The municipality of Catemaco covers a total surface area of 710.67 km² along the Gulf of Mexico between the foothills of Volcano San Martín Tuxtla and the Sierra Santa Marta, and incorporate Laguna Catemaco and Laguna Sontecomapan plus a large part of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve.

[3] The municipality borders those of Mecayapan, Soteapan, Hueyapan de Ocampo and San Andrés Tuxtla, extending to the Gulf of Mexico in the north.

[3] The municipality has 166 schools that mostly serve students from the preschool to high school/vocational level with some adult and special education.

[3] The most important road is Federal Highway 180, which connects the municipality primarily to San Andrés Tuxtla.

[4][5] The municipality is in the Los Tuxtlas mountain region in the south of Veracruz, a rugged area of recent volcanic origin.

[4][6] It is in a valley between the San Martín Volcano and the Santa Marta mountain ranges, extending from Lake Catemaco to the Gulf of Mexico shore, with an average altitude of 340 meters above sea level.

[4][5] Native tree species include cedar, royal palm, palo de agua, ojite (Brosimum alicastrum), ojueta, marayo and rabo lagarto (Equisetum arvense).

[5] It rains all year because of warm humid winds from the Gulf of Mexico, but annual totals vary from 1900mm to 4600mm.

Because of the area’s relative ruggedness, waterfalls can be found, such as the Tepepa Falls on the San Andrés River.

The lake basin was formed by volcanic eruptions of the Santa Martha and San Martín Volcanos.

The Rio Grande, also known as the San Andrés River, empties the lake and forms the Eyipantla Falls on its way to the Gulf of Mexico.

In 1988 and 1989, two groups of howler monkeys, which are in danger of extinction, were brought to the Agaltepec Island as an attempt to preserve the species.

[7] Tanaxpillo, better known as the “Island of the Monkeys.” This name and fame comes from a colony of stump-tailed macaques that live there, introduced as part of a research project in the 1970s.

The most visited beaches here are Peña Hermosa in Tatahuicapan de Juárez, La Perla del Golfo in Mecayapan and Playa Escondida, most popular with foreign tourists.

Lake Catemaco is one of the most productive in Mexico, but large net fishing is prohibited in order avoid overfishing.

[5] The most important crops are corn, followed by coffee and green chili peppers,[3] but beans, rice, watermelons, oranges, mangos and coconuts are also grown.

[8] Common ingredients include tegogolos, a fresh water snail said to be an aphrodisiac,[4][6] freshwater eels, tochogobi (a type of mojarra) and pork, especially a preparation called “carne de chango” because it takes like monkey meat.

The area attracts mostly Mexican visitors, with the busiest times being traditional vacation periods such as Holy Week, some parts of summer and long weekends.

[10] Ecological tourism has grown in the municipality, allowing rural communities such as Ejido Lopez Mateos and Ejido Miguel Hidalgo to offer cabins and access to attractions such as rainforest, rivers and waterfalls, such as Cola de Caballo and Poza Reina.