ATHLLC7135396768

00:00:00.000 | (upbeat music)

00:00:01.800 | - Hello, and welcome to another episode of All The Hacks,

00:00:04.760 | a show about upgrading your life, money, and travel.

00:00:07.440 | I'm your host, Chris Hutchins,

00:00:08.840 | and if you've been thinking about planning

00:00:10.200 | the perfect getaway to Mexico,

00:00:11.720 | or maybe you haven't, but now you're intrigued,

00:00:13.880 | you're gonna love this episode,

00:00:15.300 | because we've got Zach Rabinor, founder of Journey Mexico,

00:00:18.840 | who has dedicated his career

00:00:20.420 | to curating unforgettable experiences

00:00:22.700 | in one of the world's most mesmerizing destinations.

00:00:25.680 | We'll cover the main places you already know,

00:00:27.840 | as well as places you didn't even realize

00:00:29.720 | you wanted to go, the best times to travel,

00:00:32.520 | ways to get around the country,

00:00:33.880 | some hidden gems, must-try eats, and so much more.

00:00:37.560 | Then after, I'll cover some tips and tricks

00:00:39.760 | for getting the best deals for your next trip.

00:00:42.080 | So let's jump in right after this.

00:00:44.260 | If you've been listening to this podcast for a while,

00:00:47.680 | you know that I'm a huge fan of our sponsor today, Daffy,

00:00:50.760 | and their mission to help people

00:00:51.920 | be more generous more often.

00:00:54.000 | Daffy is a platform and app that helps regular folks

00:00:56.880 | like you and me manage giving

00:00:58.340 | to the charities we care about more efficiently,

00:01:00.760 | and they do that by helping you set up

00:01:02.380 | a special tax-advantaged account

00:01:04.240 | called a donor-advised fund, or DAF.

00:01:06.880 | Amy and I love Daffy, and we've been using it

00:01:09.040 | for all the causes we support for nearly two years now.

00:01:12.480 | Daffy is the lowest-cost DAF provider around,

00:01:15.240 | and whether you're giving a few hundred dollars to charity

00:01:17.640 | or hundreds of thousands, they make it possible

00:01:20.120 | to give and grow your donations through a simple mobile app.

00:01:23.560 | Donor-advised funds like Daffy are awesome

00:01:25.640 | because they're convenient.

00:01:27.200 | All the giving records and donation receipts

00:01:29.120 | are organized in one place.

00:01:30.980 | They're tax-efficient.

00:01:32.280 | With a DAF like Daffy, you can grow your donations tax-free,

00:01:35.640 | and you can also donate assets like appreciated stock,

00:01:38.520 | index funds, and crypto to avoid capital gains.

00:01:41.640 | And finally, they're on autopilot.

00:01:43.760 | Daffy manages automatic contributions

00:01:46.080 | so that we can all hit our annual goals for giving.

00:01:49.080 | So to give more regularly, even at small amounts,

00:01:52.060 | or to just have a better system for giving,

00:01:54.480 | head on over to allthehacks.com/daffy.

00:01:57.920 | And for a limited time, you can get a free $25

00:02:00.920 | to give to the charity of your choice at that link,

00:02:03.620 | which again is allthehacks.com/daffy, D-A-F-F-Y.

00:02:08.620 | (upbeat music)

00:02:11.600 | Zach, thank you so much for joining us.

00:02:13.720 | - Great to be here, thanks for having me.

00:02:15.200 | - So I think Mexico is a very different travel destination

00:02:19.160 | than all the ones we've done before,

00:02:21.220 | which all have you cross an ocean.

00:02:23.240 | I was thinking about how I would describe

00:02:26.640 | an itinerary to a foreign country.

00:02:28.480 | And often it's thinking, oh, I'm gonna go to this place

00:02:31.840 | for two weeks and try to fit the whole country in.

00:02:34.400 | Mexico feels so close to home

00:02:36.500 | for people living in the US and Canada

00:02:38.560 | that you might approach it differently.

00:02:40.580 | I think I'll just start by kicking off.

00:02:42.520 | How do you think people should be thinking about Mexico

00:02:44.800 | as a travel destination,

00:02:46.640 | given that we might all have

00:02:47.880 | a lot of different preconceived notions?

00:02:49.560 | - Sure, well, you hit it on the head.

00:02:51.480 | We see a real dichotomy in the way

00:02:53.720 | that people travel through Mexico,

00:02:56.400 | the longer haul origin markets, right?

00:02:58.740 | So if you're coming from the UK or Europe

00:03:01.520 | or further afield, you'd come for at least two weeks

00:03:04.960 | and often three or four weeks,

00:03:06.440 | and you'd treat it as a once in a lifetime trip.

00:03:09.240 | You'd travel all over, you'd go from north to south,

00:03:11.640 | you'd visit the cultural centers, the beaches,

00:03:13.880 | and all the diversity that Mexico has,

00:03:15.880 | or at least as much of it as you can fit in

00:03:17.680 | in the time you have.

00:03:18.920 | For North Americans and Mexicans as well,

00:03:22.760 | Mexico is a repeat destination, right?

00:03:25.400 | It's really close, it's a really unique destination

00:03:28.840 | in that it's close to home, it's familiar, but it's exotic.

00:03:32.480 | You've got a different language,

00:03:33.640 | you've got different customs,

00:03:34.840 | you've got different cultures, different history,

00:03:36.720 | especially for North Americans.

00:03:38.420 | So yes, you often would travel

00:03:41.200 | for a long weekend or a week max, right?

00:03:44.680 | And you would come back,

00:03:46.320 | perhaps one type of trip would be sun and sand,

00:03:49.720 | the beach, you know, get out of the cold,

00:03:51.360 | the winters are long in North America.

00:03:53.160 | And we do see incredible correlations

00:03:55.440 | of spikes in bookings when those first cold fronts come

00:04:00.240 | and the first snowfalls come,

00:04:01.520 | and all of a sudden, boom, you know, we see bookings spike.

00:04:04.840 | But then there's also the cultural side of Mexico.

00:04:07.200 | Mexico City has been so popular recently,

00:04:09.880 | San Miguel de Allende, Oaxaca,

00:04:12.160 | the Yucatan Peninsula, Merida, there's a lot.

00:04:14.880 | So I think there's two decidedly different ways

00:04:17.880 | to travel in Mexico for the closer to home trips

00:04:21.600 | in North Americans and Mexicans as well,

00:04:23.480 | which would be either your typical sun and sand type of trip

00:04:26.520 | or your more cultural trip.

00:04:28.760 | And yes, Mexico certainly is a repeat destination

00:04:31.840 | that people come back to over and over again.

00:04:33.880 | - You mentioned a lot of places,

00:04:35.520 | you just broke it up pretty easily into two.

00:04:38.040 | How do you think within there

00:04:40.680 | about even trying to process all of these options?

00:04:43.400 | I imagine someone on the East Coast is probably like,

00:04:45.560 | well, I've probably been to Cancun

00:04:48.000 | and someone on the West Coast is like,

00:04:49.000 | I've been to Cabo and maybe been to Mexico City

00:04:51.080 | or Puerto Vallarta, but there's so much more.

00:04:54.120 | How do you start to break it down

00:04:55.320 | for someone who's like, I have a week,

00:04:56.680 | I wanna think about it, what should I do?

00:04:58.560 | - Sure, well, absolutely, people are very interested,

00:05:01.320 | especially when it's a short haul trip,

00:05:03.200 | they want direct flights.

00:05:04.600 | So you start looking at flight access

00:05:06.560 | and you ask people, don't tell me where you wanna go,

00:05:08.480 | tell me what you envision, what do you wanna do?

00:05:11.080 | What hat do you have on?

00:05:12.320 | Do you have your beach lounging hat and escape the cold hat?

00:05:16.040 | Do you have your culinary hat on?

00:05:18.320 | Do you have your history and culture and art hat on?

00:05:21.960 | So really listen to someone about what it is

00:05:24.600 | they wanna do and then try to direct them towards,

00:05:27.560 | or at least explain the different options

00:05:29.360 | and what there is to do and what type of experiences

00:05:31.920 | there are in different destinations.

00:05:33.480 | - Are there a few places that stand out in your mind,

00:05:36.160 | you're like, I don't know why these places

00:05:37.760 | don't get the credit that some

00:05:40.200 | of these other more popular places get,

00:05:42.080 | but they probably should?

00:05:43.280 | - Sure, I mean, my mission with Journey Mexico

00:05:46.200 | was to share the beyond the beach destinations.

00:05:50.240 | And it's interesting, through the pandemic,

00:05:53.160 | we've seen a lot more focus on a lot of the more cultural,

00:05:56.000 | more off the beaten path, more remote destinations.

00:05:58.640 | But I always wondered why people had never been

00:06:01.400 | to Mexico City or people had never been to Oaxaca,

00:06:04.040 | people hadn't been to Chiapas or the Yucatan Peninsula

00:06:07.280 | like Merida, the Haciendas, Campeche.

00:06:09.760 | These are all incredibly culturally,

00:06:12.480 | historically rich destinations

00:06:15.040 | that people often hadn't heard about.

00:06:18.160 | During the pandemic, when people couldn't go

00:06:21.440 | and get their Italy fix or their safari fix

00:06:24.760 | or their Far East fix,

00:06:26.600 | or these kinds of more exotic destinations,

00:06:28.880 | people really started exploring Mexico

00:06:31.040 | in ways they hadn't before.

00:06:32.680 | So that was a great silver lining, if you will,

00:06:36.240 | of the pandemic is that Mexico saw a lot of people

00:06:39.480 | in destinations that they hadn't seen before.

00:06:41.920 | - And what is it about Mexico?

00:06:43.480 | I mean, you started an entire company

00:06:45.040 | dedicated to the country.

00:06:46.400 | What about Mexico do you think is so special?

00:06:48.920 | - I had worked as a tour leader and a guide.

00:06:51.240 | This was on the back of just exploring and backpacking

00:06:55.400 | and being a mountaineer and a surfer.

00:06:57.880 | And as I led people through these destinations,

00:07:01.240 | I was fascinated and I covered all of Latin America, right?

00:07:05.040 | So I was leading tours to Mexico, Central America,

00:07:08.960 | South America, and in particular, Mexico blew me away

00:07:12.400 | because I too had the stereotypes

00:07:14.280 | and traveled to Club Med as a child with my family.

00:07:17.520 | And all of a sudden we were in these incredible

00:07:19.840 | UNESCO World Heritage cities, the architecture, the food,

00:07:23.200 | the culture, the history, the archeological sites,

00:07:25.560 | the people, it really blew me away.

00:07:28.200 | And that's where the light bulb went off.

00:07:30.040 | And I said, this is an untapped resource.

00:07:32.800 | This is a treasure.

00:07:34.120 | So that was the inspiration.

00:07:35.480 | - And a treasure that for, you know,

00:07:37.080 | the majority of people listening to this show

00:07:40.320 | is much cheaper and easier to get to

00:07:42.640 | than a lot of other places in the world.

00:07:44.400 | - You make such a good point there.

00:07:45.680 | I said it before, it's close enough and familiar enough,

00:07:48.160 | but exotic enough and far away enough.

00:07:50.000 | So that's right.

00:07:51.600 | It's got so many compelling reasons to visit,

00:07:54.520 | not the least of which is the proximity, the value.

00:07:58.640 | When I say value, I'm not saying it's a cheap destination.

00:08:01.240 | Everyone who's been to Mexico recently,

00:08:03.640 | especially will attest to the fact that

00:08:05.920 | it's not the cheapest destination,

00:08:07.440 | although the whole world seems to be a little wacky

00:08:09.560 | in terms of prices these days.

00:08:11.240 | But the service you get, you know,

00:08:13.960 | apples to apples, pound for pound, Mexico,

00:08:16.800 | especially when you look at the competitive set

00:08:19.480 | in sun and sand terms, right?

00:08:21.640 | Often people are considering a beach holiday

00:08:23.520 | over Christmas or New Year's.

00:08:24.880 | I'm either going to Hawaii, Mexico, or the Caribbean.

00:08:27.880 | You know, that's kind of the competitive set.

00:08:29.680 | And not only the value you get

00:08:32.280 | in terms of the quality of the hotel

00:08:35.000 | or the experiences, but the service.

00:08:37.600 | I think that's where really the difference is stark

00:08:40.720 | is Mexico is such a hospitable country.

00:08:44.120 | The culture is so hospitable.

00:08:46.040 | Mexican culture is so warm.

00:08:48.640 | It takes two seconds before someone's inviting you

00:08:50.960 | into their home, inviting you for a drink, a meal.

00:08:53.600 | You know, a very common expression is

00:08:55.760 | (speaking in foreign language)

00:08:58.440 | My house is your house.

00:08:59.520 | So I think that that's where it just really

00:09:02.760 | goes off the chart in terms of value.

00:09:04.840 | You're getting better product,

00:09:06.440 | you're getting more for your money,

00:09:08.440 | and you're getting far superior service

00:09:10.400 | than you would get in almost anywhere in the world.

00:09:12.280 | - And for someone who just heard that expression, right?

00:09:15.040 | You know, the idea of getting invited to someone's home.

00:09:17.600 | To me, that seems a little foreign,

00:09:19.480 | having been focused most of my trips to Mexico,

00:09:23.160 | maybe more like your childhood,

00:09:24.920 | where it's Cabo or Cancun at a resort with family.

00:09:29.360 | Is that something that you think people visiting

00:09:31.640 | might actually experience if they just got off

00:09:33.960 | that kind of standard track?

00:09:36.120 | Because it feels a little foreign to think about it.

00:09:38.200 | - Absolutely.

00:09:39.040 | That's, again, part of our mission is

00:09:40.720 | I can't encourage people enough to get out of the hotel,

00:09:44.720 | to go and visit archeological sites,

00:09:47.080 | to interact with the locals,

00:09:49.080 | even if that means having a local guide

00:09:51.000 | or, you know, it's not always that easy, right?

00:09:52.960 | Especially if you're not fluent in Spanish

00:09:54.680 | or you don't have someone who you know

00:09:56.320 | or friends in the country.

00:09:57.600 | But that said, I think, yes,

00:09:59.640 | getting out of the hotel, opening your eyes,

00:10:01.640 | even speaking to the taxi drivers

00:10:03.440 | or your transfer driver or the people in a store,

00:10:06.960 | you'll really find an incredible warmth

00:10:09.160 | and you'll find invitations do flow freely.

00:10:12.040 | - And do you think Spanish becomes more necessary

00:10:14.800 | the further away you get?

00:10:16.160 | How much of the country's ability to speak English

00:10:19.200 | is focused just on kind of hospitality

00:10:22.320 | and major tourist destinations?

00:10:24.240 | - Tourism is a tremendous and important

00:10:26.920 | revenue generator for Mexico.

00:10:28.360 | And so, obviously, that's another part,

00:10:30.760 | by the way, of the services.

00:10:31.720 | Mexico has had real professional-level tourism

00:10:35.160 | and travel for 70, 80 years now.

