6 Reasons Sayulita, Mexico Makes A Great Family Vacation

There’s something about Mexico. Maybe it’s the sun, surf and perfect weather (27 celsius most days), or maybe it’s the fact that after 2 – 3 hours on a plane, you can be eating carne asada tacos and sipping local tequila.  Most people have heard of the hotspots Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, Los Cabos etc., but there are many smaller towns like Sayulita in Mexico, to escape the crowds and the commercialism. 

For Spring Break, we headed to the gorgeous village of Sayulita.  Sayulita is a small surf  town and is about 45 minutes north of Nuevo Vallarta (or an hour north of Puerto Vallarta) on the other side of the Punta Mita peninsula.  The only way to reach Sayulita is by a local bus or car and there are approximately 2500 full-time residents.

Whether you are a surfer or not, Sayulita offers the perfect location for adventure, relaxation, sun, culture and time to find your center.  Here are our favorite things to do in Sayulita.

Hit the Surf

There are lots of places to surf along the Riviera Nayarit’s coast, however Sayulita is known for having the best waves to learn how to surf.

They’re not pumping for the advanced surfer, but if you take a short drive you can find great waves at Burros or San Pancho.

Stay in an Authentic Sayulita Hotel

When we travel we love to stay in a place with a local vibe, so we chose to stay in Hotel Sayulita Central.

This hotel is a block from the beach and a block from the town square and was the perfect base for us to explore.  This hotel is beautiful, and the views are stunning. From the minute Eduardo greeted us at the front desk and showed us our rooms, we realized we were in the right place.

Everything is very clean and tidy, and the decor is colorful and vibrant.  Each room is decorated with a different rock and roll theme.  The boys stayed in the Queen room and Hot Hubby and I stayed in the Led Zepplin penthouse suite.

This suite is on its own level, and has the best view in the whole hotel… if not all of central Sayulita. The comfy bed faces the Pacific Ocean, and there’s a private terrace with a hammock where we spent hours enjoying the ocean breeze.

The boys were spoiled with the (included) breakfast made to order by Maricela every morning.  She cooked fresh whatever they were in the mood for… pancakes one day, huevos rancheros the next, or eggs any style.

We loved it and it was the perfect place to relax.

Enjoy the Sunsets

It’s hard not to enjoy the sunsets every night when you are on the coast.

They did not disappoint, and our nightly ritual was to enjoy the sunset with tequila and chips and salsa of course!

Relax at the Local Beaches

The local Sayulita Beach was a block from our hotel, but does get more crowded than we’d prefer.  Eduardo pointed us to the perfect spot, Playa De Los Muertos (Beach of the Dead).

It was literally a 10 minute walk from our hotel, and we followed a path leading past the cemetery to this quiet beach.  We were able to take beach towels from the hotel, and we spent a lovely, peaceful, and quiet afternoon, watching the waves crash on the giant rocks while drinking ice-cold Pacificos.

Enjoy the Vibrant Town

Walking through Sayulita makes you feel like you are walking in a folk-art painting.


It’s so colorful, there’s live music pumping, and the streets are filled with local artists selling their colorful pieces.

It’s not unusual to see a group of mariachi’s singing for the tourists.

Buy Local Sayulita Artwork

The art scene in Sayulita is incredible.

We visited every art store, and admired the hand beaded pieces, the colorful pom-poms, the local handcrafted Mexican art,  handmade jewelry, and local surf gear.

Eat Local, Fresh, Authentic Food

We all agree if we could only choose one type of food to eat for the rest of our lives, it would be Mexican food.

There’s just so many versions of great Mexican food.  Steak, chicken, shrimp, fish, rice, beans, guacamole…. the list is endless.

Our FAVORITE restaurant in Sayulita by far was Mary’s. We instantly fell in love with the staff, the wooden sidewalk lunch counter, and the tacos de camarones!  Best Mexican food we’ve ever had and we are all still dreaming of the fresh shrimp enchiladas and quesadillas.

Sayulita has everything you could ever want in a relaxing beach vacation, so hurry to visit before the word gets out…. and it’s always a bonus when you get to meet up with great friends on vacation!

Have you been to Sayulita?
{Disclosure: This post is sponsored, however all opinions and views are 100% my own.}