January 14, 2023 – Huatulco, Mexico

Pronounced wah-TOOL-co.  What a cool town!  I would definitely come back here and stay for a vacation.  It was developed as a resort in the late 1980’s, so everything is new.  Apparently, this quiet area of Mexico was transformed overnight from quiet, undiscovered beaches and Bay Area to a very popular destination.  I understand there are direct flights from some cities in Canada, so there are many Canadian snowbirds.

Population is 50,000 (est. 2019) and located at the southern tip of the Southern Sierra Madre mountains.  Huatulco is Mexico’s largest ecological reserve and home to many unspoiled beaches. 

We arrived in Huatulco and saw a beautiful sunrise.  The captain warned us last night that due to high winds, we may not be able to dock in Huatulco because they have no support tug boats to assist.  Thankfully, it was a beautiful morning and the sea was calm.  Interesting watching the ship back in to the dock. The bay is small and our ship towers over the little town.  Gorgeous mountain range in a distance and high, rocky shoreline.  The sky is blue and pollution free.

Bob and I walked on deck before we took a tour of the area.  We’re always looking for wildlife and were lucky enough to look over the railing and see a spotted eagle ray in the water.  We were so happy to see it swimming slowly along the ship in clear, blue water so I could get some pictures.  We took a tour around the town.  Went to an overlook and took a great picture of our ship down below.  The guide took us through town and showed us different neighborhoods, the new convention center, marina, beautiful golf course and fabulous resorts.  

I really liked the area because it’s not your typical high-rise, tourist town.  Hotels cannot be over 5 stories high.  They are very eco-friendly and proud of their town.  Huatulco is in the state of Oaxaca (pronounced wah-HAH-kah).  The state motto is “Respect For The Rights Of Others is Peace”.  Outside the resort area is a lush and vibrant countryside full of bananas, papaya and coconut plantations.  We are here during their dry season and I noticed throughout the landscape very, large cactus.  Local cuisine includes shrimp, lobster, squid and many other varieties of seafood.  Currency is the Mexican Peso and current exchange rate is 18 pesos = $1.

One of my favorite places in town was the humble church in La Crucecita.  You walk in and your eyes are drawn to heaven.  A dark, blue sky with a 65-foot tall painting of the Virgin de Guadalupe, believed to be the the largest in Mexico.  We walked throughout the town and saw trees in the square with very, large oriole nests hanging down.  I wondered where our family of orioles wintered.  Lol (smart birds for sure).  We then went to a shop where some craftsman showed us how they make rugs using only things of nature as their dye (example – marigold’s for gold, moss for green, various minerals, flowers and so on).  The rugs they showed us were beautiful and high quality.  The man explained some of these designs have been used for generations.  They raise their own sheep on a ranch 5 hours away and use the wool to make the rugs.

We made our way back to the dock and slowly strolled back to the ship enjoying every minute.  The people we met today were very friendly and welcoming.  We thoroughly enjoyed our day.  We boarded the ship and went to deck 16 for the sailing away party.  We saw people in small boats waving.  We all waved back and the captain blew the horn to say farewell.

Adios Huatulco!