Mexico

Regions and climates

Although Mexico is pleasant to visit during the whole year, the months most frequented by tourists, both local and foreign, are July, August, Christmas’ and Easter’s holidays. However, the best time to visit Mexico goes from December to end of August (just avoid September and October). The climate of Mexico is mostly hot and humid with typically maritime features in coastal areas, becoming more arid moving to the north. The temperature decreases when the altitude increase and considering the altitude average of the country, when moving away from coastal areas the average daily temperature range can significantly vary. Tropical cyclones lead heavy rains in summer and at the beginning of the autumn, with the greatest incidence in the second half of August and in October. In Mexico City, Oaxaca and San Cristobal during the winter, from January to March, temperatures can drop significantly, even if only for short periods. On the coast and in the area of Palenque is hot almost all year round.

Transport

Airlines
Domestic flights in Mexico are no longer cheap as it was in the past, but it still offers a convenient way to move, especially considering that the alternative way to travel is a hot and endless bus trip. In recent years, major airlines left many domestic routes to smaller companies, who don’t provide a very regular schedule.
Bus
Buses are the most popular means of transport thanks to an extensive network of connections. The long-distance buses are fairly comfortable, have air conditioning and are quite fast. The buses that goes along on minor routes in rural areas are generally decrepit vehicles, quite battered and devoid of suspensions, that agony in search of a dignified death along the dirt roads. The minibuses used for local connections are called combi, colectivos or peseros.
Train
The only trip that we suggest you to do by train is the Ferrocarril Chihuaca al Pacifico that connects Mochis to Chihuaha, renowned also as the Copper Canyon Railway: it’s one of the major attraction of the country thanks to the breathtaking panorama.

Safety

The coastal areas and the islands of the country (especially the Atlantic and the Caribbean coasts) in the period from June to October are interested from possible storm phenomena (tropical storms, hurricanes and so on). Organized and common crimes are increasing rapidly all over the country, especially in Mexico City and other large cities (Tijuana, Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua and Morelia) and also in the State of Chiapas and in some areas frequented by a lot of tourists, including those of Cancun in Quintana Roo State and Acapulco in the State of Guerrero, for this reason keep always your eyes open, even if the status of "foreign tourist" is still a deterrent to many criminals.

Currency and payment methods

The official currency of Mexico is the Mexican Peso. The Peso is divided into 100 centavos, with coins of 5, 10, 20, 50 centavos and 1, 2, 5 10 and 20 pesos. There are banknotes of 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 pesos. ATMs are widespread in Mexico, they are the easiest way to get money and you can withdraw with major credit cards and some bank cards, such as the Cirrus and Plus. You can change cash and travelers' cheque in the banks and in the exchange offices. Compared to the latter, banks are slower and usually observe a shorter time (usually same of the offices), while the exchange offices, that you can find in all cities, are fast and often open in the evening or on weekends. However, some exchange offices don’t accept travelers' cheque, unlike the banks. Exchange rates slightly vary from one bank to another or depending on the daily exchange rate, moreover the cash is more convenient than the travelers’ cheque. If you have trouble to find a place to change money, especially on weekends, you can always refer to your hotel, keeping in mind that the exchange rate will not be very favorable.