Given:
Date: ~ Exact date of departure from Nogales AZ to be decided
Length of Stay ~ ?
Meeting place: ~ Nogales AZ Wallmart
Mexico insurance: Here is one solution AAA of Southern California
US Passport: Application form
Mexico information: US Department of State information on Mexico
Mexico
Mazatlan
More Mexico information
By car
American automobile insurance is not accepted in Mexico, however it is easy to obtain short-term or long-term tourist policies that include the mandatory liability coverage, theft and accident coverage for your vehicle, and often, legal assistance coverage. Should you decide to drive to Mexico, the Transport and Communications Secretariat website
[6] has free downloadable road maps.
Foreign-plated vehicles must obtain necessary permits before being allowed into the interior of Mexico. This can be done at the border checkpoints by showing your vehicle title or registration, as well as immigration documents and a valid credit card.
***
Information I have learned
I live in San Diego. My friend goes to Mazatlan on occasion. He suggests your USDA for Pesos on this side of he boarder for a better rate before you go. He says it will run about $150.00 or so to get to Mazatlan and suggests having $300.00 in Pesos on hand. There are gas stations on the main drag down to Mazatlan and ATM machines as well. (Note: letting your bank know you will be in Mexico seems prudent) Carrying a credit card would be handy and letting that card provider know you will be in Mexico, again is prudent. Not carrying too much cash is prudent ~ thus going to an ATM down there is the way to go and the rate of exchange isn't too bad at these machines.
My friend says the trip from Nogales AZ to Mazatlan is about a 11 hour trip.
The temps during February are mid 70's during the day and high 60's at night (These temps may be wrong not proven by me) . So shorts and sweater for the eve will be a good bet for most of the time. The temps are realtively warm and the dryness of the air will be the norm. Skin cream may be needed.
***
Communication while on the caravan trip:
I will have my CB rig on my car do most of you have this form of communication? It would be good to have the lead car and the rear car at minimum have this form of communication so as to be proactive in-case of any breakdown or other issues.
***
Currency of Mexico is the peso (MXN)
See USDA to MXN calculator here
The currency of Mexico is the peso (MXN), divided into 100 centavos. Coins are issued in 5 , 10 (steel), 20, 50 centavo (brass) and 1, 2, 5 (steel ring, brass center), 10, 20, 50, and 100 peso (brass ring, steel or silver center) denominations, but it's extremely rare to find coins valued at more than 10 pesos or less than 50 centavos. Banknotes are produced in 10 (blue-green, very rare), 20 (blue), 50 (pink-red), 100 (red), 200 (green), 500 (brown), and 1000 peso (purple and pink for the latest issue, purple for older issues) denominations. The 20- and 50-peso bills are made from polymer plastic, and there are several different series of 20-, 50-, 200-, and 1000-peso notes.
Do not accept old pesos (issued before 1992): they are practically worthless.
The symbol for pesos is the same as for US dollars, which can be slightly confusing. Prices in dollars (in tourist areas) are labeled "US$" or sport an S with a double stroke. As of October 2008 the exchange rate hovers around $13.00 MXN to $1.00 USD.
US dollars are widely accepted in the far north and in tourist locales elsewhere. Euros are generally not accepted by merchants, and even banks headquartered in Europe may refuse to accept euros for exchange.
Best place to convert USD to pesos is the supermarket. At Pemex gas stations, attendants seem to be private enterprise minded. They will give you 500 pesos of gas and charge you $50 (which is 10.00 mexican to 1.00 dollar). And will readily convert 500 pesos to dollars by multiplying by .105 rather than dividing by 10.5 and thus supplement their hourly wage. Attendants carry a wad of cash and make their own change. While many Pemex stations accept credit cards, especially in locations that have heavy tourist traffic, some do not; travelers who intend to pay by credit card should ask the attendant if the card is accepted before pumping begins.
ATMs are easy to come by. Bank of America customers can avoid ATM fees by using Santander Serfin ATMs. Other banks may have similar policies, check with your respective institution. Otherwise, do not be surprised to find yourself with a fee for each withdrawal. ATMs in smaller towns can run out of currency; sometimes this is a regular occurrence. Check with the bank (or locals) about the best time to use the ATM and don't wait until the very last minute to get cash.
Merchants can be picky about the state of your paper money, they may scrutinize it and reject anything with rips. Try to keep it in as pristine condition as possible. Reputedly, this is more the case the further South you go.
Merchants are often reluctant to make change in smaller towns. Try to avoid paying with overly large denominations; the best customer has exact change. In rural areas, your 'change' may consist of chiclets or other small commodities.