©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

Mexico Baja California p696

Copper Canyon & Northern Mexico p740

Northern Central Highlands

p632 Central Pacific Western Yucatán Coast Central Around Mexico Peninsula City p140 p489 Highlands p255 p572 Mexico Veracruz p203 City p62 Chiapas & Oaxaca Tabasco p417 p345

THIS EDITION WRITTEN AND RESEARCHED BY

John Noble, Kate Armstrong, Stuart Butler, John Hecht, Beth Kohn, Tom Masters, Josephine Quintero, Adam Skolnick, Iain Stewart, Phillip Tang, Lucas Vidgen

PLAN YOUR TRIP Welcome to Mexico . . . . . . 6 Mexico Map. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Mexico’s Top 21. . . . . . . . . 10 Need to Know. . . . . . . . . . 20 First Time Mexico. . . . . . . 22 What’s New. . . . . . . . . . . . 24 If You Like…. . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Month by Month. . . . . . . . 30 Itineraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Eat & Drink Like a Local. . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Exploring Mexico’s Ancient Ruins. . . . . . . . . . 48 Travel with Children. . . . . 54 Regions at a Glance. . . . . 57

ON THE ROAD MEXICO CITY. . . . . . . 62 AROUND MEXICO CITY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 North of Mexico City. . . 141 Tepotzotlán. . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 Tula. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144 Teotihuacán. . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Pachuca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150 East of Mexico City . . . . 154 Puebla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Cholula. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 Popocatépetl & . Iztaccíhuatl. . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Tlaxcala. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Cacaxtla & Xochitécatl. . . 171 La Malinche. . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 Huamantla. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Cantona. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Cuetzalan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174 Yohualichán. . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 South of Mexico City. . . 175 Tepoztlán. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 Cuautla. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 Cuernavaca. . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Taxco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 Parque Nacional . Grutas de . Cacahuamilpa. . . . . . . . . . . 195 West of Mexico City. . . . 195 Toluca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

MISSING35MM/GETTY IMAGES ©

Contents Nevado de Toluca. . . . . . . . 198 Valle de Bravo. . . . . . . . . . . 199 Malinalco. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Ixtapan de la Sal. . . . . . . . 202

VERACRUZ. . . . . . . . . 203 Veracruz City. . . . . . . . . . .205 Central Veracruz. . . . . . . 215 Central Coast . . . . . . . . . . . 216 Xalapa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217 Córdoba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Fortín de las Flores . . . . . 230 Coscomatepec. . . . . . . . . . 231 Orizaba. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232 Pico de Orizaba . . . . . . . . 235

LAND’S END, CABO ST LUCAS P732

Northern Veracruz. . . . . 235 Tuxpan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 Papantla. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 El Tajín . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Southeast Veracruz. . . . 245 Tlacotalpan. . . . . . . . . . . . 245 Santiago Tuxtla. . . . . . . . . . 247 Tres Zapotes. . . . . . . . . . . 248 San Andrés Tuxtla . . . . . . 249 Catemaco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Reserva de la Biosfera . Los Tuxtlas. . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

YUCATÁN PENINSULA. . . . . . . . 255 Quintana Roo . . . . . . . . . 258 Cancún. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Isla Mujeres. . . . . . . . . . . . 267 Parque Nacional Isla . Contoy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Isla Holbox. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Puerto Morelos. . . . . . . . . . 273 Playa del Carmen. . . . . . . 276 Isla Cozumel. . . . . . . . . . . 280 Akumal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285 Tulum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286 Mahahual. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295 Xcalak. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296 Laguna Bacalar. . . . . . . . . 297 Chetumal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297 Yucatán State. . . . . . . . . 301 Mérida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301 Celestún. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Dzibilchaltún. . . . . . . . . . . . 319 Progreso . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Izamal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Chichén Itzá . . . . . . . . . . . . 321 Valladolid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328 Ek’ Balam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 Río Lagartos. . . . . . . . . . . . 331

Campeche. . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Xpujil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

