Tecolutla is a town and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
located on the
Tecolutla River on the eastern coast of the state of
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. It has the closest beaches to
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
, and much of its economy is based on tourism, as it is only a four- or five-hour drive from the capital.
It is the northern end of a tourist corridor along the Gulf of Mexico called the "
Emerald Coast
The Emerald Coast is an unofficial name for the coastal area in the US state of Florida on the Gulf of Mexico that stretches about through five counties—Escambia County, Florida, Escambia, Santa Rosa County, Florida, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa Co ...
," which extends down to the city of
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...
.
Tecolutla's biggest attraction is its natural settings of
wetlands
A wetland is a distinct semi-aquatic ecosystem whose groundcovers are flooded or saturated in water, either permanently, for years or decades, or only seasonally. Flooding results in oxygen-poor ( anoxic) processes taking place, especially ...
with
estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
, canals and
mangrove
A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...
s associated with the river.
The town is known for the "Tecolutla Monster,"—probably a dead
whale
Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...
—that was washed ashore in 1969. Its remains are kept at the Marine Museum.
The name Tecolutla means "place of the
tecolotes or owls."
Tourism

The most important and growing economic activity in the zone is tourism. Tecolutla has the closest beaches to Mexico City.
The town has about 15 km of beaches which face directly onto the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
. (The municipality has a total of 40 km.) These beaches generally have gentle waves and warm water, except during storms called "''nortes''."
These are strong cold fronts that come down from the north along Mexico's Atlantic coast between December and February and can cause sudden drops in temperature and winds. This fickle weather keeps Tecolutla and many other Gulf coast communities from becoming major resort areas like
Cancun.
The oldest hotel is the Hotel Tecolutla, built in 1949, which has been preserved in its period. It used to be the only sizable building in town, but since the turn of the 21st century, numerous hotels have been developed. They generally cater to budget travelers from Mexico City, also attracting travelers from
Xalapa
Xalapa or Jalapa (, ), officially Xalapa-Enríquez (), is the capital city of the Mexico, Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Veracruz and the name of the surrounding municipality. In 2020 census the city reported a population of 443,063 ...
, the state capital. This tourism is mainly concentrated during peak seasons, such as Christmas and Easter holidays, and special events such as the annual fishing tournament. During the rest of the year, it is fairly empty.
The beaches of the town of Tecolutla divide into North and South beaches, each with their own hotel zones, restaurants, and camping areas. Both offer boat rides and bicycle paths. At the South Beach, where breakwaters protect the mouth of the Tecolutla River, there are also beachside cabins. Docks serve boat rides up the river, as well as fishing expeditions on the river and in the Gulf.
A type of boat often used to navigate around the estuaries is called a ''panguita,'' which looks like a very long canoe.
Cultural attractions include the
Hueytepec archeological zone, the Parish of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, the old lighthouse, the Hotel Tecolutla, the Municipal Palace and the Marine Museum, which contains an exposition of river and ocean products. This museum, located on Matamoros Street, is a space containing more than 300 aquatic species both alive and preserved.

The town also hosts a number of events. From April to September each year, the beach known as Vida Milenaria is reserved for sea turtles returning here to breed.
This project is led by Fernando Manzano, better known here as "Papá Tortuga" (Daddy Turtle). This group hatches and frees between five and six thousand baby marine turtles each year. The returning turtles lay about this number of eggs which volunteers collect and protect.
Tourist are invited to help free the baby turtles when they hatch.
The annual fishing competition in May draws many visitors locally, from Mexico and even beyond. There are events for
shad
The Alosidae, or the shads, are a family (biology), family of clupeiform fishes. The family currently comprises four genera worldwide, and about 32 species.
The shads are Pelagic fish, pelagic (open water) schooling fish, of which many are anadr ...
,
sea bass
Sea bass is a common name for a variety of species of marine fish. Many fish species of various families have been called sea bass.
In Ireland and the United Kingdom, the fish sold and consumed as sea bass is exclusively the European bass, ''Dic ...
and
tarpon
Tarpon are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans.
Species and ...
and take place both on the sea and on the
Tecolutla River. This is one of the few times of the year the resort is packed.
Another annual event is the Coconut Festival in February, when local restaurants and hotels get together to make "the world's largest
coconut custard
Coconut jam, also known as kaya jam or simply kaya, is a sweet spread (food), spread made from a base of coconut milk, Egg (food), eggs, sugar and sometimes Pandanus amaryllifolius, pandan leaves as a flavouring. It is popular throughout Southe ...
in the world." In 2008, the dessert measured 2.15 by two meters,
taking about 6,000 coconuts and two tons of sugar.
After it is presented and measured, locals and tourists are invited to have some free.
