- The main 3 beaches in Veracruz are crowded with tourists. (Mainly local Mexican tourists but still) but there’s hundreds of other beaches.
Best parts about Veracruz:
- Climate is beach friendly year round. Gets super hot in the summer (Over 40C/100F)
- Beach life for days🏖️ there are hundreds of hidden beaches to discover
- BJJ and Boxing gyms with some of the most down to earth fighters in the world.
- Food here is delicious. The seafood, the tacos, burritos, cafe lechera (best coffee in Mexico) to name a few.
- Marketplaces! They have specific marketplaces def worth visiting. Found a lot of clothes for cheap.
- You can buy a bike for cheap and easily bike the Veracruz and Boca Del Rio cities.
- Warm hearted locals love to learn about new cultures and share their culture with you.
- El Tajin ruins / Pirámide de los Nichos
- Waterfall hikes, mountain hikes, jungle hiking Veracruz has got some of the best hiking trails in Mexico
- Year-round diving where you might see marine animals like: Whale sharks, turtles, Bull sharks, Rays, Reef Fish, Brain Coral, Coral, Jellyfish and shipwrecks
- Cost of living is incredibly low compared to the popular destinations in Mexico. You can easily find private accommodation for a family of 3 for less than $300/mo
Summary:
Veracruz gets 5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
We highly recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendations?
As long as you want. We stayed for 3 months at a time but we never ran out of things to do or places to explore.
Guadalajara
We never saw Guadalajara on the top places to visit.
Which is surprising considering this is the birth place of Mariachis.
Why the hell would you want to miss the cultural hidden gem that is Guadalajara?
But before we cover the pros, let’s quickly go through the cons.
Worst parts about Guadalajara:
Cartels own the city (notice a theme here?)
The buildings in the city center are littered with human poop (no joke)
The traffic in Guadalajara sucks during rush-hour
Best parts about Guadalajara:
- The Cathedral takes your breath away not only because of the size but the details built into the building. Def go inside during mass to experience hard-core believers.
- The canyons just outside the city are gorgeous. Looks similar to Grand-Canyon in it’s awe striking size.
- Many hidden hiking trails outside of the city where you’ll come across mountains, waterfalls, desert (a lot of desert lol)
- Authentic Mexican food with many restaurant options for all budget sizes.
- People are friendly and inviting towards tourists because it’s not one of the most visited places in Mexico.
- Jalisco is the birthplace of Mariachis. They play allover the city and you’ll find people dancing and enjoying a good time on the streets of Guadalajara.
- Some of the biggest marketplaces in Mexico with affordable clothes, accessories, art, you name it and someone’s probably selling just that here in the City.
- You can easily find AirBnB options with high speed WiFi for ~$10 per night.
Summary:
Guadalajara gets 4/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
It would be 5/5 if the beaches were closer.
Highly recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendations for Guadalajara?
At least a week to discover the gems inside the city but also outside.
We stayed for ~3 weeks and never got bored.
What’s next?
Mexico City
The guide of places to visit wouldn’t be complete without Mexico City.
It’s one of the largest metroplexes in the world with a population of over 20m.
With a city so large, it’s bound to have some secret hidden gems most people miss.
Let’s dive into what makes Mexico City one of the best places to include in your travels.
But first let’s get the cons out of the way before we move on to the pros.
Worst parts about Mexico City:
Crime rate in some areas are dangerous.
This is not another one of those ‘be safe and take care’ warnings. This is a ‘you might never be seen again’ type of heads-up.
Mexico City is crowded with people so finding a quiet spot to chill is difficult.
The traffic in Mexico City is horrible.
You can easily lose 3 hours because of traffic-jams.
Best parts about Mexico City:
- The food scene in Mexico City is a foodies wet dream. You can find anything under the sun in this city. Our favorite restaurant in the whole world is found → Here ←
- People are down to earth and very inviting. Especially when you wander outside of the touristic areas.
- You can get by on 95% English and minimal Spanish in the Touristic areas. If you’re new to LatAm then Mexico City is one of the easiest places to pick up newbie-friendly Spanish.
- Quick bus ride north and you’re transported back thousands of years in history to the pyramids of Teotihuacán (Pyramids of the Sun and Moon are found here)
- The Chapultepec Castle, along with Iturbide Palace, also in Mexico City, are the only royal palaces in North America which were inhabited by Monarchs
- The art scene in Mexico City is another great reason to visit. Casa azul the house Frida Kahlo grew up in is now a museum filled with her art and tools. (Make sure you get your tickets online in advance)
- Xochimilco river (and secret castle) where the Mariachis like to play for the tourists is an experience you’ll never forget.
