Huatulco?

[canadarocks]

Any recommendations for what to do in Huatulco, Mexico? The shore excursions don't have the best reviews....

If we just head to the beach at the cruise port, any thoughts on the best beach club/restaurant to grab lunch and lounge chairs? 

[CalLuvsCrusingToo]

Was there last year for a day.  We just got off the ship....walked around a couple streets

with vendors & few stores.  Walked past some folks sitting in a restaurant by the beach.

Few folks sitting under beach umbrellas.  That was about it. 

Made a loop and back to the ship.  Took 30 mins tops.

 

[dockman]

Small town and beach area...i went to a place at far right  of beach towards end (facing ocean from beach)...lot of choices but of course gets crowded quickly when ship docks so maybe try to get off early and grab a spot.  Nice beach area with umbrellas and F and B service.

[richsea]

40 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

Any recommendations for what to do in Huatulco, Mexico? The shore excursions don't have the best reviews....

If we just head to the beach at the cruise port, any thoughts on the best beach club/restaurant to grab lunch and lounge chairs? 

The one time we visited, we just walked off the ship to the town, which is right off the pier. There is a beach with calm waters where you can rent chairs/umbrellas; all within sight of the ship. Everything is conveniently located. Nice quiet, relaxing day.

Edited February 2 by richsea

[SCX22]

Huatulco reminds me of Grand Turk--a beach with some shops around.  The area is still being built up.  There are a lot of hotels and condos going up at the moment.  There's only one hotel at the opposite end of the beach with a pool if you want a beach club vibe.  The chairs and umbrellas are rented from the locals on the beach.  If you will be eating/buying drinks, use your credit card and pay in pesos.  The forex rate for paying in any other currency other than MXP is a rip off.  There is another beach on the that is walkable and less crowded because it's surrounded by hotels, despite being a public beach, called Bahia Chahue.  There is the "tourist corridor" which is a path between two mountains that will take you into the more cultural downtown area, where there's a small church, a town square and more restaurants. The walk one way is about 20 minutes.

[konatyme]

Here's another vote for the path that goes to the "cultural" downtown area. We did this and really enjoyed it.

[Kathyvenice]

On 2/1/2024 at 10:15 PM, canadarocks said:

Any recommendations for what to do in Huatulco, Mexico? The shore excursions don't have the best reviews....

If we just head to the beach at the cruise port, any thoughts on the best beach club/restaurant to grab lunch and lounge chairs? 

 

[Kathyvenice]

I have the same question for my upcoming cruise in may 2024.  

[JRay21]

On Princess I did the “Rural Communities and Traditions” tour and it was fantastic. Here is the description: Get a feel for how local people live and work on this wonderful off-the-beaten-track half-day excursion. Designed to provide you with a glimpse into traditional Mexican life, you will first explore Piedra de Moros, a community kitchen where you will learn how to make perfect tortillas and tamales before tasting the food. See how the famous Teotitlan del Valle rugs are made from scratch in an interesting demonstration. Shop for embroidered items before moving on to a medicinal plants garden to observe a wide variety of healing herbs, citrus and banana trees. Continue on to Pueblo Viejo to a plot devoted to cultivating nopales (the healthy and tasty prickly pear cactus) with the opportunity to try some of its many different forms of preparation. Then settle down for a palm-weaving demonstration, after which you will be able to shop for more regional gifts before heading back to port, enjoying the stunning Sierra Madre mountain range in the distance.

 

I would absolutely do it again if they offered it on my next cruise. 

Edited April 7 by JRay21

[alwalaska]

On 2/3/2024 at 4:46 PM, Kathyvenice said:

I have the same question for my upcoming cruise in may 2024.  

Please come back after your visit and tell us about it.  We don't sail until Feb 2025.

[alwalaska]

On 4/7/2024 at 7:35 PM, JRay21 said:

On Princess I did the “Rural Communities and Traditions” tour and it was fantastic. Here is the description: Get a feel for how local people live and work on this wonderful off-the-beaten-track half-day excursion. Designed to provide you with a glimpse into traditional Mexican life, you will first explore Piedra de Moros, a community kitchen where you will learn how to make perfect tortillas and tamales before tasting the food. See how the famous Teotitlan del Valle rugs are made from scratch in an interesting demonstration. Shop for embroidered items before moving on to a medicinal plants garden to observe a wide variety of healing herbs, citrus and banana trees. Continue on to Pueblo Viejo to a plot devoted to cultivating nopales (the healthy and tasty prickly pear cactus) with the opportunity to try some of its many different forms of preparation. Then settle down for a palm-weaving demonstration, after which you will be able to shop for more regional gifts before heading back to port, enjoying the stunning Sierra Madre mountain range in the distance.

 

I would absolutely do it again if they offered it on my next cruise. 

Hi. Can you please tell me more about your experiences on this tour?  My typical experience with Princess tours is they load everyone onto a bus stuffed into every available seat. Then after driving a distance, you all get off of the bus where you walk to place 1, stand around and wait for everyone to catch up.  Hear about place one, walk to place 2 (at a fairly rapid pace) then wait for everyone to catch up, hear about place 2, and repeat.  The other type I've seen is where you load and unload the bus multiple times which takes forever each time since there are so many people.

 

There are a couple of ports on this cruise where I'm tempted to give the Princess tours another try, but I don't want to be disappointed again.