Mazatlan in June

When you vacation at the ocean, activities surrounding the water are a must. We gave into parasailing, boogie boarding and a catamaran cruise. We are also big shoppers so a trip to the Central Market was in order. It's a great place to bargain for souvenirs, but my suggestion would be not to enter the meat market portion of the market. Viewing the open-air market with no ice or refrigeration would tend to turn you into a vegetarian during your stay in Mazatlan!

Quick Tips:

Be sure to trade your US dollars in for pesos when you arrive. You do best to make your purchases in pesos. Our resort offered .20 but you could find money exchange booths along the streets at .40-.50. A tip we received was to place restaurant purchases on your credit card because the exchange rate using this means is the best you can get. We haven't received our statement yet, so I can't verify this!

Best Way To Get Around:

Outside of the resort, be sure to use the Pulmonias. We tried the bus the first day and found it to be around the same price as the open air Pulmonia (like a golf cart with more speed and several horns). There's no need to wave one over, just start walking. Every few seconds you'll have one pull up to you asking where you're going. Very important - negotiate your price up front. Tell them where you're going and they'll give you a price. If you want to pay less, let them know how much you'll pay. If they don't accept it, just keep walking because another pulmonia will stop by seconds later. Believe me, you'll get one for the price you want to pay. We paid 40 pesos (for 4 of us) to go to the Central Market, but only 20 pesos up and down the main strip.

Best Things Nearby:
Parasailing is on the beach just outside the resort, a little market is across the street for sodas, milk, cereal and snacks, a bowling alley is a 10 minute walk to the north, there are shops and restaurants within walking distance. There's enough near by to keep you busy if you don't want to travel into town.

Best Things About the Resort:
The best thing was the time of season we visited. This was the 2nd week of June, which was supposed to be the rainy season but it only sprinkled one day, but there were no crowds which was great. The pool was never crowded, we even had it to ourselves quite a bit in the morning. The activities directors were great (Eduardo and Vicente) and were on site during the morning, days and early evenings. There was an activitites schedule for daily events including bingo, water volleyball, coconut bowling, Spanish lessons, plus many others. For prizes, they would give out free drink coupons, but we did win a shirt once for the limbo contest.

Resort Experience:
While the resort looked to be a little on the older side, the upkeep was nice and the atmosphere was very authentic. There is a restaurant open for breakfast in the morning, an informal beach side restaurant available for lunch and dinner, poolside waiters, and a formal restaurant that is very pricey for dinner. On our first day at the pool, we ordered a Flamingo drink we saw others with in a skinny, tall glass...guess we should have asked the price first. It was 120 pesos plus tip! That was the last one of those we got!

The one bedroom (2 full beds) has 2 full baths, a kitchen (2 burners, frig, microwave), dining room, living room with couch (queen bed), love seat and 2 chairs, balcony. Every room at this resort has an ocean view.

The one disappointment was the jellyfish. There were small, blue jellyfish in abundance in the water and on the beach every day, except for one. The resort has a hut on the beach where you can rent boogie boards, jet skis, and kayaks. We took advantage of the one day with no jellyfish and rented boogie boards because the waves were great. The boards were 50 pesos each, but we negotiated them down to 40 each for two.

This timeshare is nice, you're treated well and the beach is semi-secluded. Great for a relaxing vacation!

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Excellent
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Excellent

The activities director at our resort suggested this restaurant, more for its view than anything else. This restaurant sits atop a hill with a view of the ocean, marina, Mazatlan lighthouse and of the entire city. The view is astounding. It actually is the site of an old fort and one of the cannons remains outside the eating area. When taking the bus, take the Sabalo Centro to the very end of the route, when you leave the bus, turn right up the road and you will see the restaurant high above, and the hundreds of steep steps you must endure to reach the top. We took several breaks along the way to catch our breath, but it was worth it once we reached the top. We got to view a beautiful sunset at 7:50 p.m. - bright red ascending into the ocean. Regarding the food, the kids liked the chicken fajitas, but I was a little disappointed at the shrimp. We had always heard the shrimp in Mazatlan was outstanding but our fried shrimp and coconut shrimp left a bit to be desired. But the service was great and you couldn't beat the view.

