With stunning beaches and Mayan ruins, colonial cities and rainforest national parks, Mexico is whatever holiday destination you want it to be. Palm-fringed beaches and aquamarine sea? Puerto Vallarta has it in abundance. Kayaking among sea lions? Baja California is your place. 1,300-year old Mayan ruins with howler monkeys growling from the ocean of jungle all around? Palenque is that dream. Straddling temperate and tropical zones that climb almost three miles into the azure sky and stretch 6,000 miles along its coasts, with the most populous city on the planet as its capital, but with countless tiny pueblos at its soul, Mexico has something for everyone. That said, with beaches this good, and luxury resorts so indulgent, visitors can be forgiven if all they do is stick to the sunlounger. Here, the Oaxaca halfway down Mexico’s Pacific coast is a beachlover’s Promised Land. Fair littered with intimate, low-key beachfront hideaways with their feet right in the bonewhitest of beach, Oaxaca perfectly complements the more colourful, vibrant watersports resorts on the other side of the country, where Mexico’s Riviera Maya slides long and languorous into the Caribbean Sea. However, with dramatic, 1,300-year old Mayan ruins and snorkelling on the Yucatan Peninsula, spectacular festivals and colonial architecture in the cities such as San Cristobal de las Casas in Chiapas, as well as world-class golf courses and cloud rainforest sheltering parrots and monkeys, crocodiles and tapirs, Mexico offers huge rewards away from the beach. Spawning a vast raft of outdoor adventure operators letting you explore the country by bike or boat, raft, foot and even Zip-wire, Mexico is a superb holiday destination for the active and shamelessly indolent alike.
Facts
Capital
Mexico City
Airport:
Population
113 million
Size
761,000 sq miles
Currency
Mexican Peso (£1 = 19.53 Pesos)
Average temperaturesMexico’s climate varies according to altitude and rainfall. The tropical and subtropical zone (tierra caliente), ranging from sea level to about 3,000 ft, consists of the coastal plains, the Yucatán Peninsula, and the lower areas of southern Mexico. These areas have a mean temperature of 25–27° C, with a minimum of 16° C and a maximum of almost 49° C. The temperate zone (tierra templada: 3,000–6,000 ft) has a mean temperature of 21° C. Mexico City and most other important population centers are in the cool zone (tierra fría), with a mean annual temperature of 17° C (63°F). The highest mountain peaks are always covered with snow.
Local highlights
The Yucatan peninsula, with fabulous snorkeling and diving, and Chichen Itza the glossy Quetzal feather in its Mayan head-dress; Mexico City, ancient Aztec capital, today a dazzling megalopolis with superb museums, restaurants, and markets; cooking lessons in the Veracruz countryside; Oaxaca, a stunning, elegant colonial jewel, with fabulous hiking in the cloud forests above; the ancient Mayan temples rising out of the steamy, parrot-littered jungle of Palenque; the mysterious pyramids of Teotihuacan; snorkelling the coral reefs of the Yucatan; Guanajuato, a vibrant, pretty city with ancient past; the dormant volcano of Pico de Orizaba, Mexico’s highest peak, with breathtaking views from the summit; Morelia, one of Mexico’s lesser known but most beautiful colonial cities, with rooftop bars and clubs nestled among Spanish relics; Reserva Mariposa Monarca, winter retreat for millions of migrating butterflies; Merida, cultural capital of the Yucatan Peninsula, with elegant colonial-era streets; the crystalling cenotes, or sunken caves, of the Riviera May, which can be visited on daytrips from the beach; kayak with whale sharks and sea lions round Espiritu Santo island in Baja California; ride the Copper Canyon train.
Getting out and about
Mexico has a good road and bus network, and comfortable, frequent, reasonably priced bus services connect all cities. Mexico’s regular passenger train system effectively ceased to exist after the railroads were privatized in the 1990s, with the notable exception of the spectacular Copper Canyon Railway, running between Los Mochis and Chihuahua, one of the great rail journeys of the world. Otherwise hiring a car is the best way to explore Mexico’s vast and varied attractions.
Travel arrangements
British Airways flies direct to Cancun from Heathrow; flight times is about 10 hours.