Ixtapa Zihuatanejo is made up of two destinations, Ixtapa which means "White Place" and Zihuatanejo which comes from the word "Cihuatlan" which means "place of women", both in the Nahuatl language (Photo courtesy of the Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau )
(CNN Spanish) -
Nestled in the Mexican Pacific, Ixtapa Zihuatanejo are two tourist destinations in one.
On the one hand, you have the hotel zone with the great resorts, restaurants and bars, and on the other hand there is the fishing village that gave rise to this site.
But beyond being a place to go to enjoy the sun and palm trees, did you know that it ranks second in Mexico for sailfish and that you can see gray whales that are going to give birth to their calves?
On this popero tour we will put on our swimsuits, apply suntan lotion or sunscreen - depending on how white you are - and we will take you to do the 5 activities that you have to try when you visit this tourist destination.
Pedro Castelán, Executive Director of the Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau, will be our host and will tell us about each activity.
(Photo courtesy Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau)
Fishing
Before we begin, we will tell you that the name of Zihuatanejo comes from the word "Cihuatlán" which in the Nahuatl language means "place of women" and is where the local markets, fishermen and other places that you should discover are located.
Ixtapa means "white place" in the same language and is the hotel zone.
“There are various fishing activities, one of the most important is that Ixtapa Zihuatanejo is the second most important place in Mexico to fish for sailfish.
On the other hand, local fishermen go out at night to fish and get what they will sell the next morning on the fisherman's walk, which is a rustic market where you will find tuna, brown, red snapper and rooster fish, among others.
The best experience is that you can go fishing with the fishermen and spend 10 hours with them at night, ”explained Pedro Castelán.
(Photo courtesy Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau)
Bird and whale watching
The day begins at 5:30 in the morning.
You have to get to the Morros de Potosí, just 15 minutes from downtown Zihuatanejo and take a boat that navigates the Barra de Potosí lagoon.
“Here you will feel that you are visiting a place in the middle of the jungle, you will travel about 8 kilometers and just at dawn you will hear more than 300 species of birds.
It is a concert of multicolored birds.
As you enter the mangroves you can do it with a kayak to see the contrast of the sunrise, says Castelán.
"If you go between December and March, in this same area you can join a group of local boatmen known as 'captains', who have a certification from the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat), who will take you to the Free sea to professionally see gray whales that arrive in Ixtapa Zihuatanejo to give birth.
It seeks to have a social growth, but very responsible with the rules that have been created.
This is one of the most important natural resources in the region.
You can't touch them, we are a nature-friendly destination ”, he adds.
(Photo courtesy Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau)
Surf
If you are a “rider” or surfer and what you are looking for is intensity to maneuver the waves regardless of whether it is a hole, shoreline or a classic tube, here are two options that will catch your attention.
According to Castelán, “we have very good waves, we have hosted several international surfing events.
There are two places where the waves will be the best.
The indicated place is "Troncones" and "La Saladita".
In La Saladita the wave you will find is the left wave, which occurs in very few parts of the world, the characteristic is that it is very long for surfing with a long board.
(Photo courtesy Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau)
Gastronomy
To get out of the luxurious restaurants, Zihuatanejo offers the best: simple meals, from the locals, with typical dishes served on local tableware and nothing pretentious.
You have to go prepared to discover them and you can be sure that you will not be able to walk after enjoying the combination between the mountain and the sea.
Castelán recommends going to visit the many local markets: “In recent years, the experiences where tourists take cooking classes and who go hand in hand with the chefs to the peasant markets to choose the elements, have taken on great relevance.
These chefs or local cooks will ask you if you like spicy, mango, coconut and all the products of the mountains and the sea.
You can go back to your hotel and cook it.
But since you are in these markets, you can enjoy a filling of cuche or pork, passing through a white or red pozole, and try the emblematic drinks, the mezcal of the region and a chilate, a very refreshing drink that is taken in the morning It is made from cocoa, it is very fresh.
Zihuatanejo style fish strips are the typical dish.
Without a doubt, you should visit Carmelita, a lady who cooks at her house and whom you will always remember because of how rich she prepares the dishes ”.
(Photo courtesy Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Convention and Visitors Bureau)
The sunsets
After all these activities, you cannot miss the Ixtapa sunset.
You will be amazed by the colors that form in the sky and in the sea.
Pedro Castelán pointed out: “You can take a catamaran that will take you to visit various tourist spots, where you can snorkel or dive and, obviously, to end up seeing one of the best sunsets on the planet that paints the horizon pink.
The island of Ixtapa is the ideal place to see it.
IxtapaTour Popero
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