CHIAPAS & TABASCO. . . . . . . . . 345 Tuxtla Gutiérrez . . . . . . . . 348 Chiapa de Corzo. . . . . . . . 354 San Cristóbal de las . Casas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356 Ocosingo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374 Toniná. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376 Agua Azul & Misol-Ha. . . . 377 Palenque. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377 Bonampak, Yaxchilán &. the Carretera . Fronteriza . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388 Comitán. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398 El Soconusco & . Beaches. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403 Tapachula . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406 Tabasco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411

OAXACA. . . . . . . . . . . 417 Oaxaca City. . . . . . . . . . 420 Valles Centrales. . . . . . 442 Monte Albán . . . . . . . . . . . 442 Valle de Tlacolula. . . . . . . 445 Valle de Zimatlán. . . . . . . 449 San Agustín Etla. . . . . . . . 450 Sierra Norte . . . . . . . . . . 451 Pueblos . Mancomunados. . . . . . . . . 451 Western Oaxaca . . . . . . 453 Yanhuitlán, . Coixtlahuaca . & Teposcolula. . . . . . . . . . 453 Oaxaca Coast . . . . . . . . 454 Puerto Escondido. . . . . . . 454 Pochutla. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466 Puerto Ángel. . . . . . . . . . . 467 Zipolite. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469 San Agustinillo. . . . . . . . . . 472

ON THE ROAD

ALAN TOBEY/GETTY IMAGES ©

Mazunte. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474 La Ventanilla. . . . . . . . . . . . 477 Bahías de Huatulco. . . . . . 477 Barra de la Cruz. . . . . . . . 484 Isthmus of Tehuantepec. . . . . . . . . 485 Salina Cruz . . . . . . . . . . . . 485 Tehuantepec. . . . . . . . . . . 486 Juchitán. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487

CENTRAL PACIFIC COAST . . . . . . . . . . . 489 Mazatlán . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491 Mexcaltitán. . . . . . . . . . 503 San Blas. . . . . . . . . . . . . 504 Tepic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508 Laguna Santa María . del Oro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509 Volcán Ceboruco . . . . . . . 509 Chacala . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509 San Francisco. . . . . . . . . 511 Sayulita . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511 Punta Mita. . . . . . . . . . . . 514 Puerto Vallarta. . . . . . . . 514 Costalegre Beaches. . . . 529 Bahía de Navidad. . . . . . 529 San Patricio-Melaque . . . 530 Barra de Navidad. . . . . . . . 531 Manzanillo. . . . . . . . . . . 534 Boca de Pascuales. . . . . 537 Michoacán Coast . . . . . . 537 San Juan de Alima. . . . . . 537 Las Brisas. . . . . . . . . . . . . 538 Playa La Ticla. . . . . . . . . . 538 Faro de Bucerías . . . . . . . 539 Playa Colola . . . . . . . . . . . 539

FOLK ART P826

Playa Maruata. . . . . . . . . . 539 Barra de Nexpa. . . . . . . . . 540 The Cartel’s Coast. . . . . . 540 Caleta de Campos. . . . . . . 541 Lázaro Cárdenas. . . . . . . 541 Troncones . . . . . . . . . . . 542 Ixtapa. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 544 Zihuatanejo. . . . . . . . . . 546 Barra de Potosí. . . . . . . . . 556 Soledad de Maciel. . . . . . . 557 Pie de la Cuesta. . . . . . . 557 Acapulco . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559 Costa Chica. . . . . . . . . . . 570 Playa Ventura & . Around. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570 Cuajinicuilapa. . . . . . . . . . . 571

WESTERN CENTRAL HIGHLANDS . . . . . . . 572 Guadalajara. . . . . . . . . . . 573 Lago de Chapala. . . . . . . . 596 Zona de Montaña. . . . . . . 600 Colima . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 603

Inland Michoacán. . . . . . 607 Morelia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 608 Reserva Mariposa . Monarca. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 616 Angangueo . . . . . . . . . . . . . 618 Zitácuaro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 619 Pátzcuaro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 619 Uruapan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 627 Angahuan . . . . . . . . . . . . . 630

NORTHERN CENTRAL HIGHLANDS . . . . . . . 632 Querétaro State. . . . . . 634 Querétaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . 634 Tequisquiapan. . . . . . . . . . . 641 Guanajuato State. . . . . 643 Guanajuato. . . . . . . . . . . . 643 León. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 654 Dolores Hidalgo . . . . . . . . 655 San Miguel de Allende. . . 657 Aguascalientes State. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 671

