Mexico has over nine-thousand kilometres of beaches along its Pacific and Caribbean coasts. It offers just about anything a tourist could desire, from sunbathing to swimming, seafood to shopping and spectacular views.
While most Mexico holidays are usually all inclusive holidays, there’s nothing stopping you venturing out of the resort and heading to one of the magnificent beaches for the day.
The Pacific coast stretches from Baja California at the border with the United States to Chiapas and the border with Guatemala. You can surf in the cool Pacific waves or dive from the cliff tops of Acapulco. The Caribbean coast has warm, clear water that gently flows over white sands.
Just a short distance inland by bus from the beaches takes you into steamy rainforests. A visit to the old Spanish colonial cities or the archaeological sites of the Aztec and Mayan civilizations is recommended.
Cabo San Lucas is at the tip of the Baja California Peninsula on the Pacific coast, where visitors can play golf as well as sunbathe. Playa Cemeterio and Playa Santa Maria are the best beaches for swimming, while Playa Costa Azul and Playa Canta Mar are ideal for surfing.
Acapulco, together with La Caleta and La Caletilla beaches, is the pearl of the Pacific. The sea is clear and calm here and ideal for swimming or diving from the cliffs. La Roqueta and La Quebrada islands are miniature paradises accessible from the main beach by a small boat. They offer spectacular views and bungee-jumping for the brave. Back on the mainland, you can watch the beautiful sunsets just outside Pie de la Cuesta.
Puerto Vallarta on the central Pacific coast of Jalisco state has over 40 beaches along 54 kilometres of coastline. The Sierra Madre Mountains form an inland backdrop to the coast. The beaches at Puerta Vallarta are surrounded by restaurants and the activities available include paragliding, bungee-jumping, kayaking and swimming with dolphins. There are coral reefs and crystal blue waters just offshore.
If you love surfing, go to Zicaleta beach in Puerto Escondido on the Oaxaca state coast. It nestles under low-hanging palm-tree branches. The blue-green waters of the Pacific Ocean are superb for all aquatic sports.
The beaches of Huatulco on the southern part of Mexico’s Pacific coast have numerous isolated bays separated by a rugged terrain. This is still a pristine resort with no high-rise buildings. It offers snorkelling in the ocean and horse riding and jungle tours inland.
The Riviera Maya is a 160-kilometre-long stretch of beaches, lagoons, nature reserves and ancient Mayan cities. It lies just south of the resort city of Cancun on the Yucatan Peninsula on Mexico’s Caribbean coast.
Visitors can swim off the beaches of Tulum and view the architectural magic of the Mayan temples on the shore. There are 60 different Mayan buildings within three walls just by the beach. They stand on 12-metre-high cliffs along the coast.
Continue north from Tulum along the coast, past Soliman Bay to Akumal. This means ‘place of turtles’ in the Mayan language as it is where turtles have laid their eggs for thousands of years. Corel reefs protect the beach from heavy waves, making it a popular destination for divers and snorkelers. Subterranean rivers plough a course through an inland warren of caves.
Cozumel Island lies 10 kilometres offshore between Akumal and Playa del Carmen to the north. In Mayan, this is the ‘island of swallows’ and it is popular with experienced divers.
From there, you could take a boat to the isolated beach of Isla Pasion, just off the north coast of Cozumel Island and bask on the white sands overlooking the blue Caribbean.
Back on the Yucatan mainland, go to Playa del Carmen and enjoy the same beaches that the Mayans basked on over 1,500 years ago. This is the heart of the Mayan Riviera and it offers both sophistication and value for money. You can swim in the calm sea or go deep-sea fishing.
The popular holiday resort city of Cancun lies just north of Playa del Carmen. This is where Mexico’s Yucatan tourism began in the 1970s and its beaches remain the most famous in the country. The white sands of Cancun’s beaches are made up of limestone micro-fossils and remain cool underfoot even on the hottest day.
Finally, take a ferry from Cancun just 10 kilometres northeast to Islas Mujeres, or ‘islands of women’. The beaches on the west coast are superb for swimming but be careful of the undertow here.
