Driving hwy 200

Its been 12 years since I last did this trip. Ferry from LA Paz to Mazatlan. Roadtrip along the coastal highway. This time my destination is Oaxaca City to meet friends on Oct 29.

I just arrived in Mazatlan.

I talk to a lot of people before and during a trip about safety and road conditions.

I've been given a lot of conflicting advice. Before I left it was trending towards this being a reasonable plan if I take precautions (drive during the day, avoid the area north of Mazatlan, etc).

But the truck drivers on the ferry were pretty consistently concerned about robbery and petty theft as a gringo in a truck (even a 30 year old one) from the states. A mala onda sees me drive through town and calls his friends. That sort of thing.

So I pose the question to you guys.

Does anyone here have any recent experience driving hwy 200 from Puerto Vallarta to Puerto Escondido?

I may end up taking 15d and going north around mexico city if I can't get a better read on the coastal route.

Oh boy. We drove it literally every year for 30 years until 7 years ago.

The truck drivers are always doomsayers. The area around Culiacan is fuking insane, take the toll roads and you won't get too close, hopefully. We used to often used the Pemex on the toll road just south of there for gas and spending a night. Sure wouldn't now, just get through that area as fast as possible.

There is now a toll road bypass for Guadalajara, worth every penny.

We just discussed it, and we wouldn't cut to the coast until Morelia. That hopefully would get you below the craziness, and the hurricane damaged roads. Yes, the roads will be passable south of PV, but they won't be pleasant. There were several very large storms and a hurricane or two that just nailed that area.

Have fun!

It's been awhile (2006) but we did what you are considering: Rte. 200 down the coast all the way to Huatulco, then Juchitan to San Cristobal de Las Casas in Chiapas, then straight back to Oaxaca City, then south on a very winding, twisty mountain road back to the coast at Puerto Escondido, then back up Rte. 200 to Zihua.
All went well except for a relatively minor accident just north of PE....which was an experience in itself....and a flat tire along that twisty, narrow road down to the coast from Oaxaca City. Fixing a flat on an extremely narrow "highway" with no shoulder, was a tad terrifying.
The least enjoyable part was driving through Acapulco on the way home. (We must have taken a periferico on the way south.) Once was enough.....you couldn't pay me to drive again anywhere near Acapulco....and I learned to drive in Montreal, which should have prepared me for Acapulco.
Generally, the roads were like anywhere else in Mexico: some great, some OK and some downright awful.
Still, an experience we won't forget.

Safety and security? What can I say? Life's a risk.

Thank you. I appreciate the encouragement and advice about the roads near Puerto vallarta.

The camioneros were indeed doomsayers but I also put a lot of weight on local advice.

I'm taking stock because when I asked similar questions of folks back in 2012 I didn't get nearly so many warnings.

I'd be a lot more settled with this plan if I could find some more recent accounts.

I don't have a strong desire to visit sayulita / Puerto vallarta so I think I'd follow your advice to drop down from Morelia.

And bonus points, maybe I could visit Paracho and buy a guitar. I remember that little town fondly from a visit in 98.

Paracho is still amazing. And, you will be really close to Paracutin, well worth at least an afternoon.

The toll road around Morelia takes off north of the city and you never even see it! Easy traveling.

I remember the twisty road from Oaxaca to PE well. My windshield wiper flew off while driving in a storm as night was falling (bad planning on my part). I managed to find and reattach it in the rain and made the trip down. I stepped into a cafe to warm up and listen to the musicians busking for change. It was a good time. I understand there is a new autopista that is faster and less twisty.

I am looking at roads around Acapulco. I'd like to avoid driving through the city. Traffic and police hassles are on my mind. Not sure what the best bypass is but Google Maps shows 200d is closed just NE of the city.

And as for safety ... it is indeed a game of risk tolerance. If an area has been destabilized to the point where crime becomes more common it does give me pause. I travel a lot in Baja these days. I know of a couple places where it's just not a great idea to be based on advice from locals and accounts from travelers. The rest of the peninsula is a playground if you take normal precautions.

I just don't have that kind of experience along this stretch of coast. So any advice helps me tune my tolerance for risk.

I just did a rocky ferry ride from La Paz to Mazatlan in mid September (Tropical storm Liliana). I only went to Zihuatanejo. Once exiting the ferry I drove to Guadalajara (15D), stayed the night and drove to Zihua (15d to 14d) the next day. Painless and a beautiful drive. Arrived just before Tropical storm/ hurricane John.

