Complete Idiot’s Travel Guide to Mexico’s Beach Resorts

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The Complete Idiot’s Travel Guide to Mexico’s Beach Resorts
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Getting Started

In This Chapter

• Where to go for information
• Surfing the Web
• Using a travel agent

Naturally, I’m going to try to tell you every little thing you need to know about Mexico’s resorts in this book. But if you’re an insatiable information hound, Web addict, brochure hoarder–or any combination thereof– I wouldn’t want to deprive you of any fun, so grab a pencil, phone, fax, and modem, and get ready. I’ll also clue you in here to the pros and cons of putting yourself in the hands of a travel agent when it comes to arranging your vacation.

Information, Por Favor

The Mexico Hotline (800/44-MEXICO) is a good source for general information, including brochures and answers to the most commonly asked questions. Keep in mind, however, that hotels and other concessions spend a fair amount of money on photographers and writers, so their brochures are often like hearing about your blind date in advance: Don’t be surprised if everything isn’t exactly as advertised. They can be useful, however, for putting you in the picture–albeit one shot through a rose-colored lens.

The U.S. State Department offers a consular information sheet on Mexico with a summary of safety, medical, driving, and general travel information taken from official State Department offices reports. Write or call and ask for Overseas Citizens Services, U.S. Department of State, Room 2201 Sea St. NW, Washington, DC 20520 (202/647-5225).

A fax machine nets you the Fax-Me Mexico line operated by the Mexican Ministry of Tourism
(541/385-9282). Start out by leaving your fax number on the automated system and requesting the list of topics; there are more than 100, ranging from general tips about food, money, and accommodations to specific information about various destinations, including all the beach resorts. Pick the topic(s) you’re interested in–no more than three at a time–phone again, and punch the appropriate numbers into the system. (Beware: This is a good, but addicting, resource. You can spend lots of time and end up with piles of faxes.)

You can also get a broad sprectrum of information from the following Mexican Goverment Tourist Office branches:

• In the United States: 300 N. Michigan Ave., 4th Floor, Chicago, Il 60601 (312/606-9015); 10440 W. Office Dr., Houston, TX 77042 (713 780-3740); 2401 W. 6th St., 5th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90057 (213/351-2069); 2333 Ponce de León Blvd., Suite 710, Coral Gables, FL 33134 (305/443-9160); 405 Park Ave., Suite 1401, New York, NY 10022 (212/755-7261); and the Mexican Embassy Tourism Delegate, 1911 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20006 (202/728-1750).

• In Canada: One place Ville-Marie, Suite 1526, Montreal, PQ H3B 2B5 (514/871-1052); 2 Bloor St. W., Suite 1801, Toronto, ON M4W 3E2 (416/925-1876); 999 W. Hastings, No. 1610, Vancouver, BC V6C 2W2 (604/669-2845).

Surfing the Web Before Snoozing on the Sand: Online Information Sources

For a country not universally known for technological advancements, Mexico is surprisingly well plugged in. Any good search engine will dump thousands of listings onto your desktop, so to save you time, I’ve compiled some of the best ones I found. In addition to the following Web sites, I’ll be providing you with other, more specific ones throughout the book.

Just the Facts

The best Web site by far for both general and specific information about Mexico is !@migo¡ at www.mexonline.com. This site has everything from a mini-telephone directory with the numbers of such diverse organizations as the Mexican Wildlife Office, which gives you hunting information, and the Missing Persons Hotline (presumably there’s no connection between the two), as well as foreign embassies and consulates, banks, and organizations with ready information about the country and its services. It also has an excellent state-by-state guide to popular cities.

Mexico Travel Guide at www.go2mexico.com/navigate/html gives a good general introduction to various Mexican destinations, including all the beach resorts, but only goes into detail–glowing, of course–about sponsoring hotels, restaurants, and so forth.

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Caveat Browser Most sites are as ad- (or sponsor-) driven as any glossy brochures you might send for, and many are not updated regularly. You may want to cross-reference information with another source.

