Mexico Data: House-Sitting and Travel by the Numbers

From the moment we pulled up our roots, packed up our car, and expatriated ourselves from the United States in 2021, we’ve been exploring small towns, big cities, and whole countries previously unknown to us. I’ve said before that I think we’ve approached our fledgeling immigrant experience (in both Mexico, and now in Japan) with gentleness, openness, and genuine curiosity. This sense of adventure, coupled with the warm welcome from all the lovely people we met along the way, encouraged us to keep navigating to new destinations and seeking out new cultural experiences.

We left Mexico for Japan nearly one year ago, and I’ve had this little blog saved as a ‘draft’ ever since. I guess it’s better late than never. I really enjoy breaking things down into data, so let’s take a look at the numbers from our time in Mexico!

Please note: I’ve written dozens of blogs about Mexico, on our own Benton Homestead 旅行記, as well as on my Dani Benton Photography Photo Blog. The links you’ll see below will take you directly to the blogs on that particular topic!


Time and Distance on the Road

Dates in Mexico: December 5, 2021 to February 5, 2023

Months in Mexico: 14

Days in Mexico: 427

Miles Driven in Mexico: 9,350 *

* That’s like driving all the way from California to Georgia, back to California, back to Georgia, then alllmost back to California.

Oil Changes: 2

Flat Tires: 1

Most Number of Oceans seen in one day: 2


Safety on the Road

Number of times pulled over by Guardia Nacional at a standard traffic checkpoint: 4

Number of times pulled over by Policía: 2

Number of times Policía were friendly and offered driving directions: 1

Number of times Policía solicited an illegal cash bribe: 1

Stolen License Plates: 1

Worst US State for license plate replacement: Louisiana

Best US State for license plate replacement: South Dakota


Mexican States

Mexico’s full name is Estados Unidos Méxicanos. Of the 32 states that make up the federation of Mexico, we had the pleasure of visiting 21: Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Coahuila, San Luis Potosí, Guanajuato, Querétaro, Hidalgo, State of Mexico, Mexico City, Michoacán, Jalisco, Nayarit, Sinaloa, Durango, Zacatecas, Tlaxcala, Puebla, Morelos, Oaxaca, Veracruz, and Tabasco. Now clearly, we spent more time in some states than others. So let’s break this down further:

Mexican States we visited: 21 States

Mexican States we drove through (did not stay overnight): 5 States

  • Tamaulipas (we crossed the border into Mexico at Reynosa)
  • Coahuila
  • Michoacán
  • Tlaxcala
  • Tabasco

Mexican States we stayed 1 to 6 days: 7 States

  • Nuevo Leon (Monterrey)
  • San Luis Potosí (San Luis Potosí)
  • Querétaro (drove through once; later stayed in Querétaro)
  • Hidalgo (drove through once; later stayed in Pachuca)
  • Durango (Durango)
  • Zacatecas (Zacatecas)
  • Morelos (Cuernavaca)

Mexican States we stayed 1 to 6 weeks: 6 States

  • State of Mexico (2 weeks in Aculco, 1 night in Atlacomulco)
  • Mexico City (6 weeks in Mexico City)
  • Nayarit (3 weeks in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle)
  • Sinaloa (2 weeks in Mazatlán)
  • Puebla (stayed in Cholula multiple times)
  • Veracruz (10 days in Coatzacoalcos)

Mexican States we stayed 2 to 3 months: 3 States

  • Jalisco (1 night in Guadalajara; 10 weeks in Puerto Vallarta; 2 trips to Yelapa)
  • Guanajuato (10 days in Guanajuato; 5 weeks in León; 4 weeks in San Miguel de Allende)
  • Oaxaca (18 weeks in San Andrés Huayapam; 1 week in Oaxaca; 1 night in Salina Cruz)

Pueblos Mágicos

There’s a growing list of cities, towns, and villages sprinkled throughout Mexico, known as “Pueblos Mágicos”. These are officially designated by a program within Mexico to celebrate certain municipalities known for being particularly vibrant, unique, or culturally important, to promote tourism for both Mexicans and foreigners alike. Of the 132 Pueblos Mágicos, we had the pleasure of visiting a dozen. While I was initially skeptical that these places could be differentiated from all the other wonderful, unique, vastly different places that we had seen otherwise, it’s true that each one of these Pueblos Mágicos we visited were quite special.

