Mexico has quite a diverse landscape. The southern parts of the country are tropical and resemble the thick jungles of Guatemala whereas the northern parts of the country are desert. Guatemala and Mexico both have the word ‘ALTO’ written on their stop signs. This can distinguish the countries from South America where the word ‘PARE’ is used on stop signs. In Mexico there is an abundance of signs with the letters “S.A de C.V.” written on them, typically after a company name. Mexico City is noticeable for its fleet of pink coloured taxis. There are lots of powerlines in Mexico and their most common utility poles resemble crucifixes. In more remote areas of Mexico, it’s common to see Eiffel Tower-like structures holding up the power lines. Mexican towns and cities have houses that typically are made of concrete. There tends to be a very narrow footpath separating the walls of these houses from the roads. Spanish is spoken in Mexico. Most of the country (apart from the desert) consists of undulating land. Pink coloured taxis are endemic to Mexico City. It should also be noted that Mexico City is known as ‘Ciudad de México’ in Spanish (hence the letters CDMX on the pink taxis). There are many signs with these words in Mexico City. Mexican bollards are white and cigarette shaped. They have a black section on the base of the bollard or near the base. Mexican electricity counters are visible on most Mexican houses. They are circular in shape and normally on an outer wall of the house. Similar electricity counters can be found in Guatemala, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Mexico often has large amounts of visible power lines. A common type of utility poles in Mexico resembles a crucifix. Octagonal shaped utility poles are some of the most common in Mexico. These poles are rarely seen in other countries however do sometimes occur in Colombia. PEMEX are a common petrol station (gas station) company throughout Mexico. Urban Mexico often consists of houses and buildings that have walls on the narrow footpath. The buildings are typically made of concrete. In Mexico, it is a fairly common convention for only the front of buildings to be painted with the sides having visible brick. There are large, black water tanks that are a common sight above Mexican houses. Smaller trees and rambling bushes are common in Mexico. The southern parts of Mexico have a tropical feel that resembles the jungles of Guatemala. Parts of Mexico bordering the Yucatan Peninsula are lush and tropical. The Yucatan Peninsula area also commonly has small, rock walls. The northern section of Mexico is largely occupied by desert. License plates in the south-western Mexican state of Nayarit most commonly have a reddish or blue coloured lower, horizontal section. The state of Yucatan, located on the far east of Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula mainly has license plates with a top, horizontal green section. Another potentially useful tidbit is that Mexico has narrow plates whilst most of South America has wider plates.

Mexico has 32 different states.


Bollards in Mexico tend to have the pattern of a white reflector on the top section and a black base.

Road Lines:

Mexico, like the rest of North America, uses a Yellow divider and white shoulder lines. The yellow divider will be a double line on major roads, and a single line on smaller roads.
A good thing to notice is that the white shoulder lines are dashed on most major highways in a passing zone. Outside of passing zones and side roads often use a solid white line.

Road Signs / Highway Signs:

Mexico uses Alto on their stop sign. This is super important and can be a really good deciding factor in Central and South America.

Mexico also uses a variety of colored signs like the USA, but the Green ones are the ones you want to look for.

Mexico also uses KM on signs, which can help you figure out whether its Mexico or the South West USA.

Mexico uses the North American Yellow warning signs. They seem to have large “bolded” images on them.

Traditional Clothing:

Indigenous people in Mexico dress in a similar fashion to what would have been worn hundreds of years ago. Its possible to see people on street view wearing traditional garbs.

There are 32 states, with each state having their own plate. They also update the plates with a new design every 4-5 years, so you can see a lot of variations.

Vegetation/Landscape:

Mexico boasts the highest number of pine and oak species in the world. Other notable trees include mahogany, zapote and ceiba (also known as pochote), the sacred tree of the Maya.

For other plants, there are also a lot of Cacti, with this being a good sign you’re near or in Mexico.

Beer:
Mexico has a host of beers. Popular brands include Corona, Modelo and Dos Equis.
You can typically find one of these beers painted on the walls of local bars or grocery stores.

General look:

The Yucatan Peninsula is pretty distinct from any other region. Its also one of the heaviest tourist destinations in Mexico (Cancun).

The South of Mexico generally has this sandy / dirt feel on the sides.

The North of Mexico is basically a giant desert. That being said, there are parts that are less desert-y than others.

Central Mexico often looks like the South West USA but with some mountains and hills.