00:10:38.560 | You know, it's well ahead of a lot of Latin America

00:10:41.600 | in terms of the development

00:10:43.000 | and the maturity of its tourism market.

00:10:45.240 | So you really do have incredible human infrastructure, right?

00:10:48.800 | The people are well-trained, they're professional,

00:10:51.360 | they're second, third, fourth generation

00:10:54.280 | hospitality professionals.

00:10:55.560 | So you will find a lot of English.

00:10:56.880 | However, you get off the beaten path,

00:10:58.880 | and I mean, even in Cancun or Los Cabos or Puerto Vallarta,

00:11:03.280 | you know, you step into a convenience store

00:11:06.360 | and the clerks are not speaking English, right?

00:11:08.600 | So Spanish is an incredibly valuable tool.

00:11:11.800 | I can't stress enough, whether it's Mexico

00:11:13.880 | or wherever you may travel,

00:11:15.440 | how valuable and how important it can be

00:11:18.360 | to know even just a few words.

00:11:20.520 | And of course, more is better.

00:11:21.800 | But yeah, certainly for me,

00:11:24.200 | what led me into the tourism field was my travels

00:11:28.040 | and then my fascination with the culture

00:11:30.120 | and then a real focus and a real passion

00:11:34.240 | for learning Spanish language.

00:11:36.080 | I ended up getting a master's degree

00:11:37.440 | in international affairs

00:11:39.160 | and being able to penetrate and get into the culture

00:11:42.400 | and be able to converse and interact

00:11:45.000 | with people in their own language.

00:11:46.240 | That's a whole nother level of interchange

00:11:48.640 | and of sharing that you can do.

00:11:50.120 | - For anyone who didn't check out,

00:11:51.440 | we did an episode recently

00:11:52.680 | with Benny Lewis, "Fluent in Three Months."

00:11:54.680 | And we talked a ton about, you know,

00:11:56.760 | both becoming fluent,

00:11:58.320 | but also just like crash-coursing yourself

00:12:00.520 | in a language in a short period of time

00:12:02.360 | and effective ways to do that.

00:12:03.880 | So if someone listening is thinking,

00:12:05.160 | "Gosh, I took Spanish in school.

00:12:06.920 | "I need to brush up."

00:12:08.240 | There's some good tips in that episode

00:12:09.760 | to go back and check out.

00:12:10.840 | So I wanna jump into a few regions,

00:12:12.480 | but before that, talk generally about getting around.

00:12:15.760 | You know, you mentioned people target places

00:12:17.520 | with direct flights.

00:12:19.240 | What's it like to actually get around

00:12:21.560 | outside of the main hubs in Mexico

00:12:24.200 | when it comes to transportation?

00:12:25.480 | - There's all kinds of transportation

00:12:27.360 | to the most remote places in Mexico

00:12:29.840 | from very modern buses.

00:12:32.000 | Of course, you've got taxis,

00:12:33.720 | you've got even some trains like in the Copper Canyon

00:12:36.680 | and some other areas.

00:12:37.920 | You've got internal flights

00:12:39.640 | that you can hub and spoke at a Mexico City

00:12:41.600 | or Guadalajara or Monterrey,

00:12:43.360 | but all kinds of very good and constant transportation,

00:12:47.560 | very frequent, regularly running.

00:12:49.400 | You've got ferries, you've got boats,

00:12:52.080 | you've got all kinds of stuff.

00:12:53.200 | Remember, the large majority of the population

00:12:55.640 | does not have a car.

00:12:57.400 | So they are using public transportation.

00:12:59.760 | And then you can rent vehicles, you can contract vehicles.

00:13:04.200 | Our company organizes transportation, of course,

00:13:06.720 | but there's loads of ways to use public transportation

00:13:09.680 | and it's very effective, efficient, and cheap.

00:13:12.840 | - And when it comes to timing throughout the year,

00:13:15.640 | are there times to avoid

00:13:16.720 | or times to you think Mexico really shines?

00:13:19.080 | I know Caribbean has like rainy season.

00:13:22.320 | Is there, how would you tell someone to think about

00:13:24.280 | when to plan a trip?

00:13:25.160 | I imagine there'll be people that end this episode

00:13:27.520 | and think, I've always thought of Mexico in one way.

00:13:30.160 | I now think of it in a new way

00:13:31.520 | and I'm ready to go experience that.

00:13:33.520 | When should they be thinking about it?

00:13:34.760 | - I think anybody who has true flexibility

00:13:37.360 | and freedom with when they travel

00:13:38.880 | should target non-peak periods.

00:13:41.000 | I mean, that's obvious, right?

00:13:42.360 | That's a no brainer if you can.

00:13:44.480 | The peak periods are gonna be the most crowded.

00:13:46.560 | They're gonna be the most expensive.

00:13:48.480 | They're gonna be a hassle in general, right?

00:13:51.560 | And then you look at rainy season.

00:13:53.160 | When's the weather best?

00:13:54.320 | So you've got in general,

00:13:55.840 | rainy and dry season throughout all of Mexico.

00:13:58.520 | The rainy season spans from about June through October

00:14:03.320 | with the worst of it being late August into late October.

00:14:07.160 | And so you probably wanna avoid that.

00:14:09.000 | But even the early parts of the rainy season,

00:14:11.160 | June, July, even early August,

00:14:13.720 | we kind of look at it as the green season.

00:14:15.640 | It's lower prices.

00:14:17.160 | I think that's a travel hack, if you will.

00:14:19.080 | What most people think is rainy season,

00:14:21.160 | but it only has a little bit of thundershowers

00:14:24.160 | in the late afternoon.

00:14:25.000 | But generally, you've got nice weather

00:14:27.520 | and much better prices, less people, more availability.

00:14:30.680 | And that goes for everything, right?

00:14:31.920 | It's not just the hotels.

00:14:33.720 | It's guides, it's in the archeological sites,

00:14:37.160 | Mexico City restaurants,

00:14:38.240 | seen everybody's after these iconic restaurants.

00:14:40.720 | So I would say those are great months.

00:14:42.400 | Also, I love November.

00:14:44.280 | November's a great month outside of Thanksgiving week,

00:14:47.280 | which is a peak little week there.

00:14:49.320 | But otherwise, all the way into early December,

00:14:51.880 | before the Christmas rush,

00:14:54.160 | you can find great values and the same deal.

00:14:56.440 | You've got good weather.

00:14:57.760 | You've got great availability.

00:14:59.480 | You can get into the restaurants.

00:15:00.560 | Traffic is more mellow.

00:15:01.960 | And then you really have to go destination by destination.

00:15:04.440 | Like we've seen a real uptick in travel to Mexico City

00:15:08.000 | over Christmas and New Year's.

00:15:09.800 | In the beginning, people thought,

00:15:10.840 | well, I don't really wanna visit

00:15:12.280 | because a lot of Mexico City shuts down.

00:15:14.440 | But that also means you don't have

00:15:15.900 | the crazy chaotic traffic, right?

00:15:18.200 | You can get around, it's more mellow.

00:15:20.240 | Sure, I mean, maybe one or two restaurants

00:15:22.400 | or clothes that you wanted to go to or an attraction,

00:15:25.160 | but the calmer pace in a very chaotic city

00:15:28.440 | is very attractive to people.

00:15:29.960 | Yeah, I think that those are some good

00:15:31.840 | kind of insider tips on when.

00:15:34.040 | - We did a trip as a family.

00:15:35.560 | Well, we planned a trip as a family

00:15:37.900 | to Mexico City over Christmas.

00:15:39.840 | And for whatever reason, everyone in our family bailed.

00:15:42.420 | And so my wife and I just went, the two of us,

00:15:44.600 | and I give my full endorsement to that time of year.

00:15:48.360 | Restaurants might've been closed a day or two,

00:15:50.760 | but it wasn't impossible to get incredible meals.

00:15:54.080 | - I love helping you answer all the toughest questions

00:15:58.520 | about life, money, and so much more.

00:16:01.020 | But sometimes it's helpful to talk to other people

00:16:03.600 | in your situation, which actually gets harder

00:16:06.260 | as you build your wealth.

00:16:07.640 | So I wanna introduce you to today's sponsor, Long Angle.

00:16:10.920 | Long Angle is a community of high net worth individuals

00:16:13.760 | with backgrounds in everything from technology,

00:16:15.920 | finance, medicine, to real estate,

00:16:18.000 | law, manufacturing, and more.

00:16:20.440 | I'm a member of Long Angle.

00:16:21.840 | I've loved being a part of the community,

00:16:23.800 | and I've even had one of the founders, Tad Fallows,

00:16:26.120 | join me on all the hacks in episode 87

00:16:28.260 | to talk about alternative investments.

00:16:30.600 | Now, the majority of Long Angle members

00:16:32.320 | are first generation wealth,

00:16:34.120 | young, highly successful individuals

00:16:36.200 | who join the community to share knowledge

00:16:38.360 | and learn from each other

00:16:39.680 | in a confidential, unbiased setting.

00:16:42.280 | On top of that, members also get access

00:16:44.560 | to some unique private market investment opportunities.

00:16:47.880 | Like I said, I'm a member,

00:16:49.300 | and I've gotten so much value from the community

00:16:51.460 | because you're getting advice and feedback

00:16:53.440 | from people in a similar situation to you

00:16:55.920 | on everything from your investment portfolio

00:16:58.360 | to your children's education to finding a concierge doctor.

00:17:02.000 | So many of these conversations

00:17:03.480 | aren't happening anywhere else online.

00:17:05.680 | So if you have more than 2.2 million in investable assets,

00:17:09.360 | which is their minimum for membership,

00:17:11.200 | I encourage you to check out Long Angle,

00:17:13.280 | and it's totally free to join.

00:17:15.400 | Just go to longangle.com to learn more,

00:17:18.560 | and if you choose to apply,

00:17:20.060 | be sure to let them know you heard about it here.

00:17:23.000 | Again, that's longangle, A-N-G-L-E, .com.

00:17:27.100 | Missing an ingredient for that amazing recipe you're making?

00:17:31.960 | Or maybe you just ran out of milk or bread?

00:17:34.320 | Well, with DoorDash Grocery Delivery,

00:17:36.240 | you can get what you want right when you need it,

00:17:38.760 | and I'm excited to be partnering with them

00:17:40.480 | for this episode.

00:17:41.640 | With thousands of grocery stores to choose from,

00:17:43.880 | you'll find the best in your neighborhood,

00:17:45.880 | and with easy substitutions right in the app

00:17:48.320 | and best-in-class customer support,

00:17:50.380 | DoorDash will deliver groceries exactly how you want,

00:17:53.240 | and if that's not the case, DoorDash will make it right.

00:17:56.200 | And if you want even more value,

00:17:58.080 | you can save on all your grocery and restaurant favorites

00:18:00.560 | with a $0 delivery fee on eligible orders

00:18:03.280 | with a DashPass membership,

00:18:04.860 | which you can actually get free with many chase cards

00:18:07.800 | like the Sapphire Preferred or Reserve.

00:18:10.240 | Get 50% off your DoorDash order up to $20 value

00:18:13.560 | when you use code A-T-H-FALL at checkout.

00:18:17.040 | Limited time offer, terms apply.

00:18:19.120 | That's 50% off up to $20, no minimum subtotal,

00:18:22.680 | and zero delivery fees on your first order

00:18:25.380 | when you download the DoorDash app in the App Store

00:18:27.560 | and enter code A-T-H-FALL.

00:18:30.040 | That's A-T-H for all the hacks.

00:18:32.200 | Don't forget, that's code A-T-H-FALL

00:18:34.300 | for 50% off your first order with DoorDash.

00:18:37.720 | I think for people who probably haven't been

00:18:39.640 | to Mexico City or really left major tourist hotels and stuff,

00:18:43.840 | how would you describe Mexican food?

00:18:45.680 | Because I feel like there's American Mexican food,

00:18:48.280 | there's Tex-Mex, and when you're truly in Mexico

00:18:50.360 | and experiencing everything, how different is it?

00:18:53.160 | Sure, that's a great question.

00:18:54.600 | And there's not an easy answer to that

00:18:56.040 | because Mexico, like the U.S., is a vast country,

00:18:59.200 | really big, and cuisine is very regionalized.

00:19:02.320 | So the food you get in Baja California is very different

00:19:06.440 | than the food you're gonna find in the Yucatan.

00:19:08.480 | There are some commonalities, right?

00:19:10.600 | You've got the staple ingredients of corn,

00:19:13.600 | chili peppers, tomatoes, lime,

00:19:17.000 | that you can find ubiquitously, it's everywhere.

00:19:19.860 | But the preparation, you've got regional specialties.

00:19:22.200 | You know, the tlayudas of Oaxaca,

00:19:24.080 | you've got panuchos in the Southeast, in the Yucatan.

00:19:27.680 | Mexico City's famous for its tacos.

00:19:30.120 | You've got a special way of preparing fish and shrimp

00:19:32.880 | in Baja California.

00:19:34.280 | So I always say having a bad meal is a sin in Mexico

00:19:38.560 | because the food is so good.

00:19:40.080 | You know, it's like having a bad meal in Italy.

00:19:41.760 | You've really gotta have bad luck or really screw it up.

00:19:45.040 | But Mexico, the cuisine is so good.

00:19:47.240 | We were the third country in the world,

00:19:49.200 | after France and Italy, to be declared

00:19:52.640 | a UNESCO World Heritage Site for our gastronomy,

00:19:55.480 | for our cuisine, and that's an intangible heritage

00:19:58.880 | of Mexico, and you can read more about that.

00:20:00.680 | But so interesting, the food is just amazing.

00:20:04.480 | It's one of the most visible, the most obvious things

00:20:08.240 | that I miss when I'm traveling out of Mexico,

00:20:11.660 | it's just heavenly, it's amazing.

00:20:14.400 | - If you were just randomly transplanted

00:20:16.200 | to a city in Mexico and you had to find

00:20:18.000 | the best restaurant with no knowledge,

00:20:20.120 | are there ways to get that information?

00:20:21.800 | I feel like asking someone, especially as a foreigner,

00:20:25.200 | can often lead to, well, let me take you to this place

00:20:28.160 | that maybe I'd make some money for sending you to.

00:20:30.520 | How would you suggest people find great places to eat?

00:20:33.380 | - Well, first of all, absolutely, what you said is true.

00:20:36.400 | I think it's important to slow people down

00:20:38.720 | and really ask them, no, don't tell me where I should eat.

00:20:42.360 | Where do you eat?

00:20:43.200 | Where do you go when you have day off

00:20:44.800 | and you're gonna take the family for a nice big lunch?

00:20:47.600 | And by the way, that's another important thing

00:20:49.120 | to keep in mind.

00:20:50.080 | Mexico, the important meal is the lunch.

00:20:52.560 | It's not dinner like we do in North America, right?

00:20:54.920 | So where do you take your family for lunch?

00:20:57.360 | And also be specific, like we like seafood

00:20:59.500 | or we'd like tacos or we'd like certain types of meal.

00:21:02.760 | What's your preference in terms of different foods?

