Puerto Escondido, Mexico Backpacking Guide
Welcome to Puerto Escondido!
This town is one of the up and coming beach destinations of Mexico, with its name comfortably perching on most backpacking itineraries.
Despite its growing popularity, Puerto Escondido still retains its authentic vibe and is one of our favourite places to visit in all of Mexico.
Here you can find an abundance of picturesque beaches, endless activities and also some great nightlife.
Things to do in Puerto Escondido
In this guide, we’ll explore Puerto Escondido and why you should visit.
We’ll also look at all the best things to see and do, the best beaches, when is best to visit as well as how to get there.
Lastly, we’ll give out tips based on our own experience to help you plan your own trip there. If you are visiting Mexico this destination is a must!
Is Puerto Escondido Worth Visiting?
I think the question should be; why wouldn’t you travel to Puerto Escondido?!
This town has the best of both worlds, in that it’s quite lively and full of great things to do and see, whilst also less touristy and seedy like other beach destinations such as Cabo San Lucas and Playa del Carmen .
As mentioned, there are a variety of beaches here. Some like La Punta are some of the best in the world to surf, with annual competitions being held.
Others like Carrizalillo are the most picturesque and great for insta shots, and are also safer to swim in without the strong currents.
As well as getting bronzed up, there’s lots of activities to do here including releasing baby turtles, bio-luminescent bays and visiting nearby destinations in the region such as Huatulco and San José del Pacífico.
There’s also a variety of accommodation options here, with many hostels in Puerto Escondido offering very cheap dorm beds and private rooms. So all in all, a perfect backpacking destination in our opinion!
How to Get to Puerto Escondido
Despite its name, the “Hidden Port”, (Puerto Escondido) is not hard to reach.
The easiest way is to fly in, with around a dozen flights arriving in from Mexico City daily. The flight takes about an hour, with a one-way costing around $80.
The other way is to take the bus from Oaxaca City. This option is a lot cheaper, however takes around 10 hours.
This route is also one of the most infamous to take in Mexico, as the bus will wind through mountain roads for hours, and has been commonly known to make quite a few sick along the way.
If you want to get there no qualms and quickly, then take the flight. However if you want to save money and are in for an adventure, then hop on the bus!
Backpacking Puerto Escondido
Here we’ll look at the best things to do and see in Puerto Escondido. This includes the top destinations, as well as some lesser known gems in the area.
Zicatela
This area is a little south of Puerto Escondido town, with the main strip running adjacent to the beach. This area has a bohemian feel, and is full of great and cheap places to stay.
There are tonnes of bars lining the beach, and the beach goes on for an hour towards La Punta. The waves are super strong here, so it’s recommended to only sunbathe. If you want to swim or surf then head to La Punta.
La Punta
The upcoming area to stay, La Punta has a small-town vibe where everything comes together. Definitely our favourite area, with loads of surf shops, busy bars and things going on.
After a few days you’ll feel part of a community here, with everyone seemingly knowing everyone. We’d say La Punta is the friendliest area to stay in and around Puerto Escondido.
Those who are new to surfing and want to get involved, we recommend getting these surf lessons which include 2 hours with a pro!
Beaches
The Pacific coast of Oaxaca in our opinion has the best beaches in Mexico. The most picturesque option is Carrizalillo, which is just a 10 minute taxi ride from Puerto Escondido, and is also great for swimming and learning to surf.
We recommend bringing these high quality, polarised swim goggles for the best underwater viewing experience
Manzanillo, Bachocho and La Punta are all solid beach day options, with the latter a popular surf spot and also full of life during the day and evening.
Mazunte is about an hour away (close to Zipolite), but also a great option with lots of cheap hostels around.
Zipolite
This beach is well known for being Mexico’s most popular nudist beach. It’s pretty open here, so there’s no pressure to feel like you must take your kit off.
There’s lot of beach bars and restaurants lining the beach, and is quite backpacker friendly already, so you can find lots of cheap hostels here.
It’s also an area teeming with wildlife and a more off the beaten path feel. We recommend going with this eco-tour, where you’ll visit the Laguna Venanilla Ecological Park, see numerous Crocodiles and Lagoon Turtles as well as spend time on the infamous Zipolite beach
Turtle Release
One of the best activities to do is to head to Bacocho beach to release baby turtles out into the Pacific Ocean!
