When I told my friends I was leaving for vacation in Mexico the response I tended to get was something like this, “Where? Cancún or Cabo?” When I responded to them with “Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca” I got some confused faces.
While Cancún and Cabo are very lovely vacation spots, they lack a sense of authenticity that Puerto Escondido offers. Puerto, although growing, is still under the radar of big tourism.
Puerto Escondido is on the Pacific coast of southern Mexico. It made its start as a small fishing village that was also used to ship coffee. At the time, it was known as Punta Escondida (Hidden Point). It started to gain more buzz in the 1960’s when surfers and backpackers began to visit its beautiful beaches.
This past year I was able to go and experience the beautiful town of Puerto Escondido.
How to Get There?
There is no direct flight from JFK to Puerto Escondido, so many flights have a layover in Mexico City. From there, you can either fly into Bahías de Huatulco Airport (and then drive an hour to Puerto) or fly straight into Puerto Escondido’s International Airport.
Although the layover may be shorter for a flight to Huatulco, I highly recommend just flying into Puerto’s airport because the hassle being saved is worth the extra time spent at the airport.
Where to Stay Outside of Town?
For half of our stay, we stayed a little outside of town somewhere quiet and seclusive. We stayed at Rancho Neptuno, which is 6 miles from downtown Puerto Escondido.
Rancho Neptuno is a private and gated community where owners rent out beach homes to vacationers throughout the year.
We stayed at Casa Doris. It had a beautiful infinity pool that overlooked the private view of the ocean. It was spacious and could even accommodate 12 people. If you wanted a cheaper option, you could also rent out villas on the ranch that are not directly on the beach. You wouldn’t have the view, but you still have access to a private beach. We really enjoyed our time there and would definitely go back.
Where to Stay in Town?
For the other half of the week we stayed at a lovely hotel called Hotel Rockaway right on the main strip of Playa Zicatela. The street off of Playa Zicatela (Av. Del Morro) is a lively street full of restaurants, local shops, and bars. It is right next to Zicatela beach, which is famous for its great waves that attract surfers from all over.
One great thing about Hotel Rockaway is the two large pools with a bar attached. You can lay out and soak up the sun while being served cold drinks and food.
Speaking of food, Rockaway is only steps away from many of Puerto’s well-known restaurants.
What to Eat?
Right next to Hotel Rockaway is El Cafecito. It is best know for its breakfast foods and pastries. You get a big bang for your money, as the portions are big and inexpensive. The fresh fruit is delightful, as well as the homemade smoothies. One of the times we went, a band set up and played live music right outside the restaurant on the street.
If you are a little late to rise, and El Cafecito is packed, you can head over a few streets to Dans Café. It offers a lot of the same food as El Cafecito, with a quieter feel. The ambiance was very pretty, with beautiful flowers and greenery looking down on you while you eat.
Across the street from Hotel Rockaway is El Mana. It has a great view of the ocean, and serves a variety of food ranging from pizza, to fish, to waffles and crepes and more. We ate there for breakfast and lunch, and found both meals to be very tasteful.
If you’re looking for something a little more fancier I recommend Espadín or Almoraduz Cocina de Autor:
Espadín is known for its breathtaking view of Playa Carrizalillo. It is only a ten minute drive from Hotel Rockaway, and is well worth it. We went on my birthday right before sunset, and it definitely lived up to the hype. The view of the sun setting over the ocean while we ate, definitely added to my appeal of the place.
As a shrimp lover, I was very pleased with my ajillo shrimp appetizer. It was sautéed shrimp, guajillo chile, crispy potato, garlic mojo, toast point.. delicious! The spinach salad was also very good, but I have yet to meet a salad with goat cheese I have not liked. I finished off the night with the grilled rib eye with roasted green onions, chimichurri, and mashed potatoes. My experience at Espadín was lovely, and I suggest, even if you can’t stay for dinner, to stop by and have a drink and enjoy the breathtaking sunset.
Almoraduz Cocina de Autor is also only a ten minute drive from Hotel Rockaway. They take a contemporary and modern approach to authentic Mexican food. It gave off a unique modern vibe, and you could tell the chefs really took into consideration not only the taste of the food, but the whole presentation of it as well.
