Traveler's Guide to Mexican Camping: Explore Mexico and Belize with RV or Tent (Traveler's Guide series)

This book is the complete reference for RVers. I used the suggested itineraries for planning my vacation; these show daily driving distances, estimated driving times, and descriptions of the routes and sites along the way, which I found to be very accurate. Over 60 pages of detailed information cover everything from safety, insurance, fuel, food and money to health issues and pets. The information on crossing the border was very helpful in preparing me for this sometimes confusing process and the detailed descriptions of each crossing point, including hours of operation and suitability of RV access, enabled me to select good places to enter Mexico. This section also contains helpful suggestions for nearby campgrounds to use before entering Mexico. The information on how to deal with corrupt cops and to be avoid being cheated at gas stations was also especially useful.

The nine chapters which cover every region of Mexico are what set this book apart from all others. I found the key maps, indices and distance tables convenient and easy to use. The detailed description of each campground includes a listing of amenities, a detailed map showing not only the campground location but also many times nearby gas stations and stores, detailed directions to the campground including distances and reference points, a description of the facilities and the price range. I found this information to be objective and accurate, and I liked being able to know what the campground offers and the approximate cost before deciding to stop there.

While not the primary focus of this book, many interesting tourist attractions are also described, which I found very useful. The detailed information on driving in the Mexico City area helped me avoid many potential problems there. For those venturing beyond Mexico, an entire chapter covers Belize.

While traveling in Mexico I've met many people who spent the night parked in potentially unsafe locations because they did not know of a nearby campground, who did not know how to use the telephones, who had difficulty crossing the border, who spent hours searching for a campground, who got lost while trying to drive through cities, and who did not know where they would spend the next night. One thing all these people had in common was that they did not have a copy of this book.

Traveler's Guide To Mexican Camping is an easy to use reference covering all aspects of RV travel and camping, from trip planning and preparation to returning to the US. It is well indexed and cross referenced, packed full of advice and information, and the maps and campground listing are easy to read and understand. The book uses quality paper and binding, not newsprint and stapled covers, and my copy has survived many months of rough handling. There are no advertisements in this book, which would have affected the objectivity of the authors. Every RV traveler to Mexico should have this book.


Don't leave home without it!   April 10, 1999
27 out of 28 found this review helpful

Over the course of two winters, 1997-98 and 1998-99, my wife and I traveled over 6500 miles in Mexico.We have found this book to be an invaluable resource.

We traveled most of the East and West coasts, much of the Yucatan peninsula, and from Cancun to Puerto Vallarta. We traveled alone and we do not speak Spanish.

The remarkable amount and accuracy of information in this book allowed us to consistently answer the two most vital questions before us: where is the next campground with suitable security and services and, can we find it easily and promptly once we are in the area?

There is a wealth of other useful information in this book and it has been well summarized by the Plaxton review elsewhere on this web-site. We will only confirm the accuracy of his assesment.

We also have talked to over a dozen other travelers who agree that this is clearly the best RV camping guide for Mexico that is available at this time.


"Indispensible"   March 24, 2000
David Eidell (From A Cyber Cafe In Mexico)
21 out of 21 found this review helpful

The remarkable thing about the Church's and their excellent book is that they actually nosed into hundreds of side streets, obscure frontage roads, and bouncy cobblestone alleyways ferreting out most of the RV parks in this vast country.

I have stayed at (an uncounted) number of the parks listed and can verify that their comments about the facilities and overall condition is right-on-the-money.

Maps, are key to exploring and finding new things and places and each campground is served in the book with both an explanation and a sketch map that specifically describes "Large Rig" access from the nearest highway. I can't tell you how much this means at 5:00 PM when the sun is setting and the holding tank is threatening to burst.

As a thirty-six year veteran of RV travel in Mexico, I can say with some degree of authority that The Traveler's Guide to Mexican Camping is the milepost by which other's will have to reckon if they wish to write their own guide.


Great for RVers, Okay for tent campers   January 16, 2003
20 out of 20 found this review helpful

I bought this book for a backpacking trip I am planning along the Maya Riveria. I am a tent camper. Although the title implies that this book was written for those travelling with an RV or tent, it is primarily for the RVer. It does mention when tent camping is an option but gives little or no information beyond that fact. The writers do give RVers a good idea of what to expect, providing decent descriptions of campground setup, condition, and facilities. They go so far as to tell you what part of the campground you will likely find a spot and whether shady sites are available. They give very little detailed information regarding tenting conditions. If you are planning tenting trip to Mexico, this may be a very usual guide simpy to locate the campgrounds but for little else. If you are planning a RVing trip to Mexico, I would not go without this book.


Toll Road Fees Update   May 8, 2000
sandra (Garden Bay, British Columbia)
19 out of 20 found this review helpful

We wouldn't dream of going anywhere in Mexico without the Churches' "bible". It's accurate down to the tiniest detail. However, as nothing stays static some info needs to be updated, i.e. As of February 2000 we discovered the toll road fees in Mexico seem to have increased by at least 50% since last year. We drive a 3/4 ton supercab truck and pull a 29' 5th wheel and in February 1999 we paid 310 pesos from Guadalajara to Tepic. In February 2000 tolls on the same road were 451P. Our friends were driving the same length unit except their truck has dual wheels and they paid 2/3's of what we paid at every toll booth between Tepic to Guadalajara to Morelia and back and then from Guadalajara to Laredo, Texas. We could never figure that one out! I complained at the second toll booth about the increase and was told that as of January 2000 the tolls had been increased 50%.