Villahermosa (capital city)

Location: Tabasco State, southeast Mexico
Distance from Mexico City: 465 miles east
Population: 530,000
Closest major airport: Carlos Rovirosa Intl aka Villahermosa Intl (VSA)
Time Zone: Central Standard Time

Villahermosa, the capital of Tabasco, is a modern city located 50 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, where the Carrizal and Grijalva rivers meet. It features colorful flower gardens, imposing palm trees, a tropical atmosphere and friendly locals – only a few of the reasons travelers are taken by the city.

Zona Luz, the oldest part of the city, features beautifully preserved structures and two of the most striking buildings in the city - the House of Tiles and the Center of Olmec and Mayan Cultures (CICOM), which won first prize in the World Biennial Architectural Competition and houses the Casa de Arte Jose Gorostiza and the Carlos Pellicer Camara Regional Museum of Anthropology.

La Venta Museum-Park and the Yumka Nature Study Center are additional renowned sites, offering archaeological ruins, exuberant vegetation and pleasant open spaces. Tours of Yumka include close contact with white-tailed deer, scarlet macaws, toucans, monkeys and enormous iguanas. Another area of the park features fauna from different parts of the world, including giraffes, zebras and antelopes.

Tabasco 2000, the state’s administrative center, is another site worth visiting. The state-of-the-art facilities are surrounded by hotels, banks, department stores, convention centers and offices. It also features nature parks and lagoons, including the Parque Tomas Garrido, La Polvora and the Parque de la Luz, all perfect for a variety of outdoor activities.

The floating restaurant Capitan Beulo offers delicious meals; similarly good restaurants are available at the parks built on the city’s river bends. Daring diners should try dishes made from pejelagarto, a strange mixture of fish and alligator served up a variety of ways.