Contents UNDERSTAND Aguascalientes. . . . . . . . . . 671 San Luis Potosí State. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 676 San Luis Potosí. . . . . . . . . 676 Matehuala. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 681 Real de Catorce . . . . . . . . 682 Zacatecas State. . . . . . 686 Zacatecas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 686 La Quemada. . . . . . . . . . . 695

BAJA CALIFORNIA. . . . . . . 696 Northern Baja. . . . . . . . 698 Tijuana. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 698 Playas de Rosarito. . . . . . 704 Ensenada. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 705 La Bufadora. . . . . . . . . . . . . 710 Parque Nacional . Constitución de 1857. . . . 710 Mexicali . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 710 Southern Baja. . . . . . . . . 711 Guerrero Negro . . . . . . . . . 712 San Ignacio. . . . . . . . . . . . . 713 Santa Rosalía . . . . . . . . . . . 715 Mulegé. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 716 Loreto. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 718 La Paz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 722 La Ventana. . . . . . . . . . . . . 728 Los Barriles. . . . . . . . . . . . 728 Cabo Pulmo. . . . . . . . . . . . 729 Reserva de la Biosfera. Sierra de la Laguna. . . . . 729 San José del Cabo. . . . . . 730 Los Cabos Corridor. . . . . 732 Cabo San Lucas. . . . . . . . 732 Todos Santos . . . . . . . . . . 736

COPPER CANYON & NORTHERN MEXICO. . . . . . . . . . . 740 Northwest Mexico . . . . . 745 Puerto Peñasco . . . . . . . . . 746 Hermosillo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748 Bahía de Kino. . . . . . . . . . . 749 San Carlos. . . . . . . . . . . . . 750 Álamos & Around. . . . . . . . 752 Los Mochis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755 The Copper Canyon & Ferrocarril Chihuahua Pacífico. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 757 Ferrocarril Chihuahua Pacífico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 759 El Fuerte. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 761 Cerocahui . . . . . . . . . . . . . 762 Urique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763 Areponápuchi (Posada Barrancas). . . . . . . . . . . . . 764 Parque de Aventuras Barrancas del Cobre. . . . 765 Divisadero. . . . . . . . . . . . . 765 Creel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 765 Batopilas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 770 Chihuahua & Central North Mexico. . . . . . . . . . 772 Chihuahua. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772 Nuevo Casas Grandes . & Casas Grandes. . . . . . . . 778 Mata Ortiz. . . . . . . . . . . . . 779 Hidalgo del Parral. . . . . . . 779 Durango. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 782 Northeast Mexico. . . . . . 786 Saltillo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 786 Parras. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 788

Cuatro Ciénegas. . . . . . . . 790 Monterrey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 791

SURVIVAL GUIDE

SPECIAL FEATURES Mexico Off the Beaten Track Map. . . . . 40 Eat & Drink Like a Local. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Exploring Mexico’s Ancient Ruins . . . . . . . . 48 Chichén Itzá 3D Illustration. . . . . . . . . . 324

©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

34

DONALD M. JONES/GETTY IMAGES ©

Plan Your Trip

Itineraries É

É

• # Isla Contoy

GULF OF MEXICO

• # Isla Mujeres Cancún • #

É • # Selvática • #

# Río Secreto •

YUCATÁN

É

Playa del Carmen É

# Cobá •

• # Isla Cozumel

• # Tulum

É

É

É

É

É • # Reserva de la

Biosfera Sian Ka'an

É

QUINTANA ROO

CARIBBEAN SEA

CAMPECHE

É

Banco Chinchorro • #

É

É

# Mahahual •

É

BELIZE

• # Xcalak

1A0YS Riviera Maya & Costa Maya Getaway D Fly into Cancún and head straight for relaxed Isla Mujeres’ beaches and snorkeling, taking a side-trip to Isla Contoy, a national park with excellent bird-watching and, June to September, the chance to swim with whale sharks. Alternatively opt for hip Playa del Carmen, with its own fine beaches, underwater activities and lively nightlife. ‘Playa’ is also the jumping-off point for the world-famous dive sites of Isla Cozumel. If you have kids, spend a day at the nearby ‘eco-parks’ such as Selvática with its 12 jungle zip-lines, or Río Secreto where you hike and swim through a 600m-long cave. Next stop: Tulum, with

