10 critical things you need to know before driving in Mexico

First the bad news: Driving in Mexico is not for the faint of heart. Road conditions can be horrible. Highways aren’t well labeled. The security situation varies from region to region (and sometimes neighborhood to neighborhood). Rules of the road are often fluid. And traffic is epic.

But limiting yourself to air travel and long-haul buses means you’re only scratching the surface of what Mexico has to offer. On the flipside, relying on taxis and tours to explore the country can be costly—even in a place where being a tourist is famously affordable.

To help ease your worries about driving in Mexico—or give you a better understanding of whether or not it’s something you’re comfortable doing—we’re outlining some tried-and-true pointers and intel about road realities in Mexico.

There are lots of misconceptions about dangers in Mexico, and driving is one of them. Sure, traveling by road in the country is an altogether more intense experience than in the United States, but that doesn’t mean it’s any more deadly.

Driving in Mexico has gotten safer over the years. According to police data compiled by the International Traffic Safety Data and Analysis Group, road fatalities on Mexico’s highways hovered around 12 per 100,000 people in 2019. In the United States, that number is 11 per 100,000, which is not significantly different.

Outside of Mexico’s major cities and towns, cell phone service can be spotty. That’s particularly true if you’re exploring Mexico’s stunning natural scenery, such as the Sierra Norte and Sierra Mixteca in Oaxaca, the mountains of Chiapas, and the vast undeveloped stretches of Mexico’s Pacific Coast.

That means that your navigation apps might fail you when you need them most. Do a little bit of work ahead of time and download an offline map for the region where you’ll be traveling. While this won’t provide real-time traffic information, it will allow you to use the navigation function and prevent you from getting lost when there's no way to call for help.

One tiny disclaimer on navigation apps in Mexico: They aren’t always right. The abundance of unofficial roads in Mexico—as well as ongoing construction on highways around the nation’s major urban areas—means that you may be told to turn the wrong way down a one-way street, or directed down a road that’s nothing more than a dirt path. You may even end up in a part of town in which you have no business being. Use common sense and pay attention to actual road signs to avoid any headaches (or worse).

Unfortunately, political conflicts and cartel violence are facts of life in Mexico, and if you’re driving around the country you’ll need to put in the effort to learn where it’s safe to travel by road. That includes researching forums and social media groups where well-informed travelers and locals share info, or speaking to your hotel’s staff or your vacation rental host.

While Chiapas does not suffer from large-scale cartel-related violence, ongoing conflicts between the EZLN and indigenous communities with the Mexican government often lead to roadblocks. Additionally, in line with U.S. State Department guidelines, travel should be avoided in the states of Michoacan, Colima, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas, and Guerrero due to cartel violence.

Spontaneous bloqueos—protest blockades that often use buses and trucks to prevent traffic from passing—are a chronic issue in Oaxaca (both the city and the state). That’s particularly true on Route 190 heading east from Oaxaca city, as well as Route 175, which connects the Centro with the airport. These are most often nonviolent and result in little more than a headache, traffic, and the need to reroute. Dedicated Facebook groups and Twitter channels do provide alerts (almost all are in Spanish).

In Mexico, speed bumps are everywhere— from major highways to city streets. Known as topes or reductores, they vary in shape and size and may or may not be announced with a sign. What’s more? In many cases the yellow or white paint that identifies them has worn off, making them even harder to see in the absence of signage.

Topes are often placed on highways near intersections with major roads, in advance of stoplights, and near crosswalks. But that’s not a hard-and-fast rule. You’ll also find them in residential neighborhoods and along busy commercial corridors. Stay alert and pay attention to the brake lights in front of you—that will often be the only warning that a speed bump is coming.

The condition of Mexico’s federal highways is variable, to put it mildly. In general, highways in major tourist zones like Los Cabos and the Riviera Maya are relatively well kept, as are toll roads and highways around wealthy cities like Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey.

Elsewhere, it can be a different story. Many highways have at least a few at-grade intersections and traffic signals, especially when they pass through cities and towns. You should also be prepared for sudden construction, lanes blocked off without warning, and rough pavement.

If you’re exploring more rural regions—even around popular tourist destinations like the city of Oaxaca and Los Cabos—dirt roads will figure in your journey. Check your rental car agreement, as some companies in certain locations will tack on fines for dust and dirt.

Without delving into broader issues of police misconduct, highway patrol in Mexico doesn’t have the best reputation. Route 307—which runs along the coast of the Riviera Maya—is one of the more notorious in the country. There have been numerous posts in Tripadvisor forums about tourists behind the wheel being shaken down for bribes by cops claiming they were speeding. These amounts are always far higher than the fine on a ticket.

If you’ve been pulled over by the police for speeding, and they are demanding payment on the spot, you are within your rights to ask for a written ticket. You should also document their badge number and name and ask for the location of the police department or office where you must pay the fine. More often than not, the officer will drop the request for a bribe and let you off with a warning or a ticket.

Keep in mind that there are legitimate police and military checkpoints along this same stretch of highway—and elsewhere in Mexico. If you encounter one, you must stop if requested, and answer any questions.

Many travelers rely on their credit cards or auto insurance to provide a basic level of coverage when they rent a car. But in Mexico, you’re legally mandated to purchase third-party liability insurance when you pick up your rental car—regardless of other coverage you may have. With that in mind, before declining other supplemental insurances offered by the company, check with your credit card or auto insurance provider—some of those may be covered, but others may not be. Plus, certain countries are excluded from certain policies.

Parking in Mexico can be a pain, and much of the time it’s a fairly haphazard affair. That said, in major cities and towns, there are designated parking and no parking areas, as well as areas where meters are in effect on most days. Signage can be minimal to non-existent, though, and local police are happy to write tickets or boot your tires. Tickets in many municipalities must be paid in person, adding another headache.

Parking in an off-street lot can be less of a hassle, and you’ll find them in most cities and towns frequented by tourists across the country. You should confirm the hours of the lot before you commit, though, as many are not open 24 hours a day or on Sundays.

Regardless of where you are traveling, avoid driving on the country’s highways at night. This is a broad-stroke rule, of course—heavily trafficked highways like those around Mexico City and in the Los Cabos corridor are generally safe day or night, as are the nation’s toll roads. However, the security situation in Mexico is fluid, and highways often pass through rural areas or underpopulated zones that can make those on the road a target—tourists and locals alike.

Driving in Mexico can be stressful. Turn signal usage is rare. Huge surges of traffic on all sides are common. Signage is limited. Vehicles you wouldn’t expect or want on a highway often make appearances.

The best advice is to stay calm, go with the flow of traffic, and remain vigilant. But what does that actually look like?

For starters, drive in daylight so that you can see any hazards or topes approaching on the road (as well as to avoid security issues). Additionally, if you can avoid morning and evening rush hours in the major cities, your nerves will be rewarded.

Since signage is not always excellent or clear, you'll also need some patience with yourself if you miss a turn or exit. If that happens, just wait for the next roundabout or exit (in big cities and most smaller towns, mapping apps will reliably reroute you).

Should you find yourself encounter police checkpoints or bloqueos, do not attempt to barge through them. Stay calm if you are stopped by police and follow the advice above. In the case of bloqueos, there are local political situations that you may not be aware of that have led to the protest. Don't be scared and calmly follow the flow of traffic (and your navigation app) to get around them.

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