Mexico Guide
The north
Nuevo Casas Grandes
The only reason to stop in Nuevo Casas Grandes is to visit the nearby village of Casas Grandes and the adjacent archeological site of Paquimé (see p.187). Nuevo Casas Grandes itself is small and not especially interesting; if you leave Ciudad Juárez very early you can visit the site and continue to Chihuahua in the same day – a route that is longer but certainly more interesting than the main highway (though rains can take out the road south of Nuevo Casas Grandes). Buses arrive outside the adjoining Estrella Blanca and Omnibus de México offices on Obregón, just steps from the basic hotel Juárez, Obregón 110 ( 
636/694-0233; Price: Under M$150/), the town's only budget accommodation. The rooms can be grubby and the hot water sporadic, but the management is friendly. On the main street, a couple of blocks away, you'll find Hotel Paquimé, Juárez 401 ( 636/694-1320, 
npinon@paquinet.com.mx; Price: M$250-350), which has clean rooms with cable TV. Best of all, however, is the amicable Hotel Piñón, Juárez 605 Nte ( 636/694-0655, hotelpinon@prodigy.net.mx; Price: M$350-500), a couple of blocks beyond Paquimé and boasting TV, reliable hot water, a swimming pool and even a small museum of Paquimé clay pots. The management occasionally offers tours of the ruins.
Dining in town is a fairly basic affair, with a number of taquerías dotted around. For more moderately priced fare, try Dinno's Pizza at the corner of Constitución and Minerva, which serves decent pizzas and an excellent breakfast buffet. Pricier restaurants line Juárez – the one inside Hotel Piñon is reputable, as is Restaurant Constantino. If you're on an ultra-tight budget, there's a supermarket on Urueta and Constitución. In Casas Grandes, you'll find a few eateries on the main square – Paleteria y Neveria Mar y Sol is good for tortas and ice cream, while Restaurant Rosti Pollo specializes, as the name suggests, in roast chicken.
If you need Internet access, there are a couple of places in Nuevo Casas Grandes on Juárez: Versailles and La Playa both charge about M$20 an hour.