Question for Anyone who has Stayed in Zihuatanejo recently?

Question

I am looking for a new vacation haunt as our favorite (Boca Chica, DR) is getting more popular and therefore more crowded, pricey and busy.

We usually enjoy staying at AIs for convenience. Does anyone have any recent information on Zihuatanejo? I would really rather stay there as opposed to Ixtapa

Answer 1

Very good web site and message board for Zihua

http://www.zihuatanejo.net/wwwboard/

Answer 2

I think you may find what you are looking for on TripAdvisor.Com - we always use that site to find reviews of hotels and motels in cities that we haven't been to before, because there are such thorough and extensive reviews written by a variety of travelers.  I looked up Zihuatenejo for you and found this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g15079... which gives you detailed reviews of 48 different places to stay in Zihuatanejo.  Their rankings are nice because they break them down into best places for price, romance, family trips, luxury, etc.  

One place that sounds particularly nice is the Brisas del Mar Hotel, which seems reasonable enough price wise but still apparently has excellent food, air conditioning, a lovely swimming pool with water slide, and great customer service.  If my husband and I were planning a trip to Zihuatanejo, that might be the place I'd select for our family.  

Another nice feature of these personal reviews is that the travelers don't end up just giving information about the specific hotels - they also talk about fun places to go while you are in town, etc.  I've gotten some really good advice about restaurants and things to do with kids, and when I scanned the entries on Zihuatenejo I saw a lot of good advice about that sort of thing.  

I don't know if you're planning to drive or fly to Zihuataneho but it might be worth it to take a car so that you could take fun day trips if you wanted to.  My husband says the beaches at Ixtapa are awesome - at least, they were when he went there a few years ago.  Anyway, whenever we travel, we really appreciate the freedom and flexibility of having a vehicle - and I don't enjoy flying much these days since 9/11.  The one thing I always tell people is to get the insurance though if you are driving because one time we were driving in mainland Mexico and got rear-ended and it was stressful but would have been FAR worse if we hadn't been insured through a mexican company.  I think your car can be impounded without it, and under Mexican law you are presumed guilty until proven innocent - so it makes sense to cover all your bases.  We found out that our US coverage didn't work down there, so now we always use Bajabound.com and have been happy with them.   I think a lot of companies sell it though, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding good coverage.  

I hope you have a great time and that the Trip Advisor forum I recommended is helpful to you in planning your adventure!

Answer 3

We just returned from Zihua. This has been our 2nd time visiting. We love it!! Last yr we were there around Easter and there we lots of people, but nothing crazy. This year we traveled during the slow season and it was so relaxing. There are so many things to do like scuba, snorkling, horseback riding and so so much more. My husband and I spent the day at Las Gatas beach and went snorking, it cost us $30 (all the equipment, guide, lunch and the ride to and from the pier). If you are looking for quite and away from the crowd I'd suggest looking into Barra Potosi or Playa Larga. You get so much for your money. Best of luck!

Zihua is so much better in my opinion, Ixtapa is very touristy and more expensive.

Answer 4

Yeah, I lived there with my girlfriend for about a year. It was safe and relatively quiet, except for Easter, when the town over-flows with Mexican tourists. If you are looking for somewhere cheap, clean and steps away form the beach? check out Angela's Hostel. There are some restaurants and bars right across the street and it is run by a expat. Canadian and his Mexican wife, who are very accomadating. Other wise there's a set of smaller hotel chains, cliff-side, over looking the bay. I believe the nicer of the bunch is the Club Inter-West, or Intra West...not quite sure. Great R&B/Blues club called Blue Mamoo and Ixtapa is close by if you want to hit a club or some tourist traps...I mean attractions, like Senior Frog's and the likes. Taxis are still cheap enough, the bus system is relativly easy to use (especially if you stay at a nicer hotel at the base of the little mountain/hill). The market is small but clean and easy to navigate. I do suggest keeping an eye out for a local Mexican "facilitator" named David. He is a very respectable local, who can help you with anything. From buying a hamac to finding an appartment. You wanna go fishing? Talk to David. You wanna rent a car? Talk to David. He gets a little commission from the work, and speaks English very well.

That's pretty much the best advice I can give you with out pushing to much in any particular direction. If you ask me...

Just catch a flight to Ixtapa, jump in a cab to Zihuatanejo and enjoy yourself.