one of Mexico’s most perfect beaches and most spectacularly located Maya sites. Nearby are the pyramids and temples of Cobá, as well as the wildlife-rich Reserva de la Biosfera Sian Ka’an. South of Tulum the Costa Maya is less developed and touristed than the ‘Riviera Maya’ to the north. Head to Mahahual, a laid-back village with snorkeling and diving at the coral atoll Banco Chinchorro, or the tiny fishing town of Xcalak, another excellent water sports base. After three nights chilling at either of these, either opt for a fourth, or, if you’re worried that you missed out on Cancún’s nightlife, spend your last night there.

35

PL AN YOUR TRIP I t i n e r a r i e s Flock of Magnificent Frigatebirds, Reserva de la Biosfera Sian Ka’an (p294)

36

PL AN YOUR TRIP I t i n e r a r i e s Cancún • #

Mérida Chichén Playa del Carmen • • # Itzá #

GULF OF MEXICO

É

• #

Teotihuacán É

• #

# Campeche •

• # Uxmal • #

É

Tulum

Ruta Puuc

• #

• #

Isla Cozumel

É

MEXICO

_ CITY #

• # Veracruz

É

É

• #

Oaxaca

• #

É

BELIZE É

É

# Monte Albán •

Palenque • # San Cristóbal de las Casas

É

• #

CARIBBEAN SEA

Yaxchilán

É # Puerto Escondido • • #• # Mazunte Zipolite

PA C I F I C O C E A N

GUATEMALA

HONDURAS

37 STOCKCAM/GETTY IMAGES ©

1 TH Beaches & Temples

MON

of Mexico’s South

Start by exploring the exciting megalopolis of Mexico City, key to any understanding of Mexico the country. Take a side-trip to the awesome pyramids at Teotihuacán, capital of ancient Mexico’s biggest empire. Then head east to the fun-loving port city of Veracruz, before crossing the mountains southward to Oaxaca. This cultured colonial city, with Mexico’s finest handicrafts, sits at the heart of a beautiful region with a large indigenous population. Don’t miss the ancient Zapotec capital, Monte Albán, nearby.

ANTONIO BUSIELLO/GETTY IMAGES ©

Top: Pirámide de la Luna (p148), Teotihuacán Bottom: Sea turtle and queen angelfish, Isla Cozumel (p280)

Head down to one of the relaxed beach spots on the Oaxaca coast, such as Puerto Escondido, Mazunte or Zipolite, for a few days’ sun, surf and sand, before continuing east to San Cristóbal de las Casas, a beautiful highland town surrounded by intriguing indigenous villages. Move on to Palenque, perhaps the most stunning of all ancient Maya cities, with its backdrop of emerald-green jungle, and Yaxchilán, another marvelous Maya city, accessible only by river. Head northeast to Campeche, an attractive mix of colonial city and bustling modern town, then move on to colonial Mérida, the Yucatán Peninsula’s lively cultural capital and the base for visiting the superb ruins of Uxmal and the Ruta Puuc. Next stop: Chichén Itzá, the most celebrated of all the Yucatán’s Maya sites. From here, it’s on to Tulum on the Caribbean coast, another spectacular Maya site set beside a glorious beach. Finally make your way northward along the Riviera Maya to the hip beach town of Playa del Carmen, with a side trip to Isla Cozumel for world-class snorkeling and diving, to end at Mexico’s most popular and unabashed coastal resort, Cancún.

PL AN YOUR TRIP I t i n e r a r i e s

This classic journey leads south from Mexico’s central heartland to its glorious Caribbean beaches, and gives a superb sampling of what makes the country so fascinating.

38

PL AN YOUR TRIP I t i n e r a r i e s

The nation’s capital is ringed by colonial cities blessed with gorgeous architecture of carved stone and colorful tiles, broad plazas, splashing fountains and lively contemporary cultural scenes. Trying to visit them all runs the risk of monument fatigue, but you can do justice to the region on this eight-stop route.

