By David Eidell (05/08)
Some folks have bigger budgets than others. Then again, with the cost of four dollar a gallon gasoline and five dollar diesel looming on the horizon, cost planning is more important than ever. It's agonizingly easy to describe travel costs in the USA (yikes). But what about if we can make it across the border---what lies in wait?
If the national petroleum company Pemex can withstand the pressure to match the world price increase of gasoline and diesel you can expect to pay less than one-half of what you are now paying. How likely is it that Mexico is going to raise prices? Well, unlike the USA everything is trucked to market in Mexico---a sharp rise in fuel prices will mean a fast jump in basic staples prices, soaring inflation and a very unhappy voting public. Mexico has three viable political parties and I am fairly certain that doubling the price of fuel will mean a calamitous end of that party's chances of winning another presidential election. As one sage presidential candidate told another "When presidente Lazaro Cardenas expropriated Mexico's oil industry from the Americans, he pronounced 'The Oil Is Ours'. However, the word 'ours' does not mean the crude oil belongs to the Mexican government. The oil belongs to the Mexican people". But never put it past a politician to eek out incremental price increases. We'll have to wait and see.
The average RV site in more popular west coast destinations is now fifteen to twenty dollars a night. Many of these parks offer substantial discounts for stays of a month or more, and many multi-month rates can lop off thirty to forty percent of what the daily rate amounts to. Many parks in the interior charge by the person and many of these parks charge six or seven dollars per night per person. As a rule, southern and eastern Mexico is substantially less expensive than northern and western Mexico.
Prices in fancy restaurants, and tourist bars add up fast. As an example in Zihuatanejo, I patronize a roadside restaurant called "El Pulpo" (the octopus). Downtown restaurants do not offer nearly as good Mexican food, and the price is double or more. I am always prowling restaurants in search of a fair deal. I found one in nearby Ixtapa that offers a great breakfast for around five dollars (just observe where all of the Mexicans are eating).
Unless your food requirement demands French cuisine, it is very likely that an RVer can dine very nicely on a five-dollar-a-day budget not including beverages. Mexico definitely is the land of fresh fruit and vegetables---let's look at the price of some items as found in a Wal-Mart or Commercial Mexicana hypermarket:
WHITE POTATOES 45 cents per pound
ICEBERG LETTUCE 60 cents per head
CARROTS 20 cents a pound
WHITE ONIONS 50 cents per pound
RED DELICIOUS APPLES (imported) 70 cents a pound
WHITE SEEDLESS GRAPES 90 cents per pound (from Chile)
CELERY 60 cents a bunch
BROCCOLI 30 cents per pound
CAULIFLOUR 25 cents a pound
MANGOS (in season) 20 cents per pound
ORANGES (valencias from vera cruz) 10 cents per pound
LIMONES (sour limes) 30 cents per pound
BANANAS (Chiapas) 20 cents per pound. Purple Finger bananas 40 cents per pound
SPENCER STEAK (custom cut) $3.88/lb
T-Bone STEAK (custom cut) $3.88/lb
CHICKEN (whole) $2.00/lb
NEW ZEALAND BUTTER $2.50/lb
PORK CHOPS $2.70/lb
WHOLE HEN TURKEY $1.00/lb
EXTRA LARGE BROWN EGGS $1.20/doz
WHEAT BREAD Extra large $1.80/loaf
VODKA liter domestic $5.00
Tequila $8.00 bottle
GALLO BEER from Guatemala $2.00/6-pack
MOOSEHEAD from Canada $3.00/6-pack
CORONA Domestic $4.00/6-pack
MODELO Domestic $4.50/6-pack
COCA COLA 2-liters $1.10
Many produce items can be found cheaper at outdoor markets that are present in every town. Most savvy shoppers tour the outdoor markets first and purchase whatever is available then venture on to a supermarket to fill in the missing items.