When you plan a trip to the Oaxaca coast, the question comes up fast: Zipolite or Mazunte? And on the map there is a third option right in the middle: San Agustinillo.
The three beaches are minutes apart, so the choice isn't forever. What changes is the sea and what you do with your day. We're writing from San Agustinillo, Oaxaca, where Il Gatto Rosso is. Yes, we have an opinion, but we also have the real drive times.
Three towns, west to east
From west to east, the coast runs Mazunte, San Agustinillo, Zipolite. From the hotel, Mazunte is about a 5-minute drive and Zipolite about 15 (approximate times). At those distances you can see all three towns without changing hotels. What is worth deciding is where to spend most of your day.
San Agustinillo: the small one
It is a fishing village, with boats pulled up on the sand and zero rush. One stretch of the beach is sheltered by rocks, with gentle surf that makes swimming easy; the stretch to the east has strong surf, and the sea there is better looked at than jumped into.
It is the place to sit still: read facing the ocean, have breakfast without checking the time and watch the fishermen's boats on the sand.
Mazunte: sunsets and sea turtles
Mazunte is about 5 minutes from the hotel and has two classic stops. One is Punta Cometa, the southernmost point of Oaxaca, also called Cerro Sagrado (Sacred Hill), and the town's sunset lookout. The other is the Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga, a conservation and education center about sea turtles; check its opening hours before you go.
Zipolite: open sea and a nude beach
Zipolite asks for the most respect. It is open sea, with strong waves and a strong undertow. That is why flags warn you about the water, and they are worth heeding. If you have no experience in strong surf, watch it from the sand.
It is also one of the best-known nude beaches in the country. If that bothers you, better to know before you arrive; if not, welcome to the club.
Zipolite or Mazunte? How to choose, in short
- To do nothing, with the sea steps from your bed: San Agustinillo.
- To stroll, watch the sunset at Punta Cometa and visit the turtle center: Mazunte.
- For waves and an open beach: Zipolite.
A long weekend is enough for all three: a beach morning in San Agustinillo, sunset at Punta Cometa and an afternoon in Zipolite. And if surfing is your thing, Puerto Escondido is an hour away by car.
Before you get in the water
The surf changes from one day to the next. On all three beaches, check the flags and ask locals how the sea is before you swim.
What if you don't want to choose?
You don't have to. Sleep in San Agustinillo and visit the other two. Il Gatto Rosso is an adults-only hotel with six beachfront rooms and a restaurant open to everyone. The one thing we don't have is a pool: just the whole Pacific. If you already have dates, see the rooms; if you're still deciding, see what San Agustinillo is like.
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