00:21:05.720 | But yeah, urging people, stop your stock answer

00:21:09.120 | or where you might make a commission,

00:21:10.520 | but where do you go?

00:21:11.360 | Where do you go for the best taco or the best lunch spot

00:21:14.560 | or the best seafood or whatever it is

00:21:16.360 | that you have a hankering for?

00:21:17.760 | - And is there any website or app that Mexicans are using

00:21:21.440 | to rate and review places that might be helpful?

00:21:25.120 | - That's interesting.

00:21:25.960 | I never thought of that because it's so ubiquitous

00:21:27.960 | in the U.S. and in the rest of the world.

00:21:29.880 | It's not as common because it's all word of mouth.

00:21:33.200 | We have restaurant guides that we put out

00:21:36.000 | and so you can find them on our website.

00:21:38.520 | But yeah, I think that asking locals,

00:21:41.640 | and this is really interesting,

00:21:42.800 | as the world becomes more commoditized

00:21:45.720 | and as you've got AI,

00:21:47.440 | you've got access to so much information,

00:21:50.040 | getting those recommendations from people you really trust

00:21:53.040 | and you feel like you share the same taste with,

00:21:56.920 | that's real gold and getting those recommendations.

00:21:59.520 | And not just what's the most famous restaurant

00:22:02.040 | in Mexico City, but the little hole-in-the-wall places,

00:22:04.960 | the under-the-radar places,

00:22:06.600 | and also the places that are still good, right?

00:22:08.160 | It was not just that it was good yesterday,

00:22:09.800 | but is it still good today, right?

00:22:12.200 | That's the type of local knowledge that's really valuable.

00:22:15.120 | - And in general, two kind of logistics,

00:22:17.540 | from a timing and reservation perspective,

00:22:21.240 | how should people think about going out to eat?

00:22:23.600 | - Listen, if you go to Mexico City,

00:22:25.920 | you gotta get on that.

00:22:27.480 | If you're interested in the iconic,

00:22:30.880 | super sought after reservations,

00:22:33.260 | you should be making your restaurant reservations

00:22:35.880 | when you make your hotel reservations,

00:22:37.440 | even if that's months out.

00:22:39.120 | Otherwise, it's really difficult to get a bad meal.

00:22:42.000 | I mean, there's so much good food.

00:22:44.440 | I don't think you have to worry much.

00:22:45.740 | There are no Michelin star rated restaurants in Mexico,

00:22:48.080 | which is laughable to me.

00:22:49.680 | But if you want the iconic best of the best in Mexico City,

00:22:53.880 | or even in Oaxaca or perhaps Merida,

00:22:55.920 | it's good to make those reservations early,

00:22:57.560 | especially in Mexico City.

00:22:58.960 | - And timing wise, what time do people eat dinner?

00:23:01.720 | And I feel like I've gone and I don't remember.

00:23:04.200 | Is there a hack, you know,

00:23:05.500 | if you wanna get into some of these places,

00:23:07.140 | go a little earlier, go a little late?

00:23:08.760 | - For sure.

00:23:09.600 | Mexico City and Mexico in general,

00:23:11.860 | dinner is typically not eaten before eight o'clock at night

00:23:14.840 | and often as late as 10.

00:23:16.160 | Lunch doesn't begin until two

00:23:17.920 | and can often be eaten as late as four.

00:23:19.920 | So it's very much in the Spanish tradition.

00:23:22.400 | You've got the siesta, people often leave for lunch

00:23:24.760 | and don't come back.

00:23:25.840 | So it's a much later cycle.

00:23:27.800 | So a good hack is eating earlier.

00:23:30.220 | Absolutely.

00:23:31.060 | If you're okay with eating dinner at 6 p.m.,

00:23:33.320 | as long as the place is open,

00:23:34.880 | you may have to wait for them to get the grill fired up.

00:23:37.440 | But yeah, that's a good way to go about it.

00:23:39.760 | - You know, I keep thinking back to that recommendation

00:23:42.360 | you gave in Puerto Vallarta.

00:23:43.760 | I'm literally gonna go there for dinner.

00:23:45.800 | And so I'm gonna push back a little

00:23:47.760 | since I know you put together a few things in advance.

00:23:50.520 | Maybe give people a couple places,

00:23:52.840 | even just one in a few areas

00:23:55.600 | that would just really top off a trip

00:23:57.760 | in the food, drink, cafe area.

00:24:00.160 | - It's so vast, right?

00:24:01.760 | But there are these gems that really stand out to me

00:24:05.640 | and it's so rich

00:24:07.620 | and there's such a range of different types of things.

00:24:09.440 | But Mexico City in particular,

00:24:11.620 | you know, the street food and the tacos

00:24:13.640 | and it all changes, right?

00:24:14.760 | So definitely before you go,

00:24:16.240 | check back in with me.

00:24:17.080 | Need to make sure that it's still putting out the goods.

00:24:20.060 | But El Venadito, which is carnitas in San Angel,

00:24:23.960 | you literally eat standing up outside,

00:24:26.200 | but it's the best carnitas tacos you'll ever have.

00:24:28.920 | Carnitas are fried pork and pork rinds.

00:24:32.360 | Also the Tacos Moran, which is the suadero,

00:24:35.280 | that's in San Miguel, Chapultepec.

00:24:37.720 | Those are two amazing taquerias.

00:24:40.000 | I was also thinking about in Oaxaca,

00:24:42.320 | this little trendy place

00:24:44.920 | that we just went to, Levadura de Olla.

00:24:47.520 | Check that out.

00:24:48.760 | And then a really local place is called La Teca.

00:24:51.960 | You know, really locals only,

00:24:53.340 | kind of hole in the wall, but just delicious.

00:24:55.620 | I mean, I actually dream about the mole that I had there.

00:24:59.020 | And there are places like this all over,

00:25:01.260 | Merida, Riviera Maya.

00:25:03.780 | You know, you were talking about Cancun.

00:25:05.580 | Right outside of Playa del Carmen,

00:25:07.060 | there's a place called Cocos Cabañas,

00:25:09.180 | about seven miles north of Playa del Carmen.

00:25:11.820 | It's owned by this Swiss-Mexican couple.

00:25:14.800 | And our operations manager, who lives in Playa,

00:25:18.260 | she's Swiss, so she probably has an affinity

00:25:20.460 | for the Swiss-Mexican combo, but just beautiful.

00:25:23.980 | A mixture of like European and Mexican.

00:25:26.300 | Everywhere you go, there's such a plethora

00:25:28.620 | of amazing places from high cuisine to tacos on the street.

00:25:32.860 | Interestingly, that's the trend lately,

00:25:35.300 | is people wanna eat at Pujol, which is Enrique Olvera,

00:25:38.260 | Mexico's most celebrated chef, Michelin star,

00:25:40.980 | if Mexico had Michelin stars.

00:25:43.060 | And the next day, they wanna eat tacos on the street,

00:25:44.980 | like standing up and dripping taco juice on their shoes.

00:25:47.980 | So, you know, let me know when you go

00:25:50.420 | and we'll fill you in on all the little details.

00:25:52.980 | But there's so much and it's always changing.

00:25:55.060 | It's a moving target.

00:25:56.160 | It's so much fun keeping on top of it.

00:25:57.900 | - I haven't had lunch yet, so I am very excited

00:26:00.320 | to eat just in general,

00:26:01.700 | but even more excited for the next trip.

00:26:03.500 | - That's awesome.

00:26:04.340 | - So what I think would be helpful,

00:26:05.740 | you've divided into two broad regions,

00:26:08.380 | vacation, sun, beach, and kind of more heritage.

00:26:11.580 | And I don't know if Mexico City falls in heritage

00:26:13.740 | or a third category on its own, but let's pick those three.

00:26:17.100 | Let's start in beach and relaxation

00:26:19.700 | and maybe hit on some of the favorites and the highlights

00:26:22.460 | from your perspective,

00:26:23.820 | where people wanting that kind of trip should look.

00:26:26.100 | Both, if it's a place that they've heard of,

00:26:28.180 | but still worth going,

00:26:29.180 | I'm hoping to maybe hear of a place

00:26:31.240 | I've not considered for that experience.

00:26:33.540 | - So there's the big three these days,

00:26:35.420 | at least for international tourists,

00:26:36.740 | which are Los Cabos, Puerto Vallarta,

00:26:39.300 | couple that with Punta de Mita,

00:26:41.340 | and Cancun, Riviera Maya, all the way down to Tulum.

00:26:44.140 | Right, those are the three big beach destinations.

00:26:46.620 | Acapulco used to be in that category

00:26:49.100 | and it's since fell out of favor, at least internationally,

00:26:52.740 | a big destination for people from Mexico City

00:26:55.340 | and within Mexico.

00:26:56.540 | But there are more off the beaten path destinations.

00:26:59.340 | And I think that's very much in high demand these days.

00:27:02.860 | People wanna know what's the next Tulum, right?

00:27:05.300 | So you've got places like Sayulita,

00:27:07.700 | you've got Puerto Escondido on the Pacific coast.

00:27:10.020 | I think quite a bit of the Pacific coast

00:27:11.940 | is still relatively unexplored.

00:27:14.660 | You've got Ixtapacihuatanejo, which is lesser visited,

00:27:18.380 | more popular than these kind of very little fishing towns.

00:27:21.580 | At Todos Santos in Southern Baja

00:27:23.860 | is another place that people are keen on

00:27:26.540 | looking for off the beaten path,

00:27:28.140 | smaller beach destinations.

00:27:30.980 | Even going further than Tulum, down to Bacalar,

00:27:34.540 | which is down all the way towards Chetumal,

00:27:36.420 | that's another interesting spot

00:27:38.360 | that's just starting to be noticed.

00:27:40.620 | Those are a few of the lesser visited sun and sand.

00:27:43.780 | - How would you compare the three more visited

00:27:46.460 | for someone's like, I'm going to Mexico, I wanna beach.

00:27:49.580 | It's funny 'cause I've been to all three

00:27:50.940 | and I don't know if I have the right answer.

00:27:52.660 | So if someone asked me,

00:27:53.660 | I'm hoping I now have a place to send them to compare.

00:27:56.540 | - Sure.

00:27:57.380 | In broad strokes, you've got the Caribbean,

00:27:58.980 | which is this turquoise water, this fine white sand.

00:28:02.300 | If you're a snorkeler, scuba diver, this is heaven.

00:28:05.620 | That said, it's also the most visited, right?

00:28:08.660 | So the Cancun airport gets flights from,

00:28:10.580 | well, it did get flights from Moscow,

00:28:12.380 | not quite so much anymore.

00:28:14.260 | But from very far flung international destinations,

00:28:17.820 | thousands of flights landing and taking off daily.

00:28:20.920 | And it's crowded, it's busy, it's commercial.

00:28:23.400 | So you really have to dig there, right?

00:28:25.200 | Get out of Cancun, used to be Playa del Carmen,

00:28:27.400 | now Playa del Carmen, it's full.

00:28:29.800 | You go down to Tulum.

00:28:30.740 | Tulum seems to be a bit overcooked at this point as well.

00:28:33.740 | So you've really got to kind of dig

00:28:35.500 | and find little off the beaten path places

00:28:37.500 | to find any kind of peace and quiet

00:28:40.060 | or more relaxed atmosphere.

00:28:42.160 | - Quick question, where does Cozumel fit in there?

00:28:44.660 | My wife went as a child every year

00:28:47.180 | and neither one of us have been there in a decade

00:28:49.940 | and you didn't mention it, so I thought I'd just ask.

00:28:51.980 | - Cozumel is a big dive spot

00:28:54.060 | and it's also a huge cruise port.

00:28:55.980 | So that is what dominates Cozumel travel and tourism.

00:29:00.340 | I don't know if your wife's family were divers.

00:29:02.700 | There you go, yep.

00:29:05.120 | Yeah, and then you've got Isla Mujeres,

00:29:06.940 | you've got a bunch of little different Puerto Morelos.

00:29:10.180 | There's little spots that you can try and hit.

00:29:12.680 | So it's important to dig a little further.

00:29:15.520 | Then you've got Puerto Vallarta.

00:29:16.880 | I would say Puerto Vallarta

00:29:18.380 | is probably the most traditional beach destination.

00:29:21.880 | That's where I've lived for the last 16 years.

00:29:23.960 | There's a colonial historical center.

00:29:26.240 | It had an economic life and historical life

00:29:28.920 | before tourism and travel came.

00:29:31.200 | Tourism and travel came back in the '50s.

00:29:33.160 | If you remember Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton film,

00:29:36.200 | "The Night of the Iguana" there.

00:29:37.420 | So it's been on the radar.

00:29:39.360 | It kinda was a jet setty type of destination

00:29:42.320 | back when Acapulco had fame

00:29:44.000 | and it still really retains a lot of local charm.

00:29:46.720 | One of the things that I love about Puerto Vallarta

00:29:49.160 | is the initial waves of travelers and tourists

00:29:53.900 | that came and even settled there

00:29:56.440 | were largely North Americans, also some Europeans,

00:29:59.840 | that came to live like Mexicans.

00:30:02.040 | They put on their huaraches, their traditional sandals,

00:30:04.400 | and got their little bag and went to the market

00:30:06.820 | and they were very respectful

00:30:08.300 | and created a very symbiotic type of relationship

00:30:11.880 | with the local people.

00:30:12.820 | So that in turn created a very kind,

00:30:15.960 | generous, open-hearted outlook

00:30:18.760 | from the locals towards the tourists

00:30:21.040 | and towards the settlers, right?

00:30:22.880 | And we found that as a family living in Puerto Vallarta.

00:30:25.920 | Cancun, on the other hand, really was an invention, right?

00:30:29.200 | It was a business operation.

00:30:31.400 | They saw the potential.

00:30:33.040 | They came in, Fonatur, and created Cancun

00:30:35.520 | with the sole purpose of bringing travelers there

00:30:38.240 | and it was literally wetlands and mangroves

00:30:40.500 | and there was no community there, right?

00:30:42.720 | So everything is imported, including even the locals.

00:30:45.560 | There's no real locals.

00:30:46.940 | There's a few local fishing

00:30:49.280 | and it was more migrant, right?

00:30:50.800 | Seasonal fishing.

00:30:52.280 | So you feel that difference very starkly.

00:30:54.920 | You've got traditional architecture

00:30:56.800 | and it reflects in the food as well.

00:30:58.520 | When we talk later

00:30:59.760 | about the more cultural heritage destinations,

00:31:03.740 | people often ask me to compare San Miguel Allende and Oaxaca

00:31:06.960 | and not to detour too far off what we're talking about.

00:31:09.960 | So Oaxaca has a lot of indigenous,

00:31:11.400 | pre-Columbian culture, history, people.

00:31:14.000 | And so that influences the food and the culture

00:31:16.920 | and the history and the clothing

00:31:18.920 | and the language and everything.

00:31:20.920 | It's the same way with Puerto Vallarta.

00:31:22.040 | You've got more of a historical,

00:31:24.080 | you have more roots there.