GLOW IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES ©

3 KS Colonial Cities of Mexico’s Heartland

WEE

Mexico City itself has much grand colonial architecture, starting with its central plaza, the Zócalo, and the cathedral and National Palace that flank it. The colonial center is interestingly spiced with plenty of more modern, and a bit of pre-Hispanic, architecture and art, and there are masses of great places to eat and go out at night after a day of culture. Head east to Puebla, which has the country’s densest concentration of restored colonial churches and mansions – many of the latter now housing interesting museums – and is still one of the most Spanish-influenced cities in Mexico. Over 1000 buildings are adorned with the colorful azulejos (painted ceramic tiles) for which the city is famed.

Move northward up to prosperous Zacatecas, a stylish silver city with a stupendous baroque cathedral, fascinating art museums, and even a colonial silver- and gold-mine that you can tour. Heading back toward Mexico City you reach El Bajío, the region famed as the Cuna de la Independencia (Cradle of Independence) for its vital role in the 19th-century independence movement that put an end to Mexico’s colonial era. Here, lively Guanajuato awaits with quixotic callejones (alleys), a vibrant student life and historical reminders galore, while the festive and charming expat capital San Miguel de Allende is full of beautifully restored colonial buildings, including many homes. Before you hit Mexico City again, don’t neglect handsome Querétaro, which has several fine museums and a very walkable historic center.

DE AGOSTINI/S. GUTIERREZ/GETTY IMAGES ©

Go west to Michoacán’s lively capital Morelia, home to an inspiring cathedral, many other well-preserved colonial buildings and some great cafes and bars, but curiously ignored by most foreign tourists. Pátzcuaro is a handsome, low-rise, much smaller highland town where the indigenous Purépecha sell their wares around one of Mexico’s loveliest central plazas.

Top: Palacio Nacional (p70), Mexico City Bottom: Catedral (p155), Puebla

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PL AN YOUR TRIP I t i n e r a r i e s

Zacatecas • #

É

Guanajuato

É

• # É • # San Miguel de Allende • # Querétaro

É

Morelia

MEXICO CITY

• # • #

_ #

Pátzcuaro

É

PA C I F I C OCEAN

É • # Puebla

40

Off the Beaten Track: Mexico Phoenix

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

El Paso

Nogales

Agua Prieta

Isla del Tiburón

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Isla Ángel de la Guarda

Ciudad Juárez

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Ojinaga Chihuahua

Divisadero

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Jiménez

Sea of Cortez

Piedras Negras Cuatro Ciénegas

Hidalgo del Parral

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Cabo San Lucas

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San Luis Potosí

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URIQUE

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San Blas Tepic

Islas Marías

l

The journey to this idyllic Copper Canyon riverside village is one of the most dramatic in Mexico, descending via endless switchbacks down the side of a canyon. (p763)

Puerto Vallarta

OCEAN GRILL

OCEAN GRILL

Irapuato Guadalajara

Lázaro Cárdenas Ixtapa

VOLCÁN PARICUTÍN

OCEAN

Aguascalientes León

Guanajuato Querétaro

Morelia Colima Uruapan Barra de Navidad VOLCÁN Manzanillo PARICUTÍN Cuyutlán

Our favorite restaurant in the Puerto Vallarta area has no road access: the only way here is by trail or sea. And the seafood lunch is as exceptional as the cliff scenery. (p526)

PACIFIC

Saltillo

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Culiacán

Si

Isla Espíritu Santo

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PL AN YOUR TRIP O F F T H E B EATEN TRA C K

Puerto Peñasco

Climb this volcano near Uruapan, which, exploding out of a farmer’s field back in the 1940s, buried villages under tons of volcanic rock, but left a church’s steeple unscathed. (p631)

Si e r r a Acapulco

41 0 0

500 km 300 miles

SIERRA GORDA

Montgomery

Tallahassee

MINERAL DEL CHICO Baton

You’llRouge hold your breath round many a steep curve on the road up, but this charming old mining village, with moody mountain views, tumbling mists and good hiking, is well worth the trip. (p153)

Nuevo Laredo

RUTA PUUC

Reynosa

While the tour groups are shuffling from one site to another further north, check out these fascinating Maya ruins south of Mérida: there’s a good chance you’ll have them all to yourself. (p316)