I remember the twisty road from Oaxaca to PE well. My windshield wiper flew off while driving in a storm as night was falling (bad planning on my part). I managed to find and reattach it in the rain and made the trip down. I stepped into a cafe to warm up and listen to the musicians busking for change. It was a good time. I understand there is a new autopista that is faster and less twisty.

I am looking at roads around Acapulco. I'd like to avoid driving through the city. Traffic and police hassles are on my mind. Not sure what the best bypass is but Google Maps shows 200d is closed just NE of the city.

And as for safety ... it is indeed a game of risk tolerance. If an area has been destabilized to the point where crime becomes more common it does give me pause. I travel a lot in Baja these days. I know of a couple places where it's just not a great idea to be based on advice from locals and accounts from travelers. The rest of the peninsula is a playground if you take normal precautions.

I just don't have that kind of experience along this stretch of coast. So any advice helps me tune my tolerance for risk.

You do NOT want to drive the coastal road to Oaxaca. There is too much damage from Hurricane John.

The best way to get around Acapulco is to take 95 at Bajos del Ejido.

You're talking about 200? I can see some road closures on google maps.

Is there a particular section of the road that is heavily damaged? I've already been warned off from hwy 200 near Puerto Vallarta.

Is there serious damage from zihuatanejo to Acapulco or Acapulco to Puerto Escondido?

Many thanks for all your input.

John made a real mess of the roads both north and south of here, and it wasn't the first one of the season. Rob is undoubtedly right=the coast roads are a mess. Passable, but not good.

John made a real mess of the roads both north and south of here, and it wasn't the first one of the season. Rob is undoubtedly right=the coast roads are a mess. Passable, but not good.

OK. I get it. I just read up on John. I can't believe this wasn't on my radar. The storm looks like it was rough and all this was only a few weeks ago.

Between the storm damage, the current weather (so humid!), and my Oaxaca timeline, I don't think it makes sense to follow the coast.

This is a bummer as I had been thinking nostalgically about past adventures but I am going to turn my attention to the interior.

I am going to make time for Paracho and maybe some of the other towns near Patzcuaro that I've never been to. I'm not sure if I can craft a good route through some of my other favorite colonial mountain towns, but maybe I can visit Queretaro, Zacatecas, Guanajuato, etc.

You're talking about 200? I can see some road closures on google maps.

Is there a particular section of the road that is heavily damaged? I've already been warned off from hwy 200 near Puerto Vallarta.

Is there serious damage from zihuatanejo to Acapulco or Acapulco to Puerto Escondido?

Many thanks for all your input.

Two bridges were washed out by John between here and Acapulco, and the road itself suffered quite a bit of damage and deterioration. Though temporary bypasses have been erected, I'm hearing that the normally 4-hour drive to Acapulco currently takes 6. And south of Acapulco where John slammed into the coast, it only gets worse. And that's when there are no roadblocks. There have been almost daily roadblocks by people needing help from the damages caused by John.

Just to put things in perspective, John didn't give us much wind here, but it rained steadily for three, yes three days and gave us a solid 19 inches of rain. And we weren't the hardest hit.

Its been 12 years since I last did this trip. Ferry from LA Paz to Mazatlan.

Two or three times we've taken the ferry from La Paz, but each time to Topolobampo, overnight in Los Mochis, then south to Mazatlan.
Did you take a room/berth on the ferry to Mazatlan? It's an overnight trip, right? How was it? We found the cost a tad high for our budget, and didn't relish spending the whole night in the bar.

There are two ferries from La Paz to Mazatlan. Baja Ferries has a salon with seats and they offer cabins with beds but there were no cabins available. I took this ferry 12 years ago and the cabin was very comfortable.

This time I took the TMC ferry which mainly carries semi trucks and trailers. I planned to be on the deck so I could put the camper top up and stay in my vehicle, but despite talking about it with the cargo dudes (they told me no problem) instead I ended up on the ramp at a sharp angle, next to the engine room, and a stanky fish truck with the reefer unit running.

There was no airflow and besides the discomfort I also didn't want to die of CO poisoning.

So I slept out in the open on the top deck with a blanket and a pillow. It was not a great nights sleep but the stars were amazing.

$6300 pesos. I think the Baja Ferry is cheaper. They have a website with pricing.

Ug that must be really rough for the people living out there. Part of me wants to drive it anyway and share some pesos but I am on a mission. And I really don't care for Acapulco.

Thanks again for all the insight.

You guys have been hugely helpful.

So new plan:

Mazatlan -> Tequila (or maybe Amatitan)
Tequila -> Uruapan (visit Paracho)
Uruapan -> Patzcuaro (visit Santa Clara de Cobre)
Patzcuaro -> Oaxaca (with an overnight somewhere halfway)

Ug that must be really rough for the people living out there. Part of me wants to drive it anyway and share some pesos but I am on a mission. And I really don't care for Acapulco.