  1. Sombrerete, Zacatecas
  2. Bernal, Querétaro
  3. Real del Monte, Hidalgo
  4. Zempoala, Hidalgo
  5. San Juan Teotihuacán y San Martín de las Pirámides, Mexico State
  6. Cholula, Puebla
  7. Atlixco, Puebla
  8. Tepoztlán, Morelos
  9. Aculco, Mexico State
  10. Mascota, Jalisco
  11. San Pablo Villa de Mitla, Oaxaca
  12. Orizaba, Veracruz

House-Sitting Statistics

Total Number of House-Sits: 10

Dates Sitting: April 1, 2022 to February 3, 2023

Months Sitting: 10

Days Sitting: 283

Shortest Sit Length: 5 Days

Longest Sit Length: 7 Weeks

Average Sit Length: 25 Days

States: 5

  • 1 in the State of Mexico
  • 3 in Guanajuato
  • 4 in Oaxaca
  • 1 in Nayarit
  • 1 Mexico City

Cities: 7

  • 1 in Aculco, State of Mexico
  • 1 in Guanajuato, Guanajuato
  • 4 in San Andrés Huayapam, Oaxaca
  • 1 in La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Nayarit
  • 1 in León, Guanajuato
  • 1 in Mexico City
  • 1 in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato

House-Sit Host Data

Total Sit Hosts: 13 *

* This includes each individual person who invited us to care for their pets, as some house-sits were for couples with different home-countries.

  • Mexican Hosts: 4 (30%)
  • Foreign (Non-Mexican) Hosts: 9 (70%)
    • 4 Canadians
    • 4 Americans
    • 1 European

Booked via Facebook Group House & Pet-Sitting Mexico: 5 Sits

Booked via HouseSitMexico website: 2 Sits

Booked via Host Recommendation: 1 Sit

Repeat Sits (Hosts invited us back): 2 Sits


House-Sit Pet Data

Total Pets Watched: 37

  • Dogs: 14
  • Cats: 8
  • Chickens: 15

Additional Street Dogs our Hosts asked us to feed: 6

Raw Food Diets: 3

Total Vet Visits: 5

  • 1 for an elderly chihuaha who was having trouble going to the bathroom prior to our arrival
  • 2 for a special sweetheart who is known for occasionally refusing to eat her delicious food
  • 2 for an elderly former-streetdog who was undergoing cancer treatment

We will always remember Lucky

While I like to showcase the fun side of caring for people’s pets, there can also be heartbreak. Shortly before House-Sit #6 began with Lucky, he was diagnosed with a fast-spreading cancer. Lucky had previously been rescued from the streets by his people, after having nearly succumbed to an awful case of mange and other health issues. They literally gave Lucky a second chance, adding many years to his life, and giving him the chicken-filled lifestyle he deserved. During our five weeks with Lucky, his cancer progressed at an alarming rate; we were in close contact with our hosts and the vet. Of course we knew Lucky would not have very long after our hosts returned, so we did our best to give him extra walks, extra treats, and extra attention. Lucky was able to spend a few more months with his people, and we know they savored every extra day they had with this sweet old guy.


House-Sit Pet Awards

Best Alarm Clock: Wamba

Most Unique Look: Momo

Most Toys Fetched: Beanie

Fluffiest Kitty: Giacomo

Fluffiest Doggo: Pelu

Most Chill: Gomita

Most Compliments from Strangers: Bella

Best Prancing: Florinda

World Traveler: Milo

Best Cross-Eyes: Zoe

Best Side-Eye: This Chicken

Most Improved: Felíx


I think it’s pretty obvious that I had some fun putting this together for y’all. So I hope you enjoyed as well! I cannot express enough thanks to every single one of our house-sit hosts for trusting us to care for their beloved pets and homes; it’s such an honor and such a huge responsibility. Our 10 months as full-time house-sitters throughout Mexico was an experience we’ll always appreciate, and never forget! We continue to hope we’re able to maintain a connection bridging Mexico and Japan in the future. We will return to Mexico in 2025 to turn our Temporary Residency to Permanent Residency, and we may have some more house-sitting adventures while we’re there. In the meantime, we need to plant a whole greenhouse just for Mexican food ingredients!

Our YouTube video, reading through this blog with additional commentary 

Our YouTube video on a related topic: How We Travel Mexico; Look Inside Our Car 

Our YouTube video on a related topic: What We’re Looking For in Mexico or Japan 

You can find more of my photography work, here:
Dani Benton | Dani Benton Photography | www.danibentonphotography.com | Print Shop
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Formerly: Dani Mouser | Formerly Located: Dallas, Oregon » Portland, Oregon » New Orleans, Louisiana » Mexico

Thanks for reading,
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