Things to do in Central Gulf Coast
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Baluarte de Santiago
Until 1880 Veracruz was a walled city surrounded by mighty medieval defenses. Baluarte de Santiago, the only surviving fort of nine, was built in 1526 beside what was then the waterfront. A small exhibit of pre-Hispanic gold jewelry is inside. The price covers admission to the fort’s interior, but you can walk around the outside battlements for free.
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Robert Straub
Local birding guide Robert Straub is a member of COAX (www.coaxxalapa.org), a conservation-minded birding club. He offers tours in the area. Straub authored a birding guide to Veracruz, Guía de Sitios, whose proceeds go to Pronatura, a conservation non-profit.
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Fractal Naturaleza
A great place to check out souvenirs made by local Tuxtla artisans is Fractal Naturaleza, a store that does its best to support local art and textiles.
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La Chiva
A tiny boho stronghold very popular for its alternative (electronica, hip-hop and rock)tunes.
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'El Poder del Tigre' Botánicos y Ciencias Ocultas
If you want to visit a local brujo, there's 'El Poder del Tigre' Botánicos y Ciencias Ocultas. The brujo might pull up in his Ford Explorer and tell you to check out his website, or he might be available to see you.
Witchcraft traditions in this part of Veracruz go back centuries - mixing ancient indigenous beliefs, Spanish medieval traditions and voodoo practices from West Africa. Many of these brujos multi-task as medicine men or women (using both traditional herbs and modern pharmaceuticals), shrinks and black magicians (casting evil spells on enemies of their clients).
On the first Friday in March each year, hundreds of brujos (shamans), witches and healers from all…
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Reserva Ecológica de Nanciyaga
On the northeast shore of the lake, the well-established Reserva Ecológica de Nanciyaga preserves a small tract of rainforest. The grounds are replete with a temascal, an ancient planetarium and Olmec-themed decorations and replicas. Even though it plays up the contrived indigenous theme, this place stands out for its organization and cleanliness. One night’s lodging (M$900) in solar-powered cabins includes a mineral mud bath, a massage, a guided walk and the use of kayaks. You have to walk to the bathrooms, so it’s a mix of rustic and high-quality. It’s not for everyone, but it provides an incredible experience for those who want to be very close to nature while being r…
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Veracruz Harbor
Veracruz' harbor is still busy. The Paseo del Malecón (also called Insurgentes) is a pleasant waterfront walk, starting with the Plaza de las Artesanías which has stalls selling a kaleidoscopic selection of tacky souvenirs. Stroll out along the malecón (waterfront boulevard) and view the ships, cranes and ancient fortress across the water, or take a sightseeing boat trip for a closer look.
At the corner of Blvd Camacho are monuments to those who defended the city against the Americans in 1914 and to all sailors who gave their lives to the sea. The high-rise Pemex building here is an early example of modern Mexican architecture; built in 1940, it now houses Pemex office…
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Ecobiosfera
If hidden waterfalls, kayaking, hiking, bird-watching or beautiful beaches interest you, Ecobiosfera will organize your excursion. Prices vary (about M$400 to M$800 per person), but the owner, Felix, is a biologist and knows the area very well. Ecobiosfera also has a satellite office in town where you can arrange a tour or check out Felix’s photos. Felix can take you to the deep-green Poza Reina (M$25 entrance), a swimming hole laden with cascades. It’s east of Laguna Catemaco and, though a local favorite, isn’t signed. The cabañas at the base camp have shared bathrooms and are charming in a Robinson Crusoe kind of way.
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Quiahuiztlán
You’d want to be buried here too: this pre-Hispanic cemetery is situated on verdant foothills with a sweeping vista of the coast and is guarded by a towering rocky outcrop, locally known as Cerro los Metates. The site has two pyramids, more than 70 tombs (each resembling a small temple) and some carved monuments. It’s a gorgeous, 25-minute walk to the part that overlooks the ocean. Plus, you can experience this sacred Totonac site in solitude and amid nature, unlike other, touristed ruins. If you want to arrive by a Hwy 180 bus, have the driver drop you at the Quiahuiztlán turnoff. From there it’s a pretty 3km walk uphill.
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Las Pozas
Xilitla’s famous attraction is Las Pozas, a bizarre but beautiful linked series of concrete temples, pagodas, bridges, pavilions, sculptures and spiral stairways built adjacent to an idyllic series of waterfalls. This surreal creation stands as a monument to the imagination and excessive wealth of Edward James, as well as to the expertise of site manager Plutarco Gastelum and the skill of local workers who cast the elaborate constructions in the 1960s and 1970s. Though the project was never completed – the jungle encroaches on the half-finished structures – this is an amazing place.
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Parque Ecológico Paso Coyol
Parque Ecológico Paso Coyol is a jewel in the urban rough. The neighborhood joined with the government to turn what was once a 4-hectare abandoned lot overrun by ‘delinquents’ into a park. Now this eco-conscious park is patronized by cordobeses, who run and walk trails that snake around gardens corralled by old tires and plastic bottles. Your meager entrance fee pays for both campesinos and biologists alike to maintain the place. Follow Calle 3 south from the Plaza de Armas for 1.5km. The street changes names, weaves through a suburb and bottoms out at the park.
