Zihuatanejo - Once Upon a Time in Mexico Travel Tips - Packages/Deals & Travel Agents Near Me

Discover all that Zihuatanejo has to offer; relax in the sun, soak up the culture, and share a drink with the locals.

This quintessential authentic Mexican town boasts a blissfully quiet beach, locally inspired cuisine and an overall relaxed atmosphere - making it a true tropical getaway.  Discover all that Zihuatanejo has to offer; relax in the sun, soak up the culture, and share a drink with the locals.

When you have a yen for tropical paradise, there are countless destinations from which to choose. There are distant island escapes, sun-lined landscapes and cocktails held in coconuts. There are resorts with roving waiters and constant buffets and exclusive parties around beachside bars. But sometimes, one just wants to relax in the sun, soak up the culture, and share a drink with the locals. Such relaxed authenticity was what I craved, and I found it—and so much more—in a tiny seaside town in Mexico, tucked away behind the high-rises of Ixtapa: Zihuatanejo.

A small town with a population of barely 70,000, Zihuatanejo has undergone several transformations over the years. It began around 3000 B.C. as tiny Cihuatlan, morphing into a resort for ancient emperors, a 16th century trade route stop and a headquarters for pirates, and finally a sleepy 1800s fishing village. It wasn’t until the 1970s that Zihuatanejo began to catch up with modernity.

Zihuatanejo is utter paradise, completely lacking in pretension and drenched in old-world sensibility, where locals gossip in cobblestone streets too narrow for cars and everyone takes their time. In short, it is quintessential, authentic Mexico.

The real lure of a tropical getaway is the beach, and blissfully quiet Playa la Ropa is Zihuatanejo’s best. It is white sand nirvana lined with quaint lodgings and thatch-roof restaurants. At La Perla, a restaurant where parrots and roving mariachis greeted me at the door, the grilled red snapper with fried garlic was only outdone by the beachside hammocks. I spent the entire afternoon of my first full day in Zihuatanejo being lulled in and out of blissful relaxation by Playa la Ropa’s peacefully breaking waves.

El Centro, Zihuatanejo’s eclectic downtown, is the place for local handicrafts and more fantastic restaurants. At Café Marina, where I had lunch my second day, I traded in my paperback for a new beach read at the restaurant’s book swap. There is also Coconuts on Pasaje Agustin Ramirez. I was told to ask for Hector, a Coconuts regular, who took me on a guided boat tour to Playa Manzanillo, where the snorkeling is incredible and the beach is secluded and austere. The best part of the excursion: Hector cooked me a freshly caught fish for lunch.

Reclining on Playa Manzanillo’s sands, eating delicious fire-roasted fish and looking out over a scene that is like a postcard come to life, I couldn’t help but feel simultaneously astonished and grateful that I had it all to myself.

Zihuatanejo also boasts a vibrant nightlife. The tequila-fueled discotheques of Ixtapa are replaced by haunts like Blue Mamou on Posada Caracol, my personal favorite, where hot barbacoa, ice-cold beer and live Blues mingle with the salt air of Playa la Ropa. For something more authentic, try Bandido’s on Calle Cinco de Mayo, where I enjoyed live Mexican music over cocktails with the party-loving locals.

Zihuatanejo is a seeming hybrid of its humble seaside beginnings and a contemporary resort town. The result is a wholly unique getaway that is relaxed, unassuming, and culturally rich.

From now on, when I trade the hustle and bustle for a sun-drenched getaway, I will look no further than a tiny Pacific bay where ancient emperors, salty air, and whispering palms of authentic Mexico mingle in every beachside breeze.