Huatulco:Still the Secret Paradiseby Norman Mark
A 45-minute flight southwest of Mexico City, Huatulco is a 22-mile long district on the Pacific coast with nine inlets or bays containing 30 to 42 beautiful beaches. The number depends on who is doing the counting or the boasting. Huatulco was an almost unheard of Mexican paradise when we first visited it three years ago. People were predicting that Huatulco would rapidly become the next Ixtapa, Cabos or Acapulco. Today its as wonderful a destination as it was before, and yet the area remains a terrific, under populated buy. I wanted to learn why hotels had vacancies during the high season, why the beaches were never crowded and why there were empty tables in excellent restaurants. For instance, one night I found Huatulco's "in" place. In the small, eight-table outdoor restaurant at the tiny Hotel Marlin, where delicious main-course crepes were less than $3, we spotted the general managers of the areas three best hotels, the Zaashila, the Royal Maeva and the Quinta Real. At about $20 per couple including wine, the French-Mexican food at the Hotel Marlin was so reasonable and fine that men with access to the best of Huatulco regularly dined there.
Anne Gillet of the Hotel Marlin said, "We need more airlines and direct flights so tourists do not have to transfer in Mexico City. The airlines say we need more hotels, but new hotels are reluctant to open until the airlines provide better service. Huatulco is caught in the middle." This is bad news for the local entrepreneurs, but it is a great opportunity for travelers who want to escape to a gentle, quiet, peaceful place in the Mexican sun. Today, the beaches are glorious and even the people selling trinkets on the beach are few and not overly insistent. Huatulco boasts excellent resorts and hotels, terrific restaurants which do not strain the budget, and lots to do. When this secret paradise is discovered--and it will be some day soon--I fear that the buzz of tourists on motorcycles will approach that of a swarm. There are many advantages besides the quiet and the delightful somnolence of Huatulco. For instance, you can drink the water. The Bays of Huatulco are the only Mexican resort area where the treated waters are not released into the nearby ocean or rivers after use. In Huatulco, the treated water is sprinkled on the huge 18-hole golf course and the parkways. I was told to drink the water from the tap, take ice with my drinks, open my mouth in the shower, and eat salads--all the things I'd been advised against when visiting many countries. We remained healthy throughout our visit. Huatulco as a tourist destination began in 1989 when the Mexican government decided to bring employment to Oaxaca, a poor, mountainous state. Indeed, a government official told me that over 400 people sweep the streets there every day. Whether that is an accurate figure or a boast, it explains why the thoroughfares are so clean and why most of Huatulco looks like an impeccable Mexican theme park. Our hotel was the romantic, multi-level Casa del Mar, perched atop a bluff. We could sit on our balcony and watch the sunsets over Tongolunda Bay, which is home to most of the better hotels. In January, it cost only about $100 per day including breakfast. The hotel served delicious dinners overlooking the pool and the bay, and the meals that were often accompanied by accomplished musicians and served by a helpful, friendly staff. It was a perfect way to celebrate our 10th anniversary. We also explored the finer hotels of Huatulco, including the Sheraton where, depending on the season, rooms with breakfast are as low as $129 a night. A visit to the Sheraton beach allowed me to improve my skills at sailing a Sunfish and to jet ski Tongolunda Bay.
The newest hotel in Huatulco, the Quinta Real, has 27 large rooms, all of them suites, some with their own pool. The Presidential Suite features a two-story view of the ocean, marble floors, sumptuous furniture and all the privacy any corporate chieftain might require. The suites begin at $200 a night, with the Presidential commanding $1,000 a night. The best buy for an all-inclusive hotel was the Royal Maeva, where rooms with all meals and free mini-bars start at $125 per person from April through December. Here there are activities to keep you busy all day: gentle water aerobics, beach volleyball at sunset, or sailing lessons from a patient expert. We were delighted to discover that a $3 taxi ride (including an overly generous tip) would take us almost anywhere in the district except to a remote beach. One night, we dined outdoors at the Don Porfirio Restaurant, and learned that our host's son was visiting from Chicago, where he was studying to be a chef. When we discovered that we shared a chiropractor with him, the notion of a small world was enforced. We also explored the towns of Huatulco, including Santa Cruz, with charming restaurants on the beach, and La Crucecita, where restaurants, shops and a church surround the sleepy town square. One next night we ate at in the village of LaCrucecita at El Sabor de Oaxaca, where we had one of the great meals of our lives. I had mole Oaxaqueno con pollo, over two dozen spices in a black mole with chicken, which cost about $4.75. The total bill with tip for four of us came to about $50 including a bottle of fine Chilean wine. After dinner, while strolling around the square, we met one shop keeper named Gabriel the Owl, who sold gold, silver and onyx carvings. He slipped us his business card, which read, "We won't cheat you too bad." In the center of the Santa Cruz town square is the Huatulco Cafe, where the best coffees from local growers were served. We sipped a refreshing coffee frappe', while sitting outdoors and enjoying the classical music piped into the square. The next day, we played golf on Huatulco's beautiful 18-hole course. One hole has a sand trap that is actually an ocean beach. Another hole has a water hazard with herons quietly fishing in it. The grounds verdant and well kept, probably as a result of all that water being recycled into the grass. Various area tours were also available including horseback riding, bicycling, a coffee plantation visit, boat rides to several bays or a plane ride to nearby Oaxaca. While on a bay tour, we went snorkeling opposite a beach where turtles lay their eggs once a year. We loved Huatulco the second time around and enjoyed the hard-working, friendly, honest people there, the sunsets and romance, the clear warm nights and the bright days. Come to think of it, please forget that you read this. I'd like Huatulco to remain our little secret for a bit longer. For general information on all accommodations: Pia M. Oberholzer, manager of the hotel association, is marvelous in many lauguages: telephone/fax: 011-52 (958) 708 48 Ramon Sinobas Solis, general manager, Camino Real Zaashila Guillaume Gautier, general manager, Royal Maeva Anne Gillet, director general Hotel Marlin Federico Roth, general manager, Quinta Real to contact the writer: Norman Mark courtesy of Mark/Arons Communications |
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When I asked my wife where she would like to go to celebrate our 10th anniversary, after only a little hesitation, she said, "I'd love to go back to Huatulco."
That night, there seemed to be a consensus on two reasons why Huatulco remains secret: the small federal and state promotional budgets for telling the world about Huatulco and the fact that only Mexicana Airlines services Huatulco's international airport. With an average of only two flights a day, all from Mexico City (plus a few charter flights), if every landing had every seat filled, Huatulco's hotels would still have empty rooms. 
The Camino Real Zaashila is one of the most beautiful hotels in Huatulco and it boasts a restaurant, bar and infinity pool at one end of its beach with a large, sensuously curving pool through the middle of its beach location. The manager, Ramon Sinobas Sous, was our charming host for a dinner in the Zaashila's lush, jungle gardens as a live mariachi band entertained us.