my road to travel…the road “more” traveled

Book your Mexico Vacation at myroadtotravel.com

No one is too old nor too young to enjoy a Mexico vacation.  Mexico vacations are ideal for solo travelers, honeymooners, married couples, and families.  While the world is full of romantic destinations, Mexico has much to recommend it as the place where you and your special someone should spend your next vacation.

Mexico’s romantic escapes have much to offer.  Their visitors can bask in the warm, balmy, tropical climate at almost any time of year.  The weather is what makes Mexico an ideal choice for those seeking to escape the cold northern winters, and her brilliant vegetation, sparkling white beaches, and turquoise seas create the perfect backdrop for a romantic interlude.

One of the most delightful aspects of a romantic Mexican getaway is that her seaside resorts, unlike many US hotels which are not directly on the beach, allow their guests direct beach access.  A stay at Zihuatenejo, for example, lets Mexican beachgoers experience the best in resort luxury combined with the serenity of a secluded beach village.  Nestled against the backdrop of the Sierra Madre, this small town on the Pacific Ocean offers a full slate of water sports, including scuba diving, deep-sea fishing, and cruises to more remote beaches.

Traveling as a family in Mexico need not eliminate the romance from Mexico vacations.  Children are considered a national treasure in Mexico, and your children will be greeted warmly wherever they go.  Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, and La Paz are all great Mexican vacation destinations for families.  Your children will need to carry adequate documentation, and you can learn exactly what is required by visiting the US State Department website at www.travel.state.gov and clicking on International Travel.

When selecting a destination for your romantic Mexican getaway, look for an area where you can enjoy your favorite activities.  The coastal resorts have many opportunities for Island cruising, scuba diving, snorkeling, windsurfing, and even cliff diving for the very brave.  You can swim with the dolphins at Chakalal Bay, or for $20 enjoy an all day horseback ride to the crater of the Paricutin Volcano, where you will have to make the final 1 1/2 mile journey on foot.

If you want a permanent memento of your romantic stay in Mexico, visit Queretaro and shop for one of the locally mined opals.  Along with southern Australia, Queretaro is one of the two places in the world where opals are commercially mined. 

While you are in Queretaro, soak up its romantic atmosphere with a stroll around the historic center.  If you are staying there on a Sunday night, visit the Jardin Zenea, Queretaro’s most popular public square, where you and your sweetie can join the crowds dancing to live bands  playing music from the 40s, 50s, and 60s.

Romantic Mexico vacations can be as unique as the couples who plan them.  Whether you choose to enjoy a romantic getaway at a Mexico beach or you choose another location, you are sure you to enjoy your trip. With all that is has to offer, Mexico can easily be considered a lover’s paradise.

Remember to to book your Mexico vacation at myroadtotravel.com

Find your escape at myroadtotravel.com

If you have entered your retirement years, and are finally enjoying the travels you have been promising yourself for a lifetime, one of your first destinations should be Mexico.  Mexico is a country in which you will be treated with warmth by a native population of innately happy and extraordinarily helpful people.  Politeness is as natural to Mexicans as breathing.  And one thing you will not experience during your Mexico vacation is the surliness which you may encounter in other popular vacation spot.

Mexico vacations offer you the chance to enjoy the vast desert expanses of Baja California, the lush density of the Yucatán rain forest, the bustle of the resort beach towns, or the serenity of more secluded coastal hideaways.  You will find all the excitement of the one of the world’s largest cities, along with all the charms of villages with cobblestone streets where the populations still gather on southern summer evenings to enjoy music in the towns’ Plazas

 Each of Mexico’s states has a unique character, and you can explore all of them during your Mexico vacation.  Mexico has far more to offer seniors than the tourist trade of Tijuana.  If your picture of Mexico has been formed from watching Western movies shot beneath unforgiving desert suns, where the only green in sight is that of cacti, you are in for a very pleasant surprise.  Mexico is the land of flowers, and you will find them everywhere.  Even the poorest homes will be brightened by carefully tended blooming plants.

Mexico vacations can take you to any of the country’s hundreds of valleys or plateaus, where for each 300 feet you climb above sea level, the temperature will drop one degree Fahrenheit.  Mexico’s higher altitudes have a spring-like feel all year long! 

If you know where to look, Mexico vacations can be remarkably affordable.  One of the secrets to vacationing in Mexico for seniors on a budget is to avoid the luxury resorts.  One thing most travelers to Mexico do not realize is that the vast majority of Mexican tourists are the Mexicans themselves, whose annual income does not permit them to pay the prices normally charged to foreign tourists.  So begin your Mexico vacation by getting a low-cost travel guide to Mexico, which will explain the secrets of seeing the country on a budget.

You may be concerned that taking Mexican vacations will expose you to the “tourists disease.”  Turista is a very real problem in Mexico, and as a senior citizen, you might be especially vulnerable to its miseries.  Avoid the issue entirely by drinking either boiled or bottled water throughout your stay.  Also, be wary of raw vegetables washed in un-purified water.

You will never run out of things to do during your Mexico vacations.  From Guadalahara’s eight golf courses, marvelous art museums, and countless restaurants, to the Mayan ruins, tropical rain forest, and calm Caribbean waters of Cozumel, Mexico is a cultural, historical, and environmental treasure trove.

You can choose Mexico vacations which you plan yourself, or you could choose Mexico vacations arranged with the help of a travel agency.  A travel agency can book guided tours to the Mexico destinations of your choice, which include not only walking tours but bus, ATV, and boat travel.  Your travel agent will be the best one to find a tour suitable for your level of fitness.

Your senior years can be the best years of your life, offering the opportunity to see the world for the first time.  So why not research Mexico vacations, and choose one which can be the beginning of an entirely new series of adventures?