00:31:25.400 | And that shows through in the food, in the architecture,

00:31:28.560 | in the history, in the culture,

00:31:30.200 | and also the sense of pride that the local people have

00:31:32.500 | about their own hometown.

00:31:34.320 | So that's Puerto Vallarta.

00:31:35.920 | Los Cabos is really the new kid on the block.

00:31:38.280 | You know, the Baja Peninsula was considered

00:31:40.240 | literally an island for a long time.

00:31:42.320 | We're talking historically, right?

00:31:43.520 | Back in the 16 and 1700s,

00:31:45.600 | before people realized it was connected

00:31:47.140 | all the way up at the border with it.

00:31:48.880 | Well, I guess it was still part of Mexico,

00:31:50.860 | all of the Southwest of the United States.

00:31:52.880 | But in that sense, it's very removed.

00:31:55.800 | It's very expensive, Baja, because of the same reasons,

00:31:58.880 | right, you have to import everything.

00:32:00.880 | A lot of the products and even the history and the culture

00:32:04.060 | come from North America, not from the mainland of Mexico.

00:32:08.040 | But Los Cabos, yeah, is new and glitzy and shiny and fancy

00:32:12.120 | and definitely more expensive,

00:32:14.160 | but it's also got a very high level

00:32:16.400 | in terms of quality, of service.

00:32:18.880 | And many people say that it really does feel

00:32:21.280 | almost like an extension of Southern California.

00:32:23.960 | And you know, you had Baja California, Baja Sur,

00:32:27.620 | and this was just lower California.

00:32:30.240 | And you still feel a lot of North American influence there.

00:32:32.920 | I'd also add to that, just geographically,

00:32:35.180 | it's this very stark desert contrasted

00:32:39.780 | by this sparkling, dazzling Sea of Cortez

00:32:42.900 | and the Pacific Ocean.

00:32:44.580 | So that juxtaposition of the desert

00:32:46.420 | with this deep blue Pacific

00:32:48.140 | and the sparkling, dazzling blue Sea of Cortez.

00:32:51.740 | And the Sea of Cortez in itself is worth mentioning.

00:32:54.260 | This is what Jacques Cousteau called the world's aquarium.

00:32:56.820 | So this is like a Galapagos level

00:32:59.300 | marine wildlife environment.

00:33:01.100 | So there's a lot there.

00:33:02.580 | - So before we move on from beach,

00:33:04.780 | I wanna think there's probably some high percentage

00:33:07.740 | of the audience who's going to, in the next year or two,

00:33:10.500 | go to one of these three destinations.

00:33:12.760 | If we cycle through each of them,

00:33:14.960 | what's one or two things people should consider adding on,

00:33:19.060 | whether it's for the day, for a couple nights,

00:33:21.780 | that's nearby to enrich a trip to Riviera Maya,

00:33:25.940 | Los Cabos, or Puerto Vallarta?

00:33:27.940 | - Bit of a can of worms here.

00:33:29.100 | There's a lot.

00:33:29.940 | If I could generalize, I'd say make sure,

00:33:32.140 | even if you're in an all-inclusive hotel,

00:33:33.820 | which offer great value, and I'm not down on that,

00:33:37.020 | but get out of the hotel.

00:33:38.920 | Get out there.

00:33:40.100 | There's some must-see type of things.

00:33:42.420 | If you're going to the Riviera Maya or the Caribbean,

00:33:44.620 | you're probably gonna have to see an archeological site

00:33:46.900 | if you haven't been, whether it's Chichen Itza

00:33:48.620 | or Tulum or Coba.

00:33:50.380 | But, you know, interact with your driver, with your guide.

00:33:53.420 | Stop into a local restaurant.

00:33:55.100 | Try to mix it up with the locals a little bit.

00:33:57.260 | So I'd say, in general, get out of the hotel,

00:34:00.660 | try to interact with the locals,

00:34:02.300 | go have a local meal at a local restaurant.

00:34:04.620 | Often, taxi drivers are great source,

00:34:06.900 | and remember to ask them to go to somewhere they would go,

00:34:09.640 | not someplace that they want to take you to.

00:34:11.740 | Tell them that you'll even pay their commission.

00:34:13.420 | You'd be happy to pay for their honest recommendation

00:34:15.820 | and not just someplace they might get a kickback.

00:34:17.580 | I'd also say, look around, and of course, we're a resource,

00:34:21.480 | but look around on the internet or with friends

00:34:24.060 | or other resources.

00:34:25.540 | What are some small towns around where they're staying

00:34:27.860 | that they might be able to go in and have a beer at sunset

00:34:31.340 | or meet the locals or something that wasn't so built up?

00:34:35.140 | You know, if you can find a little small town

00:34:36.680 | to go have a coffee or a meal or a drink,

00:34:39.900 | that's a great opportunity to feel a little bit more

00:34:42.100 | of the authentic nature of a destination.

00:34:43.860 | - So I'll push a little bit on each one,

00:34:45.760 | maybe one at a time, just to get a couple specific things.

00:34:49.580 | So someone's going Riviera Maya.

00:34:51.380 | Let's say they're in Cancun.

00:34:52.940 | Maybe give them a couple things,

00:34:54.540 | whether it's a restaurant, a bar, or a day trip

00:34:57.940 | that would elevate the trip

00:34:59.660 | that they might've otherwise taken.

00:35:01.600 | And in my case, since I've done this,

00:35:03.580 | stayed at the JW Marriott for a while.

00:35:05.820 | That was 10 years ago.

00:35:07.420 | - Absolutely.

00:35:08.260 | If you're going to the Riviera Maya or the Caribbean,

00:35:09.660 | I'd say definitely go visit Puerto Morelos, for example,

00:35:13.080 | and just kick around the town and go down to the beach

00:35:15.460 | and get a ceviche and try to find that small town feel.

00:35:19.900 | You know, it used to be Tulum.

00:35:21.780 | Tulum is now, as I mentioned, a bit overcooked.

00:35:24.580 | It's still cool, it's still bohemian chic,

00:35:26.860 | but yeah, it's gotten quite crowded and busy.

00:35:29.040 | So go to Puerto Morelos,

00:35:31.020 | or if you want something totally away from the sea,

00:35:34.340 | go over to Valladolid,

00:35:35.780 | which was the first capital of the Yucatan Peninsula.

00:35:38.020 | That's to the west of Cancun.

00:35:40.140 | Colonial town in the middle of the peninsula.

00:35:43.180 | You could actually combine it with a trip to Chichen Itza

00:35:46.140 | and just walk around and feel that colonial history

00:35:49.340 | that really you don't get

00:35:50.660 | if you just stay at the beach resorts.

00:35:52.260 | That would be the Caribbean.

00:35:53.340 | If you go to Puerto Vallarta.

00:35:55.740 | - Which by the way, my family and I are going

00:35:58.260 | the first week of December.

00:35:59.900 | So have plans, looking to add something on.

00:36:02.740 | So this one, I'm like-

00:36:03.900 | - To Puerto Vallarta.

00:36:04.740 | - Yes.

00:36:05.580 | - Okay, well, I'd ask you if you'd been before,

00:36:07.060 | but I'd say take a trip over to Sayulita,

00:36:09.600 | which is a little town north of Punta de Mita.

00:36:12.740 | You could also go and get tacos in Piteal,

00:36:16.060 | which is a little local part of Puerto Vallarta city.

00:36:19.540 | Walk the Malecon, which is the seaside promenade at sunset,

00:36:23.100 | along with all the other Mexican families and their kids.

00:36:26.020 | I could go on and on.

00:36:27.220 | There's some amazing beach clubs

00:36:29.380 | in the south side of the bay.

00:36:31.080 | Majahuitas, or there's a whole string of them.

00:36:33.980 | Casamaraycas that are amazing.

00:36:36.480 | I think you have to get out on the water in Puerto Vallarta

00:36:38.700 | and see that perspective with the mountains

00:36:40.720 | and the whole Bay of Banderas.

00:36:42.980 | So those are a few things that you might consider

00:36:45.540 | in Puerto Vallarta.

00:36:46.500 | And in Los Cabos, I encourage you to go one way

00:36:49.980 | or the other up the coast,

00:36:51.300 | either to Todos Santos, which is on the Pacific side,

00:36:54.360 | amazing little colonial village, an oasis town,

00:36:57.380 | a lot of artists and expat surfer vibe,

00:37:00.100 | great little restaurants as well.

00:37:02.040 | You go for a surfing lesson in Los Cerritos Beach.

00:37:04.660 | That could be one way.

00:37:05.500 | Or go the other side of the peninsula,

00:37:07.940 | which would be up towards Cabo Pulmo.

00:37:09.660 | Cabo Pulmo is home to the northern most tropical reef

00:37:13.300 | in North America.

00:37:15.020 | And you can do some incredible snorkeling

00:37:17.700 | with giant fish balls of mahi and of whitefish.

00:37:22.460 | And yeah, I think that's a world-class experience.

00:37:26.300 | And also there's some great little cevicherias

00:37:29.380 | and marisquerias right there,

00:37:31.100 | little seafood restaurants in Cabo Pulmo.

00:37:33.640 | So again, get out of the main town, get in a car,

00:37:36.220 | go take a drive, open your eyes,

00:37:38.140 | meet some locals, eat some good food.

00:37:40.460 | I think that's a good formula for Mexico

00:37:42.120 | of getting a bit more of a feel.

00:37:43.820 | I feel like I'm gonna be a little embarrassed to say this,

00:37:45.820 | but I'm gonna do it anyways

00:37:46.800 | for the sake of everyone listening.

00:37:48.180 | They've probably been to Los Cabos, I don't know,

00:37:50.780 | plenty of times.

00:37:51.620 | Many times for a bachelor party 'cause from California,

00:37:54.460 | it's the easy option.

00:37:56.020 | And we've never spent any time in San Jose del Cabo.

00:37:58.820 | Is that a huge mistake?

00:38:00.540 | - I like San Jose del Cabo.

00:38:01.980 | And again, there is a village there.

00:38:03.500 | There is a town there that was there before tourism.

00:38:05.900 | You've got colonial architecture, you've got some shops.

00:38:08.540 | So I absolutely think it's worth a visit,

00:38:10.820 | especially you're right there.

00:38:11.920 | It's not a big investment of time.

00:38:13.980 | Go check it out for sure.

00:38:15.300 | - Okay, last thing before I move outside of the beach is,

00:38:18.220 | since I actually am going to Puerto Vallarta,

00:38:20.860 | we're going with kids, so keep that in mind.

00:38:23.000 | Maybe we could escape them for a day also.

00:38:25.280 | But is there a place that my wife and I,

00:38:27.460 | if we leave for a day or an hour or two to get a meal,

00:38:30.980 | we should be checking out specifically?

00:38:32.660 | Since this one, at least for me, is like,

00:38:34.820 | yep, I'm gonna go book it, we're gonna go do it.

00:38:36.660 | I'll report back to the listeners.

00:38:38.740 | - Here's an even better one.

00:38:39.860 | You can bring the kids,

00:38:41.200 | go to a little restaurant called Barracuda.

00:38:43.920 | They have a couple locations, they're buddies of mine.

00:38:46.800 | And the one in the center of Puerto Vallarta,

00:38:50.080 | so it's Barracuda Centro.

00:38:51.960 | The reason I say bring the kids,

00:38:53.240 | so you've got this beachside restaurant

00:38:55.240 | that has wonderful seafood, amazing view,

00:38:58.400 | but it's right there on the sand

00:39:00.480 | and the kids can run around on the beach.

00:39:01.940 | They'll eat their food and then they can run right out there.

00:39:04.520 | It's safe, you can see them,

00:39:06.720 | and you guys can hang out and have a margarita.

00:39:08.960 | And you can even get tables right on the sand there.

00:39:11.600 | So that could be one.

00:39:12.560 | Now, if you really wanna leave them behind

00:39:14.560 | and you got a little more than a couple hours,

00:39:16.480 | there's this amazing restaurant called The Ocean Grill.

00:39:20.160 | You've gotta go over to Boca de Tomatlan,

00:39:22.080 | or you can actually leave from downtown Vallarta.

00:39:24.400 | You get a water taxi and you gotta make a reservation.

00:39:27.840 | They only go by reservations

00:39:29.520 | and it's this incredible setting

00:39:31.840 | where you're nestled into this cliff

00:39:33.960 | on the south side of the bay.

00:39:35.520 | They don't allow kids

00:39:37.320 | and it's just really simple, fresh seafood.

00:39:41.200 | It's a grill, they throw on the grill

00:39:43.680 | either fish, octopus, lobster, shrimp.

00:39:47.040 | I think they make a little bit of meat as well.

00:39:48.860 | And it's really a special experience

00:39:51.420 | and kind of a time travel, if you will.

00:39:53.360 | You know, you feel like you've gone back in time

00:39:55.160 | and you're in this little tropical paradise

00:39:57.780 | with the jungle all around you and the sparkling sea.

00:40:00.680 | And there's this cool little area you can,

00:40:02.520 | if you like to jump off of stuff,

00:40:03.840 | you can jump off into the ocean and it's awesome.

00:40:06.760 | - I feel like nice dinner,

00:40:08.280 | jumping in the water is an activity

00:40:10.440 | I am interested in.

00:40:11.360 | My wife would be like, no,

00:40:12.200 | I did my hair for this nice dinner.

00:40:13.800 | We left the kids at home.

00:40:14.720 | I'm not jumping off,

00:40:15.640 | but we are bringing our au pair

00:40:17.400 | who's never been to Mexico and she's so excited,

00:40:19.640 | which means that we will be able to sneak away

00:40:22.240 | for at least one evening.

00:40:23.520 | So adding that to the docket,

00:40:25.280 | we will make that reservation.

00:40:26.780 | I wanna share some feedback from a listener named Mike

00:40:30.280 | who emailed me about our sponsor today, AG1.

00:40:33.480 | He said he's been taking AG1 every day

00:40:35.520 | for the past two years,

00:40:36.680 | and he's seen great results in his blood work

00:40:38.880 | for vitamins and minerals.

00:40:40.120 | And when he showed it to his doctors,

00:40:41.800 | they were impressed at the actual ingredients.

00:40:44.200 | So Mike, thank you for sharing your experience.

00:40:46.520 | I too am a big fan of AG1,

00:40:48.440 | and it's been in my routine for almost two years as well,

00:40:50.860 | because just one daily serving

00:40:52.520 | gives me the comprehensive foundational nutrition I need

00:40:55.440 | and supports energy, focus, strength, and clarity

00:40:58.360 | with 75 high quality vitamins, probiotics,

00:41:01.200 | and whole food sourced ingredients.

00:41:03.080 | So it can completely replace your multivitamin,

00:41:05.440 | probiotics, and more.

00:41:07.160 | Every morning, I mix it up with some cold water,

00:41:09.320 | add a few ice cubes,

00:41:10.380 | because I think it tastes so good when it's cold,

00:41:12.440 | and head to my office feeling focused

00:41:14.420 | and energized for the day,

00:41:15.720 | which is a feeling I absolutely love.

