Community and Regional

Zihuatanejo and its bay

Zihuatanejo’s sheltered bay, often visited by cruise ships making their way to tourist destinations up and down the Pacific coast during the winter season, encompasses several beaches of varying characteristics. Fisherman’s Walk, along the main town beach, is lined with a number of small restaurants from which one can look across the bay and watch the movement of the townsfolk, fishermen and boats. Around the bay toward the south of town lie Playa Madera and Playa La Ropa. La Madera is a small beach area lined with bungalows, hotels and guest houses. Playa La Ropa, which is a long, white-sanded beach that curves around the southern side of the bay and then toward the crags that lead to Playa Las Gatas, offers its visitors a variety of hotels, bungalows, restaurants and water sports – just in case lying out and lazing in the sun beside the waves isn’t enough for you. At Playa Las Gatas, near the mouth of the bay, you’ll find a gently lapping sea protected by the ancient breakwater, making it an excellent beach for children or activities such as snorkeling.

Zihuatanejo offers many resources for the deep-sea fisherman. At the Pier near the western end of Playa Principal are stationed fishing boats which can be chartered at a variety of rates for your trips to catch the big one. From the Pier you can also purchase tickets for the small boat (panga) service that will take you to Las Gatas.

Ixtapa

Ixtapa offers the visitor a stretch of more intense and wild surf along Playa el Palmar, its main beach. To the south is the Hotel Las Brisas commandeering the more protected Playa Vista Hermosa. Northward along Playa el Palmar, next to the jetty, is Las Escolleras, a favorite spot for local surfers and, farther along to the north, are Playa Quieta and Playa Linda – another surfer’s hangout and, from whence boats can take visitors across to the splendid sands and snorkeling spots of Isla Ixtapa.

Access

Zihuatanejo is located on the Pacific coast of the State of Guerrero to the southwest of Mexico City. It is accessible via highway 200 from Acapulco to the south (250 km or 156 miles) or from Lázaro Cardenas to the north (115 km or 72 miles). The Nuevo Milenio Highway running from the Feliciano Junction of Highway 200 inland also now provides easy access to Uruapan, Patzcuaro and Morelia. Zihuatanejo is a mere 45-minute plane ride from Mexico City and is serviced through its international airport (Airport code ZIH) by a number of Mexican and international airlines.

The coastline is, for the most part, low-lying and flat with a number of river mouths, large lagoons and wetlands punctuating its length. Zihuatanejo town is situated on a magnificent, protected bay that once rivaled Acapulco for commerce from the far east and other points abroad, and that still rivals Acapulco for its sheer natural beauty; the planned touristic community of Ixtapa lies a scant 5 kilometers to the north

The Troncones Beach community is located approximately 30 kms north of Ixtapa along Federal Highway 200.

Barra de Potosi is accessible from Federal Highway 200 from a turnoff at the town of Los Achotes, just south of the Zihuatanejo airport.

General Info

Coordinates:  101.33 degrees West, 17.38 degrees North

Time Zone: Central

Daylight Savings Time in effect from the 1st Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October.

General Postal Code for the area is: 40880

Electricity: 110 volts A.C.

Area Code: 52 (Mexico’s country code) + 755 (local area code for Ixtapa & Zihuatanejo)

Telephone Dialing Examples:

• Dialing a Zihuatanejo land line from the U.S. or Canada: 011-52-755-xxx-xxxx
• Dialing a Zihuatanejo land line from within Mexico: 01-755-xxx-xxxx
• Dialing a cell phone within the service area: 044-755-xxx-xxxx
• Dialing a cell phone that is outside of the local service area but within Mexico: 045-755-xxx-xxxx
• Dialing a Mexican cell phone from outside the country: +52 1 755-xxx-xxxx
• For dialing 800- and other toll-free or special charge numbers in the U.S. and Canada from Mexico, the codes must be changed as follows (PLEASE NOTE: dialing 800- numbers from Mexico is not free and you will be charged a long-distance fee):
  • If the U.S. dialing code is 1-800, in Mexico substitute with 001-880
  • If the U.S. dialing code is 1-888, in Mexico substitute with 001-881
  • If the U.S. dialing code is 1-877, in Mexico substitute with 001-882
  • If the U.S. dialing code is 1-866, in Mexico substitute with 001-883
  • …all of the above should be followed by the regular 7-digit phone number.