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Tour By Mexico (www.tourbymexico. com) offers a map of the country, state-by-state descriptions, very basic information on the culture, as well as some offbeat takes on such topics as the electrical current, national holidays, and cargo shipping. It also has links to specific resort towns, with short takes on local beaches, scenic outlooks, wildlife refuges, archaeological sites, and shopping. The grammar is charmingly goofy (I know, let’s see me try to write a Web site in Spanish . . . ).

Hotel Sites

Try www.mexicohotels.com for hotel information in the most popular resort towns. Also good for Mexico hotel information is www.hotelstravel. com/mexico.html. Look up the region that interests you, and then scroll to the town you want to visit. Most of the popular hotels are listed.

The Camino Real chain is prevalent throughout Mexico. The site www. caminoreal.com gives you a brief tour of its properties throughout the country, including those in Mazatlán, Acapulco, Cancún, Puerto Vallarta, and Manzanillo.

Welcoming you in four languages, Hyatt’s offering, www.hyatt.com, takes you on a cybertour of its Mexican resorts in places such as Cozumel, Cancún, and Acapulco.

Destination-Specific Information

www.travelfile.com/go takes you to many cities in Mexico for a closer look at sponsoring companies in those localities. Type in the name of the destination you’re interested in exploring further (say, Cancún, Mexico) and you’ll get (sketchy) information about dive-boat charters, accommodations, restaurants, and so on, as well as passport and visa information.

The Travelocity home page, ps.worldview.travelocity.com/, lets you peruse a list of cities in Mexico and then explore local options for shopping, cultural events, monetary exchange, transportation, restaurants, hotels, and so forth.

Separate from the other sites (although you can link to it from various places) is Puerto Vallarta’s Web site, www.puerto-vallarta.com. The information on hotels, home rentals, tour operators, restaurants, and so forth is as commercial as you might expect, but it’s also more up-to-date, complete, and better-translated than most of the material you’ll find on foreign cities’ Web pages.

The California-based Los Cabos magazine also has an excellent Web site at www.loscabosguide.com, with good maps, informative articles on local activities, and useful links to its various advertisers.

Travel Agent: Friend, Fiend, or In-Between?

A good travel agent is like a good mechanic or a good plumber: hard to find, but invaluable once you’ve located the right one. The best way to find a good travel agent is the same way you find a good plumber or mechanic or doctor–word of mouth.

To make sure you get the most out of your travel agent, do a little homework. Read about your destination (you’ve already made a sound decision by buying this book), and pick out some accommodations and attractions you think you like. If necessary, get a more comprehensive travel guide, such as Frommer’s. If you have access to the Internet, check airfare prices on the Web yourself in advance (see chapter 5, "Fighting–and Winning–the Airfare Wars," for more information on how to do that) so you can do a little prodding. Then take your guidebook and Web information to the travel agent and ask him or her to make the arrangements for you. Because they have access to more resources than even the most complete Web travel site, travel agents should be able to get you a better price than you could get by yourself, and they can issue your tickets and vouchers right there. If they can’t get you into the hotel of your choice, they can recommend an alternative, and you can look for an objective review in your guidebook right there and then.

Remember, too, that things change rapidly in the travel business, so if your agent visited a city 5 or 6 years ago, his or her information could be woefully out of date. Therefore, it’s a good idea to clue your travel agent in after you return from your trip–what was good, what was not-so-good, and so on, so that future travelers to the same place will benefit from your experiences.

In the past 2 years, some airlines and resorts have begun limiting or eliminating travel agent commissions altogether. The immediate result has been that travel agents don’t bother booking these services unless the customer specifically requests them. However, some travel industry analysts predict that if other airlines and accommodations throughout the industry follow suit, travel agents might have to start charging customers for their services. When that day arrives, the best agents should prove even harder to find.

Product Specification :

ISBN :002862579X
List price :16.95

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