Car rental or public transportation

I have no idea what local taxi rates are in Chapala, but I have used taxis during all of my time here in MX. No local Chapalinos have chimed in yet on taxi rates there. I do have a feeling that the normal airport rate there is now about 350 pesos, which would be US$27.

Renting a Ford Fiesta from Avis (just thinking that if you are disabled, an even smaller car would be tougher to get in and out of) with LDW and personal accident insurance would cost US$291 for the car, and an additional US$224 for the insurances, for a total cost from Avis of US$515 per week. That's about MX$6700. Throw in another 600 pesos for gas, and that would be MX$7300 per week.

Where I live, I sometimes take wandering Sunday drives with taxistas. Sometimes I go out to pay all of the bills on one trip, and they take me from place to place and wait outside while I go inside. I pay an hourly rate with them, and usually now pay between 120 and 150 pesos per hour. (that's about US$11 per hour). No A/C, but it's not needed. Their car, their gas. They show up at my front door, and drop me off at every front door, and then find some shade to wait for me.

Without Spanish, another option would be to ask a Chapalino here on the forum to recommend a local high school kid they know who is out on vacation, who studies and knows English, to be your tour guide, and then take him with you and the taxi driver. Pay the kid 50 or 100 pesos an hour, buy both of them an occasional Coke and lunch every day and they'd both be thrilled. You would get to know someone local, and see everything you wanted to see, along with their running commentaries. You could use a printed out map of where you want to go, draw a route with a red Sharpie and manage from there with their help.

It would probably be better/easier to use the same taxista every day, and the same kid to come along. You might need to be a bit flexible and coordinate all of your schedules.

You would be paying the taxista by the hour, so he wouldn't care where you're going. If the taxistas charge you 200 pesos an hour in Chapala, and you pay the high school kid 100 pesos an hour, that's still 24 hours driving time per week to break even with an insured car rental and maybe getting lost. If you are at your rented digs and want to go out to a restaurant for dinner, the taxi ride won't be more than 30 pesos to go or come back. Some people say tomahtoh, and others say tomaytoe. Enjoy your visit.

[Detailman]

Originally Posted by GringoCArlos

I have no idea what local taxi rates are in Chapala, but I have used taxis during all of my time here in MX. No local Chapalinos have chimed in yet on taxi rates there. I do have a feeling that the normal airport rate there is now about 350 pesos, which would be US$27.

Renting a Ford Fiesta from Avis (just thinking that if you are disabled, an even smaller car would be tougher to get in and out of) with LDW and personal accident insurance would cost US$291 for the car, and an additional US$224 for the insurances, for a total cost from Avis of US$515 per week. That's about MX$6700. Throw in another 600 pesos for gas, and that would be MX$7300 per week.

Where I live, I sometimes take wandering Sunday drives with taxistas. Sometimes I go out to pay all of the bills on one trip, and they take me from place to place and wait outside while I go inside. I pay an hourly rate with them, and usually now pay between 120 and 150 pesos per hour. (that's about US$11 per hour). No A/C, but it's not needed. Their car, their gas. They show up at my front door, and drop me off at every front door, and then find some shade to wait for me.

Without Spanish, another option would be to ask a Chapalino here on the forum to recommend a local high school kid they know who is out on vacation, who studies and knows English, to be your tour guide, and then take him with you and the taxi driver. Pay the kid 50 or 100 pesos an hour, buy both of them an occasional Coke and lunch every day and they'd both be thrilled. You would get to know someone local, and see everything you wanted to see, along with their running commentaries. You could use a printed out map of where you want to go, draw a route with a red Sharpie and manage from there with their help.

It would probably be better/easier to use the same taxista every day, and the same kid to come along. You might need to be a bit flexible and coordinate all of your schedules.

You would be paying the taxista by the hour, so he wouldn't care where you're going. If the taxistas charge you 200 pesos an hour in Chapala, and you pay the high school kid 100 pesos an hour, that's still 24 hours driving time per week to break even with an insured car rental and maybe getting lost. If you are at your rented digs and want to go out to a restaurant for dinner, the taxi ride won't be more than 30 pesos to go or come back. Some people say tomahtoh, and others say tomaytoe. Enjoy your visit.

From our personal experiences I would say that I am 100% in agreement with the above. One time we rented a car for a two month period in Ajijic. We did that as we wanted to experience what Ajijic and area would be like having a car at a moment's notice (trying to experience the full time move when we bring our own car). My costs for the two months were about bang on with GringoCarlos estimate.

When we compare that two month experience with using taxis, it was simply not worth it. Taxis were much cheaper for the type of travelling/shopping/sightseeing we did and also convenient. A few times we simply boarded a bus going to Chapala if it was convenient and they were very inexpensive.

Of course this does not take into account some of the factors such as your mobility concern. That may sway your decision somewhat.

But I will never go the rental route again. Expensive and simply not that much more convenient.

