5 Things I Learned the Hard Way Traveling Mexico
Mexico taught me a few lessons I really wish I’d known before landing in Sayulita. Nothing dramatic, nobody got hurt, but a few of these mexico travel mistakes cost us days of stress and a fair amount of walking around in circles looking for cash. So here they are, the five things I learned the hard way, in case they save you the same headache.
1. ATMs Are Not That Easy to Find
I genuinely did not see this one coming. We arrived in Sayulita thinking cash would be easy to sort out along the way, and instead we spent five days completely broke. Not broke as in sad, broke as in zero pesos in our pockets. The ATMs in town were either out of order or just out of cash, which apparently happens a lot more than you’d think in smaller Mexican towns.
At some point we got desperate enough to walk all the way to San Pancho, the next town over, convinced we’d finally find a working machine. Nope. Every single ATM there was out of cash too. We just stood there laughing because at that point what else can you do.
If I could go back, I would definitely find an ATM in Puerto Vallarta and use an app like ATM Fee Saver to find which machines actually charge the least in fees before even leaving home, and I’d withdraw a bigger chunk of cash the moment I found a working one instead of taking out a little at a time. Yes, because you can spend almost 8 dollars on ATM fees with some ATMs, so be aware and don’t go to the first one you find even if you’re desperate.
I’ve also written a full breakdown of how I handle money and banking on the road, including which cards actually make sense abroad, over on my banking abroad guide.
2. Street Food Is Cash Only
This one hits different once you understand mistake number one. Most of the street food stalls and small vendors in Sayulita only take cash, no cards, no exceptions. So for a few days we basically had to say goodbye to the tacos and drinks on the beach we’d been dreaming about, all because we had no pesos left. Don’t worry we still found a lot of small little restaurants no touristic at all with all the local food you can dream of.
Looking back, it’s such an easy problem to avoid. If we’d had cash sorted out from day one in Puerto Vallarta, this second mistake would never have happened. Lesson learned: carry more cash than you think you’ll need, especially in smaller beach towns where card machines are the exception, not the rule.
3. Public Transportation Is an Adventure
Puerto Vallarta has buses everywhere, which sounds convenient until you actually try to use them. After a full week there, I still never really knew where I’d end up when I hopped on. The same bus you take every day can just decide, out of nowhere, to turn right and head straight for the airport instead of your usual stop.
It’s not dangerous, it’s just chaotic in a very Mexican way. Half the fun and half the stress is not knowing exactly where the bus is going to take you. If you’re not in a rush, just go with it. If you actually need to be somewhere on time, maybe don’t leave it to the bus.
We were staying in the backcountry of PV, and it sometimes took us two hours to get to the beach. The bus is full, and it’s an experience worth having at least once: people pass money to each other to pay the driver, then the ticket comes back to the person at the back of the bus. Another weird thing for me is that if you have a free seat near the window and someone is seated next to it, they won’t move over to let you take the window seat. Instead, they’ll just shift their legs a little and you have to climb over them to get to the seat. Weird, but okay.
4. Mexico Isn’t Always Cheap
This surprised me more than I expected. Mexico can absolutely be affordable, but you have to keep an eye on your spending, because prices swing a lot depending on where you sleep. Cheap hotels start around 30 USD a night, but they’re often a full hour bus ride away from the beach. Want to actually be near the water? Easily 80 USD a night or more, at least in PV. Yucatan is expensive everywhere too — I’ll write an article about my 10-day road trip there soon.
It’s all a question of compromise. Do you save money and commute to the beach every day, or do you pay more to wake up and walk straight out onto the sand? There’s no wrong answer, just know which trade-off you’re making before you book.
If you want to shop around for a place that fits your budget, I’d start on Booking.com to compare hotels near versus away from the beach, and for day trips and activities without paying tourist trap prices, GetYourGuide is usually where I check first.
5. Public Restrooms Are Nowhere to Be Found
This one drove me a little crazy. Public toilets are genuinely hard to come by in a lot of places in Mexico, and more than once I ended up walking into a bar just to order a drink I didn’t really want, purely so I could use their bathroom. Not the most budget friendly workaround when it happens three times in one afternoon.
These days I just use Flush to find the nearest public restroom before I’m actually desperate for one. Wish I’d known about it before paying for one too many random beers just to pee.
Mexico still ended up being one of my favorite trips, cash chaos and bus surprises included. If you’re planning your own trip and want to avoid the money stress specifically, go read my full banking abroad guide before you leave.