Matamoros

Gulf of Mexico

M

Ciudad Victoria

ad re

O ri

Progreso

en

SIERRA GORDA

Río Lagartos

Tampico

ta l

Mérida

Tuxpan

Puebla

Campeche

Xalapa Ciudad del Veracruz Carmen Córdoba Santiago Tuxtla

RUTA PUUC Escárcega

ed e

Oaxaca lS ur

Tehuantepec

Puerto Escondido Puerto Ángel

Cancún

Juchitán

Tuxtla Gutiérrez

COCOLEOCO SURF CAMP

COCOLEOCO SURF CAMP A short stroll from a 6km-long, empty Oaxacan beach, Cocoleoco’s rustic cabañas (cabins) are a marvelously relaxed stop. You can surf a dozen nearby breaks, take a horseback ride or kayak the lagoon. (p486)

Tapachula

Felipe Carrillo Puerto Chetumal

Belize City

Villahermosa Chilpancingo

Ma d r

Isla Mujeres Isla Cozumel

MINERAL DEL CHICO MEXICO CITY

Tizimín

LAGUNA MIRAMAR

BELIZE

GUATEMALA

HONDURAS

LAGUNA MIRAMAR GUATEMALA

TEGUCIGALPA CITY Via pockmarked dirt road or river boat, a day-long journey through the Lacandón Jungle takes you to this perfect clear blue lake with ancient petroglyphs and the haunting roars of howler monkeys. (p396)

PL AN YOUR TRIP O F F T H E B EATEN TRA C K

This remote Querétaro biosphere reserve encompasses high-altitude cloud forests, semideserts, lowland tropical forests, historic Jesuit missions, isolated villages, waterfalls, caves and exotic wildlife. Explore with local guides from community-run Austin ecolodges. (p642)

©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd Beth Kohn Chiapas & Tabasco Beth has been sojourning in Mexico for more than 30 years, and this was her fourth whirl through Chiapas and Tabasco for the Mexico guide. This time around, she waited patiently at highway mudslides, cavorted with fireflies in the Lacandón Jungle and absorbed untold miles of spine-adjusting terracería. A thankful resident of San Francisco, she’s also co-authored Lonely Planet’s California, South America and Yosemite, Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks guides. You can see more of her work at www.bethkohn.com. Tom Masters Veracruz Tom is a travel writer based in Berlin. His first experience of Mexico was in the jungle of Chiapas filming at Palenque, which led to repeat visits and a stint of living in Mexico City. Having previously authored the Around Mexico City and Western Central Highlands chapters of this book, this time Tom covered the much overlooked state of Veracruz. He can be found online at www.tommasters.net. Josephine Quintero Baja California Josephine was married for many years to a Mexican American with a large extended family, leading to a healthy exposure to mariachi music and margaritas. She made frequent trips over the border from her home in San Diego and continues to be enthralled by the heady mix of vibrant culture, wonderful people, fabulous food and all that history. Now living in Andalucía, Spain, Josephine was thrilled to have the opportunity to revisit Baja California, one of her favorite regions in Mexico. Read more about Josephine at:

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Adam Skolnick Central Pacific Coast Adam has written about travel, culture, health, sports, human rights and the environment for Lonely Planet, the New York Times, Outside, Men’s Health, Travel & Leisure, Salon.com, BBC.com and ESPN.com. He has authored or coauthored 25 Lonely Planet guidebooks. His debut novel, Middle of Somewhere, is set to publish in 2014. You can read more of his work at www. adamskolnick.com. Find him on Twitter and Instagram (@adamskolnick). Iain Stewart Copper Canyon & Northern Mexico Iain first travelled through Mexico in 1993, journeying between Nogales and Chetumal by road and rail. He’s returned regularly and authored several chapters for Lonely Planet guidebooks over the years. On this trip he was humbled by the majesty of the Copper Canyon and the silence of the desert, and impressed by some superb museums. Iain has written guidebooks for destinations as diverse as Ibiza and Indonesia. He lives close to the beach in Brighton, UK. Phillip Tang Around Mexico City Phillip first visited Mexico in 2002 and keeps being summoned back. He falls in love with the country again with every comida corrida, candy-coloured wall, and calavera. He is now accidentally living in Mexico City en route between his other homes of London and Sydney. On the road for this guide, he created animated gifs (tacotrauma.tumblr.com), Instagrammed (@ mrtangtangtang) and tweeted (@philliptang). More of his travel writing can be found at philliptang.co.uk. Lucas Vidgen Yucatán Peninsula Lucas first visited the Yucatán in 2002, breezing through long enough to be captivated by the lush scenery, irresistible beaches and delicious food. He now lives in Guatemala and makes it a point to pop over the border whenever he can to munch down on pibil and splash around in cenotes. Lucas has contributed to a variety of Lonely Planet’s Latin American titles. Back home he publishes – and occasionally works on – Quetzaltenango’s leading nightlife and culture magazine, XelaWho (www.xelawho.com).

