Mexico is the land of…
Incredible Food
Strong Tequila
Mayan Ruins
Beautiful Beaches
Welcoming Cultue
Cute Latinas
Lawless Men
Yet for some odd reason, Mexico sometimes gets a bad rap in expat circles.
Be it for the cartel violence plaguing the country. Or the overrun tourist destinations of Tulum, Playa del Carmen, and Cancun. Or because Mexico City is exceptionally overrated and not filled with Colombianas and Venezuelanas.
But here’s the thing…
Most bros just hit Playa del Carmen or Tulum — or maybe Mexico City.
Which are some of the worst spots in Mexico in ye’ opinion of your humble author.
These digital bromads rarely, if ever, venture out into other parts of Mexico.
And in a country of 130+ million people, there’s a ton of other cities and spots to check out.
Which is what we’re going to discuss here.
How to travel around “real” Mexico and what are the best cities and beaches to visit.
Below you’ll find detailed reports on some of the best cities and regions in Mexico, which are often overlooked by travelers.
Let’s break it down, güey 🇲🇽
Mexico by the Numbers…
With 17 cities of over 1 million people in the metro + gorgeous coastline on both the Caribbean and Pacific — there’s a lot to digest here.
You’ve got massive cities like Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey.
Then you’ve got world-class beach destinations like:
Cabo San Lucas
Puerto Vallarta
Playa del Carmen
Tulum
Cancun
Acapulco
Mazatlan
With everything in between, including stunning mountain towns and mid-sized suburbs.
Cities in Mexico 🇲🇽 The A-Z Guide
Inside this detailed guide, we’ll stick with some of the most popular spots gringos visiting when coming down to Mexico.
Then we’ll venture off to more under-the-radar type spots.
Vámonos…
Mexico City
Population: 22 million metro
Suggest Length of Stay: 1 week to 1 year
One of the biggest cities in the Americas, filled with endless culture, museums, and some of the best neighborhoods in the region.
You’ll be hard-pressed to get bored here.
Most foreigners prefer to stay in Condesa, Roma Norte, or Polanco. Here you’ll find some of the best parks in Latin America, great nightlife, and all the modern amenities you could ever ask for.
Is CDMX my favorite city in Mexico? Not by a long shot.
But I’ve got friends who have lived in CDMX for years and adore the spot. Definitely a “love-hate” city.
Pros:
Massive city
Endless things to do
Great nightlife
Incredible airport
International vibes
World-class parks
Cons:
Filled with foreigners
More expensive than you'd expect
Bad air quality
Less friendly locals
Average womens
P.S: Mexico City is overrun with gringos and the locals are not thrilled about it…
Guadalajara
Population: 5+ million metro
Suggest Length of Stay: 1 week to 1 year
As the second largest city in Mexico, Guadalajara is a large city with lots of urban sprawl, charming locals, great vibes overall, not a ton of foreigners, and great weather.
Personally, I far prefer it to CDMX.
However, others disagree.
The parks are not nearly as nice as in Mexico City. You’ve gotta drive to get into beautiful nature from here. There’s tons of construction going on around every corner in this city.
However…
The best thing about GDL is?
The locals are pretty sharp. This is one of the highest IQ cities in Latin America — where everything just works.
Pros:
Friendly, smart locals
Attractive women
Great nightlife
Great weather
Good medical care
Modern amenities
Cons:
Nothing spectacular about the city
Mediocre skyline
Minimal nature
Monterrey
Population: 5+ million metro
Suggest Length of Stay: 1 week to 3 months
Haven't personally been, so this is speculation based on what broskis have said -- very spread out and Americanized.
The only semi-walkable area is the richest neighborhood in Mexico — San Pedro Garza Garcia.
Everywhere else here will require a car, which kind of sucks.
But from what I’ve heard, the locals are cool and nightlife is fun. There’s also some insane mountain views to be had from Airbnb apartments here.
Pros:
Modern city
Sharp, friendly locals
Solid girls
Great weather not during summer
Mountain views
San Pedro Garza Garcia
Cons:
Too hot in summer
You either love or hate "Norteno" culture
City center is garbage
Not very international
Playa del Carmen
Population: 300K
Suggest Length of Stay: 1 week to 3 months
Before we dig deeper here, I must say…
I am not a fan of Playa del Carmen, nor do I like Tulum or Cancun.
However, many people love it here and end up living in the region long-term.
The vibe is very international, catered towards tourists, and there’s not much of a "local" culture.
