If you want to go on a long distance drive in Mexico, the first thing you need is a good map of Mexico. Buy one and decide where you want to go and what highways will lead you to your destination. Mexico's roads have changed tremendously over the last few years. The country now boasts an intensive network of excellent highways connecting its big cities and small towns.

If you choose to drive along the Puerto Vallarta-Guadalajara route covering a total of 359 km, it will take you 3.5 hours past maguey fields and over coastal mountains. For enjoying the scenic beauty of this route, the one-way road toll you have to pay is $225 pesos.
The Nogales-Mazatlán route touches the U.S. border, and runs south through Sonora State and into Sinaloa State. It will take you 14 hours to cover a total distance of 1,192 km. The current one-way toll is $445 pesos. Mazatlán-Los Mochis:is a corridor across the State of Sinaloa. This corridor allows Copper Canyon visitors easy access to the sunny beach resort of Mazatlán. The length of the highway is 429 km. The one-way toll for this 4.5-hour drive is currently $232 pesos. The Mexico City-Acapulco is now just a three and a half hour drive compared to six in the not-too-distant past. The route covers 343 km and one-way toll at present is $423 pesos. The new 495 km road has drastically reduced the drive time between Mexico City-Guadalajara from eight to four hours. The one-way toll is now $440 pesos. Through this highway, you can get easy access to famous colonial city destinations such as Morelia and Guanajuato. Similarly, the Mexico City-Oaxaca drive, a once grueling 10-hour journey has now been cut to a pleasant four hours. The route is 456 km long and the current one-way toll is $258 pesos. The 315 km Mérida-Cancún drive now takes just three hours and the one-way toll is $240 pesos. This is the fastest route to reach Chichén Itzá.

As far as average speed is concerned, it should be around 60 km per hour on the toll or major highways. If you are driving an RV cut it to 55 km per hour. As the conditions of toll-free roads are not that good, reduce your speed again by 5 km per hour. It is sensible to further slow down if you are traveling the west coast on black roads through the mountains i.e. Mazatlan to Durango, Puerto Escondido to Oaxaca. The highways stretching from the coast to interior are steep, curvy and often in a state of poor repair. It might prove tough for a rig larger than 32 ft to make some of the hairpin curves on these roads. The toll roads from the West Coast to the Interior are safer, quicker and less curvy.
The less commercialized Gulf route with few tolls is a fine route to drive. One can then explore the colonial cities; the heart and soul of Mexico. And who doesn't know that Mexican beaches just can't get any better. It is just fantastic to take a drive down one of the coastal routes and return through the interior for an experience to cherish. Be sure to get Mexican insurance before you go!

In the event of an emergency while driving, you may call the Ministry of Tourism's hotline or (55) 5250-8221, extension 130/297, to seek help from the Green Angels, a fleet of radio dispatched trucks with bilingual crews. For buying gas, look for PEMEX stations.


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