Roadtrip along the Gulf Coast of Veracruz, Mexico
- Katia
- 7 days ago
- 4 min read
Welcome to the Mexican state of Veracruz! If you've read my previous blog posts you might know this is one of my personal favorite and most underrated states in Mexico. In this post, I will cover what friends and I saw for a multi day roadtrip through the Gulf coast of Veracruz.
Wait, road trip?! Unlike my normal style of travel, we did in fact rent a car for this trip and that is what I would most recommend because the majority of tourism in this region is from Mexican families roadtripping, who are also taking their own car around. Yes, public transit definitely exists for locals, but you will have to get real creative and probably won't find any blogs about it. This is a good trip based out of the cities of Xalapa or Heroica Veracruz and is the ideal combination of culture, beach, archaeological sites, and pueblos magicos.
Jump ahead to
Safety-wise, it's always important to do your research before renting a car and driving through Mexico. Locals and foreigners alike have different security incidents, so I recommend you cross-check local Facebook pages and the state department website to know what general freeways to avoid. For example, we decided NOT to drive the highway between Cordoba- Orizaba for security concerns. Here is an overview of what this trip entails:
PLAYA CHACHALACAS
If leaving from Veracruz city or Xalapa, this should probably be the first stop heading north. Chachalacas is the most touristic spot on this roadtrip, as it gives a lot of city folk a fun escape to the sand dunes! These huge mounds of sand make for endless fun, whether you just want to run up and down them or try sandboarding or rent a quad (cuatrimoto). The prices for the sandboarding and quad rentals were pretty steep for our budget (starting around 1000 pesos/ 50 USD) so we skipped it this time.
That being said, the water is not the most crystalline beach in the country because it is the gulf coast, but you can find plenty of places to get a cold michelada and fresh grilled fish right on the beach! Mexico's gulf beaches are not world renowned like the Pacific coast or the Yucatan, but I think the allure of the sand dunes makes Chachalacas one of the best options in this region of Mexico!
CEMPOALA
This archaelogical site is small but has several small pyramids and rich history that you can enjoy. We went without a guide and unfortunately there wasn't a ton of info, so we found ourselves reading the Spanish Wikipedia page to get some more context- it is also the first urban settlement that the colonizers found once they landed on the shores of Mexico. In its prime, Cempoala was the capital of the totonacas and was the largest city on the Gulf coast.
PLAYA VILLA RICA
We mostly found ourselves in this off-the-beaten path beach town on the coast because of the proximity to an archaelogical site that oversees the town.
In fact, there is a rock named after Hernan Cortes just a few hundred meters out from the shoreline that commemorates this being one of the first places the Spanish washed up (it serves to mention that the Spanish could not tolerate the mugginess and mosquitos and got out of there quick. Meanwhile, the Olmecs originally from the area are believed to be the first civilization in the Americas!)
Anyways, Villa Rica would be for my more experienced, Spanish-speaking travelers that don't mind the heat, the bugs, and the slow pace of life by the beach. With just a handful of restaurants in town, a long beach to stroll around, and a little islet where you can go for a hike, it feels like it's own special secluded corner of the world. There wasn't really anything on booking.com so we found a rustic beach front accomodation by looking on Google Maps and reaching out to places on their WhatsApp number.
ZONA ARQUEOLOGICA QUIAHUITZLAN
This is probably the main draw to Villa Rica and it is a super underrated archaelogical site! With the typical $4 USD entry fee for most Mexican archaelogical sites, Quiahuitzlan is only about an hour from Veracruz city. It mainly consists of little tombstones which are some of the most unique architechture I have seen in any Mesoamerican site. The site also has the backdrop of the beautiful blue ocean below and the giant rock called Cerro de las Metates.
While the heat ruled it out as an option, you can actually book a local guide to climb this rock if you factor enough time. If you're interested on the ultimate, eco-adventure, read some of the Google reviews for more info on how to make it happen.
2 hour detour: EL TAJIN + PAPANTLA
If you want to get even farther off the beaten path, El Tajin archaelogical site is one of the most magical, and yet least touristic, spots I have found in Mexico. Neighboring Papantla pueblo magico is rich in culture, being home to the "voladores," the men that spin upside down from ropes attached to a pole. You can read all about my tips for El Tajin and Papantla here.
IN SUM
This coastal roadtrip is just a suggestion but there are so many other fun stops you could make, like Veracruz Port, Boca del Rio, Xalapa, Catemaco, etc. Hope this serves as a launching point for your coastal Mexican adventure!