00:41:18.120 | I also love that AG1 is raising the standard

00:41:20.280 | for quality in the supplement category

00:41:22.360 | with less than one gram of sugar

00:41:24.020 | and no GMOs, nasty chemicals, or artificial anything.

00:41:27.760 | So if you're looking for a simpler,

00:41:29.400 | effective investment in your health,

00:41:31.120 | try AG1 and get five free AG1 travel packs

00:41:34.620 | and a free one year supply of vitamin D

00:41:36.840 | with your first purchase.

00:41:38.480 | Go to allthehacks.com/AG1.

00:41:41.960 | That's allthehacks.com/AG1.

00:41:45.400 | Check it out.

00:41:46.240 | Getting the crew together isn't as easy as it used to be.

00:41:51.000 | I get it, life comes at you fast,

00:41:53.400 | but trust me, your friends are probably desperate

00:41:56.280 | for a good hang.

00:41:57.420 | So kick 2024 off right by finally hosting that event.

00:42:01.480 | Just make sure you do it the easy way

00:42:03.440 | and let our sponsor, Drizly,

00:42:05.380 | the go-to app for drink delivery,

00:42:07.320 | take care of the supplies.

00:42:09.080 | All you need to come up with is the excuse to get together.

00:42:11.920 | It doesn't even have to be a good one.

00:42:13.760 | It could be your dog's birthday,

00:42:15.160 | that the sun finally came out,

00:42:17.160 | or maybe you just wanna celebrate

00:42:18.640 | that you got through another week.

00:42:20.700 | With Drizly, you can make hosting easy

00:42:22.800 | by taking the drink run off your to-do list,

00:42:25.340 | which means you can entice your friends

00:42:27.120 | to leave their houses without ever leaving yours.

00:42:30.200 | And since I know you like a good deal,

00:42:31.880 | Drizly compares prices on their massive selection

00:42:34.440 | of beer, wine, and spirits across multiple stores.

00:42:37.420 | So when I really wanted to make a few cocktails

00:42:39.440 | while we were hosting family last week,

00:42:41.280 | not only could I get an Italian Amaro

00:42:43.360 | delivered in less than an hour,

00:42:45.000 | but I found it for $15 less than my local liquor store.

00:42:48.480 | So whatever the occasion,

00:42:50.120 | download the Drizly app or go to drizly.com.

00:42:53.400 | That's D-R-I-Z-L-Y.com today.

00:42:57.400 | Must be 21 plus, not available in all locations.

00:43:00.640 | I just wanna thank you quick for listening to

00:43:04.560 | and supporting the show.

00:43:06.040 | Your support is what keeps this show going.

00:43:08.880 | To get all of the URLs, codes, deals,

00:43:11.580 | and discounts from our partners,

00:43:13.360 | you can go to allthehacks.com/deals.

00:43:16.880 | So please consider supporting those who support us.

00:43:20.040 | Okay, I wanted to go a little deeper

00:43:21.640 | on the new things to try while you're in those places,

00:43:24.280 | 'cause I imagine most people maybe don't do that normally,

00:43:27.680 | but a lot of these other destinations,

00:43:29.200 | more heritage-focused cities are things

00:43:32.000 | that I know a lot of people haven't checked out in Mexico.

00:43:34.620 | So how would you break down those options?

00:43:36.880 | I don't know if you wanna start or end with Mexico City,

00:43:39.200 | but you let me know.

00:43:40.440 | Sure, so Mexico City definitely fits

00:43:42.440 | in the whole heritage, culture, history category.

00:43:46.220 | I think you gotta start and finish with Mexico City.

00:43:48.560 | Mexico is a very centralized country, right?

00:43:51.600 | Everything begins and ends in Mexico City.

00:43:54.640 | It's a very centralized place in terms of politics,

00:43:57.520 | economy, culture.

00:43:59.760 | It is such a fascinating, dynamic city.

00:44:04.680 | I believe that everybody who likes cities

00:44:06.920 | and enjoys traveling in cities should go.

00:44:09.840 | You've got culture, you've got history,

00:44:12.160 | you've got music, you've got cuisine,

00:44:13.920 | you've got incredible museums.

00:44:16.000 | The hotel scene is amazing, the bar scene.

00:44:19.440 | You could spend a long time in Mexico City.

00:44:23.080 | Not only is it the most important place

00:44:25.160 | in modern-day Mexico, but this is where the Mexica,

00:44:28.760 | which Mexico is named after, they came to Mexico City,

00:44:33.320 | they saw an eagle with a snake in its claw on a rock

00:44:37.900 | and said, "This is where we're forming our capital."

00:44:39.960 | That was Tenochtitlan,

00:44:40.960 | that's ancient capital of the Mexica.

00:44:44.640 | And so it's been the most important capital city of Mexico

00:44:49.080 | from the very beginning.

00:44:50.320 | We're talking about thousands of years ago.

00:44:52.040 | I couldn't recommend it highly enough,

00:44:54.360 | and you definitely need inside knowledge

00:44:57.120 | to make the most of your time.

00:44:58.680 | You need a minimum of four days in Mexico City,

00:45:01.880 | but I think you can easily fill up a week or two,

00:45:04.840 | depending on your interests.

00:45:06.120 | Just doing the highlights takes four days,

00:45:08.440 | and those are the top-level highlights.

00:45:11.040 | And then if you wanna get under the skin a bit

00:45:12.840 | and go a little deeper and explore,

00:45:14.800 | you need at least a week.

00:45:16.240 | - Okay, so I'm very curious to see

00:45:17.480 | what we may have missed or not missed.

00:45:18.920 | We went for, I think, five days.

00:45:21.000 | I'll second everything you said.

00:45:22.520 | I think for someone in the States

00:45:24.800 | looking for an international city

00:45:27.320 | to go on an adventure to,

00:45:29.360 | I can't think of a better place.

00:45:30.680 | Like, easy to get to on flights,

00:45:32.600 | super affordable, incredible hotels,

00:45:35.360 | food, drink, everything.

00:45:37.040 | So let's talk about some of these highlights,

00:45:38.640 | because if someone listening hasn't been to Mexico City,

00:45:41.080 | I think it just has to be on the list.

00:45:42.640 | - And by the way,

00:45:43.480 | one other thing I'd mention about Mexico City

00:45:44.920 | is one of the greatest thing about not just Mexico City,

00:45:47.760 | Mexico in general, are the Mexicans.

00:45:49.840 | I mean, the most hospitable, warm, dynamic people.

00:45:53.680 | So one of the fascinating things about Mexico City

00:45:56.760 | is it's such a big city that it's not a touristy place,

00:45:59.920 | right, it's really dominated by Mexicans, right?

00:46:02.000 | The city is living and breathing

00:46:04.640 | and pulsing with Mexicans.

00:46:06.640 | So you're there, you're not real important,

00:46:09.880 | you're just observing and flowing

00:46:13.040 | and trying to flow with that city,

00:46:15.360 | 'cause if you're flowing against it,

00:46:16.560 | it's the chaos, the traffic, it's a bad scene, right?

00:46:19.520 | So that's why you really do well to go with an expert

00:46:24.520 | or someone, if you're really lucky,

00:46:26.680 | a friend, or you're an invited guest.

00:46:29.080 | But if you're not, someone who understands the city

00:46:31.200 | and how to get around and how to avoid that chaos.

00:46:33.800 | Now, as far as the highlights,

00:46:34.880 | you've got several UNESCO World Heritage sites

00:46:37.760 | within Mexico City.

00:46:39.200 | You've got the historic city center,

00:46:41.940 | which has the Metropolitan Cathedral.

00:46:43.720 | It's got the Zocalo, which is the central square,

00:46:45.740 | which is the third largest central square in the world.

00:46:48.240 | It's got the Templo Mayor,

00:46:49.720 | which was the Aztec capital archeological site.

00:46:54.000 | You've got the Palacio de Gobierno,

00:46:55.880 | which is the government palace,

00:46:58.020 | which has the Diego Rivera murals,

00:47:00.080 | which by the way, you can't see right now, unfortunately.

00:47:02.640 | You've got the Palacio de Bellas Artes,

00:47:04.320 | the fine arts center,

00:47:05.220 | which has other incredible Orozco murals

00:47:07.960 | and other of the great muralists.

00:47:09.680 | The whole city, they call it the city of palaces,

00:47:12.680 | because it literally was just lined up

00:47:15.180 | with palace after palace during the colonial era,

00:47:18.020 | each family trying to outdo the next

00:47:20.820 | with the grandeur of these different palaces.

00:47:23.380 | They now have taken on the function of the Correos,

00:47:26.740 | the mail room or the post office.

00:47:29.100 | And then some of them are government offices

00:47:30.940 | and some of them are museums.

00:47:32.520 | So it's an incredible center,

00:47:35.060 | really tight, dense historic center

00:47:37.340 | with architecture and all the rest.

00:47:38.780 | Speaking of architecture, you could spend a whole day

00:47:41.100 | exploring the architectural riches of Mexico City,

00:47:44.260 | including La Gorreta or Barragan.

00:47:46.940 | These are just incredible world-renowned architects

00:47:50.860 | that have their work spread out throughout the city.

00:47:53.580 | You also have the pyramids, right?

00:47:55.020 | Which are the third and fourth largest pyramidal temples

00:47:57.740 | in the world.

00:47:58.820 | They're about 45 minutes outside of Mexico City.

00:48:01.340 | That's a must do, must see for sure.

00:48:04.020 | You've got the south of the city,

00:48:05.180 | which includes Coyoacan and San Angel.

00:48:07.820 | This is where Xochimilco is.

00:48:09.780 | These are very traditional neighborhoods

00:48:11.620 | where you can still feel the Mexico City

00:48:14.020 | of the '40s and '50s and '60s,

00:48:16.380 | before it just got subsumed by this massive metropolis.

00:48:20.260 | You've got Spanish colonial architecture.

00:48:22.180 | You've got cobblestone streets.

00:48:23.900 | You also have the Saturday Market in San Angel.

00:48:27.180 | And then you've got Xochimilco,

00:48:28.380 | which is some of the last remaining

00:48:30.300 | preserved Aztec waterways, right?

00:48:33.220 | All of Mexico City actually sits on

00:48:36.660 | what were basically wetlands and canals,

00:48:40.700 | much like Venice, right?

00:48:42.220 | So the mode of transport back in the day of the Aztecs,

00:48:44.700 | when the Spanish first arrived, was by canoe.

00:48:47.340 | And Xochimilco is some of the last preserved,

00:48:50.060 | traditional floating gardens, the chinampas and the canals.

00:48:54.860 | And you can see what that was like.

00:48:56.620 | We also have some access to lesser visited ones.

00:48:59.660 | The Xochimilco is a very raucous touristy.

00:49:02.580 | A Saturday or a Sunday there is filled

00:49:05.100 | with Mexican families and mariachis

00:49:07.660 | and beer slinging vendors.

00:49:09.420 | It's a lot of fun, but it's pretty dynamic, let's say.

00:49:11.940 | We've got access to some areas that are not as busy,

00:49:15.980 | and you can get a little bit more peaceful experience

00:49:18.140 | of what those canals were like.

00:49:20.220 | So that right there, I think I've named enough stuff

00:49:23.660 | to be three or four full days, right?

00:49:26.340 | And that's full days.

00:49:27.980 | You then have the neighborhoods of Condesa and Roma, right?

00:49:30.980 | If you wanna go check out the gallery scene and the art

00:49:33.340 | and just cruise and have a coffee

00:49:35.260 | and see the contemporary creative class

00:49:37.460 | and what's going on there.

00:49:38.620 | By the way, Mexico City and especially Roma Norte

00:49:41.300 | and Condesa have become these international enclaves,

00:49:44.540 | especially full of North Americans and Canadians,

00:49:47.260 | remote working, global nomads,

00:49:48.980 | people living and working remotely.

00:49:51.860 | And you can hear quite a bit of English these days

00:49:53.820 | on the streets, it's interesting.

00:49:55.580 | And then you've got so many other more subtle things.

00:49:58.460 | If you're into art or if you're into handicrafts

00:50:01.940 | or if you're into museums,

00:50:04.340 | we didn't even mention the anthropology museum,

00:50:06.580 | all the different museums.

00:50:07.700 | So you've got a week minimum to make sure

00:50:11.060 | that you hit all of the great museums, galleries,

00:50:15.900 | the highlights that we mentioned, check out Reforma,

00:50:19.220 | then the nightlife, the restaurants.

00:50:21.420 | So there's a lot to do.

00:50:22.940 | - Yeah, I think we under indexed on museums

00:50:25.660 | and over indexed on food as we often do.

00:50:28.820 | You know, we're like, how do we fit four meals in a day?

00:50:31.220 | How do we try all the things?

00:50:33.020 | I was blown away at the quality of the food you get

00:50:37.900 | and the price.

00:50:38.820 | Meals that would be hundreds and hundreds of dollars

00:50:42.060 | in the U.S. for less than a hundred dollars.

00:50:43.740 | - And how about the service?

00:50:45.180 | - It doesn't feel like you're sacrificing anything

00:50:47.980 | other than a couple hours on a plane.

00:50:50.260 | - And trust me, I've thought about it more than once,

00:50:52.020 | get on a plane just to get some tacos for lunch.

00:50:54.100 | I mean, it is that good,

00:50:56.620 | but I meant the service is so good and it's so natural.

00:50:59.540 | And before you even know you need something,

00:51:01.380 | it's there in front of you.

00:51:02.540 | The service in Mexico and in Mexico city in particular

00:51:05.740 | is phenomenal, it's world-class.

00:51:07.940 | But don't sell the museum short, right?

00:51:10.100 | You've got the Anthro Museum,

00:51:11.660 | which you could spend literally days in.

00:51:13.820 | You've got the Casa Azul,

00:51:15.260 | which is Frida Kahlo's childhood home.

00:51:17.700 | You've got the Dolores Olmedo,

00:51:19.380 | if you're interested in Diego and Frida.

00:51:21.540 | You've just got all kinds of museums,

00:51:23.580 | even within Chapultepec Park.

00:51:26.220 | There's several other museums, there's nonstop.

00:51:29.180 | You really could spend a week

00:51:30.980 | just going through the museums.

00:51:32.740 | You know that the Sona Maco,

00:51:34.020 | which is the largest contemporary art fair in Latin America

00:51:37.020 | is held every year in Mexico city.

00:51:39.180 | And it's fascinating the amount of private collections,

00:51:43.460 | which by the way, we can open for people

00:51:45.740 | who are interested in that

00:51:46.740 | through the relationships that we have.

00:51:48.220 | So there's just so much to do.

00:51:50.460 | - You've mentioned a few things

00:51:51.460 | that you guys might have access to.

00:51:52.860 | And one question that I imagine someone,

00:51:55.060 | myself included are wondering is,

00:51:56.340 | when you work with people to help them plan

00:51:57.740 | these amazing trips to Mexico,

00:51:59.140 | if someone's just looking for really interesting tour

00:52:01.700 | for a day in Mexico city,

00:52:03.940 | can they reach out to you and do that?

00:52:05.740 | Or is it more of let's plan the whole thing?