One notable nearby attraction is the
El Tajín
El Tajín is a pre-Columbian archeological site in southern Mexico and is one of the largest and most important cities of the Classic era of Mesoamerica. A part of the Classic Veracruz culture, El Tajín flourished from 600 to 1200 AD and dur ...
archeological site, built by the same people who have inhabited this municipality, the
Totonac
The Totonac are an Indigenous people of Mexico who reside in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, and Hidalgo. They are one of the possible builders of the pre-Columbian city of El Tajín, and further maintained quarters in Teotihuacán (a cit ...
s. Tecolutla is the closest beach to this site, which is about 40 km away. This was the most important ceremonial center in the area and it still host celebrations each year at the
spring equinox.
Geography

However, Tecolutla's biggest attraction is its geography and climate. Situated on the Veracruz coast, Tecolutla has
estuaries
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...
, canals and
mangroves
A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen and remove sal ...
.
These estuaries are at the mouth of the Tecolutla River which flows through the states of
Puebla
Puebla, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Puebla, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 217 municipalities and its capital is Puebla City. Part of east-centr ...
and Veracruz, with an extension of 7,950.05 km. It is surrounded by the Sierra de Huachinango to the east and the Sierra de Zocapoaxtla to the south. The river is fed by summer rains in the lower elevation and by year-round rains in the higher elevations. The river passes by a number of cities and towns such as
Cuetzalan
Cuetzalan () is a small town set high in the hills in the north of the Mexican state of Puebla, from Puebla, the state capital.
Franciscan friars founded the town in 1547.
Overview
Cuetzalan is located in the Sierra Norte region. The climate ...
,
Zacapoaxtla,
Zapotitlán,
Huauchinango,
Tajín,
Tecuantepec,
El Espinal,
Papantla
Papantla () is a city and municipality located in the north of the Mexican state of Veracruz, in the Sierra Papanteca range and on the Gulf of Mexico. The city was founded in the 13th century by the Totonacs and has dominated the Totonacapan reg ...
,
Gutiérrez Zamora
Gutiérrez Zamora is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Gutiérrez Zamora is bordered by Papantla, Tuxpan, Poza Rica and Coatzintla, and it is served by both the railway and Federal Highways 180 and 190.
It was named in honour of Manue ...
,
Cazones,
Coatzintla
Coatzintla is a municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. It is located in the north of state, about from the state capital Xalapa. It covers an area of . It is located at . As 2020 the municipality had a population of 55,016, with 34,039 i ...
,
Chumatlan,
Poza Rica
Poza Rica (), formally: Poza Rica de Hidalgo is a city and its surrounding municipality in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Its name means "rich well/pond". It is often thought that the name came to be because it was a place known for its abundanc ...
, then finally to Tecolutla at its mouth.
These estuaries have abundant vegetation and aquatic, and semi-aquatic wildlife such as crabs, lobsters,
red snapper, shad, white and black
herons
Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus '' Botaurus'' are referred to as ...
and in the mangroves, two species of
alligator
An alligator, or colloquially gator, is a large reptile in the genus ''Alligator'' of the Family (biology), family Alligatoridae in the Order (biology), order Crocodilia. The two Extant taxon, extant species are the American alligator (''A. mis ...
.
There are three estuaries that are visited most. The first is called Del Silencio, which has about five km of navigable waters and filled with mangroves. The name comes from the relative lack of sound, except for the buzzing of insects, and water dripping from trees. The second is called De la Cruz, with very clear waters, 25 km of navigable waters in which sea bass can be fished in season. The third is called Del Narajo and is the largest with 40 km of navigable waters and is bordered by ranches and orange groves. There is also an abundance of wild birds such as
ibis
The ibis () (collective plural ibises; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word f ...
,
cormorant
Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) ado ...
s, parrots,
guinea fowl
Guinea fowl () (or guineahen) are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetics, Phylogenetically, they branched off from the core Galliforme ...
, eagles, falcons,
stork
Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons and ibise ...
s and others.
The municipality has 40 km of beaches. For ten km north along the coast from Tecolutla are the most important beaches: Santa María del Mar and Barra Boca de Lima, which have warm waters with some motion. At Barra Boca de Lima is the Largartos Estuary. A bit further away (32 km) is Barra Tenixtepec, which is suitable for aquatic sports. Tecolutla is the beginning of a small tourist corridor which includes beaches such as La Guadalupe, La Vigueta, Playa Oriente, Monte Gordo, Casitas and Maracaibo. This area is known as the Costa Esmeralda because of the green ocean near the beaches, and many contain three and four star hotels, bungalows and trailer parks.
History
Tecolutla started as a pre-Hispanic settlement that had been dominated by a number of other peoples.
