AdventureDad

Our week in Ixtapa was pretty relaxing and with beautiful weather as always. It’s a nice place and very different from our destination next week, Baja California.  Ixtapa is located in the state of Guerrero, which is on the coast southwest of Mexico City. I was weak for a couple of days after my near death experience but the recovery was actually pretty smooth.  Who comes to Ixtapa?  Many Mexicans have summer homes in the area, there are lots of older Americans visiting, and thankfully few drunk and stupid teenagers out of US.  The atmosphere is very relaxed and you have a nice mix of locals and people on vacation.

Ixtapa has some beautiful beaches  and so does nearby town Zihuatanejo.  There are plenty of hotels on the beach in Ixtapa, most of them are on Playa el Palmar.  The beaches are nice but not nearly of the same caliber as Cancun.  But that’s hard to match since those beaches are some of the best in the world.  We did spend a day on Playa del Palmar which was pretty relaxing.  Playa el Palmar is partly public so  if you’re not staying at a hotel on that  beach you can rent an umbrella or a huge tent and hang out there for the whole day.  The sun is extremely strong in this area of Mexico so it’s important to protect kids and give them some shade.  Between 11.30 and 2.30 pm there is no point of being outside since the sun is way too hot and the rays are particularly harmful during this time.  It’s a perfect time for a few beers and some seafood.

The best beach in Ixtapa is definitely Isla/Ixtapa.  It’s a very small island located on a reef a short distance away.  You get there by driving to nearby Playa Linda and then taking a water taxi to the little island.  The island has looked the same during the last 30 years and is one of those idyllic places.  No hotels and no electricity.  There are three beaches, one main and two on the other part  of the island.  You want to stay away from the main beach and instead take the boat around the corner to  the two smaller ones.    One beach is facing the reef and is perfect for snorkeling and the other is calmer and more suited for hanging out with the family.  Food is served in simple open air restaurants and it’s absolutely delicious.  This was some of the best food we had during our whole trip.  It’s enough to snorkel a couple of feet from the beach since huge fishes keep swimming up to you in the crystal clear water.  Very nice experience.  Count on spending a whole day at this fantastic paradise.  Have a few beers, some snacks, delicious meals, and just relax.

Zihuatanejo is located an easy 15 minute drive from Ixtapa and offers some beautiful beaches.  There are five main beaches and we chose to stay at Playa la Ropa. We actually wanted to go to the ecological reserve at Playa Las Gatas but there was no water taxi available at the time so we skipped it.  OK I admit it, we were kind of lazy as well.   That is supposedly the nicest beach in town. We had planned on spending a few hours on the beach but ended up staying the whole day.  We grabbed a palapa at a local restaurant on the beach and played with Daniel in the sand, had some drinks, and some nice seafood.  Having a child on the beach is not always easy.  I’m thinking of the crucial mid-day nap.  Not all kids can lay down on a towel in the sand and fall asleep for an hour.  But that has been no problem at all with Daniel.  He looks so cute laying there in the shadows covered up by a thin towel. There were no crowds and few kids.  Just the sound of the ocean. 

If you’re looking for some nice food in a romantic setting with an unbeatable view I know just the place.  We had dinner one night at El Faro restaurant which is part of the Pacifica Villas & Resort.  It’s located high up in the mountains with gorgeous sunset views of the whole coast.  Daniel joined us and behaved great.  We were kind of under dressed in Bermudas and sandals but we were incredibly proud of Daniel who sat there for 45 minutes with hotshots sitting around us not even noticing we had a child at our table.  We sat on the terrace watching the sun go down as we had some nice food and wine.  Highly recommended.  In case you want something more casual there are plenty of good restaurants with reasonable prices.  There are quite a few at the Plaza Ixpamar.  Some Mexican places and also Franks Bar & Grill if you want a nice pizza for a change.  We never hang out at these gringo places in Mexico but they did have pretty nice food.  And you will find an internet café there as well plus plenty of open high speed Wifi access points.

A couple of the days were spent at the resort which was very calm  and perfect for kids.  It had a few pools, a trampoline, a playground, and of course the mandatory swim up bar.  Daniel was not too happy about the temperature in the water, he’s used to the hot baby pools from swim class, and did not play much in the water.  We did get him a plastic boat and a large truck which became his best friends during this trip.  He was so proud and could not stop talking about them.  Best ten bucks ever spent.

We did spend one day at the Melia resort and I would advice you to stay away from this place. Melia is a resort chain with a good reputation but this hotel had incredibly bad service, crappy food, was crowded, and wherever you looked you saw these awful timeshare presentations taking place.  The place is all inclusive but the food really was pathetic.  The only plus side was a decent water park for kids but that was not nearly enough to make up for all other crap.  Stay away!!

Categories: Family, Travel
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