00:52:07.500 | - We would love to be able to help everyone

00:52:09.820 | with even the littlest tiny bit,

00:52:11.660 | but we are a small boutique company.

00:52:13.900 | We don't have the resources to be able to help you

00:52:16.060 | with one day trip here or there.

00:52:17.380 | So we do tend to focus on whole holidays, whole trips.

00:52:20.900 | But if you catch us in a moment where we're not too busy,

00:52:23.780 | we'd be glad to help with whatever you need.

00:52:25.820 | But in general, we do stay busy, thankfully.

00:52:28.460 | So it is generally the whole thing, yeah.

00:52:30.700 | - You've gotten so many recommendations

00:52:32.780 | that I'm like, these show notes are gonna be long.

00:52:34.380 | We might even need a second page for them.

00:52:36.020 | But on the food side,

00:52:37.300 | if someone's really looking to eat in Mexico city,

00:52:40.060 | do you have any favorites to suggest

00:52:42.020 | either food or drink or both?

00:52:43.460 | - Yes, loads.

00:52:45.260 | And I think that there's an over-focus

00:52:48.020 | on kind of the iconic,

00:52:49.860 | you've got Pujol and you've got Rosetta

00:52:52.700 | and you've got Gusino Oaxaca

00:52:55.060 | and you've got these restaurants

00:52:56.980 | that people are so focused on that they have to go to.

00:53:00.140 | But there's a whole world of restaurants

00:53:04.220 | that you're not sacrificing anything in quality.

00:53:06.620 | Maybe they haven't done as good marketing wise,

00:53:09.060 | but yeah, Contramar and all of these kind

00:53:11.500 | of more recognized places are wonderful.

00:53:14.420 | They're awesome.

00:53:15.260 | I'm not taking anything away from them,

00:53:16.660 | but it's a real challenge to get in,

00:53:19.340 | especially if you're not making your reservations

00:53:20.940 | months in advance.

00:53:22.100 | So we pride ourselves on staying up

00:53:23.740 | on the latest and greatest,

00:53:25.500 | and we're happy to share them.

00:53:26.940 | It doesn't make a lot of sense

00:53:28.060 | to share them right now out loud

00:53:30.340 | because tomorrow they're not good,

00:53:32.540 | today they are.

00:53:33.580 | We don't put them on the website,

00:53:34.660 | but we have those restaurant recommendations.

00:53:36.900 | They're very carefully guarded and curated

00:53:39.180 | and updated constantly.

00:53:40.740 | And we're glad to share them

00:53:42.140 | with those who are planning travel with us.

00:53:44.380 | - So if someone's not excited about Mexico City,

00:53:46.620 | I think you're missing out.

00:53:47.620 | But let's talk about this third category

00:53:50.060 | of other places in Mexico, not beach,

00:53:52.820 | that I think probably go maybe the least noticed

00:53:56.300 | by the average North American traveler.

00:53:58.860 | Talk about some of the ones that you think

00:54:00.260 | need to be on people's kind of radar for something.

00:54:03.420 | - So I'm gonna go just to help myself

00:54:05.620 | organize my thoughts from Northwest to Southeast.

00:54:08.620 | I think of it geographically.

00:54:10.180 | I mentioned already Todos Santos,

00:54:12.260 | which is this kind of magical town.

00:54:13.740 | And by the way, the Pueblos Magicos,

00:54:16.020 | or Magic Towns, is a program

00:54:18.220 | that Mexico's tourism board developed

00:54:20.660 | to shine a light on some of these lesser visited

00:54:23.140 | cultural heritage hotspots.

00:54:24.820 | So check that out, by the way.

00:54:26.260 | You can search that.

00:54:27.100 | We have articles on our blog.

00:54:29.300 | We'll put that in the trip notes as well

00:54:31.420 | that point to some of these different Magic Towns.

00:54:34.020 | But in addition to Todos Santos,

00:54:35.940 | don't forget the Valle de Guadalupe,

00:54:38.140 | which is the wine producing region in Northern Baja.

00:54:40.540 | You've got the whole Sierra Cortez side, right,

00:54:42.500 | that includes Muleje, Loreto, La Paz.

00:54:46.380 | These are all incredible places in Baja.

00:54:48.500 | Moving across onto the continent now,

00:54:50.660 | you've got the Copper Canyon.

00:54:51.980 | This is a place that, no matter how much I've championed it,

00:54:55.780 | it goes unnoticed.

00:54:57.180 | It is four times the size of the Grand Canyon

00:55:00.700 | in the United States, okay?

00:55:01.980 | It's composed of seven major canyons and 22 minor canyons.

00:55:06.620 | And it's like visiting the Grand Canyon 100 years ago.

00:55:10.060 | There's indigenous people living in the caves

00:55:12.580 | and on the side of cliffs.

00:55:14.260 | There's just incredible jaw-dropping landscapes.

00:55:18.100 | There's amazing opportunities for hiking,

00:55:20.540 | mountain biking, rock climbing, you name it.

00:55:23.660 | And there's a train that crisscrosses and traverses

00:55:26.180 | the whole canyon system called El Chepe.

00:55:28.660 | So that's another amazing place.

00:55:31.620 | Los Alamos, which is also up in Sinaloa,

00:55:34.580 | another amazing town.

00:55:35.620 | Now, coming down a bit further down the coast,

00:55:38.300 | I'd say don't miss Sayulita or San Pancho,

00:55:42.820 | which is north of Puerto Vallarta.

00:55:44.940 | Those are amazing little villages

00:55:46.840 | that are really worth visiting.

00:55:49.020 | You've got tons in the cultural interior, right?

00:55:52.300 | Cities like Durango or Zacatecas,

00:55:55.260 | Guanajuato, San Miguel Allende.

00:55:57.860 | If you think about the Rocky Mountains in the U.S.,

00:56:00.300 | they don't stop just because you've got a border with Mexico.

00:56:02.780 | They continue and the name changes.

00:56:05.100 | It's called the Sierra Madre, the Mother Mountains.

00:56:08.460 | And within these mountains

00:56:10.700 | exist these beautiful mountain towns.

00:56:12.940 | So I'm talking about a few of them,

00:56:14.060 | Guanajuato, San Miguel Allende.

00:56:16.580 | Mexico City is found in that same mountain range,

00:56:18.980 | but going a little bit further south,

00:56:20.540 | you've got Oaxaca, San Cristobal de las Casas

00:56:23.260 | down in Chiapas.

00:56:24.580 | These are some of the most beautiful,

00:56:27.620 | lesser visited cultural heritage destinations

00:56:31.860 | that you can find in Mexico.

00:56:33.460 | People travel halfway around the world

00:56:35.420 | to find cultural richness, history, indigenous culture

00:56:39.420 | that they can find right here in Mexico.

00:56:41.540 | - I feel like there's like 10 trips I could take to Mexico

00:56:43.940 | that I haven't really processed before.

00:56:46.060 | Some of them will be repeats.

00:56:47.260 | I feel like just talking about Mexico City

00:56:49.740 | makes me wanna go back.

00:56:50.900 | So that's on the docket.

00:56:52.380 | Did we miss anything?

00:56:53.500 | - So much.

00:56:54.340 | - Obviously we missed so much.

00:56:56.060 | - I mean, can we go on?

00:56:57.540 | We gotta go on for days here,

00:56:58.740 | but next time you go to Mexico City,

00:57:00.580 | go and have a visit to Puebla.

00:57:02.180 | Puebla is two hours south of Mexico City.

00:57:05.740 | In fact, you can take this little road

00:57:07.700 | that goes from Mexico City to Puebla

00:57:10.180 | that goes between two volcanoes

00:57:13.340 | that are almost 17,000 foot volcanoes,

00:57:16.620 | Iztaccihuatl and Popocatépetl.

00:57:19.380 | If you can pronounce those real fast 10 times,

00:57:21.460 | I'll give you a free trip there.

00:57:22.940 | But the road is called the Paso de Cortés

00:57:26.060 | because when Hernán Cortés came from the port of Veracruz,

00:57:29.740 | which is in the Gulf of Mexico,

00:57:30.980 | he had intel about what was going on in Mexico City

00:57:34.100 | and the Aztecs and everything else.

00:57:35.620 | And he was coming up with La Malinche,

00:57:37.340 | which was the traitorous,

00:57:38.980 | well, I won't get into that whole story,

00:57:40.300 | but he comes up from Veracruz to Puebla

00:57:43.060 | and then crosses from Cholula into the Valley of Mexico.

00:57:46.820 | If you get a chance, read the book "Mexico"

00:57:49.060 | by James Michener.

00:57:49.900 | It gives this incredible account of that journey.

00:57:53.140 | It's a little bit of historical non-fission,

00:57:55.140 | but it's worth reading.

00:57:56.540 | And it's this little dirt road

00:57:58.340 | that goes between the saddle of these volcanoes.

00:58:00.260 | And as you come down into the Valley of Mexico,

00:58:02.660 | you really, it's jaw-dropping.

00:58:04.420 | And we're talking about you're in pine forest

00:58:06.620 | with glaciated volcanoes on either side of you,

00:58:09.340 | one of which is very active, by the way.

00:58:11.140 | So you gotta check to make sure that it's open

00:58:13.780 | on the day that you decide to go.

00:58:15.300 | We'll give you some tips to do it,

00:58:16.500 | but it's an amazing, amazing way to do it.

00:58:18.860 | And you go and check out Puebla,

00:58:20.580 | have more than 360 churches in Puebla,

00:58:23.620 | got incredible colonial architecture.

00:58:25.620 | It's the home of Mole.

00:58:26.860 | And then actually don't go back to Mexico City,

00:58:28.860 | keep going to Oaxaca.

00:58:30.260 | Have you been to Oaxaca, Chris?

00:58:31.620 | - I have not.

00:58:32.460 | - Yeah, you gotta get to Oaxaca.

00:58:33.820 | - I had a list of things I wanna discuss.

00:58:35.500 | The last question was, I was like,

00:58:36.660 | I don't feel like we've talked about Oaxaca

00:58:38.220 | and I feel like I keep hearing people

00:58:39.820 | have incredible trips.

00:58:41.140 | - Yeah, so the two places that I think,

00:58:43.820 | Oaxaca is probably more well-known,

00:58:46.300 | but Oaxaca and San Cristobal de las Casas

00:58:48.340 | are two of the most beautiful mountain towns

00:58:50.900 | where indigenous pre-Columbian culture is most intact.

00:58:54.060 | Probably San Cristobal is more so.

00:58:56.460 | Oaxaca has become more popular and more visited,

00:58:59.140 | but still really retains its charm.

00:59:01.180 | So the beauty of Oaxaca is the fact that it has

00:59:04.580 | this really strong pre-Columbian indigenous cultural roots

00:59:08.460 | that are still living on strongly to this day.

00:59:11.660 | And you've got people,

00:59:13.140 | these are Mixtec and Zapotec people

00:59:16.940 | that are still speaking their native languages.

00:59:20.020 | I mean, they obviously also speak Spanish

00:59:21.620 | and some of them even speak English.

00:59:23.700 | And these are artisans and these are farmers

00:59:26.860 | and they're people that are producing mezcal,

00:59:29.620 | they're producing handicrafts, they're farming the land.

00:59:32.300 | They're living very much traditional lifestyles

00:59:34.580 | that have gone on for centuries.

00:59:36.340 | And this, as I was mentioning earlier in the show,

00:59:38.980 | the indigenous roots, the pre-Columbian culture

00:59:41.840 | lives on so strongly that it influences

00:59:44.020 | everything about it.

00:59:45.060 | So the food, the dress,

00:59:47.940 | they're still wearing traditional clothing.

00:59:50.060 | They're still living subsistence agricultural lives,

00:59:52.500 | many of them in the valleys surrounding Oaxaca.

00:59:55.020 | But the influence on the food, the art, the history,

00:59:58.540 | the culture is overwhelming.

01:00:00.740 | And really it's hard to find such a pure evolution

01:00:05.740 | and a real organic evolution of the indigenous culture

01:00:09.300 | into contemporary life.

01:00:10.500 | And I think the pride that these people have

01:00:13.440 | and the recognition and the celebration

01:00:16.440 | of the international community has helped to preserve this

01:00:19.480 | and celebrate it and protect it.

01:00:21.440 | So very much worth a visit.

01:00:23.880 | But if you really wanna get even more off the beaten path,

01:00:26.680 | check out Chiapas, the state of Chiapas

01:00:28.840 | and the town of San Cristobal de las Casas

01:00:31.560 | and then the lowland jungles

01:00:32.760 | where you have one of the most incredible

01:00:34.360 | archeological sites, Palenque.

01:00:36.000 | - And are these places that someone who,

01:00:38.480 | let's just assume for this conversation,

01:00:39.960 | hasn't planned a trip with you guys,

01:00:41.580 | people can just go to?

01:00:42.840 | - Oh yeah.

01:00:43.680 | - Do they need to set up tours and guides?

01:00:45.320 | Do they just show up?

01:00:46.400 | - That's a good question about anywhere, right?

01:00:47.920 | How comfortable, how intrepid are you?

01:00:49.800 | But yes, there's a Lonely Planet, there's guidebooks,

01:00:52.520 | there's public transportation, there's the internet.

01:00:54.760 | You don't even need this stuff anymore,

01:00:56.360 | but I'd gauge it by how intrepid you are

01:00:59.240 | and how comfortable you feel navigating

01:01:01.800 | lesser visited places where maybe

01:01:04.080 | everybody speaks English.

01:01:05.840 | But certainly with the internet and email

01:01:07.600 | and everything else you can set up accommodation

01:01:10.400 | and experiences on your own,

01:01:12.280 | just depends on your own comfort level.

01:01:14.160 | - And how much work you wanna do.

01:01:15.360 | - That's correct.

01:01:16.400 | - Do you wanna spend hours and hours planning this or not?

01:01:19.040 | What experience do you want?

01:01:20.560 | There was a window where I remember

01:01:21.960 | people asking about safety in Mexico.

01:01:24.480 | Is that still a concern?

01:01:25.960 | Should people be thinking about that at all,

01:01:27.880 | planning a trip?

01:01:28.720 | - Well, it's funny you should say that.

01:01:29.840 | I knew that the pandemic was coming to an end

01:01:32.840 | when people's questions of concern shifted back

01:01:37.320 | from COVID questions to safety and security questions.

01:01:41.600 | And so it's a constant headwind that we face

01:01:44.480 | when planning travel to Mexico.

01:01:45.680 | Unfortunately, there's this stereotype

01:01:47.200 | and people are always asking, is it safe?

01:01:49.160 | And will I get sick?

01:01:50.520 | That kind of stuff.

01:01:51.360 | And honestly, Mexico has come so far

01:01:55.120 | from the days of Montezuma's revenge.

01:01:57.240 | That doesn't mean that you can't get sick

01:01:58.640 | when you travel to Mexico.

01:01:59.480 | You can get sick when you travel anywhere.