The Tecolutla River was visited by
Juan de Guijalva in 1518, three years before the
Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire
The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was a pivotal event in the history of the Americas, marked by the collision of the Aztec Triple Alliance and the Spanish Empire. Taking place between 1519 and 1521, this event saw the Spanish conquistad ...
. The Colonial period for this area began in 1522, with the first Spanish settling here. This caused violent confrontations between the Spanish and the local people at first but eventually led a mixing and the native and the European, in culture, flora, fauna and economic activities. The old pagan ritual centers here were abandoned and have become archeological zones.
In 1787, a major conflict over agricultural resources broke out when the native peoples and two Spaniards, Juan de Vidal and Joaquin Suarez over ownership of lands in Tecolutla and surrounding areas bordering the Tecolutla River. Much of this land had been inhabited by native peoples with no formal title.
In 1810, the
Mexican War of Independence
The Mexican War of Independence (, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from the Spanish Empire. It was not a single, coherent event, but local and regional ...
began, with
Serafin Olarte leading local efforts. In 1813, the ports of Tecolutla and
Nautla are taken by insurgents and used to bring in arms. In 1814, the insurgents were driven out by the royalist army under
Juan Navajero.
In 1824, the state of Veracruz was created and Tecolutla became a community under the jurisdiction of the Papantla province. In 1825, the commercial port was constructed, which was blocked by the French during the
Pastry War
The Pastry War (; ), also known as the first French intervention in Mexico or the first Franco-Mexican war (1838–1839), began in November 1838 with the naval blockade of some Centralist Republic of Mexico, Mexican ports and the capture of the ...
in 1838.
In 1847, the U.S. frigate, Gemanten, anchored itself in Tecolutla as part of the initial phases of the invasion of Mexico during the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...
. In 1857, sixty Italian families settled here as part of an agreement between the Mexican and Italian governments to promote immigration to Mexico. In 1866, Tecolutla was occupied by imperial forces under
Maximilian five days after they took Papantla. The municipality was created in 1879, combining the parishes of Tecolutla, De Cristo and Boca de Lima, and the community of Tecolutla was elevated to the status of town in 1882.
In 1942, two ships, the Tuxpan and the Choapas, were torpedoed while in the port of Tecolutla.
Major flooding of the Tecolutla in October 1999 cause widespread damage in the town, including washing away a number of homes and businesses.
Most of this damage has now been repaired and many reconstructed roads and bridges are better than before.
Tecolutla suffered another natural disaster August 27, 2007, when the eye of
Hurricane Dean
Hurricane Dean was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 2007 Atlantic hurricane season. It was the most intense North Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Wilma of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season, 2005 season, and is tied with Hurricane Mit ...
came ashore here. The intensity of the winds and rain led Civil Protection to issue a red alert for the region. The storm knocked out power as rivers and streams overflowed, closing down much of the infrastructure such as banks, roads and gas stations. It also forced 15,000 people into shelters in the tourist areas of this part of Veracruz state.
On the early morning hours of August 21, 2021, Tecolutla suffered yet another natural disaster when the eye of
Hurricane Grace
Hurricane Grace was the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Grace impacted much of the Leeward Islands and Greater Antilles as a tropical storm, before causing more substantial impacts in the Yucatán P ...
came ashore. The cyclone had winds of 125 mph, making it a
Category 3 hurricane, the strongest hurricane on record in the
Bay of Campeche
The Bay of Campeche (), or Campeche Sound, is a bight in the southern area of the Gulf of Mexico, forming the north side of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. It is surrounded on three sides by the Mexican states of Campeche, Tabasco and Veracruz. The ...
.
The Tecolutla "Monster"

In the Marine Museum there are bones and photographs from 3 or even 4 mixed, uncompleted
sperm whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the Genus (biology), genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the s ...
s of the species ''Physeter macrocephalus'' (Linnaeus, 1758). These evidences are presented as a single animal called the Tecolutla monster. This legend becomes from an unreported stranding of a cetacean and its appearance after being cut off, burned, rotted and transported to Tecolutla's beach.
At first, it was falsely identified as a narwhal, but other people thought that the carcass was from a
fin whale
The fin whale (''Balaenoptera physalus''), also known as the finback whale or common rorqual, is a species of baleen whale and the second-longest cetacean after the blue whale. The biggest individual reportedly measured in length, wi ...
(''Balaenoptera'' sp.), or another whale. However, the lack of an immediate and certain identification of the animal, and the loss of the original material, makes the cetacean unidentifiable. Few fin whale specimens are found in the Gulf of Mexico. But the stranding of whales have been recorded on Mexico's Atlantic coast. A whale arrived as far south as
Quintana Roo
Quintana Roo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Quintana Roo, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 administrative divisions of Mexico, federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into municipalities of ...
