From there we continued on to the Costa Esmeralda, arguably the most popular beach area outside of Veracruz city. It's a stretch of beach some 25 miles long that reaches from Tecolutla to Nautla. My research showed it's popular with RV'ers from Canada and the US, but I didn't see any. Although there were a couple of RV parks and campgrounds. The lack of any RV sightings may have been due to the season (December?) or it may have due to increased insecurity in Tamaulipas in recent years. The beaches are not the white sand of the Caribbean, nor golden like the Pacific coast. More of a grayish tan-brown. The waters are, as you'd suspect, more 'emerald', hence the name Costa Esmeralda. We stayed in Monte Gordo at the Hotel Taboga which calls itself an "Eco-Boutique" hotel I guess because some rooms consisted of thatched roofs and bamboo and no A/C. We opted for a room with A/C. The grounds were very nice, as was the restaurant. I think that if/when we go back, we'd say at Azucar, part of the Groupohabita hotel chain out of Mexico City.
AZÚCAR
https://taboga.com.mx/
They've got a handful hotels there as well as the nearby Maison Coututier in San Rafael. Some of their properties are quite upscale, so I'd imagine the food at the 2 locations in Costa Esmeralda area would be quite good, the latter having a number of French-influenced dishes according to their menu. Speaking of the French influence, this link gives a little bit of history about the area:
https://trans-americas.com/jicaltepe...h-town-mexico/
:::: MAISON COUTURIER ....
There are of course numerous other hotels (no hi-rises) in the area, both in Monte Gordo/Nautla and Tecolutla. The 'better' hotels are on the beach side of the highway, while the more budget-type places are on the western side of the highway. Though beach side bargains can be found too. The beach, while we were there, (midweek) was deserted. We saw absolutely no one as far as the eye could see. Again, that may have been due to the season. I'm sure on holidays it gets much busier. One side note, we saw a number of German-language magazines and books in our hotel's lobby. no doubt because of the large number of German expat businessmen living and working in Puebla, which I think has the largest VW plant in the world.Continuing on towards Veracruz, there are plenty of other beach areas with mostly mom& pop type budget hotels. We also passed Mexico's only nuclear power installation at Laguna Verde, where I read that they store their radioactive waste under water. Probably not good for snorkeling?Another popular beach area as you go towards Veracruz is Playa Chachalacas, where there are giant sand dunes popular with 4-wheelers, ATV's and the like. Close by, only some 6km from the beach, is the archeological site of Cempoala, or Zempoala.On to Veracruz City. We really, really liked Veracruz. So much so we stayed an extra 2 nights. It's a hot, gritty, bustling port city, but there's plenty of things to see and do for the tourist that wants to get away from the more touristy resort areas. Highlights would be the fort of San Juan Ulua, the aquarium, the Baluarte de Santiago and its small museum,and of course Son Jarocho music and dance. There are 2 classic cafes, Gran Cafe Del Portal and La Parroquia, where in both, a clink of your glass with your spoon will get you a refill of your cafe con leche or 'lechero'. The architecture is an eclectic mix of Spanish colonial with a French influence, with a few crumbling buildings mixed in here and there. We did the touristy stuff, the port tour (so-so) and the city tram (tour only in Spanish), which is a good way to see the city. A few people we met on the street took the opportunity to practice their English with us as gringos are rare. We stayed at the Hotel Las Diligencias for about $50 US. Charming, classic hotel, right across from the zocalo. Probably the nicest and best value in centro. Something I was unaware of before we visited was that Veracruz has some excellent diving sites, with a number of historic wrecks to be explored, not to mention a large reef system.
Diving in Veracruz
Although I mentioned Xalapa, Xico and Coatepec in a previous TR, that area is easily reached from Veracruz city and worth a few nights too.Overall, the area is one or our favorite places in Mexico.So much for a brief report!