This restaurant is a short 5-10 minute walk from the Pueblo Bonito Resort, on the opposite side of the street. We happened upon it when we were out visiting the shops along the street. It sits upstairs atop another building and you can choose to eat outside on the patio or inside. When we arrived, they handed each of us a tambours. It's a long, dried out bean approximately 2" wide by 1'6" long and the beans inside shake (great souvenir for the kids!). They offer both an adult and kids menu and provided calamari as a free appetizer, but I couldn't make myself try it! The meal was satisfactory - we would eat there again if we returned. We had barbecued chicken which was tasty, steak (a little over cooked) and chicken and cheese nuggets. The kids couldn't figure out what kind of cheese was in the nuggets since it looked and tasted different than from home. I suggested to them it's best we not know!

This is an all open-air restaurant near the Pueblo Bonito Resort on the opposite side of the street. We came across this restaurant while walking back to the resort after eating at El Patio one evening. There was a gentleman standing out front trying to get people to stop in. He was American which was the first we had encountered that worked at any establishment there. So we stopped to take a look at the menu and told him we might stop back another day. The very next evening we walked over from the resort. I wasn't sure if I wanted to stay because no one else was there! I asked 'where are all the people?' and he said 'that's what we'd like to know!' This did seem to be a slow season in Mazatlan, even our resort was uncrowded. He convinced us the food was outstanding and they cook over a fire pit, so we took him up on his suggestion. I must say, I am extremely glad we did. That was the best dinner I had the entire time I was in Mazatlan. It was very inexpensive and very good. We were given free drinks, the kids got chicken nugget kids meals for 35 pesos (every meal came with rice, fried potatoes, Hawaiian salad which was a pineapple/carrot mixture) and the chicken was very good white meat. The two of us split a meal-for-two that consisted of barbecued chicken, ribs and fried fish for 150 pesos. It was very, very good and I'm glad we stopped in!

Of course the day we signed up for the tour was the one day it rained. Because of this, the trip didn't get started out very well because it was overcast and a little brisk of a ride on the open seas. They would take 15-20 people on the catamaran, which was a nice small group. The captain had Dramamine for those that needed it. Under the catamaran was a bed, bathroom and stocked bar. They provided drinks on the ride out, brought coolers up to the island, and provided drinks on the way back. The ride was approximately 90-120 minutes, and we stopped in a cove prior to getting to the island to go snorkeling which everyone was looking forward to.

As we anchored in the cove, we viewed jellyfish floating all over so the overwhelming consensus was we would not be snorkeling today. So needless to say, we were all disappointed. So we continued our journey to Stone Island. When we docked, a 'mexican taxi' was awaiting us (a pickup truck with wood boards across the back for seats), which took us to the small restaurant on the beach where we would have lunch. If you do not like vendors approaching you, do not take this tour! The entire time we were at our table, vendors selling everything you can imagine bothered us over and over again. There were some with snakes and iguanas, henna tattoos, jewelry (don't buy the silver here, it's not real silver), etc.

After lunch, we were able to take horseback rides within their small community. That was fun. The horses galloped at a nice speed and we saw mango trees and banana plants. Afterwards it was off to the banana boat. The kids were a little disappointed they didn't get flipped into the ocean! Then we were back on the catamaran for the trip back home.

It would have been a beautiful ride had the sun been out and it had been a little warmer. It's an all day trip leaving at 9:00 a.m. and returning around 5:00 p.m.

Oustanding! You get dressed in a life vest and are fixed up with a harness you step into and can sit down in when you're in the air. They hook the parachute up to you while you are standing on the beach, they tell you to squat down, the boat goes, and you immediately get pulled into the air without touching the water. The boat pulls you over the water down the beach with a great view of the city. I was surprised to look down at the ocean and see how sandy it was even further out. There was a large amount of sand being strewn about the top of the water. It was a smooth ride until the boat makes the turn to bring you back, then the wind takes you and rocks you a little, but nothing to worry about. They bring you back to the same spot on the beach where you took off from. If they wave the flag, you have to reach back with your right hand and pull on the rope to guide yourself in (if they yell at you, then you have to reach back with your left hand, guess they can only afford 1 flag!) The landing was smooth and the guys jump up and pull your foot to bring you down. If you have a lightweight child, it will take them a little longer to land. Ours just hovered above the beach and eventually dropped to the beach after several minutes! We were beginning to wonder just how we were going to get him down, but s-l-o-w-l-y he dropped. The price was $250 pesos each, regardless of age, but we got them down to $200 pesos each. It was very fun and much worth it!