There’s a small sanctuary on the beach that starts the releases everyday from 5pm onwards. You’ll pay a small fee for conservation efforts, and after a small talk can release your baby turtle out into the sea. This is the best option for those strapped for time
Where to Stay in Puerto Escondido
There’s three main areas to stay in and around Puerto Escondido, and are all quite close together.
La Punta: is where you want to stay for a community vibe, for great nightlife options and to go and surf. We recommend backpackers check out Casa Punta, which is one of our favourite hostels in the Oaxaca region. The owners are amazing, and the whole place has a great and welcoming feel.
Zicatela: is another solid option to stay in when backpacking here, mostly for the expansive beaches as well as for a more laid-back vibe. There’s lots of cheap hostels here, and also some luxury options that include pretty much everything you need. The Selina Hostel is a great place to stay here, with a bar and a couple of swimming pools on-site.
Puerto Escondido Town: is the least pretty, however the most practical and many who end up staying a lot longer in the region tend to base themselves here. There’s the nearby Manzanillo and Carrizalillo beaches, with the airport close to here too. We recommend staying in Vivo Escondido hostel which is literally just a short 5 minute walk from Playa Carrizalillo.
Best Time to Visit Puerto Escondido
We’ve spoken a lot about the best time to visit Mexico on this blog (George is absolutely obsessed with checking the weather when we travel).
The weather in Puerto Escondido can best be described as tropical, and is quite hot all year round.
The wet season starts in late May through to October. During this season, rains are heavy, with anywhere from 200-300mm falling within each month!
Due to its location on the Pacific, there’s also a chance of hurricanes occurring during the wet season. Temperatures are only slightly hotter than the rest of the year, with averages of between 80-82°F. Highs can be as hot as 86°F.
The dry season starts around October until May. There’s very little rain, with only 0-40mm falling for each month.
In some years, February and March have recorded a grand total of zero rain. Average temps range from 78-80°F for these months, with lows of 71°F and highs of 85°F. April is the hottest month to visit during the dry season.
The best time to visit is all year round! Despite calling it the rainy season, the rains are infrequent and actually sometimes needed for a nice cool down.
George went recently for a week in July and it only rained once. For the best weather and hottest temps, visit from February until early May.
Puerto Escondido Travel Tips
Now let’s explore some of our top tips to get the most out of a trip here.
These tips are from our raw experience and learned from trial and error:
- The best area to stay depends on the kind of feel you’re after. La Punta is best for a community vibe and also for nightlife, whereas Zicatela is better for those who prefer more independence.
- Puerto Escondido town is more for those who prefer to be centrally located, for the airport, tours and local amenities.
- Be sure to also explore the surrounding region, including Zipolite, Huatulco and its 7 incredible bays, and also San José del Pacífico which is a little further away.
- We recommend a minimum of 4/5 days to stay in Puerto Escondido. It really is a place where time stands still, and after a few days you’ll get into “Puerto time” and its own rhythm. This time is also enough to see some other parts of the region as day trips.
- We have added some of the places we like here to our list of best hostels in Mexico which you can check out before and during your trip.
Got travel insurance for Puerto Escondido?
Things to do in Puerto Escondido
We hope you enjoyed this backpacking guide to Puerto Escondido.
Puerto is unique in that it has been built up in the last couple of decades, however is not a tourist trap like other Mexican beach destinations such as Cancun and Cabo (no disrespect to these of course).
Some of the most beautiful beaches in Mexico are located here, and the sunsets are simply incredible too.
In this guide, we’ve explored Puerto Escondido, the best things to do, the best time to go, how to get there as well as our recommendations for your trip.
We hope you enjoyed reading this guide! If you have any questions, feel free to drop a comment below and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Be sure to check out our backpacking Mexico guide for even more ideas on where else to go and what else to see in Mexico’s seven states.
👉🏽 P.S. If you’ve found this guide helpful, buy us a coffee here to say thanks! Or, support us by downloading our South America Travel Bible to get our best content.
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