Travel route: Laredo crossing to the Yucatan

We found Xcalak a wonderful place, boondocked on the road by the beach, the lady in the house right there invited us to. It really is sort of the end of the world down there. The small no services campground by the lake in Bacalar on the south end of town is lovely with a very nice Mayan couple who live there. We run errands to town for them for groceries and always give them a little extra for something as they are not doing all that well.

we're planning on entering the Yucatan via Villahermosa >>> Bacalar (supposedly nice lake) >>> Uxmal (ruins) >>> Merida >>> side trip to see flamingo's at Celestun (?) >>> Chichen Itza >>> Valladolid (cenotes) >>> Coba (ruins) >>> Tulum (ruins) >>> Xcalac (Costa Maya) >>> Chetumal >>> ... Belize and further south ...

Bacalar would be after Xcalak. No decent beach or campground in Xcalak. I would stop at Blue Bay Bar/Hotel in Mahahual. Nice malecon & beach. Very small. No campgrounds in Tulum.
Nothing good in Belize, but you can get through in one day to get to Guatamala and Tikal.

Map & Driving times for your route But in reverse order from your plans.
You can camp at ruins of Uxmal and stay & see the night show. Rainbow Park in Merida is closed sometimes. Use entrance off the main road not from mall.

We crossed at Laredo the last two years: Laredo, Saltillo (via Monterrey Quota), Matehuala, Queretaro. . . . A couple of years ago we went all the way to the Yucatan.

From the Columbia crossing at Laredo, if you cross by 8:00 or 8:30 you can make Matehuala on the first night if you are pressed for time then a reasonable run to Queretaro.

The blog has pretty good directions for the La Fuente hotel in Saltillo if you decide to stop there, Let me know if you need more explicit directions for Midway Inn at Matehuala, we missed the left turn the first year! The entry for Queretaro also has detailed directions for the Juricilla inn just north of Queretaro.

Here is our Blog It lists most from most recent post backwards so you will need to scroll down to the pertinent pages. You can also look back to previous years for details on our Yucatan trip.

Maybe you did not put your route in actual order you plan to take - but Bacalar would probably be a place to go between Tulum and Chetumal.

If you like ruins be sure to try to find Ek Balam /Ekbalan north of Valladolid.

If you have a Garmin with necessary features you can plan a route in S&T and then load it to your Garmin - easier planning.

Most of 57 between Monterey and Mexico City is not a toll road and is just fine. The only places I know of where you have an option between 57 and 57D would be going through San Luis Potosi and/or Queretaro. In those cases it is well worth it to pay the toll. We often stop in Matehuala so take 57 through there and not the toll - we like to visit Real de Catorce - and there is a half decent RV park at Las Palmas in Matehuala.

Thank you! We have just acquired S&T.

keelhauler1: we're planning on entering the Yucatan via Villahermosa >>> Bacalar (supposedly nice lake) >>> Uxmal (ruins) >>> Merida >>> side trip to see flamingo's at Celestun (?) >>> Chichen Itza >>> Valladolid (cenotes) >>> Coba (ruins) >>> Tulum (ruins) >>> Xcalac (Costa Maya) >>> Chetumal >>> ... Belize and further south ...

We're avoiding Cancun and the Riviera Maya since we've been there before and don't have a desire to go there again (too many tourists).

Does anyone know if the free roads between Monterrey and Mexico City (mainly MEX-57) is in good / safe condition or is it recommended to take the toll roads?

Yes - the D usually means toll - no idea why the letter D is used - also green color on some maps.

I am not sure which Garmin you have or what it does. We know the 7” has all of North America ($220). With some Garmin devices you have to buy an extra chip for Mexico. There are many Garmin devices and they do different things. More features cost more money. Cheaper ones are limited as to what they can do.

Another source of Mexico maps is the Gov’t SCT website where can download .pdf maps of each state of Mexico for FREE. These only show main highways with no local street maps. No need for internet. Latest were updated in 2012.


SCT
http://www.sct.gob.mx/informacion-general/planeacion/atlas-cartograficos/listado-de-atlas


We find Microsoft Streets & Trips to be the most complete maps of Mexico for planning and can also be used as a GPS. It can be used on a laptop with no need for internet. Full size screen and many features small GPS devices such as Garmin may not have. For example we can create a route and email it to someone else who has S&T – and we can print maps from S&T to carry in town when we do not want to lug the computer around. You may get a better deal at Amazon than on the Microsoft website but check both to learn more. They are usually on sale for around $30US without GPS and maybe $50US for package including GPS. We prefer getting the DVD to downloading as we then have the program to reload if needed – without need of internet.

Amazon S&T
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Streets+%26+Trips

Amazon S&T GPS
http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-ZV3-00026-Streets-Trips-2013/dp/B007RFZDL2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1388942566&sr=8-2&keywords=Streets+%26Trips+GPS+2013


Some people prefer the GlobalSat GPS Receiver to use with their S&T

Amazon GlobalSat
http://www.amazon.com/GlobalSat-BU-353-S4-USB-Receiver-Black/dp/B008200LHW/ref=pd_sim_e_5

Microsoft
http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.253799900

We're planning to cross the border sometime around January 15.
We purchased a Garmin GPSMAP 62 and have downloaded the free Mexico map from openstreetmap. I'll look into the Microsoft software for the laptop (especially since we won't have frequent access to internet on the trip, so it's nice to have maps on the laptop without needing internet access).

Newbie question: is a toll recognized by the "D" in the name? For example, 58D is the toll road version whereas 58 is the free version?

la venta area (olmec area)

There is a La Venta park & Zoo in downtown Villahermosa as well as the area near Agua Dulce.

With a small rig they may let you overnight for free in the secure parking lot by the Park & Zoo in the city. The lot outside the gate is not safe.

Where are you headed in the Yucatan.

To find places to stay you need Mike and Terri Church’s Guide to Mexican Camping and their www.rollinghome.com website.

Most of the roads you mention are toll roads. To know how to answer regarding free roads I think we would have to know exactly which roads you mean and exactly where you want to go.

Laredo to Monterrey / Saltillo – 85 / 85D

Saltillo toward Mexico City - 57 / 57D

To Teotihuacan 5D to 132D

Teotihuacan to Puebla 40D Arco Norte or back road through Otumba de Gomez Farias toward Sahagun and then Arco Norte to Puebla.

From Puebla to Yucatan 150D takes you over high mountain passes and then to 145D.

These are all toll roads. You can figure out tolls with some practice by using the calculator on this website…….
http://aplicaciones4.sct.gob.mx/sibuac_internet/ControllerUI?action=cmdEscogeRuta

I highly recommend Microsoft Streets & Trips 2013 with GPS on your laptop or a good Garmin GPS such as the new 7” models that sell for around $220. I go nowhere without a GPS these days and I much prefer S&T 2013 for planning.

Crossing at Laredo we often stop at Matehuala with a side trip to Real de Catorce. Near Puebla at Cholula is the world’s largest pyramid by volume. There are things to see all along the way and we have been spending years trying to seem them all.

We hope to do the same this March. Last year we rode from Puebla to Laredo, some toll roads, some free - they were all good. South of Puebla, I can't say.
The closer to Mexico City, the heavier the traffic.