01:02:01.400 | The first recommendation I'd have is

01:02:03.480 | don't drink yourself silly,

01:02:05.600 | use sunblock and don't get sunburned

01:02:08.480 | and don't get dehydrated, right?

01:02:10.080 | That's usually the beginning of all of this stuff.

01:02:12.680 | But the whole education and consciousness

01:02:16.380 | about water purification and even ice purification,

01:02:19.700 | you don't have to ask anymore.

01:02:21.000 | Is the water purified, right?

01:02:22.320 | I mean, in tourists, in restaurants,

01:02:24.640 | locals are not drinking tap water.

01:02:26.920 | Locals are drinking purified water.

01:02:28.480 | Locals are drinking purified ice.

01:02:30.880 | And in terms of safety and security,

01:02:33.040 | look, anywhere you can have issues,

01:02:35.940 | the idea is to be in the right place at the right time.

01:02:38.700 | Mexico is safe in general and it behooves you.

01:02:43.280 | And it's really your responsibility as a traveler

01:02:45.100 | to make sure that you understand what are the safe places.

01:02:48.080 | I mean, what about parts of Upper Manhattan?

01:02:51.360 | What about parts of Chicago and Detroit?

01:02:53.860 | I think you said you're in the Bay Area, right?

01:02:55.800 | There are certainly places in the Bay Area

01:02:57.480 | you wouldn't want to be after dark.

01:02:59.640 | There's parts of LA and San Diego as well.

01:03:01.900 | So knowing where you should be and where you shouldn't,

01:03:05.080 | being well aware of your whereabouts,

01:03:08.140 | and those are all kind of recommendations you make

01:03:10.320 | for any place you travel in the world.

01:03:12.280 | Mexico is still a developing country.

01:03:14.480 | So you have to keep your wits about you

01:03:16.600 | and be well-educated and aware.

01:03:18.900 | Would I recommend to my own mother, my own sister,

01:03:22.060 | my own family to travel just about anywhere in Mexico?

01:03:24.720 | I would.

01:03:25.560 | And if there are places that I would recommend

01:03:27.040 | they don't travel, I'd let them know that as well.

01:03:29.000 | - I always tell people, you read guides online that say,

01:03:31.520 | well, this place might not be safe.

01:03:33.080 | Keep your money in a money belt and all this stuff.

01:03:35.640 | I always point out that if you go pick up

01:03:37.560 | The Lonely Planet for New York, it says a similar thing.

01:03:39.840 | We don't read guidebooks for our own towns.

01:03:42.040 | So we don't realize that the general advice

01:03:45.360 | applies everywhere.

01:03:46.660 | Would you say that like a hotel concierge

01:03:49.280 | or the person at the front desk is like a good person to ask?

01:03:52.360 | - Absolutely.

01:03:53.400 | - Or how would someone get acquainted

01:03:55.420 | with where to and not to go?

01:03:57.720 | - Your hotel staff, I think even taxi drivers.

01:04:01.200 | Official taxi drivers,

01:04:02.560 | that's another recommendation we always make.

01:04:04.560 | You don't take just a taxi off the street,

01:04:06.320 | you get it at the airport, the official taxis,

01:04:08.640 | or at the hotel, an official taxi stand.

01:04:11.600 | But locals don't want visitors getting heard or in trouble.

01:04:15.680 | So absolutely, I think the concierge, the reception,

01:04:18.720 | they're gonna give you good advice as to where,

01:04:20.480 | what, when, with whom, how to get around

01:04:23.000 | and how to keep yourself safe.

01:04:24.480 | - So you said official taxis.

01:04:25.960 | What other things just running through the,

01:04:28.480 | how to get the best optimized trip to Mexico?

01:04:31.560 | I'll give one question.

01:04:32.720 | I always remember my cousin and I were in Puerto Vallarta.

01:04:35.920 | My grandparents had a timeshare

01:04:37.580 | for 20 years in Puerto Vallarta, the Mayan palace,

01:04:40.760 | and then they kept upgrading.

01:04:41.920 | And we were always thinking

01:04:43.640 | we wanted to go dune bugging in high school.

01:04:46.280 | Everyone seemed like they were gonna make 20, 30%.

01:04:49.920 | And the way it always worked was pay us a 20% down payment

01:04:53.060 | and pay the rest when you get there.

01:04:54.860 | So we had convinced ourselves

01:04:56.320 | that if we could just find the source,

01:04:58.760 | we could avoid the 20%.

01:05:00.520 | Is that the way it works?

01:05:01.720 | What advice do you give someone

01:05:02.960 | who's trying to avoid getting taken advantage of in that way?

01:05:07.160 | - So I think that you wanna think about it

01:05:10.400 | in a different way.

01:05:11.220 | What you really want,

01:05:12.060 | especially when you're going dune bugging,

01:05:14.280 | is to find the best operated, safest dune buggies, right?

01:05:19.280 | And so you need a trusted source to get you there.

01:05:22.920 | Not just someone who wants to make money on you.

01:05:25.160 | The cost of distribution, right?

01:05:26.640 | You know how wholesale and retail works.

01:05:28.800 | The dune buggy guy is focused on running his dune buggies.

01:05:31.680 | He's not focused on marketing and selling you tours.

01:05:34.160 | So he has a whole army of people

01:05:35.700 | from timeshare salesmen to concierge companies

01:05:38.880 | to airport transportation people.

01:05:41.800 | So I think that the key is working with expert company

01:05:45.560 | that is locally based,

01:05:47.120 | that has their eyes and ears to the ground,

01:05:49.200 | and can really, at the end of the day,

01:05:50.480 | everyone has to make their money.

01:05:52.240 | And if you buy the tour directly from the tour company,

01:05:54.720 | you're still gonna pay the retail price,

01:05:56.520 | but you just don't know which tour company to buy from.

01:05:58.840 | So I think using travel professionals

01:06:01.800 | who are really experts and have local presence

01:06:04.360 | and eyes and ears on the ground, that's my recommendation.

01:06:06.920 | - And where do the hotels fit into that?

01:06:10.040 | Is it find the experts in organizing trips and adventures?

01:06:14.080 | Is that over using your hotel as a source?

01:06:17.480 | - That's a little tricky.

01:06:18.560 | I do think in general

01:06:20.040 | that hotels want you to have a good experience.

01:06:22.080 | They want to see you coming back from your tour day

01:06:24.680 | with smiles and having had a great time.

01:06:27.480 | That said, hotels are also incentivized by commission,

01:06:31.800 | but I would like to think that in general,

01:06:33.880 | they're gonna get a commission from whomever they work with.

01:06:36.440 | They'd like to work with the people

01:06:37.720 | that are gonna return you safe and sound

01:06:39.520 | and with a smile on your face.

01:06:41.400 | - Anything else we missed that needs to be here?

01:06:43.720 | Obviously plenty of things not there.

01:06:45.960 | Tips for traveling or booking or saving money

01:06:49.360 | or anything that kind of falls outside

01:06:51.080 | of the general overview?

01:06:52.560 | You mentioned money

01:06:53.400 | and how to avoid excessive surcharges and commissions.

01:06:56.320 | I found the best way to get cash

01:06:58.520 | is actually using your ATM card.

01:07:00.160 | Just check before you leave

01:07:02.360 | what are the affiliated banks

01:07:04.520 | in the country you're going to.

01:07:05.880 | And in addition, when you take out the money,

01:07:10.240 | make sure that you decline their conversion.

01:07:13.200 | The ATMs in Mexico, you'll say,

01:07:14.680 | "Okay, I want 10,000 pesos."

01:07:16.560 | And then they'll say,

01:07:17.400 | "Okay, 10,000 pesos equals this much dollars.

01:07:19.440 | "Do you accept our conversion?"

01:07:21.000 | You say, "No."

01:07:22.560 | And then your bank will do the conversion

01:07:24.280 | at a pre-negotiated rate

01:07:25.920 | and you're avoiding another level of commission.

01:07:29.000 | So that's the way that I would get cash.

01:07:31.920 | Paying local currency is always better

01:07:34.400 | than using dollars where you're gonna get

01:07:36.120 | an onerous conversion or exchange rate.

01:07:38.880 | - And do you need cash?

01:07:40.000 | Or are we at a place now in Mexico

01:07:42.120 | where cards and Apple Pay are--

01:07:44.720 | - Cards are ubiquitous.

01:07:46.120 | Cards are widely accepted,

01:07:47.600 | but it's always good to have a little bit of cash.

01:07:49.600 | - Cool.

01:07:50.440 | In the States, I walk around with a $100 bill

01:07:52.240 | folded up inside my wallet, just in case, right?

01:07:54.920 | - I carry a hundred, a 20, and a two.

01:07:57.200 | - Exactly.

01:07:58.200 | - Cool, this has been great.

01:07:59.480 | I really appreciate it.

01:08:00.640 | Where can people go find all of this stuff?

01:08:02.360 | We're gonna put lots of links in the show notes,

01:08:03.920 | but where can people stay on top

01:08:05.200 | of all these great things you're finding?

01:08:07.240 | - We have an extensive website, journeymexico.com.

01:08:11.440 | We've got all kinds of links to accommodation,

01:08:14.440 | to sample itineraries, to best times to travel,

01:08:17.920 | to different ceremonies and celebrations,

01:08:21.840 | different natural migrations, whales, turtles,

01:08:25.400 | all kinds of stuff.

01:08:26.320 | So yeah, I like to think that we've been told

01:08:28.840 | that it's a comprehensive resource.

01:08:30.360 | You can find that in the trip notes too.

01:08:31.960 | - Awesome, thank you so much for being here.

01:08:33.800 | - Thank you, Chris.

01:08:34.720 | - All right, I don't know about you guys,

01:08:37.360 | but I am really excited to go to Mexico.

01:08:39.720 | I already have one trip planned,

01:08:41.160 | but I feel like there's a lot more coming in my future.

01:08:44.000 | So before we wrap, I wanted to dive a little bit

01:08:46.400 | into flights and hotels to help make

01:08:48.320 | your next trip even better.

01:08:49.960 | I'm actually gonna do an entire episode

01:08:51.920 | sometime in the next six or seven months

01:08:53.840 | that includes how to search for flights,

01:08:55.980 | how to search for hotels,

01:08:57.360 | and get the best deal with points and miles.

01:08:59.540 | So when I do these country deep dives,

01:09:01.480 | I'm gonna focus mostly on some unique specific things

01:09:04.720 | that are maybe a little different

01:09:06.040 | than what you need to do for any trip in general.

01:09:08.760 | So when I looked into flights,

01:09:10.480 | first off, Mexico is not that far away

01:09:12.680 | for people who live in the US or Canada,

01:09:15.120 | and flights can often be pretty cheap.

01:09:17.240 | So it's a little bit of a different experience

01:09:18.800 | than trying to book flights to Iceland or Japan

01:09:20.980 | or other places where you have to cross an ocean

01:09:23.280 | and you might really value being in business class

01:09:25.600 | versus a short flight where economy is just fine.

01:09:28.560 | That said, I'm gonna hit both of those things.

01:09:30.800 | And when you're searching for flights,

01:09:32.680 | obviously Google Flights is your friend.

01:09:34.200 | It's a tool I use.

01:09:35.480 | But because you're in North America

01:09:36.960 | and Southwest flies to Mexico,

01:09:39.240 | you'll definitely wanna check the Southwest site as well.

01:09:41.580 | And make sure you're looking at a couple other airlines,

01:09:43.920 | Solaris, Viva Aerobus.

01:09:45.440 | They also fly to the US.

01:09:46.680 | They're not the most obvious.

01:09:48.280 | But I'm gonna drill in and quickly focus

01:09:49.800 | on a few unique things I learned about points and miles

01:09:52.500 | just to help you get your searches going.

01:09:54.760 | So first off, I did a bunch of searches

01:09:56.400 | just in October this year

01:09:58.220 | to try to get a sense of where you wanna book for.

01:10:00.960 | So on the SkyTeam side,

01:10:02.760 | Aeromexico has a ton of flights to the US.

01:10:05.620 | And when you're trying to book those flights,

01:10:07.800 | I found the best way to do it is through Delta.

01:10:10.600 | And so if you have Amex points,

01:10:12.260 | you can transfer directly to Delta.

01:10:14.080 | That's a great option.

01:10:15.480 | Not that you can't book those flights on Aeromexico,

01:10:18.040 | but they're just gonna be more expensive.

01:10:19.760 | So for example, I looked at a flight

01:10:21.680 | from Chicago to Mexico City,

01:10:24.000 | and the flight was $322.

01:10:26.240 | But on Delta, it was only 10,000 points

01:10:29.040 | despite being 30,000 points on Aeromexico,

01:10:31.640 | which is as high as three cents per point,

01:10:33.980 | which is a great redemption value.

01:10:36.080 | In business, flights are about $550

01:10:38.880 | and 25,000 points on Delta.

01:10:41.320 | So you could get a little bit lower value,

01:10:42.820 | 2.2 cents per point,

01:10:44.460 | but in general, pretty good redemption value.

01:10:46.660 | I know a lot of times we talk about needing to go

01:10:49.300 | on really far, fancy business class flights

01:10:51.820 | to get good value from our points.

01:10:53.660 | And I know even more,

01:10:54.580 | we talk about Delta being really hard to find any value,

01:10:57.500 | but 10,000 points for a $320 flight is an awesome deal

01:11:01.420 | if you have some Delta points,

01:11:02.700 | or if you have Amex points that you can transfer to Delta.

01:11:05.120 | Next, I looked at a flight in OneWorld on American

01:11:07.700 | from Chicago to Cancun.

01:11:09.540 | In economy, that flight was $291.

01:11:12.060 | And yes, you could book directly with American

01:11:14.140 | for 20,000 points,

01:11:15.620 | but you can also book that flight on British Airways

01:11:18.620 | for only 11,000 points.

01:11:20.460 | And British Airways often has transfer bonuses

01:11:23.220 | from Chase and Capital One and American Express.

01:11:26.960 | But even without that, it's great

01:11:29.160 | because British Airways is a transfer partner

01:11:31.020 | of almost every single major card program.

01:11:33.700 | And so you can get obvious points very easily.

01:11:36.460 | That ended up being about 2.6 cents per point,

01:11:38.680 | which is awesome.

01:11:39.660 | And the taxes and fees on British Airways domestically

01:11:42.500 | or within North America are so much better than they are

01:11:45.460 | if you're looking to fly internationally.

01:11:47.860 | In business class, flight was $486,

01:11:51.320 | and you could do it for 22,000 points on British Airways

01:11:54.260 | or 30,000 points on American.

01:11:56.100 | So not quite as good of a value, but not terrible.

01:12:00.140 | So again, really good values on short-term flights,

01:12:03.300 | but knowing which airline to book through

01:12:05.700 | is part of the challenge of getting the best deal.

01:12:07.980 | So SkyTeam, Delta was the best.

01:12:10.440 | American, British Airways the best.

01:12:12.300 | Last, I looked at Star Alliance.

01:12:14.120 | I looked at a specific flight from Washington, D.C.

01:12:16.960 | to Cancun and on United, the flight was $200.

