The highway heading to the western border with Guatemala. No dividing lines on the highway here.
Here are easy-to-follow tips on driving to Belize from the U.S. through Mexico as posted by an expat who has done this trip several times.
Professional drivers do this trip frequently bringing down used cars and other vehicles for sale in Belize. You can find a few companies in Belize such as Discount Auto Sales and Sterling Freight that have regular tractor trailer runs between Texas and Belize bringing in vehicles, boats, household effects and general cargo if you do not want to do the run yourself.
Here are the DIY tips on driving through Mexico to get to Belize:
When you get to Matamoros (just over the border from Brownsville) stop at Customs to get your insurance ,vehicle permit. and visitor permit..this takes about an hour. take your own pen. There is no 3 day waiting period. Besides a pen, you will need a photocopy of your driver's licence, vehicle registration and passports. You can get the permit for 6 months if you don't tell them you are going to Belize and they think you will be staying in Mexico. Keep the paper part of your permit with you at all times as they will want to see it when you get stopped at checkpoints. This will save you the time and $$ of getting another permit when you enter Mexico again from Belize. Very important to stop at Customs again on your way back into the States to have them remove the permit sticker from your windshield. They will want to see the paper part of your permit too.
We always spend the night in Brownsville in order to get to the border bright and early in the a.m. From Matamoros border crossing, follow the signs for Cuidad Victoria. You will want to be on Highway 101 / 180. which will take you to Tampico. On the outskirts of Tampico there are nice hotels. You should arrive in Tampico about 4 in the afternoon...resist the temptation to go further that day.
Just south of Tampico (probably a mile or 2) you will need to take a right ramp to Tuxpan.....the sign for this right ramp is obscured by a tree so you really have to look for it. Carrying on you will go thru Poza Rica and Xalapa. Just north of Veracruz, take the Cordoba toll road exit. Follow the signs to Villa Hermosa and Escarcega. Lots of hotels in Villa Hermosa and a good spot to stop for the night.
Leave Villa Hermosa on Highway 186 and follow signs to Chetumal. all in all about 2.5 days from Brownsville to Chetumal.
5000 pesos would probably be enough for gas, rooms and tolls and there are ATMS. Stopping for gas at the Pemex stations with an attached OXO convenience store seemed to be the best bet for clean bathrooms. When you stop for the night, stay close to your room . When you get gas, watch the pump.
We had no trouble at the checkpoints but I don't think they wanted to bother with a slobbery , barking hound. Probably be a good idea to keep valuables out of sight. No talk of bribes but we don't speak Spanish so who knows??
After you cross from Mexico into Belize, they will spray your tires and you will have to go through Belize customs. They will stamp in your passport that you have a vehicle (which has to be taken out of Belize after 120 days for a couple of days). When it comes to that, ask your local customs broker for info on storage yards just over the border. We stored our Jeep in Corozal and had it insured through RFG Insurance Belize for Fire and Theft. They will give you an insurance quote online and are good to deal with. They said they only sell 1 year policies but after 6 months would refund the balance..they have done so, no problem.
There are driving directions on Bing Maps and a Mexican road map is useful. If you have GPS, Bings Maps can big help in addition to traditional paper maps.
Once you cross the border into Belize, slow down. The highways are terrible, signage is often broken down or never existed, potholes are everywhere, the vehicles are much older and running on poor tyres - in short, welcome to the Third World and drive VERY cautiously and defensively.