3-star hotels in Veracruz

Veracruz is a working Gulf port with two personalities. The Centro Histórico is the old city: the zócalo, the malecón, danzón and marimba played in the evening, and the café lechero ritual of clinking your glass at La Parroquia. The weather runs in two modes — humid heat most of the year and nortes from November to February, gales that close the port and cool the city for days. The food is the jewel: pescado a la veracruzana and arroz a la tumbada.

These hotels follow the city's own geography. Several sit on Boulevard Manuel Ávila Camacho, the seafront drive that links the centre with Boca del Río and takes 20-30 minutes end to end. Others stand inside the Centro Histórico — Calle Morelos, Callejón De Trigueros, Av Independencia and Francisco Canal — within walking distance of the zócalo and the malecón. Two addresses are elsewhere: Boca del Río for work trips with newer hotels, and Col Valente Diaz on the airport road. Couples and short-break visitors tend to want the centre; families and drivers take the boulevard for parking and pools; business travellers look at Boca del Río and the airport.

Getting there and around

The seafront drive between the Centro Histórico and Boca del Río takes 20-30 minutes, which is how the two halves of the city connect. Staying in the centre puts the zócalo and the malecón on foot. Note that nortes from November to February can close the port for days, so allow for that if your plans depend on the water.

When to go

Weather here has two modes. Most of the year is humid heat; from November to February come the nortes, gales that close the port and cool the city for days. If you want the malecón and the port at their liveliest, plan around the hotter months; if you prefer cooler air, accept that the wind may keep boats in. Either way the food — pescado a la veracruzana, arroz a la tumbada, café lechero at La Parroquia — does not depend on the season.