I've looked into several Mexican and South American destinations, and some are a lot more desirable than others just based on the logistics. I'll start out with Mexico.
Acapulco and Puerto Escondido- Both look beautiful and are plenty warm enough. Even in January, the water temperature is consistently 82-85 degrees with almost no chance of rain. Acapulco has a bad reputation for crime, but tourist areas are considered to be safe. Puerto Escondido can have epic surf conditions. Unfortunately, in both locations, it's a pain in the ass to get there. I'm not aware of any US airport with a direct flight to either location. Both would require an overnight layover in Mexico City.
Now, I've heard some nice things about Mexico City and maybe it's worth it to spend a few days there. However, as it stands with the ticket, I'd have to go through immigration and then either spend the night at the airport or take a cab into town for a hotel. I don't know if the MEX airport has a connected hotel but if I went that route, I'd have to go through security again and may have little time to sleep. Not fun.
Two better options on the Mexican Pacific coast are Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. I think that November is the ideal month because the water temperature is a lot warmer. Granted, it is near the end of hurricane season but both locations are rarely struck and are virtually rain free. In both cases, I can either go direct from Atlanta or stay in Birmingham and connect in Dallas or Houston to break up the trip.
In the case of Puerto Vallarta, there is minimal surf there, but I can take a bus to a well-known surf town called Sayulita, which is where I'd spend just about all of my time. Cabo would be a road trip in which I'd spend time in Cerritos and La Paz as well. I'm a little apprehensive about renting a car in Mexico but I've heard that it's pretty easy. Still, I'd opt for Sayulita before Cabo unless I have someone to join me.
South America:
I have 2 races on my bucket list. One is in Santiago, Chile. I'd do a few days of touring, then race. The next morning would be a bus ride over the Andes Mountains to Mendoza, Argentina. From there, I'd fly to Lima, Peru to spend a couple days to break up the trip.
The second is Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. In this case, I'd stick to Rio. Marathon Tours and Travel offers a package deal with a hotel near the border of Copacabana and Ipanema. American citizens will need a VISA to enter Brazil beginning in April of this year. AFF!
The biggest gripe that I have about the logistics here is that almost all flights are overnight and land at 6 or 7 AM. Figure that I clear customs in 1 hour and arrive in town around 9AM. That leaves about 5-6 hours of dead time until I can check into my hotel. Yes, they should allow me to drop off my luggage, but I'll need a plan to keep busy. Add to that, I've never been able to sleep on the plane so I'll be hurting, and it will take me a couple of days to bounce back. Though I may be done with the half marathon distance, I am optimistic about my ability to run 10Ks for the foreseeable future. Both races have a companion half as well as a 10K.
Overnight layovers:
On my first trip to Hawaii, I tried to drive from Atlanta to Birmingham after a sleepless night on a red-eye and severe jet lag. I didn't make it and wisely stopped at a hotel not far from the airport. Lesson learned. Next time, I broke up the trip with a 24-hour layover in San Francisco. That was a good call, and I liked the city more than I expected to.
Ideally, I'd like an airport to be within 5-10 minutes of downtown or have easy access via public transportation. If I get stranded overnight because of a cancellation, I'd want to make the best of it. Here are some cities that fit that criteria. I'm sure there are several others as well.
Reagan National in Washington, DC. Metro is connected to the airport.
Newark- It will require a few rides and transfers, but you can get into NYC without a car.
Atlanta- MARTA is connected to the airport.
Dallas- I believe DART is connected to the airport as well.
San Francisco- BART is connected
Not connected but accessible with ease
LAX- a fair distance from downtown but Manhattan Beach is just a few minutes away
Phoenix- downtown is literally next to the airport.
Salt Lake City- same as Phoenix but I'd rent a car and explore the area a bit.
Of course, when breaking up a Hawaii trip, I'd want my overnight layover to be on the West coast.
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