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Jim B

Mar 19, 2008, 6:55 AM

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Easter weekend travel

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Like the post just before mine I'm considering heading north from PV to GDL, SLP and onto Laredo (Colombia Bridge) over the weekend. Is this a bad idea? Should I leave earlier (Friday and get inland before the weekend) or wait and leave Monday?

raferguson

Mar 19, 2008, 8:33 AM

Post #2 of 10 (1753 views)

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Re: [Jim B] Easter weekend travel

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The general rule is that on Easter Sunday, everybody leaves the beach and heads home to the big city. People who are vacationing with their families in the country also head back to the big city. If you watch Mexican TV, they always cover the huge traffic flow associated with the end of the holiday, usually focusing on the traffic from Acapulco to Mexico City. If you travel Monday, you will be past the traffic peak, so you may be OK. I would allow extra time, however. Friday would probably be better on the road to PV to GDL, but then that would have you crossing the border closer to Easter. All told, Monday may be better overall.

Similarly, Mexicans from the USA go home for the holiday, so Easter Sunday has lots of people driving north, back to their jobs in the USA.

I remember being in Palenque for New Years, going to the bus station, and hearing that every bus to Mexico City was fully booked for several days. Some tourists were disappointed, not sure if anybody missed their plane home. Luckily we were not traveling in that direction.

Traveling at that time, I figure out first what the prevailing traffic pattern will be, and then plan to do the opposite. On Sunday, almost nobody will be driving from Guadalajara to the beach. Mexico city is astoundingly quiet during Easter week, perhaps the best time to be there.

Richard

http://www.fergusonsculpture.com

esperanza

Mar 19, 2008, 10:08 AM

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Re: [Jim B] Easter weekend travel

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I think you'll find that many people in Mexico take vacation during both Semana Santa (that's this week) and Semana de Pascuas (that's next week). Traffic is usually pretty wild during the entire two-week period. People who didn't get to take vacation this week will, whenever possible, go next week. Beach, border, interior tourist cities, home to see Mom: all are vacation destinations from both north and south of the border.

I wouldn't make the trip you have planned till after the first of April.

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drmike

Mar 19, 2008, 1:05 PM

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Re: [esperanza] Easter weekend travel

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My wife and I just returned (Sunday night) from Phoenix returning with a trailer with the rest of our household furniture. It took us 9 hours to cross at Nogales last Friday. The two lane road heading south to the Mexican Aduana actually contained 5 lanes of people making their own lanes. It was complete chaos as all 5 lanes tried to merge into the legal two lanes! With the NOB Mexicans heading south for the Semana Santa holiday and apparently the entire contingent of Mexican used car dealers towing or driving 1998 cars to be resold in Mexico, not to mention the high winds and dust storms all the way through Chihuahua and Durango it is a drive I do not wish upon anyone.

Buses are everywhere! Our Villa is quite congested with buses and families. My wife are going to stay in our house on the lake and not go anywhere until after the first of April.

I think that is wise counsel.
Dr. Mike

http://www.smarthealthchoices.blogspot.com

There are hundreds of paths up the mountain,
all leading in the same direction,
so it doesn't matter which path you take.
The only one wasting time is the one
who runs around and around the mountain,
telling everyone that his or her path is wrong.

Hindu teaching

Jim B

Mar 20, 2008, 7:12 AM

Post #5 of 10 (1682 views)

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Re: [drmike] Easter weekend travel

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Is San Luis Potosi considered an Easter destination this weekend as far as hotel space availability?

JohnnyBoy

Mar 20, 2008, 8:57 AM

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Re: [drmike] Easter weekend travel

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I can vouch for what Dr Mike says. We entered the USA at the Nogales-Mariposa crossing (especially used by trucks) and we saw huge, long lines of mostly pickups pulling other vehicles (you are probably right that they were '98 cars for nationalizing) that were going the other direction, into Mexico. We were aghast. We had never seen a line going into Mexico. Sometimes the crossing into the USA can take up to two hours there at Mariposa, but it is usually just an hour or so, as was the case this Wednesday. I was really concerned about having to return to Mexico through that mess on Wednesday (yesterday).