01:12:20.520 | You could actually get it for as low as 10,000 points

01:12:23.040 | as long as you booked on Air Canada.

01:12:24.880 | It was about 12,000 on United, about 2 cents per point,

01:12:28.000 | not too different booking between the two programs.

01:12:30.480 | But when you look at business class, it changed a lot.

01:12:33.680 | If you booked through Turkish Airways,

01:12:35.280 | a flight that was $469 was 15,000 points,

01:12:38.780 | Air Canada was 20,000, and United was 35,000.

01:12:42.780 | So you could get a much, much better deal

01:12:44.980 | booking on Turkish Airways,

01:12:46.620 | and you could get as high as 3 cents per point that way.

01:12:50.700 | Not saying you need to use all your points

01:12:52.200 | for a first class or business class flight going to Mexico,

01:12:54.900 | 'cause if you're in North America,

01:12:56.160 | the flights are pretty short,

01:12:57.640 | but it is worth pointing out that where you search

01:13:00.180 | and where you book might be different.

01:13:02.260 | And just because it's a United plane

01:13:04.140 | doesn't mean United is gonna be the right place to book.

01:13:07.340 | Also worth noting that taxes and fees

01:13:09.820 | across different airlines can be different.

01:13:11.980 | So while Air Canada looked like the better option in coach

01:13:15.820 | because it was 10,000 versus 12,000 points,

01:13:18.740 | the taxes and fees were about twice as high.

01:13:21.140 | So definitely compare both number of points

01:13:23.480 | and taxes and fees on that route.

01:13:25.420 | A few other things related to flights that are interesting.

01:13:28.060 | Number one, Southwest Companion Pass,

01:13:30.540 | if you have a lot of trips to Mexico planned,

01:13:32.500 | it can be a really great option.

01:13:34.260 | I've talked about this in the past,

01:13:35.500 | so you can go to allthehacks.com and search,

01:13:37.960 | but in general, if you can manage to,

01:13:40.060 | through credit card points or flight points,

01:13:42.780 | build up enough points,

01:13:43.900 | which I think right now is 135,000 on Southwest,

01:13:47.620 | whatever year you hit that milestone,

01:13:49.480 | you get the Companion Pass that year and the next year.

01:13:51.900 | And because you can go to Mexico with Southwest,

01:13:53.900 | you can get two for one flights for that entire period,

01:13:57.100 | which could be as much as almost two years.

01:13:59.380 | Last cool flight hack, which is very niche,

01:14:01.520 | if you live in San Diego,

01:14:03.300 | I only recently learned about this,

01:14:05.020 | maybe it is common knowledge for everyone there,

01:14:07.300 | but there's actually a border crossing

01:14:09.780 | at the Tijuana Airport,

01:14:11.500 | where you can drive, park in the US,

01:14:13.980 | and the Tijuana Airport is literally

01:14:15.460 | right on the other side of the border.

01:14:17.220 | So you can go through cross-border express,

01:14:19.220 | do all your customs and immigration much, much faster,

01:14:23.740 | literally cross a bridge over the border into Mexico,

01:14:26.900 | into the Tijuana Airport,

01:14:28.380 | and then buy domestic flights within Mexico.

01:14:31.300 | And they are so, so, so much cheaper.

01:14:34.140 | Not worth it if you need to fly to San Diego

01:14:36.420 | and then take an Uber or a Lyft between airports,

01:14:39.980 | probably not a good thing,

01:14:40.820 | but if you're already in San Diego

01:14:42.300 | and you haven't tried that,

01:14:43.740 | a friend of mine did that and had a great experience.

01:14:46.020 | Okay, when it comes to hotels,

01:14:47.140 | similarly gonna do a whole episode here,

01:14:49.380 | because I think that the strategies

01:14:51.900 | for each of these episodes,

01:14:53.020 | when I talk about a country are pretty much the same.

01:14:55.620 | So for Mexico, between Hyatt at 59 hotels,

01:14:59.700 | Marriott at 274, Hilton at 93,

01:15:02.820 | and IHG, I couldn't figure out,

01:15:04.340 | but Google Bards says IHG has 524 hotels in Mexico.

01:15:08.780 | I assume that number's wrong,

01:15:10.260 | but I think the moral of the story is

01:15:11.740 | there are hundreds of hotels

01:15:12.960 | you can book with points in Mexico.

01:15:14.620 | So going through all of them would just be way too much.

01:15:17.460 | I will highlight a few places

01:15:19.100 | that I'm either excited about,

01:15:20.300 | have stayed at, or have heard good things.

01:15:23.500 | If you're going to Cabo,

01:15:24.660 | the Waldorf with Hilton points, I've heard is incredible.

01:15:27.520 | The Cape with Hyatt points,

01:15:29.300 | I've heard is incredible.

01:15:30.540 | And Solaz, which closed down for a couple of years

01:15:33.940 | using Bonvoy points through Marriott,

01:15:36.220 | we have stayed at,

01:15:37.300 | and I can say that it was really, really great.

01:15:39.820 | Everything from the pool to the food to the drinks,

01:15:41.860 | we had a wonderful time.

01:15:43.300 | I would definitely go back there.

01:15:44.940 | If you're going to Punta Mida,

01:15:47.220 | the St. Regis and the Conrad both look great.

01:15:49.180 | I have not been to either.

01:15:50.580 | If you're going to Cancun, Riviera Maya,

01:15:52.880 | the Andaz Mayakoba is one that we've had on our list.

01:15:55.900 | That entire Mayakoba complex,

01:15:57.740 | you can search around a little bit,

01:15:59.040 | looks amazing.

01:16:00.180 | If you really want to splurge,

01:16:01.660 | you can go to the Rosewood Mayakoba,

01:16:03.220 | which looks just a level above,

01:16:05.860 | but we talk a lot about points,

01:16:07.380 | so I haven't been there yet.

01:16:08.940 | I have been to the JW in Cancun on a family trip

01:16:12.340 | almost a decade ago,

01:16:13.940 | and it was a great experience for exactly what you want.

01:16:17.060 | A really nice JW Marriott hotel,

01:16:19.820 | pools, beaches, everything.

01:16:21.340 | It was just good,

01:16:22.900 | but there was nothing that really set it out

01:16:24.740 | side of craziness for me.

01:16:26.300 | In Mexico City,

01:16:27.500 | we stayed at the St. Regis,

01:16:28.920 | super central, fantastic experience,

01:16:31.480 | really loved it,

01:16:32.600 | but Las Alcobas also looks like a cool hotel

01:16:35.000 | we might check out next time.

01:16:36.640 | And then across a couple of different cities in Mexico,

01:16:40.160 | I know at least Cancun and Cabo,

01:16:41.760 | Hyatt has these two brands,

01:16:43.360 | the Zalara and the Ziva,

01:16:45.920 | and they're both all-inclusive,

01:16:47.840 | and I've heard really great experiences about both.

01:16:51.120 | One of them happens to be adults only,

01:16:53.200 | so Zalara is all-inclusive adults only,

01:16:55.280 | and Ziva is like all-inclusive families.

01:16:57.760 | Definitely something that I wanna try out on a future trip.

01:17:00.540 | Ziva's probably the one in our future,

01:17:02.860 | but if anyone's had good or bad experiences there,

01:17:04.980 | let me know.

01:17:05.980 | Also, I've been fortunate to go to Cabo quite a few times

01:17:09.700 | for group trips,

01:17:11.140 | many bachelor parties in my years,

01:17:13.220 | and booking villas is also a really great option.

01:17:16.080 | So just because you can't use points there

01:17:18.240 | doesn't mean it's not worth considering.

01:17:20.780 | Having a big house for a lot of people,

01:17:22.860 | we did this also for my family over the holidays

01:17:25.560 | a couple of years ago,

01:17:26.860 | you can hire a chef,

01:17:28.320 | and it just really creates an amazing experience.

01:17:30.960 | So if anyone needs help with that,

01:17:32.920 | I have a bunch of good relationships

01:17:34.480 | with some villa companies,

01:17:35.500 | happy to connect you there.

01:17:36.840 | You can just shoot me an email,

01:17:37.960 | podcast@allthehacks.com.

01:17:40.000 | Also for houses,

01:17:41.600 | you can use Capital One points or Wyndham points,

01:17:44.920 | and Capital One transfers to Wyndham,

01:17:46.800 | to book vacasas,

01:17:48.360 | and you can get as high as two to three cents

01:17:49.920 | per point there.

01:17:50.760 | So you can go search online,

01:17:52.480 | or I'll put a link in the show notes

01:17:53.740 | to find the Wyndham to vacasa transfer flow

01:17:57.260 | and how it works,

01:17:58.260 | but that's an option.

01:17:59.420 | And then last,

01:18:00.440 | I just put together a site

01:18:02.140 | that I'd love to share with anyone who's interested,

01:18:04.340 | just shoot us an email,

01:18:05.340 | podcast@allthehacks.com,

01:18:07.080 | to help you use our upgrade program online.

01:18:10.320 | Alternatively, you can go to allthehacks.com/upgrade,

01:18:13.180 | or email upgrade@allthehacks.com.

01:18:15.500 | Alternatively, you can go to allthehacks.com/upgrade

01:18:17.420 | and read a little bit more about it.

01:18:19.020 | But we have a site where you can look online

01:18:21.740 | and book all of these five-star properties,

01:18:24.300 | not with points,

01:18:25.540 | but through the various programs

01:18:27.700 | where you get upgrades and perks.

01:18:29.460 | So for example, in almost all of them,

01:18:31.260 | you'll end up getting free breakfast,

01:18:33.340 | you'll get an upgrade if it's available,

01:18:35.740 | early check-in, late check-out if it's available,

01:18:37.900 | and usually a property credit

01:18:39.340 | of somewhere around $100 for your stay there.

01:18:42.220 | Very similar to the Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts perks,

01:18:45.220 | except it's about 3,000, 4,000.

01:18:47.580 | And we finally have put together a site

01:18:49.620 | so you can use that yourself

01:18:50.900 | and do your searching on your own.

01:18:52.340 | So if you want access to it,

01:18:53.660 | shoot me an email or go to allthehacks.com/upgrade.

01:18:56.880 | And then last, I wanna do an episode on this,

01:18:58.820 | but I'll do a quick rundown

01:18:59.980 | 'cause there's a few sites and tools

01:19:01.860 | for booking award rooms with hotels

01:19:04.700 | that I've noticed recently,

01:19:05.780 | and I just wanna do a really quick overview of them.

01:19:08.860 | So first, I've talked about Aways a lot,

01:19:11.420 | and you can go to allthehacks.com/aways

01:19:13.720 | to get a special deal there.

01:19:15.580 | I think Aways is the best tool for a search

01:19:18.680 | where you say, I wanna go to Paris,

01:19:20.480 | and I wanna use my points,

01:19:21.740 | and I have points in these programs, what should I do?

01:19:24.500 | And that is the search that I think they nail,

01:19:26.820 | and they do a really fantastic job.

01:19:28.940 | And usually that's how we're doing our searches,

01:19:30.780 | so it's usually my first place to go.

01:19:33.620 | However, one of my favorite sites

01:19:35.420 | for searching for flight availability is seats.arrow,

01:19:39.060 | and they just launched in beta rooms.arrow.

01:19:42.420 | And if you go to that site,

01:19:44.220 | they don't support IHG, but they have Hilton,

01:19:47.420 | they have Hyatt, and they have Marriott.

01:19:49.720 | And it's really good if you're open to anything.

01:19:53.180 | You're like, I want a really great property,

01:19:55.240 | I'm flexible where I stay, flexible on my dates especially,

01:19:59.380 | and they'll show you options across everything.

01:20:02.720 | So they basically index all the stays at all the hotels

01:20:05.660 | and have a big database you can filter on.

01:20:08.220 | So you really need flexibility there,

01:20:10.660 | or you need to enjoy filtering big databases.

01:20:13.540 | Two other sites, staywithpoints.com and maxmypoint.com,

01:20:18.720 | both of them are tools to be able to set alerts

01:20:21.780 | and then also find availability at very specific properties.

01:20:25.100 | So this is great if you're like,

01:20:26.500 | I want to stay at the Ventana in Big Sur,

01:20:29.460 | and I just wanna see what's happening.

01:20:31.100 | You can do that same search on aways and rooms.arrow,

01:20:33.780 | but this is their sole purpose.

01:20:35.540 | But the big thing they do is they allow you to send alerts.

01:20:38.300 | So if there's a place you wanna stay

01:20:39.700 | and you wanna set up an alert

01:20:40.740 | so you get notified when it opens up,

01:20:42.340 | you can do that there.

01:20:43.580 | staywithpoints has a better UI,

01:20:45.380 | but when I was looking at a few examples,

01:20:47.060 | it seemed that their availability was less accurate,

01:20:49.900 | but probably won't let the UI win in that case.

01:20:52.640 | And maxmypoint, in my opinion,

01:20:54.740 | had a very outdated older UI, but at least worked.

01:20:58.780 | And you can get your first alert free

01:21:00.800 | and with referral links, you can get more.

01:21:02.960 | And so if you wanna help me out

01:21:04.700 | and give me access to these tools,

01:21:05.980 | you can use our referral links for any of these,

01:21:08.060 | allthehacks.com/seatsarrow,

01:21:10.140 | allthehacks.com/maxmypoint.

01:21:12.380 | And like I said earlier,

01:21:13.260 | allthehacks.com/aways with a Z.

01:21:16.080 | So those are some of the tools.

01:21:17.460 | I'll do a much bigger deep dive

01:21:19.060 | on how to search for and book hotels with points,

01:21:21.820 | but I just wanted to flag those

01:21:23.140 | 'cause I've been starting to play with them a bit more.

01:21:25.500 | (upbeat music)

01:21:27.540 | I think that's it.

01:21:28.500 | I hope that's super helpful for you guys

01:21:30.080 | to plan and book your next trip to Mexico.

01:21:32.500 | I wanna hear about it because it's awesome

01:21:34.580 | and I might actually partner with every person

01:21:37.440 | I do one of these country episodes on

01:21:39.420 | to plan future All The Hacks trips.

01:21:41.900 | So the URL is still a little focused on the Iceland trip

01:21:45.100 | we're planning for next year,

01:21:47.180 | but if you go to allthehacks.com/iceland,

01:21:49.820 | there's a survey there.

01:21:50.780 | Even if you're not interested in Iceland

01:21:52.180 | and you really just wanna go to Mexico or Japan,

01:21:54.300 | you can go fill that out and let us know.

01:21:56.300 | And that's a good opportunity for us

01:21:58.060 | to learn what people are looking for

01:21:59.980 | so we can plan some of these trips

01:22:01.700 | for listeners and readers and subscribers.

01:22:03.900 | All right, that's all we got this week.

01:22:05.660 | If you need anything, podcast@allthehacks.com

01:22:08.380 | and we will see you next week.

01:22:09.900 | (upbeat music)

01:22:12.480 | (upbeat music)

01:22:15.100 | (upbeat music)

01:22:17.680 | (upbeat music)

01:22:20.260 | [BLANK_AUDIO]