Thanks again for all the insight.

You guys have been hugely helpful.

So new plan:

Mazatlan -> Tequila (or maybe Amatitan)
Tequila -> Uruapan (visit Paracho)
Uruapan -> Patzcuaro (visit Santa Clara de Cobre)
Patzcuaro -> Oaxaca (with an overnight somewhere halfway)

Uruapan is not exactly very touristy; I would skip and either Morelia or Patzcuaro from Tequila.
Also stop and see Quiroga [the shopping mecca and carnitas] also the ruins at Tzintzuntzan.

Back in the early 1980's, we spent a lot of time in Cabo, a hard two day drive from our home in California. The ferries were so cheap we would often spend weekends in PV, at that time there was a direct Cabo to PV ferry. Cost with a vehicle and cabin was abut 5 USD.

Makes sense. Uruapan just seems like a decent place for a hotel and base but maybe ill find a spot in Paracho or nearby.

Uruapan is not exactly very touristy; I would skip and either Morelia or Patzcuaro from Tequila.
Also stop and see Quiroga [the shopping mecca and carnitas] also the ruins at Tzintzuntzan.

Uruapan has a national park that is a must-see in my humble opinion. The Mexican civil engineers have taken a river and broken it up into dozens of rivulets. They surround you as you walk through the park.

Of course, Morelia and Patzcuaro and Janitzio and Tzintzuntzan and Santa Clara del Cobre also are all must-sees when you are in Michoacan. They are all reasonably close to Zihua.

Yes, a good in-between town where you won't wake up and wonder "Why the hell did I choose this town of all places?"
Some cool hotels down by the park.

The town of Tequila is a great place for an overnight stay.

So agree about the national park in Uruapan. Mexico doesn't have a huge number of them, but like the US, all of them are spectacular and worth a visit.

Please, everyone, don't forget a trip to Paricutin!!!

Makes sense. Uruapan just seems like a decent place for a hotel and base but maybe ill find a spot in Paracho or nearby.

We usually stayed at Hotel Victoria in Uruapan, and El Jardin in Tequila, right on the zocalo.

Thank you for the recommendations. A wealth of info here.

Hotel Pie de la Sierra in Uruapan, just at the beginning of the road to Paracho. High enough up that there is a great view, good rooms, and for us, an RV park.

I love visiting the parks in Baja and now you've put Uruapan back on my list.

Y'all aren't making this easy on me - I have to keep reminding myself that I can't do it all.

Although I guess I do have a return trip in a couple weeks so maybe I'll do two Michoacan stops so I can see more of the area. Maybe it makes sense to skip Paracho until the return. If I end up with a guitar I won't have it it bouncing around the back of my truck as long.

I went to Paracho via Morelia and Uruapan by bus in 98 but never visited any of the other villages. I think it has always been in the back of my mind.

That could be a good option. I have a poptop setup so my truck is sort of a dry camper. I've spent way more time in hotels on this trip than I'd like.

I did the La Paz - Mazatlan trip with Baja Ferries, travelling alone with a small car and had a double room (the smallest you can get, and are the same price as the 4 bunk room). The total price all in was really close to $700 Canadian. I did it all on the website and it worked well. It leaves La Paz in the evening and arrives in Mazatlan around 8 am.

just a quick note on hotels in Tequila (quite the party town! The cantaritos were a treat). I stayed at Hotel Casa de Loreto just a couple blocks from the main plaza. They had street parking right in front of the door and a good location. $800MX for a matrimonial. Small rooms w/o windows but clean quiet and comfortable.

Just a quick note to say thanks again and give a quick update.

I'm back in Baja now and making my way home. Everything went well. I did find myself running short of time to drive the coast and the Hoy No Circúla rules made getting around Mexico City to the north a hassle and time consuming. I knew about the rules based on license plates, but I didn't know that tourist passes are only available for newer vehicles and that they had started enforcing driving restrictions in Puebla too. Annoyingly that meant flying the last leg to be in Oaxaca on time. That was my plan c after plans a and b didn't work out.

Anyhow, I had a lot of fun and I'm glad I did it.

Sadly after I got back to Mazatlan I learned they'd had a night of violence while I was away in Patzcuaro. https://elpais.com/mexico/2024-10-28/la-guerra-entre-el-mayo-y-los-chapitos-alcanza-a-mazatlan-la-joya-turistica-de-sinaloa.html

Stay safe all.