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Municipality and city in Veracruz, Mexico
Photo: Ken Eckert, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Tuxpan (officially Túxpam de Rodríguez Cano) is a city of 90,000 people (2020) in Veracruz on the banks of the Tuxpan River, which reaches the Gulf of Mexico 11 km (6.8 mi) downstream. Being the nearest port to Mexico City, Tuxpan is an important commercial link for Mexican imports and exports and home to a naval base.
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With fountains, occasional events, snack vendors and intriguing municipal buildings around, it's not a bad little town square. And you can walk over to the Pantepec River path a block south for a pleasant view there.
Here is a curiosity on ties between these two Latin American countries. Through writings, paintings, sculptures, and other items, one stands to learn a lot about the relations over the years through this museum.
Santuario de la Iguana
Small greenspace next to the river where iguanas and garrobos stroll around freely, just waiting for someone to snap their picture so they can become Instagram stars.
Tuxpan Playa
Ahh, surf and sand and offshore oil tankers.
Playa Norte
Ahh, surf and sand and offshore oil tankers, plus a nearby electric plant.
Playa Galindo
Ahh, secluded surf and sand and offshore oil tankers.
Classic Mexican beachfront restaurant with lots of seafood, including shrimp cocktails, buckets of beer on ice, and fruity drinks like their Piña Loca, served in a hollowed out pineapple. Sit on the beach for hours, eating, drinking, and soaking up the sunshine and atmosphere.
Very popular seafood restaurant with waterfront location next to the lagoon. Fish filets prepared however you like, a variety of shrimp dishes, large cocktails. Live music on weekends.
Casual, family friendly seafood restaurant with a kids play area. Classic fish dishes as well as shrimp however you prefer (the fried coconut shrimp are tasty, with a lightly spicy habanero sauce).
Casual popular place for grab-and-go food. Try the torta de cuerito and the timbakey.
Beach hotel. Pet-friendly.
This hotel has a pool with a walkway over it; moreover, you can watch behemoth oil tanker and other marine traffic on the river all day to your heart's content.
Another river resort, good if you like a modern, concrete bunker feel. Free breakfast.
This hotel has a nice colonial feel. Restaurant/bar.
Mercado Enrique Rodriguez
This is the town's main marketplace with aisles of stalls for fruits, vegetables, spices, household wares, clothing, artesanias and more. The second floor is where you'll find the prepared food. Taste the most authentic regional cooking by women who've had their recipes passed down for generations.
By bus
From Veracruz, it is a 6-hour trip to Tuxpan and you will probably need to change buses in Poza Rica.
Tuxpan is a fairly large town and the beaches are not close to the centro, so you'll probably want to use a taxi to get around.
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Poza Rica · Regional · PAZ
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