How to Visit Chacahua, Oaxaca – A Secret Mexican Beach Paradise
Chacahua, Oaxaca – A Remote Paradise of the Pacific
No other Mexican destination has so unexpectantly kept as permanent a smile on my face as much as the village of Chacahua, Oaxaca. In my opinion, Chacahua is one of Mexico’s best-kept secrets. Even though I am telling you, I know (mostly) that I am telling the right people.
A quick google search of Chacahua will zoom into the pacific coast of North America, in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. The location will leave you thinking, “That’s a small town very, very out of the way, ” which is exactly why you should visit.
It is the hippie paradise that Puerto Escondido most likely used to be. Forking from the main beach highway, twenty-five miles of unmaintained road has kept this little village from the mainstream. Lined along the beaches are not luxury resorts, or barely even hotels at all but palm tree cabanas and campsites. Find out how you can visit Chacahua Oaxaca, and experience the unique things to do there yourself.
How to get from Puerto Escondido to Chacahua?
There is no way to directly arrive at Chacahua by airport or an accessible public transportation method. The nearest airport is Pinotepa Nacional Airport in Mancuernas, Oaxaca, still 58 miles (93km) away. Or slightly further in the opposite direction, Puerto Escondido International Airport is 63 miles (102 km) away.
1. Drive to Chacahua: Rent a Scooter
Rent a Scooter from Puerto Escondido for 300 pesos a day and drive there yourself. It takes 3 hours one way.
Make sure to plan out your gas stops. There are long stretches without gas stations. You can find local stores selling them by the liter if you run out. Here are the GPS coordinates to one of them: (15.924349, -97.119241)
👉 For groups or those who would like to avoid the last leg of bumpy dirt roads to Chacahua, compare and book the best priced rental car here
2. Take Public Transportation
I did not do this but looking at information on the web, here’s how you can do it too.
- Take a colectivo to town of El Zapotalito (55 pesos). If it only takes you to the junction, you may need to take a taxi into town
- Two Options:
- Take a direct boat across the lagoon to Chacahua – 45 minute boat ride, ~200 pesos negotiable
- Take a quick boat trip to Chacahua Island – 5 minute boat ride, 50 pesos, then another colectivo to Chacahua – 45 min, 50 pesos
3. Join a Tour
Having asked one tour company, it costs ~1,200 pesos per person for an all-day tour if you book from Puerto Escondido. I know the bioluminescent plankton is part of the agenda, but unsure what else is included.
👉 For the smoothest transfer, consider booking a full-day trip to hit all the Chacahua highlights (mangroves, all 5 lagoons, Corral Island, Bird Sanctuary) without needing to deal with the complicated transport
Best Things to Do in Chacahua, Oaxaca
Swim with the Bioluminescent Plankton
The Laguna de Chacahua’s bioluminescencia was so much better than in Manialtepec Lagoon, the one close to Puerto Escondido. First of all, either the plankton shine brighter or there are way more of them. You don’t have to go under any floating structures to see them; they are everywhere. Even if the moon is out (but it is better when there is a new moon).
We found a boatman who took us for 200 pesos each. If we had 3 people, it could have been lowered to 150 pesos each.
BUT…THERE IS NO NEED for a tour at all! If you are in Chacahua at night, you probably stay close enough to the lagoon to walk. And if you can swim at all, wait until the moon sets for the best viewing, and just jump into the lagoon and swim in an area with no lights. Save yourself some pesos. The entire lagoon is filled with bioluminescent plankton and can be seen everywhere!
Visit Chacahua’s Crocodile Sanctuary
Near the center on the mainland side of Chacahua, there is a crocodile sanctuary, or maybe a crocodile farm, not sure what would be the proper term. They receive government funding, and the entrance fee is only 20 pesos per person.
Someone will take you around, showing you the baby alligators to the pen of teenagers, then the more solitary adults.
Crocodile Fun Fact: They only feed the crocodiles some chicken once every 5 days.
Address: 71814 Villa de Tututepec de Melchor Ocampo, Oaxaca, Mexico (Near the Lia de Mar)
Related Post: You can also check out crocodiles in Huatulco and Zihuatanejo-Ixtapa
Maze through the Mangroves by boat/kayak
The main lagoons in Chacahua National Park are the main draw to this beach paradise, the center of commerce by day and bioluminescent by night. If you would like a tour, just ask around, and you will be able to find a boatman willing to give a tour of the lagoon and the towering mangroves that surround it.
We also saw bright orange kayaks paddling through the lagoon waters, so I’m sure there are rentals around.
Surf Brah
This part of the Oaxacan coast is world famous for surfing. There were plenty of people surfing at all times of the day, especially near the point break by the lagoon mouth.
Here is Chacahua’s surf forecast to get an idea of what kind of waves are here because they can get big swells! You can rent surfboards straight from the beach with different rental prices per hour, day, week, month. Many of the accommodations and the restaurants advertised surf camps or instruction as well.
Save the Baby Turtles being Released from the Seagulls
At 5:30 pm every day, a crowd gathers in front of the turtle sanctuary, a ten-minute walk from the main area of Chacahua beach. Not as organized as in Puerto Escondido, observers do not get their own individual turtle. Instead, they are a bystander as the turtles crawl towards the ocean’s depths.
The organizers were also significantly delayed and didn’t actually start releasing the turtles until 6:30 pm. But, it was free, so no complaints. They do ask for tips, though.
Nearby Address: 71814 Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico
Gaze in Wonder at the Huge Waves at Playa El Faro
There are some seriously massive waves here constantly hitting the rock barrier. Close to the point break, you can see the village children playing in the waves and maybe a first date on the beach. Aside from these dozen people, it is untouched and absolutely gorgeous against the rocky backdrop.