[eagles100]

We haven't made a final decision, rental car or public transportation but we really do appreciate all the input.

It's going to be fun to see all the places we've been constantly researching for a year now.

Riberas del Pilar, Jocotepec, Vista del Lago and more, oh to choose lol.

Maybe we'll end up doing both transportations; public for 1st week and rental car for second.

Is it October yet???

[dongringo]

There is nothing better than driving your own car in Mexico.
Getting lost is possibly one of the greater adventures in Mexico. I think that there is barely a 100 square miles, that do not present some historical or ambiental significance that you probably never heard of, except in retrospect, after you got lost there.
If you can afford it, DRIVE!

[elchante]

Put me down as another who says rent a car, at least for a week. I knew less about the area than you do when I came down for a week's stay in December 2007. [I know I knew less because I didn't even know that Jocotepec existed, much less Vista del Lago. Oh, and I'm going to guess and say that it's probably 25 to 30 miles between the two.]

When I arrived at the casita I had rented for the week back in 2007, the landlords gave me a great little map from one of the realty companies here and I used that to navigate. You may be given one upon your arrival, but if not just drop into one of the larger realty companies [ReMax in Ajijic has them, I know] and pick one up. Also, if you have not yet done so, do a web search for Lake Chapala maps.

There is only one main highway from Chapala to Jocotepec, the carretera. I drove up and down that a couple of times and then started venturing off into pueblos and neighborhoods along the way to see what they had to offer and what their "vibe" was. By the time I left a week later, I knew in what areas I would like to live and in what areas I would not. And after having lived here full-time for more than four years, I still agree with my initial assessment. Since my mobility is also a bit limited, I would never have seen as much if I had stuck strictly to public transportation.

I rent and have lived in three different towns around the lake during my 4-plus years here, but I've always stayed in Jocotepec municipality [i.e. county]. It happens to suit my lifestyle and pocketbook the best.

Also, check out the blogs by locals. My own site is listed below and on it I have links to other blogs written by folks who live at Lake Chapala. We often write about towns other than those in which we live and include pictures and commentary so that you can perhaps get a feel for different communities.

October should be lovely around the lake. End of the rainy season, so everything is lush and the temperatures are normally great. Enjoy your visit and feel free to contact me before or after you arrive and I would be happy to show you around Jocotepec.

[Gavin123]

why dont you shop around for some quotes on car hire in mexico?

[mickisue1]

Assuming that the cost, while an issue, is not the deciding factor, it comes down to your level of tolerance for risk.

For some, getting lost in a strange place is terrifying. Heck, for some, even getting lost in their hometown is terrifying.

I tend to be more of the "If I got lost, I can get found" mentality. My most memorable experience with being lost was in London at morning rush hour. We needed to get to Gatwick and went too far into the city to catch the expressway directly south.

After asking directions and getting completely indecipherable answers, I saw a sign for the the white cliffs of Dover. They are on the English Channel. Realizing that one would have to cross the Eastern Ring Road to get there, I started to follow those signs. We hit the ring road, and at 80mph, made up a lot of time.

The biggest things that saved me there are what can save you, if you decide to drive on your trip. First, as noted, I don't get too fazed by getting lost. I'd done it too many times on business trips, already! Second, I had a rudimentary knowledge of the geography of the area, and third, I had a rudimentary knowledge of the major roads in the area.

Those three things, combined, can take you anywhere. But the first one is a must. Without it, you won't be able to utilize the other two.

[eagles100]

Originally Posted by mickisue1

Assuming that the cost, while an issue, is not the deciding factor, it comes down to your level of tolerance for risk.

For some, getting lost in a strange place is terrifying. Heck, for some, even getting lost in their hometown is terrifying.

I tend to be more of the "If I got lost, I can get found" mentality.

Cost is always an issue but if we use taxis every day for 2 weeks, it will also add up.

For risk of getting lost, I've been there many times as I lived in Montreal, Quebec for 10 years (large city and not my home town). I'm sure if we get lost, some kind soul will be able to direct us. We might even find some awesome place we would never have found otherwise. Isn't moving to a new country about adventure anyway? My husband has a good sense of direction and we will print out some maps ahead of time and get a local one if need be.

I'm not adversed to hiring locally for the 1st few times though.

Thanks for your input.

[eagles100]

Originally Posted by elchante

Put me down as another who says rent a car, at least for a week.

October should be lovely around the lake. End of the rainy season, so everything is lush and the temperatures are normally great. Enjoy your visit and feel free to contact me before or after you arrive and I would be happy to show you around Jocotepec.

WOW, thanks for the offer to show us around the Jocotepec area in October. We might just take you up on that. There is nothing like having someone locally to show you the sights and sounds.

[chicois8]

I do not know why everyone is talking about getting lost in the Chapala area, in the original post they state they have a GPS with the Mexico maps.

If the OP has a hot day type in Mazamitla , Jalisco into the GPS and cool down....suerte y paz