Sayulita, Mexico: 10 Reasons to Visit this Hidden Beachfront Gem Marion Winik - Newsday
go to original May 7, 2016

A scene from the beach in Sayulita, Mexico, in 2010. Travelers from the Pacific Northwest and Canada have been keeping it a secret from us. (Credit: Alamy)

When I decided to take my teenage daughter Jane to Mexico for spring break, I asked a friend in Mexico City to recommend a less touristy area than the spots on the Riviera Maya and the coast of Oaxaca I have been visiting since the late 1970s. He pointed me to Sayulita, a town on the Pacific coast just north of Puerto Vallarta. I had never heard of Sayulita, and neither had anyone else I mentioned it to before I went. When I got there, I found out that travelers from the Pacific Northwest and Canada have been keeping it a secret from us. There were plenty of them mixed in among the many Mexican city-dwellers who spend their beach time there. Here's why you might want to join them.

It’s very easy getting there

You fly into Puerto Vallarta — American, Delta, United and Aeromexico all fly out of New York — typically with a stop in Atlanta, Dallas-Fort Worth or Mexico City (flights in mid-May from $420). Once you get there, Sayulita is 45 minutes by car; our Airbnb hosts arranged this for us. Your driver will stop on the way at a big grocery store/bank complex so you can stock up on food, drink and money. Sayulita has a few ATMs but no big supermarkets, and many small places don’t take credit cards.

You can stay in a casita right on the beach

Sayulita has just a couple of small hotels, but hundreds of vacation homes big and small. Our place was in a complex of individual villas of varying sizes called Villas del Palmar. They were arranged in two long rows and had a gate to the street and a shared pool. For $155 a night we had an adorable one-bedroom place right on the ocean. It had an open-air living area and kitchen and a clean, spacious bedroom and bath. For large groups, there are spectacular villas at reasonable prices, some in town, some up in the hills. INFO Find rental properties on Airbnb, VRBO and Sayulita Life.

There’s a view with your breakfast...

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