- You’ll never run out of events or things to do in Mexico City. We’ve lived here for over 6 months and have yet to experience all of what the city has to offer.
- It’s easy to get around using local transportation. If you’re from a small town like us then Mexico City will blow your mind on how many people fit into a metro car.
- Mexico City is one of the best connected hubs for traveling to and out of all of LatAm.
- Romanza Gym (The Boxing Mecca of the WORLD) is found in Iztacalco. You’ll find some of the best boxing professionals in the world training here on the regular.
- BJJ gyms with serious fighters who are some of the most humble and kind people sharing the culture and history of Mexico with even the newest fighters.
- We could continue to write the pro’s of this city for days, and we will, but in a separate letter. Make sure you’re subscribed to get notified when we publish it.
Summary:
Mexico City gets 4.5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
It would be 5/5 if you could find beaches nearby.
Highly recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendations for Mexico City?
At least two weeks to discover the incredible sights found only in Mexico City.
We stayed for 6+ months and never got bored.
Now for the bonus hidden-gem place to visit for the off-the-beaten path type of traveler…
Curious about the ‘Land of the Sorcerers’ that we mentioned in the beginning?
And why we recommend it as a Bonus in the guide of Best Places to Visit in Mexico?
Keep reading and you’ll find out:
BONUS: Land of the Sorcerers and Magic
Can you tell which movie was filmed here?
Don’t worry if you’ve never seen it. It’s a terrifying movie about the indigenous tribes of Mexico before the white man crossed the Atlantic and set their foot in Veracruz.
Catemaco is still today land of the sorcerers and magic.
But you’ll also find some of the most spectacular jungle treks and hikes here.
Let’s dive into what makes Catemaco one of the most memorable places you’ll visit in all of Mexico.
But first let’s get the cons out of the way before we move on to the pros.
Worst parts about Catemaco:
The main town is very touristic. Not just foreigners but local tourism too.
Because of tourism, the street hustlers can be extra aggressive in this town.
The local Mexican prices have gone up in the center of Catemaco because of tourism. If you want affordable rates you can walk a bit further out.
Best parts about Catemaco:
- Have you ever wanted to go off-the-beaten path and just run in wild in the jungle? Well, Catemaco has a lot of jungle. Just don’t wander too far off-path, lol. I’m serious.
- Wild parrots, toucans, monkeys, snakes, jaguars, iguanas, turtles, Dracula, tarantulas and so many more species that are endangered and very rare to come across anywhere else
- You can enjoy the river tours and watch rare animals (Just don’t get fooled by the street hustlers. If it costs more than $20 per person you’re overpaying for a simple boat ride to the monkey islands and the hidden cafe)
- Clay massages in nature / Deep tissue massages by professionals, mui bueno
- Witchcraft and sorcery performed by real life magicians and sorcerers
- The best AirBnB experience we’ve had since Italy back in 2019. Our host in Catemaco showed us around. Even brought us to the parks, the waterfalls and made sure we got a fair price for the boat tours on the lake. We highly recommend staying Here ← (This is not sponsored, we just want to recommend the best AirBnB host ever for fellow travelers)
Summary of The Land of Sorcerers and Magic:
Catemaco Gets 5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Highly recommend visiting.
Length of stay recommendations for Catemaco?
A weekend or even months at a time if you’re into off-grid type of lifestyle.
We stayed for a weekend and got to see the wild Scarlet Macaw that we’ve been searching for in many other jungles but finally saw for the first time here in Catemaco!
TL;DR
3 places to avoid are Cancun, PV and Cabo. (HORRIBLE TOURIST TRAPS)
6 places you def want to explore: La Paz, Mazatlan, Guadalajara, Veracruz, Mexico City & Catemaco
Mexico has a lot of organized crime, but that doesn’t mean you can’t explore.
Just make sure you know which places the locals say are too dangerous to visit and you’ll be fine.
Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways we can help you:
1. If you're looking for more in-depth places of where to go and why and who to contact, we'd recommend starting with this affordable course:
→ Travel Academy: The exact tools, resources and training we wish we had when we took the the leap from our comfort zone to now 3+ years of traveling 39+ countries visited and 10+ countries lived.
2. Work with a full-time traveler 1:1 on your upcoming trip to make sure you get the most out of your next journey. (Booking into November of 2022)
3. If you want peace of mind while traveling the world → This is the Travel Insurance We Recommend ← By using our link you support Spontaneous Backpackers. Thanks!
My favorite would have to be my fathers birth place of Lineras Nuevo Leon and were all mr family members reside with out a doubt.
Thank you forthe great write up on the best and the less recommended place to visit and stay while visiting mexico.