more lovely beaches

It's a little tough to get here and the hotel chains haven't taken over which combine to make Zipolite feel like a magical little Mexican beach town, a magical, vegetarian, hippie, Mexican beach town. The beaches that link Puerto Angel, Zipolite, and Mazunte are long unbroken stretches of white sand. They surf can be dangerous and most locals don't swim here. The waves were gentle while we were there but we still didn't go in above our knees.

Up until 1990 Mazunte had a turtle slaughterhouse that killed as many as 50,000 turtles a year. The turtles are since protected and Mazunte is now an ecological preserve. We bought shampoos at the Cosmeticos Naturales, one of the businesses the locals are hoping will replace the turtle industry.

In Zipolite, there's a Yoga retreat right across a dusty little street from the beach. The palapa roofed bungalows look perfectly granola, new age, comfortable. The rooms in season start at $11 for dormitory style and go as high as $49 a night for a bungalow. The whole area is a very affordable place to stay.