Jay G. Says:
I have heard that Huatulco, Mexico is a beautiful area of Mexico. Can you provide some insights on Huatulco and what makes it such a desirable destination?
IL Contributor Jason Holland Writes:
Huatulco is a small town in the Mexican state of Oaxaca that in many ways is still emerging as a major destination. There are only about 56,000 residents, according to official figures, with about 1,000 being expats or pre-retirement, part-time visitors who own property. Even during rush hour, you can drive from one side of town to the other in about six minutes. Many places are within walking distance.
You’ll see great contrasts in Huatulco. This was originally a fishing village, and the larger town that has grown up, thanks to investments in the 1980s and 1990s, has a slight Disney-like quality.
What tourists (and potential expats) find in Huatulco is a beautiful, unspoiled area offering a range of outdoor activities. Seventy percent of the area in and around Huatulco is a construction-free zone, and building heights in town are almost always limited to three stories.
Huatulco doesn’t yet have many of the warehouse and chain stores that most expats expect. However, there is a Walmart, as well as three local options for groceries: Coco Solo is sort of a 7-Eleven with an upscale twist; La Fuente, a small, conventional grocery store; and a Super Che. A cross between a warehouse store and a grocery store, Super Che is part of the Mexico-wide Chedraui supermarket chain. It’s not quite as big as most Walmarts, but it has comparatively good pricing, volume, and depth on the products that it offers.
For Home Depot-type items that you might need for a house or condo, check out the industrial neighborhood of Huatulco. Here you can find just about everything you might need…just not under one roof. Instead, there are dozens of little businesses, each with its own specialty.
It’s no surprise to find a variety of ecotours available in Huatulco, given this area’s beauty. You can do ecotours from the comfort of a bus or on the back of a fourwheel-drive ATV. You’ll see waterfalls, rivers, streams, and a diverse and abundant wildlife population.
Fishing, snorkeling, and diving are all very popular here. Every year Huatulco hosts several fishing tournaments. The biggest tournament, the Torneo de Pez Vela Huatulco (Huatulco Sailfish Tournament) attracts professional sport fishermen. There are also numerous dive shops—with the hands-down favorite for locals and tourists alike being Hurricane Divers, with its modern, new equipment.
Read more about Huatulco on its dedicated page of the IL website.
Got a Question?
Send your thoughts to mailbag@internationalliving.com. We’ll post and respond to as many of your emails as we can right here in the e-letter.