About Puerto Escondido
For the traveller who appreciates the indigenous, local culture of a travel destination, Puerto Escondido is a place to visit and perhaps stay for a while. A town of about 30,000 situated on the Pacific coast of southern Mexico, Puerto is a popular tourist destination despite the scarcity of modern amenities. It doesn’t have the large, modern hotels and restaurants one finds in places such as Cancun and Puerto Vallarta. But the town offers services and amenities that are no less attractive.
Puerto Escondido used to be a shipping port for the coffee grown in the region. Then commercial fishing became the mainstay of the economy. Today, the fishermen are still here, but tourists are the mainstay. Many come for the surfing, as the beach at Zicatela is said to be one of the top 10 in the world.
The tropical climate of Puerto Escondido means that temperatures generally average about 30 degrees, with little variation from month to month. Low and high temperatures are typically 18 C (64 F) and 45 C (113 F).
The rainy season, which has declined in length in recent years, runs from July to October, with September being the rainiest month. Weather records for the Puerto Escondido region show monthly rainfall figures ranging between 40 and 200 millimetres (1.5 and 8 inches). Annual rainfall totals about 600 millimetres (23 inches).
To moderate the heat, Puerto Escondido enjoys cool, mountain breezes at night, and cool, ocean breezes in the morning.
Some of the attractions
Swimming — Puerto has great beaches for swimming: Manzanillo, Principal and Marinero.
Surfing — The beach at Zicatela draws surfers from around the world. The best surfing is from April through November.
Sports fishing — Fish for sailfish, marlin, tuna, dorado and more.
Birding and nature tours — a professional ornithologist and guide leads expeditions through the wild lagoons of the area where visitors can see many of the 275 species of birds, river otter, jaguarundi, opossums, crocodiles, turtles and iguanas.
Shopping — The local market, Mercado Benito Juarez, features a wide range of food and other products. Wednesday and Saturday are official market days. Check out the Adoquin, or pedestrian zone of Perez Gasga, just up from the beach at Playa Principal, for shops, restaurants, cafes and open-air stalls.
More information
In Puerto:
Gina Machorro Espinosa, also known as The Information Goddess, provides visitor information from a booth at the west end of the Adoquin. Email: ginainpuerto@yahoo.com; tel. (954)582-0276
On line:
www.tomzap.com — a huge resource of information about Puerto Escondido and other parts of western Mexico.
Puerto Connection — another very useful local information site.