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Museo de la Amistad México-Cuba
The Museo de la Amistad México-Cuba has a room filled with displays on José Martí and pictures of Che Guevara and Castro as well as other memorabilia. Fidel Castro stayed in this suburban house in 1956 while planning the infiltration of Cuba. On November 26 a private yacht loaded with 82 revolutionaries set sail from here to Cuba to start the uprising. To get to the museum, take a boat (M$3) across the river, walk several blocks south to Obregón, then turn right – the museum is at the western end of Obregón on the river.
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Playa Norte
Tuxpan's beach Playa Norte, 12km east of town, is a wide strip stretching 20km north from the Río Tuxpan's mouth. It's still a chilled-out place to eat cheap seafood and take a break from the city. The hydro-electric plant in the backdrop takes away from the ambience, but the water and sand are fairly clean and - holidays and Sundays apart - it's usually empty.
Local buses (around $8, 25 minutes) marked 'Playa' leave regularly from the south side of Blvd Reyes Heroles and drop you at the south end of the beach.
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Acuario de Veracruz
Veracruz’ well-done aquarium is a worthwhile visit, located about 2km south of the city center. There’s a large doughnut-shaped tank filled with sharks, rays and turtles that glide around visitors. Other tanks house freshwater and saltwater fish, reptiles and amphibians, river otters and even manatees. But for a really dramatic encounter climb into the Tiburonería – a transparent safety cage that is lowered into a pool of feeding sharks.
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Aqua Sports
Aqua Sports office is around 8km from downtown going toward the beach, runs an established scuba-diving operation with quality boats that offers dives on nearby reefs or Isla de Lobos, as well as fishing trips (M$800 to M$1000 per hour). Visibility is best between May and August, and from January to March you can fish for giant tarpon. Camping on the island (with all provisions provided) can be arranged with advance notice.
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Museo Ex-Hacienda El Lencero
About 12km southeast of Xalapa on the Veracruz highway, a signposted road branches off to the right for a few kilometers to the impressive Museo Ex-Hacienda El Lencero. Well worth a visit, this grand former estate was one of the first inns between Mexico City and Veracruz. The superbly restored house is furnished with antiques, and the gardens and lake are delightful. Check out the 500-year-old fig tree.
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Tamtoc
The important Huastec ceremonial center of Tamtoc flourished from AD 700 to 1500. Today it’s one of the few maintained Huastec sites. The cleared part of the expansive site is a plaza with platforms made of river stones. Look for a low bench with two conical altars decorated with faded 1000-year-old frescoes believed to represent Quetzalcóatl, the feathered serpent god.
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Malecón
Veracruz' harbor is a busy oil port with rigs off the coast, but that somehow adds to the gritty romanticism of the waterfront walk on the Malecón, starting at the rows of vendor stalls of Plaza de las Artesanías that sell a kaleidoscopic of souvenirs. You'll pass the high-rise Pemex building, an early example of modern Mexican architecture with some interesting murals.
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Biological Research Station
North of the junction to Jicacal, you’ll soon hit the Biological Research Station and will see a handful of camping opportunities, including at Laguna Escondida and Finca Villa Carino. The ornery biologists have a tiny biology museum and limited patience for tourists. They cobbled the roads through their section of the reserve to limit people, speed and traffic.
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Museo de Antropología
The Museo de Antropología has a modest but interesting collection of artifacts that aren’t especially well cared for. You’ll find a fine Aztec ball-court marker, some Olmec figurines and a replica of the magnificent statue of El Señor de Las Limas that resides in Xalapa’s Museo de Antropología. On the 2nd floor there’s a lovely overlook to the mountains.
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Ulúa Fish
This upscale café was opened by the famous chef José Burela Picazzo, who also founded a cooking school in the city and has written a cookbook about the local specialties of Veracruz state. If you are in the mood to splurge on excellent seafood, this is the place. Some of the waitstaff have student-shadows from the school who are nervous and over-attentive…in a cute way.
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El Tajín site
The El Tajín site covers an area of about 10 sq km. To see everything, you’ll walk a few kilometers over a couple of hours. There’s little shade and it can get blazingly hot, so an early start is recommended. Most buildings and carvings here are labeled in English and Spanish, and some have information panels in German and French as well.
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Salto de Eyipantla
Twelve kilometers southeast of San Andrés, a 242-step staircase leads down to the impressive Salto de Eyipantla, a 50m-high, 40m-wide waterfall. Follow Hwy 180 east for 4km to Sihuapan, then turn right to Eyipantla. Frequent TLT buses (M$12) make the trip from San Andrés, leaving from the corner of Cabada and 5 de Mayo, near the market.
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Santa Clara Cigar Factory
Watch and inhale as the puros are speedily rolled by hand at the Santa Clara cigar factory. Cigars of assorted shapes and sizes, including the monstrous Magnum, are available at factory prices, and the 50 torcedores employed here (together rolling 10,000 puros a day) are happy to demonstrate their technique.
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Tourist Restaurants
The lake provides the specialties here: tegogolo (a snail, reputed to be an aphrodisiac, eaten with chili, tomato, onion and lime) sold by street vendors and chipalchole (shrimp or crab-claw soup). Many tourist-aimed restaurants line the malecón. Explore the city's viscera, and you'll find interesting local eateries.
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