# Independent vacation in Mexico



## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

We have been several times to Mexico, but always went to AI resort (even though we took some trips outside resorts). Mostly we were scared to go independetly because of media telling about serious crime in mexico. Recently I was checking crime index in different Mexican cities, i was surprised that in some of them ex. Puerto Vallarta or Merida, crime is even less than in Toronto.
Is it true?!
What places would you recommend to visit in mexico if we go independetly ( Just renting some condo on booking.com or similar) and buying air tickets? I mean places that have low crime, interesting architecture and/or nature...


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## OnlyMyOpinion (Sep 1, 2013)

Depending on your interests, the Yucatan, fly to Cancun, rent and drive to Merida, visit the Mayan ruins on the Puuc route, caves, spider monkey preserve, Vallodolid, there are reliable maps now (didn't used to be), some nice off the beaten path hotels (ahh a cool pool)


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## lifeliver (Aug 30, 2010)

Lake Chapala is supposed to have a large Canadian expat community. If you are 50+ this may be a good spot to go.


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## ykphil (Dec 13, 2009)

Do you prefer the beach, or the more colonial towns of the interior? Hot or milder weather? Mexico is so diverse, geographically and culturally, that you can find everything for every taste, and more.


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## gibor365 (Apr 1, 2011)

> Do you prefer the beach, or the more colonial towns of the interior


Actually both  ... and milder weather ...



> Lake Chapala is supposed to have a large Canadian expat community.


 from what i read Lake Chapala is rather dirty , no one even swims there except some locals and it's veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyy far from the ocean...

From my research , so far I liked Puerto Vallarta - ocean, beaches, some old churches, boarwalk + low crime. Too bad Marietas Islands are closed for public 

Acapulco looks nice, but they have high crime rate


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## ykphil (Dec 13, 2009)

gibor365 said:


> Actually both  ... and milder weather ...
> 
> from what i read Lake Chapala is rather dirty , no one even swims there except some locals and it's veryyyyyyyyyyyyyyy far from the ocean...


It's difficult to have both the beach (hot) and the beautiful colonial towns of the interior that generally have a milder weather (e.g. San Miguel de Allende, San Luis Potosi, Zacatecas -my favorite, Guanajuato, et.) in the same package. If I were to split my time between the beach and the interior, I'd spend time in Puerto Vallarta, a very lovely coastal town that has a very beautiful old district, then take the bus or drive to Zacatecas or San Miguel de Allende to spend time exploring the area.


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## indexxx (Oct 31, 2011)

I really liked Playa Del Carmen. Great little town, lots to see and do in the region.


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## Brian K (Jan 29, 2011)

I recently went to Merida for a week. It was VERY clean and felt quite safe. It is quite Spanish and much less touristy than PV or Cancun where English is spoken by many more people. We went on a very nice 'calesa' ride (horse drawn carriage through the downtown. We stayed at the Fiesta Americana hotel which we booked on Otel.com. Remember to bring the receipt that says you already paid if you use their service. Merida is 20 minutes from Progreso - a beach community to the north. A few nice beach restaurants there. The car rental was a necessity, but booked on-line was a scam though. We booked the car online and bought what we thought was full insurance. Turns out that we only bought the 3rd party insurance - so if we hit another car, their car would be fixed by insurance but the rental agent told us that did not include fixing damage to our rental. For this they wanted $500 US for the week and then were told that the 3rd party insurance we pre-bought is REQUIRED by Mexican law and that if we wanted insurance for our rental we should have phoned them directly. Also they charged us $75 USD for a second driver. Another scam. (this was Fox Rent-a-car which we won't use again). We declined scam $500 insurance and fortunately didn't have any accidents. We will go back to Merida again and next time we would rent a car at the Hotel from a local shop. After the trip I bought a TomTom GPS with Mexican maps which would have made navigation easier. Driving is civilized and not too difficult - but lots of dual lane round-a-bouts. The down side of Merida is that it gets REALLY hot sometimes. I watch the weather now and have seen it at 40C and with the humidity it feels like 60C. We went to the market area downtown in the daytime and at night and ate in places I normally wouldn't even want to walk by - never got sick or even an upset stomach and the place felt extremely safe. It was a great vacation. The beach at Progreso isn't as clear as in Cancun or Playa del Carmen but it was clean and of course beautiful but be aware of that. If you want a non-touristy place to experience civilized Mexico, Merida is awesome.
Also recently went to an AI in Puerto Vallarta (Mismaloya - too far from town but the bus is only 8 pesos to downtown). PV is very nice but very touristy. Also feels quite safe and the cool breeze off the ocean keeps you cooler, Watch out for the condo/timeshare deals at the airport.


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## kcowan (Jul 1, 2010)

My partner and I have been all over together and separately:
Cancun, Mérida, Monterrey, DF, Ajijic, Guadalajara, San Miguel, Guanajuato, Acapulco, San Blas, Mazatlán, Guaymas, Hermosillo, Pitillal, San Sebastián, Rincon de Guayabitos, El Anclote, Punta de Mita, Litibú, Sayulita, La Penita, Manzanillo (Los Hades), La Cruz, San Pancho, Tepic, El Tuito, Tapalpa, Tequila, Cozumel, Tasco. I am sure I have left out some. Every one of them has pros and cons. I think most people have no idea of the variety of fascinating places in Mexico. The only places I would be extra careful for safety are Acapulco and DF. Also Tepic has a prison and so it is best to visit during the day as the prisoner's friends sometimes hang around and get bored.


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