(extreme southern Mexico). In Tecolutla itself, a sperm whale body washed up in 1976 and a pilot whale body in 1991. The descriptions of the dead creature vary because of imagination and ignorance, therefore the popular name is "monster". Some people found the animal looks like a giant worm, or with fibers hanging like a mane, or with either "wool" or armor plating, or both, or with a gigantic beak or bone-like fang sticking out of its head; the weight of the carcass was estimated between 24 and 35 tons, measuring 22 m long and 2 m wide. It was also rumored that an unknown Biology Institute of California wanted to buy the creature, also believing it to be prehistoric.
The carcass arrived to the
Palmar Susana's beach between Tecolutla and
Nautla. It was found by locals who kept its existence secret at first. It took 14 hours to get the animal out of the water and to raise it onto shore. It was thought that money could be made from the "ivory" of its bones and they began to cut it apart on the beach.
Eventually, they informed the municipal president of Tecolutla, César Guerrero, that it was a crashed plane. A volunteer rescue party was organized but what they found was an enormous head, with the rest of the creature partially buried. It was decided to bring the carcass to the town of Tecolutla, using a truck with a fifteen-meter platform borrowed from Mexican state oil company (
PEMEX
Pemex (a portmanteau of Petróleos Mexicanos, which translates to ''Mexican Petroleum'' in English; ) is the Mexico, Mexican State ownership, state-owned Petroleum industry, petroleum corporation managed and operated by the government of Mexico, ...
). It was placed on beach in front of the lighthouse, and photographs were taken.
Word of the discovery and mystery of the washed-up creature spread and many people came to see the carcass. It was recommended to bury the creature, which was decomposing rapidly, but the mayor of Tecolutla refused, and kept it as a tourist attraction in spite of the odor.
The Marine Museum which was reopened in 1997 after being closed for a number of years. Besides the bones of the "monster", there are also paintings of the monster in the museum. Despite this, few nowadays in Tecolutla know about the monster. Most witnesses from the time have moved away or have died. There are no local newspapers in Tecolutla and the nearest publication in Poza Rica did not keep papers from the time period. The city government does not have records, and only a few photographs survive.
The municipality
The municipality of Tecolutla is located in the north of Veracruz state in a region known as
Totonacapan. Most of the municipality's borders are defined by the Tecolutla River and the Gulf of Mexico. The municipality contains 375 communities(inegi) and has a surface area of 471.31km2 and an average altitude of ten meters above sea level. It borders the municipalities of Papantla, Martínez de la Torre, and Gutiérrez Zamora with the Gulf of Mexico to the east. The climate is hot with average rainfall for Mexico with an average temperature of 23.6 °C. The area is suited to fast-growing trees with soft wood such as guarumbo, chancarro, jonote, guanacaxtle and sangrado.
Much of the municipality is rural, with agriculture and livestock as the economic basis. Important crops grown here include corn, green chiles, beans, "platano roatan" (a species of banana), vanilla, sugar cane, tobacco, pineapple, oranges, limes, grapefruit, mandarin oranges and coconuts.
Livestock raising includes dairy and beef cattle, pigs, sheep, fowl and bees. Second is fishing with only a fraction of the municipality's land developed. Fishing here is developed by way of cooperations, harvesting common bass (mojarra), crabs, shrimp, oyster, shad and sea bass.
One native crop is the growing of vanilla beans. They have been grown here since far into pre-Hispanic times and they were sent to the Aztecs as tribute. Harvest time is November and December and one can see the beans drying in the sun.
The developed areas, basically the town of Tecolutla, also rely on tourism, mostly in the way of hotels and other lodges as well as restaurants.
The population of the municipality in 2020 was 24,551 with only 5,432 living in the city proper. There is still a definite Totonac presence here. About 6% of the population speaks Totonac.
These people can be spotted by their distinctive dress. The men wear white, wide-leg trousers, gathered to a tight cuff above the ankle and a loose white shirt, gathered from a yoke, which sometimes has a small cape at the back. The women wear embroidered blouses and lacy skirts, both in white. Over the skirt, they wear a brightly colored half-apron. They also wear a brightly colored scarf similar to a
quechquemitl
The quechquemitl (also spelled quezquemitl) is a garment which has been worn by certain indigenous ethnicities in Mexico since the pre-Hispanic period. It usually consists of two pieces of rectangular cloth, often woven by hand, which is sewn tog ...
. This is tied at the back of the neck, draped over the chest and then tucked into the apron.
References
External links
Mexico ConnectInternational Sábalo Fishing TournamentTecolutla page by Dean and Yoly Hughson
{{Authority control
Populated places in Veracruz
Beaches of Veracruz