Which means you can get by only speaking English, where in other spots in Mexico — learning Spanish is a MUST.
Now, the beaches are wonderful and stunning — when it’s not seaweed season, which is all too often.
If you’re looking to party almost every night of the week and want a beginner’s LatAm spot, you might like it here.
Pros:
Cheap - Ideal "beginner" LatAm travel spot
Easy flights
No Spanish needed -
Very international
Great nightlife
Beautiful beaches
Cons:
Crime
Scammers abound
Beaches often filled w/ seaweed
Too many gringos
Too many gringos
Too many gringos
Puerto Vallarta
Population: 300K
Suggest Length of Stay: 1 week to 3 months
Pacific coast beach city filled with eclectic nightlife, good beaches outside of town, and world-class amenities, and lots of gringos.
However, for some odd reason, Puerto Vallarta still retains some authentic Mexican vibes.
Overall, Puerto Vallarta is exceptionally livable, quite safe, and stunningly beautiful.
The issues?
Well, the beaches in the city kinda suck. The best beaches are found to the north or south of where you’d want to live.
And, it’s probably a good idea to stay away from the “Romantic Zone” unless you’re of a certain persuasion.
Don’t be like my buddy and book a month in that neighborhood with your girlfriend — only to be propositioned every couple blocks.
Pros:
Great beaches outside of town
Stunning mountain views
Ideal weather most of year
Solid nightlife
Still "feels" like Mexico
Wonderful food
Cons:
Tourist hotspot
The "Romantic Zone" -- IYKYK
Beaches in city aren't great
Expensive
Digging into “Real” Mexico 🇲🇽
Now that we covered what I consider the five most common spots for bros to visit in Mexico...
Let's dig into "real" Mexico.
Aka some of the underrated, under-the-radar spots...
Pacific Coast Beach Towns
The best part of Mexico is the Pacific Coast beach towns, sers.
In these towns and cities, you'll typically find...
Authentic Mexico vibes
Friendly locals
Cute gurls
Less gringos than in other spots
Great beaches
Good weather outside summertime
Insanely good seafood
There’s damn near a dozen of these towns and cities on the Pacific coast that are well worth spending a week in. Hell, some of these spots you could spend 3-4 months and enjoy yourself.
Top recommendations...
Puerto Vallarta
La Paz
Puerto Escondido
Cabo San Lucas
Mazatlan
Zihuatanejo
Acapulco
Manzanillo
San Carlos
Just remember when cruising the Pacific coast:
Most of these spots will be far less touristy than the “Mayan Rivera” or Mexico City.
As such, speaking Spanish is vital in this region.
Also, there’s a lot of cartel violence on the Pacific coast due to the ports of entry here. Make sure you check which cities are currently safe before booking a trip.
Lastly…
You won’t find the modern amenities and good medical care in these spots that you will in CDMX or Playa del Carmen — outside of Puerto Vallarta.
El Bajio 🇲🇽
There's one other region of Mexico that continually gets overlooked by your average gringo conquistador...
El Bajio
In this wonderful region in Mexico, you'll find:
Quaint mountain towns
Stunning mountain views
Friendly locals
Very cute wamenz, ser
Conservative culture
Modern cities
Incredible food
Minimal gringo
Damn good vibes
Even though this region is relatively unpopular on the gringo trail, there's tons of mid-sized cities here filled with modern amenities.
Plus, this region has one of the highest per capita income levels in Mexico. This makes the area one of the safer in Mexico — I’m looking at you Aguascalientes.
Here's a list of the largest cities...
In the Bajio...
I'd recommend checking out these spots:
Leon
Aguascalientes
Querétaro
Guanajuato
These spots all offer immaculate vibes, friendly locals, and more than enough to do for a month or two. The women cute, the nightlife decent, and the food incredible.
Some of the smaller cities in Guanajuato seem to be having some cartel violence issues, but Aguascalientes and Querétaro are still very safe and wonderful places to check out.
Mexico City Guide | Overall
De que se puede se puede...
That about does it. A full breakdown of where to go in Mexico and why.
Now, of course there’s still some other options.
I haven’t personally been to Puebla, but many of the bros highly recommend it as an alternative big city to CDMX, GDL, and Monterrey.
And of course…
I’ve kept a few hidden gems to myself. My top two under-the-radar cities in Mexico will be going out to paid subscribers later this year.
Ya tu sabes,
Jake Nomada
PS: Check out some of the recent “paid” content for the newsletter: