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Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca


to the north
Oaxaca, Oaxaca
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Chila, Oaxaca
to the east
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Huatulco, Oaxaca
Mazunte, Oaxaca
Pochutla, Oaxaca
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Puerto Angel, Oaxaca
Zipolite, Oaxaca
to the west
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Pinotepa Nacional
Main Index
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Aerial Photos 2014
Aerial Photos 2009
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City Map, Zicatela/Marinero
City Map, The Point
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Drive from Oaxaca to Puerto E.
Flight to Puerto Escondido 2009
Flight to Puerto Escondido 2014
Fiestas de Noviembre
Puerto Fest
Gina, the Information Goddess
Regional Map
Rinconada
History of the Oaxacan Coast
Indigenous Oaxaca
Hwy 131
Hwy 200
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Weekend in Oaxaca
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Clickable Regional Map
Map of Puerto Escondido Rinconada
Puerto Escondido Rinconada
Map of Puerto Escondido Centro
Puerto Escondido Centro
Map of Playa Marinero and Zicatela North
Marinero and Zicatela north
Map of Zicatela South and The Point
Zicatela south and the Point
Community Calendar

March 2024 Events in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca

8 March   Woman Day in Mexico and Puerto Escondido. 9 a.m. Some activities will happen please check w Gina at the tourist booth. Event at the city hall.

9 March   Art Exhibition in Caja de La Luz. 7 p.m. Zicatela near Rubi store.

16 and 17 March   Fishing Tournament. Marlin. Bahia Principal. 7a.m. till 3p.m.

18 March   Anniversary, Day of Oil Expropriation in Mexico. Gasoline in Mexico is more expensive than in Canada and United States *Today*. Long weekend holiday.

21 March   Benito Juarez. Birth in Guelatao Oaxaca. 7a.m. Ceremony at The statue in Carretera Costera and Av Perez Gasga. *Official*.

23 March   Water Festival * Festival de Agua. Parque Idilio. 9 a.m. to 9p.m.
Work shop, little mercadito, food and information about Puerto Escondido water. And suggestions for our government. sustainable projects.
Live Music hass been great in Puerto from Monday to Monday.

If you need more information please stop at the Tourist booth in Adoquín in front Hotel Rocamar in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, with Gina.


every Saturday:   Gina's walking tours. 8:00am to 10:00am. Make a reservation at the tourist information booth.

every Sunday:   Gina's Agricultural Tour. 3:30 pm. A visit to the rural Oaxacan coastal area where organic crops are king. See how jamaica and basil are cultivated. Visit tropical orchards and meet local farm families. Make a reservation at the tourist information booth.

Archaeological Tour, Cooking Classes, Cacao nature tour, museum tour:   Ask at the tourist information booth.


As with any changing web content, you may need to use your Reload for Refresh button to see the most recent version of this calendar. For further information on many of these events, try Gina, the Information Goddess, at the tourist information booth, (954) 582-1186.

Add your event to the Calendar, email tom@tomzap.com

A panel of international judges awarded the designation of The Best Coffee In Mexico to Finca Las Nieves, winnder of the 2023 Cup of Excellence Mexico. Finca Las Nieves is a 1,000-acre coffee farm located near Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, at an elevation of 4000 feet.

The town of Puerto Escondido was established in 1928 as a port for shipping coffee, although the area has been inhabited by indigenous populations for centuries. In the 1960's it was connected to other coastal towns by Highway 200. Tourists began to discover the town and surfers found its beaches. Its importance as a port diminished as coffee shipments began going by truck instead of boat. The port does continue to support commercial fishing activity.

Today, Puerto Escondido is a home for fishermen, surfers, vacationers, and an ecletic expatriot community. On 10/29/09 Agencia Puerto Escondido was upgraded to Ciudad Puerto Escondido, reflecting its rapid growth and importance to the state of Oaxaca. The large waves of Zicatela beach put it into the top ten surfing destinations. It does not cater to the high end tourist as much as Huatulco to the east. Its sprawling beaches host numerous small to mid-size hotels and restaurants.

There are three main beaches, Playa Principal, Playa Marinero, and Zicatela, close to the main part of town, as well as several other smaller beaches to the west. Playa Principal is the more centrally-located beach. Parallelling the beach is Avenida Perez Gasga, a pedestrian-only street known as the Adoquín. Presiding in the tourist kiosk at the west end of the Adoquín is the legendary Gina the Information Goddess. The Andador Escénico Sea Walk begins at Playa Principal and winds westward along rocky oceanside cliffs. About 2 blocks up the hill from the Adoquín is coastal highway 200 and on the other side of that is the downtown business district where you can find banks, the mercado, etc.

East of Playa Principal is Playa Marinero followed by Playa Zicatela, a long straight beach on the east side of the bay and can be seen from Playa Principal. Zicatela is where the strong waves are that make Puerto Escondido a world class surfing destination.

West of Playa Principal are the smaller, isolated beaches, Playa Manzanillo, Puerto Angelito, Playa Carrizalillo, and Playa Coral. The mostly residential neighborhoods in this area are popular with the expatriate population and center around the Rinconada, a divided boulevard with a number of restaurants and shops. West of Puerto Escondido, the coastline gives way to the long straight beach of Playa Bacocho. A Tale of Two Cities   An interesting aspect of the area known as Puerto Escondido is that it actually is divided between two counties or municipios so that it is politically two separate cities. This division puts the Zicatela side of town into el Municipio de Santa Maria Colotepec, Pochutla, and the eastern portion of the city into el Municipio de San Pedro Mixtepec, Juquila. To make matters worse, there is disagreement as to the boundaries and legalities of this division that leaves many businesses caught in the middle with the burden of paying taxes to both. For years, there has been talk of making Puerto Escondido a city. The proposed limits of the new city would extend from Punta Zicatela on the east to just beyond the Puerto Escondido airport on the west. The president elect of San Pedro Mixtepec, Abraham Ramírez Silva, ran on a platform pledged to achieve the goal of making Puerto Escondido independent of both counties which currently control the area. Let's see if he can do it. (11/07)

Another manifestation occurs during the annual Fiestas de Noviembre, a complex stream of events that extends through the month of November and into December. Fiesta events are held in both halves of the community with little or no coordination between the two political entities. It all turns into a bit of competition but for festival attendees it just means there are more choices.

See the area beaches from the air with tomzap's Aerial Photos of the Playas. Follow this link to www.mexico-condo.com for some nice aerial photos that show the layout of the area.


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BeachesPlayas

Playa Principal is the main beach in town and runs parallel with the adoquín or pedestrian area of town. Restaurants, boating, swimming, snorkeling.
West of the lighthouse is a small cove with beaches Playa Manzanillo and Puerto Angelito. Very calm for swimming and snorkeling but watch out for boats that come and go. There is a restaurant with restrooms at Puerto Angelito. You can get there from Playa Principal by boat or go northwest on highway 200 for 1/2 mile and turn left on Calle Miguel Hidalgo at the old airport. At the billboard turn left again and go down the dirt road to the beach.
Also northwest of town is a pair of small beaches called Playa Carrizalillo. A small stream enters the ocean at the smaller beach and locals wash their clothes here. Good swimming, snorkeling, and scuba diving, lots of coral and fish. To get to these beaches, take highway 200 northwest for 1/2 mile, turn left at Avenida Miguel Hidalgo. The area is under development, so it would be best to stop at one of the shops or restaurants and ask directions from here. There are now steps (167 of them) leading down the cliff to the beach.
Playa Bacocho is northwest of town past Playa Carrizalillo. Take highway 200 northwest toward the airport and follow the signs to the Posada Real. This is one of the longest beaches in the area. There is a restaurant. Swimming may be dangerous due to heavy surf and undertow.
Just past the lagoon at the southeast end of Playa Principal is Playa Marinero. Restaurants, swimming, boogie-boarding, and snorkeling, but watch out for currents at the southern end of the beach. To get there, walk down Playa Principal to the southeast or walk down past the end of Avenida Alfonso Pérez Gasga.
One of the world's best surfing beaches is Playa Zicatela, especially during the months of July, August, and September. The 2-mile long beach has several restaurants and hotels. Not good for swimming, extremely dangerous. To get there, walk southeast along Playa Principal or take highway 200 southeast and turn right at Bungalows Villa Marinero onto a paved road which leads to Hotel Santa Fé and continues south along the beach.
Past Zicatela to the east is Playa Barra de Colotepec extending 1-1/4 mile to Río Colotepec. Heavy surf, dangerous for swimmers. Turtles lay their eggs at this long beach and volunteers from the Campamento Tortugas aid in their survival. Turtles, which had been fished to the brink of extinction, are making a comeback.
More beach information and photos on Dennis Miller's web page.
See also, Southern Mexico's Hidden Port, an article by Geri Anderson.
Tidal variation is usually no more than three feet. As far as I can see it is not really a factor for those enjoying the beaches, but in case you are interested, here is a link to tide information for Puerto Angel (42 miles or 67 km east) by David Flater. Fog is extremely rare on the coast of Oaxaca.

A note of caution: There have been reports of incidents of crime taking place on the beaches at night. Avoid remote beach areas at night. Beach lighting has been added.


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AccommodationsAlojamientos

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The high season is December 21 through April 15, with rates usually at least 20% higher. Reservations are recommended for Easter week and Christmas week 6 months to a year in advance. During the remainder of the high season there will normally be many vacancies although some hotels will be full at times. The locations of some hotels are shown on the map of Puerto Escondido. This is only a partial listing. There are many more hotels, especially in the downtown area.
In addition to hotels, you will also find condos, apartments and villas listed. Pricing on these alternative accommodations is often quite reasonable. Rentals of condos, apartments, and villas are also available through local real estate agents, which are also listed below. Information is available on making telephone calls.
The principal areas for tourist hotels are Zicatela Beach, the long surfing beach in the southeast part of Puerto Escondido, Playa Principal, the more centrally located beachfront area, and the westward residential areas of Rinconada, Carrizalillo, and Bacocho. The downtown section is located across the highway from the Playa Principal area.
Additional accommodations are available in Mazunte, San Agustinillo, Zipolite, and Puerto Angel, well to the east and Jamiltepec, well to the west.

Budget | Moderate | Expensive | Realtors | Trailer Parks

Budget | Moderate | Expensive | Realtors | Trailer Parks

Budget | Moderate | Expensive | Realtors | Trailer Parks

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RestaurantsRestaurantes


Seafood dish from chef's tasting menu at Almoraduz


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Real EstateBienes Raíces

Real estate for rent is listed with the hotels above.


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SurfingAcuaplano

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Scuba DivingBuceo


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Fishing, ToursPesca, Excursiones

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CelebrationsFiestas

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TransportationTransportación

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MedicalMédico

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LibrariesLas Bibleotecas


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Nearby Points of Interest Puntos Interesantes Cercanos

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MiscellaneousMisceláneo

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The Pacific Coast of Mexico www.tomzap.com Tom Penick:  tom@tomzap.com