For a starter, I had the delicious roasted peaches salad, which was a mix of lettuce, cherry tomato, goat cheese, nut and agave honey vinaigrette. My main dish was the smoked pork chop with tamarind sauce, potato pure and white truffle, which was also delicious. The pork chop was cooked so perfectly it had that melt in your mouth feel. I would highly recommend splurging on Almoraduz Cocina de Autor one night during your stay.
*If you don’t want to eat out, and are in the mood to make your very own fresh Mexican meal, I recommend going down to Playa Principal in the early morning and selecting your own fresh-caught fish from local fishermen (you can’t get more fresh than that!).
What to do?
There are many things to do in and around Puerto Escondido to please every type of vacationer. Here are a list of things that I did during my stay:
1. Surf
Puerto Escondido was voted one of the best surfing destinations for a reason. It attracts surfers from all over the globe. If you’re an experienced surfer, try out the huge waves at Zicatela Beach. If you’re first starting out, I would recommend going to a different beach such as Playa Carrizalillo, where the waves are a little calmer.
For someone who is not a very experienced surfer like myself, I enjoyed waking up before sunrise, grabbing some breakfast, and heading to the beach to watch the surfers ride the waves.
2. Release Baby Sea Turtles
One of my favorites from the trip was definitely heading to Campamento Tortuguero Palmarito and getting to see and release baby sea turtles into the ocean! At the camp, they collect thousands of sea turtle eggs each year and rebury them in a fenced-in enclosure to protect them from both human and animal predators. When you get there, they show you where they keep the baby turtles until they are ready to be released into the ocean. They give you some interesting information on the beautiful creatures, and then you get to release one or two on your own! They release them right at sunset, so you get a picture perfect view of your little turtle setting off on their way into the ocean.
We signed up to go through a tour service in a storefront of Hotel Rockaway. They provided a van that took us to and from the excursion. The cost per person: only $25.00 usd or $500.00 pesos
3. Bioluminescence Tour
When we signed up for the Bioluminescence Tour I had no idea what to expect. I hadn’t done my research on it like I had the turtle release. The woman at the tour service suggested it so we said why not!
The best time to see this natural phenomena is when the sky is at its darkest, preferably around the time of a new moon. It’s a little far out, but the tour van drives you to and from the hotel. When we got there, we hopped onto a small boat. The driver took us out to the site which was about 15 minutes away.
When we arrived, the driver of the boat turned off all the lights and told us to look to our sides. You could see the fish lighting up as they swam around! Next, we hopped in. With every movement you saw the water light up. It was an incredible experience.
Unfortunately, the lighting in the water does not show up on camera. If your camera has the capability to shoot long exposure you might be able to get some images. However, I actually enjoyed the fact that it didn’t show up on camera, it really makes you live in and appreciate the moment.
The cost per person: only $25.00 usd or $500.00 pesos
4. Mercado Benito Juárez
Authentic Mexican flea market with local vendors. They sell fresh produce, meat, fish, flowers, clothes, shoes, snacks, gifts, and souvenirs. I suggest taking a stroll through the market, as there is something for almost everyone.
5. Adoquín
Located right next to Playa Principal, Adoquín is a popular tourist street. At night time, it gets closed off to traffic, and local vendors set up and sell their merchandise. You can find everything from t-shirts to local hand-crafted jewelry.
6. Chedraui (Super Che)
Although it is a supermarket… I was thoroughly impressed by it. It is huge, and has everything you didn’t know you needed on vacation. Not only does it sell liquor and wine, it also has a great bakery in it (I recommend the elephant ears!). If you need any necessities or need to go grocery shopping during your stay I highly recommend stopping by at least once to check it out.
7. And of course, Relax at the Beautiful Beaches
The different beaches around the area include Playa Carrizalillo, Playa Zicatela, Puerto Angelito, and more.
Next time I make my way back to Puerto Escondido, there are a few things I want to do that I didn’t get the chance to.
For example, I heard great things about Dolphin and Whale Sightseeing. I also want to try a horseback riding excursion that takes you out to view waterfalls!
In all, my trip to Puerto Escondido was one like no other, and I hope that this inspires you and helps you when you make your way there as well!
Comment below if you have any questions or know of other great things to do in Puerto 🙂
