Bahías de Huatulco

The Bahías de Huatulco are a string of bays along the coast east of Mazunte, about an hour's drive away. While the eastern bays hold the planned resort of Huatulco, the western part of the coast was declared a national park in 1998, and it covers nearly 12,000 hectares of land and sea. Several of its bays have no roads at all, and their beaches are reached only by boat.

On land, most of the park is low tropical dry forest that turns gray and leafless in the dry season and bright green with the rains, with mangroves along the shore. It is home to deer, armadillos, iguanas and hundreds of bird species. In the water are coral communities that make the calmer bays good for snorkeling, and offshore you may see dolphins, turtles and, in winter, whales.

The classic way to see the park is a boat tour that stops at a few beaches, such as Cacaluta, El Órgano or San Agustín, for swimming, snorkeling and a seafood lunch. Playa La Entrega, in Santa Cruz bay, is an easy, calm beach with a reef close to shore, and it can be reached by road.