OUR STORY

A beat-up old car, a few dollars in the pocket and a sense of adventure. In 1972 that’s all Tony and Maureen Wheeler needed for the trip of a lifetime – across Europe and Asia overland to Australia. It took several months, and at the end – broke but inspired – they sat at their kitchen table writing and stapling together their first travel guide, Across Asia on the Cheap. Within a week they’d sold 1500 copies. Lonely Planet was born. Today, Lonely Planet has offices in Melbourne, London and Oakland, with more than 600 staff and writers. We share Tony’s belief that ‘a great guidebook should do three things: inform, educate and amuse’.

OUR WRITERS John Noble Coordinating Author, Oaxaca John has been making extended trips to Mexico for over three decades and coordinated every edition of this guide since 1994, wandering from Tijuana to Chetumal and many, many places in between. He’s climbed volcanoes, boated down jungle rivers, explored the barrios of Mexico City and understood why Oaxacans revere mezcal. Mexico’s food, drinks, landscapes, arts, history and, above all, the warmth of the Mexicans themselves always have him looking forward to the next trip. Originally from England’s Ribble Valley, John has lived for 20 years in the land of Mexico’s old colonial masters, Spain. Read more about John at:

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Kate Armstrong Northern Central Highlands An Australian by birth but a Latina (she believes) in a former life, Kate visits Mexico regularly. This is the fourth time she’s covered the silver cities for Lonely Planet. On this trip she embraced the country’s patriotic Independence Day celebrations, partied at village festivals, ate her way through kilos of street foods (gorditas are her favorite), and danced her way through the magic of Mexico. Kate’s other freelance writing adventures appear at www.katearmstrong.com.au and @nomaditis. Read more about Kate at:

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Stuart Butler Western Central Highlands Stuart first traveled to Mexico in the late 1990s as part of a longer trip through Latin America. Mexico stood out for him thanks to its heady mix of beaches, wildlife, surf, mountains and rich culture, and he has since made a number of repeat visits. Hailing from southwest England, Stuart now lives on the beautiful beaches of southwest France, close to the Spanish border, with his wife and young son and daughter. He is also the coauthor of many Spain-based Lonely Planet books. John Hecht Mexico City John has lived in Mexico for two decades now. He spent the early years in Guadalajara studying Spanish and practicing his new language skills in the neighborhood cantinas. Several years later he moved to Mexico City and turned freelance writer. Working on the Mexico City chapter reminded him of everything he loves about his adopted city, especially the mezcal and taco crawls. He’s worked on five Lonely Planet Mexico books. Read more about John at:

lonelyplanet.com/members/johnhecht OVER MORE PAGE WRITERS Published by Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

ABN 36 005 607 983 Although the authors and Lonely Planet have taken all reasonable care in preparing this book, we make no warranty about 14th edition – Sep 2014 the accuracy or completeness of its content and, to the maxiISBN 978 1 7422 0806 0 mum extent permitted, disclaim all liability arising from its use. © Lonely Planet 2014 Photographs © as indicated 2014 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in Singapore All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, except brief extracts for the purpose of review, and no part of this publication may be sold or hired, without the written permission of the publisher. Lonely Planet and the Lonely Planet logo are trademarks of Lonely Planet and are registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries. Lonely Planet does not allow its name or logo to be appropriated by commercial establishments, such as retailers, restaurants or hotels. Please let us know of any misuses: lonelyplanet.com/ip.

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