Puerto Escondido

Four days between Zicatela, Carrizalillo and the Chacahua lagoons

Spend your first Puerto Escondido day around Zicatela. Start with an early coffee watching the surf, best near high tide when sets are biggest, walk south to La Punta for a lesson on its gentler waves, then return for sunset on the rocky hill beyond the point. Dinner and drinks are on Calle del Morro.

Day two. Take a taxi west to Rinconada and walk down the cliff staircase to Carrizalillo, a sheltered cove for swimming, snorkelling and beginner surfing. Have lunch along Avenida Benito Juárez, then walk to Puerto Angelito for another calm swim. In the late afternoon, look for a turtle-release programme on Bacocho beach, where hatchlings are set free before dark.

Day three. Book an early boat on Laguna de Manialtepec, about 20 km west, for birdwatching among the mangroves; in the right conditions, a night tour shows the water glowing with bioluminescent plankton. Spend the afternoon in town: the Adoquín, the fishing beach and the market in the upper town.

Day four. Head further west to the Lagunas de Chacahua national park, about two hours away. A boat crosses the lagoons through mangrove channels to a sandbar village with a lighthouse, simple fish restaurants and a long surf beach. Alternatively, go east to Mazunte and Zipolite for a slower day of hammocks and the cliffs at Punta Cometa.

Pescado a la talla, tlayudas and mezcal on the Oaxaca coast

Puerto Escondido's food mixes two kitchens, Pacific seafood and the cooking of Oaxaca's valleys, now only three hours away. Start with pescado a la talla, a whole fish split, rubbed with chile paste and grilled over coals, sold at the palapas on Playa Principal, where the boats land their catch each morning.

On the coast, start with pescado a la talla, a whole fish split open, rubbed with a chile paste and grilled over coals, served with tortillas and salad. The fishing boats land their catch on Playa Principal in the morning, and the palapa restaurants along the bay cook it the same day. Fish and shrimp tacos, ceviche and aguachile, raw shrimp in lime and chile, are everywhere around Zicatela.

From the highlands come tlayudas, huge crisp tortillas spread with bean paste, pork lard, cabbage and stringy quesillo cheese, folded and toasted over charcoal. They are night food, sold from street grills in the upper town. Look also for memelas, thick corn rounds with beans and cheese, and dishes in Oaxaca's famous moles, from the dark negro to the yellow amarillo. Adventurous eaters can try chapulines, toasted grasshoppers with chile and lime.

Where to eat depends on budget. The beachfront at La Punta and Zicatela leans toward cafés and international menus; the cheapest and most authentic food is up the hill, in family-run comedores and around the municipal market. To drink, order mezcal, Oaxaca's agave spirit, sipped neat with orange slices and sal de gusano, or an agua fresca of hibiscus or tamarind.

Whale season, the summer swells and the Fiestas de Noviembre

Puerto Escondido is hot all year, so its seasons are about rain and waves. November to April barely rains: days are sunny, the coves clearest, humpback whales pass in winter and it is high season. From May the summer swells build and the rains arrive, and November brings the town's fiestas.

From November to April it barely rains. Days are sunny and the sea is warm, the small coves are at their clearest, and humpback whales migrate along the coast in winter, with boat trips running from the main bay. This is the high season, and the Christmas holidays are very busy.

The Easter week, Semana Santa, is now the most crowded time of all. Since the new highway from Oaxaca opened in 2024, families arrive by the busload, beaches fill and the town's water and waste systems struggle. Unless you love a party, avoid it.

From May to August the strongest south swells reach Zicatela, and the Pipeline shows its real size. International surf contests are held in this season, and watching from the sand is a spectacle. The rains begin in June, falling mostly in heavy afternoon storms; by September and October the hills are deep green, humidity is high, and there is a risk of tropical storms or hurricanes. Prices fall and the town is quieter.

In November, the town holds its Fiestas de Noviembre, a month of festivities with music, dance, sporting events and a surf competition, a lively time to visit just as the dry season returns.