Coahuila border city facing Eagle Pass across the Rio Grande, more working town than tourist strip.
Piedras Negras is a border city of about 200,000 people in the state of Coahuila, facing Eagle Pass, Texas across the Rio Grande. It is less touristy than many Mexican border towns and feels more authentically Mexican as a result — less curio-shop strip, more working city.
The town claims to be the birthplace of the nacho: local legend holds that in 1943, cook Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya improvised a snack of tortilla chips with melted cheese and jalapeños for a group of US military wives at a restaurant called Victory Club. A statue commemorates the nacho in the town centre.
The surrounding area is ranchland and hunting country. Piedras Negras is a practical border crossing for travellers heading into or out of northeastern Mexico, with reasonable hotels and good road connections to Saltillo and Monterrey via Federal Highway 57.
Guide
Getting There
Piedras Negras is easily accessible by road from both sides of the border. From the US, Eagle Pass is the entry point — the crossing is straightforward, with two international bridges: the main Bridge I near the centre of Eagle Pass, and the Camino Real Bridge II slightly south. Vehicle entry requires Mexican vehicle insurance, which is sold at the border and online.
From Mexico, Federal Highway 57 connects Piedras Negras to Saltillo (about 300 km) and Monterrey (about 350 km) — both are comfortable drives on a well-maintained divided highway. There is a small regional airport (Piedras Negras International Airport, code PDS) with connections to Mexico City, but most visitors arrive overland. The bus station on the south side of the city has regular services to Monterrey, Saltillo, and Mexico City on ADO and Noreste.
