anjeliarene

Hello,

Me and my boyfriend (both 21 yrs old) are planing a months vacation to Mexico. We plan to drive from Tucson, Arizona. We have plans to rent an Airbnd in Oaxaca for about a month and travel to Mexico city either on our way down or on our way back. We want to get the most out of it and are determined to hit all the best surrounding cities. So far we have heard everything from complete praises to absolute horror stories. I speak pretty ok spanish. So I am here to ask, how dangerous will it be? Is driving crazy? Do I need special insurance? normally when we travel to places in Mexico closer to the boarder we do just fine. How much money will we need for the month we are planning to stay? (keep in mind we are both very low maintenance, don't mind making do and truly want to enjoy the authentic experience rather than the luxury tourist version) Will a month be too long? What are the must sees?

Would really appreciate the help

Stewbear

I spent 5 weeks in Oaxaca a few years ago finding lots to do in the area.
I am very low maintenance but found Oaxaca one of the more expensive places in Mexico that I have been especially food prices.
Lots of pluses & lots of minuses in the area. Poverty, demonstrations & prostitution are common place
Great arts with wonderful weaving, craft villages, markets, ancient restored ruins & the Worlds largest tree among the pluses.Wonderful food & chocolate.
A active Ex-Pat community with a nice library but not over whelming in the large native population.

MmePerdu

I'm recently back from my second stay in Oaxaca and will likely go again. I wouldn't dream of driving with airfares so reasonable and plenty of cheap options for day trips in the area but then I prefer to not drive most places I go. Yes, you need special insurance. Look online to get an idea of cost.

I spent just about $2000 for a month stay, including airfare, Airbnb, food & all incidentals, also a budget traveler. I suspect if you drive you'll spend about the same for 2 of you if you eat in more than I do. Restaurants are inexpensive, groceries are almost free relative to what I pay at home. So you have control over that part if you have a kitchen.

I have no horror stories, only good things to say about staying in the city. Living there crosses my mind regularly. A month is not too long, only a beginning.

baldone

Driving in Mexico at times can be quite an experience, but it is a great way to see the country. You'll need Mexican insurance, as your US insurance is no good here; just do some googling or you can usually buy it on the US side near where you'd cross. You'll also have to buy a TIP (Temporary Import Permit) when you cross the border. You can buy it online ahead of time, but you'll need to stop at customs and immigration anyway, so not a big deal either way. You'll have to put a deposit on your car that can be up to $400 US that's refundable when you leave the country. Keep all your receipts/paperwork or you can lose your deposit. You'll need the title/registration in the name of whoever buys the permit. If you have a loan on the car, you'll need notarized permission from your lender. As far as safety goes, so far this year I've driven from Tampico to the Michoacan coast, from San Miguel through Zacatecas to the border and back through Monterrey and the Eastern Sierra Madre, and points in between without incident, but that's of course all anecdotal, YMMV. Maybe I'll bore everyone with a trip report or 2 one of these days. All that said, if you're just planning on seeing the well-worn tourist route of Oaxaca and CDMX, there probably isn't any need to drive your own car. And while you can drive TO/FROM CDMX, it's not a good idea to drive IN the city. But elsewhere with a car there's plenty of the country that's not easily accessible by public transportation that few gringo tourist get to see.
As far as Oaxaca being poor and having prostitution and protests, well, duh. To think other parts of Mexico doesn't, is downright naive. That'd be akin to me saying Guanajuato is like a trash dump after having read this article:
http://periodicocorreo.com.mx/deja-v...de-la-capital/
It's disingenuous to claim to be a fan of the 'real Mexico' and then complain when you see it.