Driving direction from PV to Mexcaltitlan

1

I reckon it's about 3.5 - 4 hours. I could give you detailed driving directions but far easier for you to just buy a map in PV! Basically I would go on the 200 north to Compostela, follow signs to Tepic, join highway and head north towards Acaponeta, after about 50km turn left on the 72 (to Santiago Ixcuintla) and shortly after that town turn right on the 78 to Mexcaltitlan.

2

Wow Steve, what a speedy reply! Thanks a bunch. How's the road condition for Hwy 200?

3

I have no recent experience but I think it's the road that the bus just crashed from (killing 17 people) - it is a 2-lane road with several twists and can be VERY busy. I should imagine that in rainy weather it would be quite difficult. If you really want to do a day-trip have you thought about a day's tour from PV (if one exists)? It might be less stressful to have someone who knows the road doing the driving.

4

Yes you can do PV to Mexcaltitan and back in a day trip-I have. Guadalajara is about the same distance from Mexcal. as it is from PV.
When driving from PV north I never take the road to Compostela and Tepic (where the bus accident was) instead I turn off at Las Varas and take the road to San Blas. Near San Blas you turn right to highway 15 so that you have bypassed Tepic. There are two roads off highway 15 that lead to Mexcal. Don't take the northern one as it is in poor shape but take the southern one that goes through Santiago Ixcuintla. The latter is easy to find as it is an old colonial city. From Santiago I think it is easy enough as I don't think the road goes anywhere else. Roads are fine except there are often some surprise potholes and topes.

5

Visiting Mexcaltitan is like going back two hundred years in time. Bring your camera, and prepare to slow way down! Guadalajara will be a culture shock, afterward. I took the bus from Las Varas to Santiago Ixcuintla then hitchhiked from there, but a taxi is available if you decide not to drive yourself. The terrain is flat, rural swampland, and the roads are just fine, with the occasional pothole and livestock for texture.

I guess you could drive to Mexcaltitan and back in a day, but why not stay over? I didn't like the old mission-style hotel in Santiago Ixcuintla, but there is a small hotel on the island that looks very nice, and is in the 250peso price range.

Use Maps-of-Mexico Nayarit to get an overview. Click on the Tepic panel and find Santiago Ixquintla in the upper left. Then follow the northwest road as it nips thru the corner of the panel west and into the panel to the north. Mexcaltitan is a really tiny island!

I also tried this in Google Earth, but the two maps were radically different.

6

Everybody, thanks again... we like taking road trips but definitely will take the advices into considerations. We drove through inland Jamaica numerous time, through the potholes, the daredevil Jamaican drivers, ganja sellers, and such. Hopefully Pacific Mexico won't be worse.