Address: 71814 Laguna de Chacahua, Oaxaca, Mexico
Hike up the Lighthouse near Playa El Faro
If you drove or walked to El Faro beach, you couldn’t have missed a lighthouse sitting on top of the hill. The top of the lighthouse gives you a great view and insight into how remote you are in the Mexican jungle. I would highly recommend hiking up to the lighthouse early morning for the sunrise or late afternoon for the sunset.
Befriend the People & Animals in this Lovely Vibe of a Village
There are so many friendly faces in Chacahua, local and foreign. Passing by, we got invites to come join tables and volleyball games. Random conversations of locals trying to practice English and give information about their town. Playing with children and the stray dogs, all these scenes are what brought a permanent smile to my face here.
Relax and Get a Massage or Day Drink
Seemingly every sign on the beach said the word Masaje, and I love massages, so I always take note when I see one. In this case, there were massage signs everywhere. Also, there are bars in this tiny village but expect a very local atmosphere.
Important Information on Chacahua, Oaxaca
Beach Bugs
At sunset, WEAR PANTS. At dusk, we got DESTROYED by an unknown sand fly or gnat near the Turtle Sanctuary. I mean like 100’s of bites each, and they itch…bad…for the next 3 days. If you do get bit, this cream: “Bye Bites! After Crema Refrescante” was pretty helpful for 50 pesos, and you can buy them at most pharmacies.
Budget Tip: On Mondays, Farmacia Similares (which is basically like America’s CVS) has everything at a 25% discount.
Electricity in Chacahua
I don’t think there is permanent running electricity in the whole town. At night, generators or maybe solar panels provide basic power, but electricity largely doesn’t work in many places during the day.
Internet in Chacahua
There is no phone service here, but I did see some shops and hotels with the wifi sign, so it does exist. At the hotel we were staying at, wifi was available for purchase.
Where to Stay in Chacahua, Oaxaca
Mainland Side
There are only two hotels on the mainland side of Chacahua: Hotel Bambu (800 pesos) and Hotel Kassandra (400 pesos). Both are relatively basic, no-frills guesthouses. You can probably guess which one we took. Both were along the shores of the lagoon. Hotel Kassandra had a small pier where you could take a boat launch to the other side for 20 pesos.
Chacahua Island-Side
Camping:
There is plenty of camping along the beach. The price can be as cheap as free with the promise of buying the local food from their restaurant or 50 pesos and up. A few structures provide camping, and many hotels also offer camping spots.
Hotels & Cabanas:
If you don’t have a tent with you, hotels and cabanas are available. The cabanas in town I had asked about ranged from 1000-5000 pesos ($50-$250 USD). But, if you walk further along the beach, I had been advised it is possible to find more reasonable prices of rooms and cabanas for 500 pesos ($25 USD). Try finding ones without a private bathroom if you’re looking for cheap.
CHEAPEST BOOKABLE ONLINE CABANA – Cabanas Alta Mar
Since internet access is limited in Chacahua, the best way to find accommodation is by showing up unannounced and walking around until you find something you like. Very few accommodation options are bookable online, but for those who like to be sure before arriving, a night at Cabanas Alta Mar starts at ~$45.
If you want to see other bookable options: Find Other Top Accommodation Deals in Lagunas de Chacahua on Booking.com
How I Found Chacahua, Oaxaca
The story of how I found Chacahua in 2022 is a fun one. We had rented a scooter from Puerto Escondido and were deciding between Chacahua Lagoons National Park, La Reforma Waterfall, or potentially going south to Mazunate, a pueblo magico. Having very little information besides hearing that you can find crocodiles in the Chacahua villages and that it is near a national park, we arbitrarily decided to go there.
The Long Roads there
Mapping it on maps.me, we saw that it was 68 miles away (100km), calculating that it would take 1.5 hrs. It took 3 hrs direct on a scooter, not including the time we spent riding along the beaches near Puerto Escondido! Three hours on the scooter later, we were sunburnt, hot, butt-ached, hungry, and nearly ran out of gas twice, and we still had 25 miles left on the dirt road. We questioned if this was the right choice, if we should give up and go back and call it a failure of a day. But we were so close, and so we pushed on.
Finally, we saw the number of kilometers fall, 25miles, 15miles, 4miles, and small wooden and concrete structures became more common. There wasn’t much to see, just a sandy small village. But at every pause to look at our maps, we were greeted with relaxed, friendly local faces who all wanted to talk to us and practice their English.
An Unexpected Stay
Then going to the viewpoint where the Chacahua lagoon mouth meets the sea, we watched fascinated by the children tumbling in the 10 ft tall waves and the crowd of surfers on the other side. After asking around, there was also a crocodile sanctuary, the reason we wanted to come in the first place. Things were looking up, and the crocodiles had already made the harrowing 4-hour bike journey worth it.
We debated if we should stay the night as it was already 3 pm and a 3 hr ride back seemed an exhausting feat. When I found out that the Parque Nacional Lagunas de Chacahua has even better bioluminescent plankton than Manialtepec, I had to stay.
Having only prepared to be gone for the day, we had already paid for a room in Puerto Escondido. We had almost nothing but the clothes on our backs and our cameras.
Taking a 20 peso boat launch to cross the lagoon to the beachside, Chacahua opened up to become the paradise I realized it truly was. Open-lined shores perfect for lounging, surfing, reading, relaxing, befriending, eating, camping, for staying to your heart’s pleasure for a day, a week, a month. This is the undeveloped paradise that I am always in search of.
Final Thoughts: How to Visit Chacahua, Oaxaca
Chacahua, Oaxaca is my favorite place in all of Mexico. It takes a certain type of person to enjoy this village. If you like the unspoiled beach, surfing, or have got that hippie vibe going for you, then I promise you will find Chacahua just as magical.
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