Remember to book your Mexico vacation at myroadtotravel.com

Mexico is a land of contrasts, where the warmth of the sunny beaches offers a sharp counterpoint to its cool mountain valleys.  But the most delightful aspect of vacationing in Mexico will be your encounters with the Mexican people who see life as a celebration.

From their love of spicy food and invigorating drinks, to their enjoyment of exuberant music and dance and their bold approach to art and architecture, the Mexican people live in a world which makes other cultures seem dull by comparison.  With your first Mexico vacation, you will be exposed to a way of life which will remain with you forever, and make it very hard to leave.

One of the ways you could bring a bit of Mexico home with you is through photographs.  Carefully select the camera you will use to commemorate your Mexico vacation, because you will need one which can take great quality photos in a wide range of environments.  You might automatically assume that your best choice of cameras will be a digital camera, because of its ease of use and the fact that using a digital camera relieves you of having to cart around several roles of film.

Road through Sierra Juarez (CC photo by phylevn courtesy of Flickr)

One of the disadvantages, however, of bringing a digital camera on a Mexico vacation, is that the cost of a good digital camera makes it an attractive target for thieves.  So if you are traveling with one, you must be sure to leave it locked up or keep it in your possession at all times.  You should also protect your camera whenever you are in environment where it might get wet. 

A much cheaper yet still convenient alternative to a digital camera is a disposable camera.  Anyone who knows how to use a 35mm camera can use a disposable camera.  The major difference is that you must turn in the disposable camera in order to get your photos developed, and the camera will not be returned to you.  Using a digital camera, however, will have the advantage of letting you transfer your Mexico vacation photographs onto a CD.  Most photo centers offer this service, and they will also let you customize your pictures by cropping them, reducing the “red eye” effect, and making other changes.

You should take care to keep a disposable camera dry if you are visiting a beach or participating in a water activity.  If you intend to do snorkeling or scuba diving, you might bring an underwater camera along on your Mexico vacation.  Underwater cameras are also sold in disposable form, and you can even waterproof a traditional camera by purchasing a waterproof casing for it.

You won’t have any trouble finding a camera in Mexico if you forget to bring one.  Mexico has many retailers who sell digital, 35mm, and disposable cameras.  The only disadvantage you face in purchasing a camera in Mexico is that it may be overpriced if you buy it from a retailer in a popular resort area.
If you do not want to carry a camera on your Mexico vacation, but you have a cell phone, you may be able to use it to take pictures.  Having a camera cell phone will enable you not only to store your vacation pictures, but to share them immediately with the friends and family back home, and to transfer them to your PC on your return.  Why you cannot expect the sharpest quality in the pictures you take on your cell phone, they will still help you capture your Mexico vacation memories.

Using a video camera to record your Mexico vacation adventures is another great way to keep your memories alive.  Look for a camcorder which will let you record your video footage to a DVD, because you may have trouble finding a VHS recorder on which to play them back.

Your Mexico vacation is sure to provide you with photo opportunities at every turn.  Having a way of recording them in photographs will let you hang onto your memories for a lifetime!  Remember to book your Mexico vacation at myroadtotravel.com

Check out the Shopping in Mexico

One of the highlights of any Mexico vacation is the wonderful opportunities it offers for shopping.  Mexico is a place where tourists from around the world can find unique items at bargain prices.  When shopping in Mexico, however, you will have to keep in mind the many regulations which limit the sorts of purchases you can make in Mexico and bring back into the United States.  The best way to educate yourself about these regulations is to study The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Rules.

Mexico is home to a great many wildlife species, so you are likely to find many different wild animals for sale during your vacation there.  Animals belonging to an endangered species, however, cannot be purchased and brought into the United States.  If you attempt to bring such an animal back to the US, and you are discovered, the animal would be confiscated, and you could receive a fine or some other penalty.  You would be far better off to simply ignore any animals offered for sale in Mexico.  You should also forget about purchasing any items which may have been made from an endangered animal.

If, for example, you spot a drop-dead gorgeous pair of crocodile boots or a crocodile leather purse, simply walk away.  Crocodiles are an endangered species, and the border inspectors are diligent in their searches for merchandise made from crocodiles or any other endangered species. 

Perhaps you became enchanted, on your Mexico vacation, with the country’s many kinds of brilliantly-colored wild birds.  Purchasing one of them to bring into the United States, however, is a violation of customs regulations.  Even a cute stuffed parrot for the children’s nursery will land you in trouble.  While you will see them for sale all over Mexico, do not get hooked.  There are plenty of other legal souvenirs which are just as charming and colorful.

Many people take Mexico vacations to search for antiquities and Mexico’s famous glazed ceramics.  The Mexican government however regards the country’s antiquities as its own property.  Should you purchase an authentic Mexican antiquity and attempt to get into the United States, you could be prosecuted for theft.  If you come across an antiquity which looks as if it belongs in Mexico, leave it there.

Delicately and colorfully designed glazed Mexican ceramics can add a delightful south of the border touch to any décor.  But you may not be aware that many Mexican ceramics are produced with lead, and can be dangerous to your family members.  While you are free to purchase them and bring them back into the United States, you should handle them as little as possible, and never use them to store food or drink.

For all the items which you will have to leave behind on your Mexico shopping sprees, there are hundreds more which will make shopping on your Mexico vacation delightful.  Simply become very familiar with the rules which regulate tourist shopping in Mexico, and then relax.  As long as you know what you are doing, you can buy to your heart’s content and return home with the treasures which keep the memories of your visit to Mexico alive for years to come!

Remember to book your Mexico vacation at myroadtotravel.com