So we decided to come back to Mexico via the Nogales downtown crossing. And we did. And there was almost no one crossing there. I don't think there was even a car in front of me. We just breezed on in, green light and all. Same was true at the second place that I think people call Km 21. To this time I have never heard an explanation of why there are two of these places. Maybe they have different functions. But to me they are identical. I either get a green light and go, or I get a red light and have to explain to a Mexican aduana guy about the stuff in my car.

But I digress. I would encourage anyone crossing into Mexico at Nogales to use the downtown crossing especially if you are not towing a car to be nationalized here. Getting from there through Nogales can be a little tense, but it is good experience.

(This post was edited by JohnBleazard on Mar 20, 2008, 9:00 AM)

tashby

Mar 20, 2008, 9:12 AM

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Re: [JohnBleazard] Easter weekend travel

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We'll be crossing some time in early April, either at Nogales or Sonoyta. I know we're probably better off if we get there very early in the morning, but is there a better time of week? I'm guessing maybe mid-week is less busy than weekends?

bournemouth

Mar 20, 2008, 9:31 AM

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Re: [JohnBleazard] Easter weekend travel

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John - the part between the actual border and Kl. 21 is the Frontier Zone - different rules and regs re customs and vehicles apply there. After Kl. 21 you are in mainland Mexico. You've noted, I know, the frontier plates that vehicles from that area have.

JohnnyBoy

Mar 20, 2008, 9:55 AM

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Re: [tashby] Easter weekend travel

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As far as Nogales is concerned and based on approximately 10-12 crossings, we have found it advisable to avoid weekend days, unless you can manage to get to the border early in the morning. But this is only for going north, into the USA.

Every time we have crossed into Mexico we have never encountered more than one or two cars ahead of us, and usually there are none at all.

If you are not pulling a trailer or do not have to process a menaje de casa, I don't think you will have a problem, that is, you should not encounter any delays due to crossing traffic into Mexico. This is just my experience though. I don't recall ever reading any posts here on MexConnect about serious problems or delays at either of the Nogales crossings until I read this post by Dr. Mike. And we did see very long lines of pickups pulling other vehicles, but only at the Mariposa truck crossing. Downtown was a total breeze. Weekend days downtown can be different, but not because of the traffic crossing, but because of the traffic inside Nogales, Sonora, which is always a little scary for me.

If you have just one vehicle (I mean, if you are not pulling a trailer or something like that), even if you have a pickup full of stuff (I crossed six times with my Ford Ranger loaded to the hilt), I don't think you will have a problem, especially if you cross downtown. If you do choose the downtown crossing, doing it very very early in the morning might help you avoid the wild and crazy traffic getting through downtown Nogales, Sonora (the Mexican side of Nogales) which made me pretty nervous the first couple of times I did it. Right now there is some street work going on and a lane will close, abruptly, and if you are in it, good luck trying to move over, especially during the day when the traffic is insane.

Bear in mind that whether you cross at Mariposa or downtown, you will have to repeat the entire process at Km21. I have received a green light at Mariposa/downtown only to get a red light at Km21. I got a red light once, downtown, and then a green light at Km21. I have never gotten red lights at both places on the same trip. But I don't think there is any reason why that could not happen.

I have never crossed at Sonoyta. Maybe there is only one check there. Maybe that is a less popular, less used crossing. I can not speak to that at all. I know it leads to Puerto Penasco (Rocky Point) and so now with the warmer weather, there may be more traffic at that crossing, especially on a weekend.

esperanza

Mar 20, 2008, 11:18 AM

Post #10 of 10 (1632 views)

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Re: [JohnBleazard] Easter weekend travel

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In Reply To

I have never crossed at Sonoyta. Maybe there is only one check there. Maybe that is a less popular, less used crossing. I can not speak to that at all. I know it leads to Puerto Penasco (Rocky Point) and so now with the warmer weather, there may be more traffic at that crossing, especially on a weekend.

Plus, of course, Puerto Peñasco is a hugely (did I say HUGELY?) popular beach destination for tourists from both Mexico and the USA. On holiday weekends, it seems as if everyone in Tucson goes to Peñasco, and it's worse during Easter/spring break. Traffic could be bumper to bumper to cross the border at Sonoyta and very heavy well into Mexico.

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