masks everywhere and keeping their distance from each
other. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for the
international holidaymakers, particularly in the wake of
the infamous “party plane”, when last month a group
of Canadian influencers were videoed drinking, smoking
and refusing to wear masks on a Sunwing Airlines flight to
Cancun, resulting in the airline cancelling their flights
home and leaving the group stranded in Mexico (I’ve heard
of worse punishments).
But unlike the established party destinations of Cancun
and Tulum, where the price of a margarita is equivalent to a
down payment on a small flat, Puerto Escondido retains its
affordability and small-town charm. With no chains or
resorts, Airbnbs and local guesthouses are the main accom-
modation, although in the Zicatela district you’ll find a
smattering of new boutique hotels. This all fosters a unique
sense of community that even if you’re stopping over for
a few days leaves you feeling properly enmeshed in the
place, rather than just observing from an ivory four-star
tower. And yes, by enmeshed I mean often struck down
with food poisoning.
In Puerto, life is enacted on the beach. In the mornings
the shoreline doubles as a gym, with runners zigzagging
around yogis contorted in pigeon pose, while surfers sit
leisurely on boards looking out onto the tangerine horizon
for the next big wave. Come midday temperatures hit 35C
and the deckchairs lining the water are steadily filled with
lithe bodies clothed in an assortment of dental floss, which
in Puerto is deemed acceptable swimwear, while local
tradesmen wander down the beach shelling coconuts with
the speed and dexterity of artisan wood carvers.
The 5ft waves can be difficult to navigate with any
modicum of dignity, so locals go swimming at nearby
Carrizalillo beach. Obscured by palm trees at the bottom of
a steep hill and only accessible by a perilously long staircase,
it’s worth the 150-step hike back up. Splayed out in a cres-
cent moon of white gold sand, the cove is lined on either
side by verdant trees and purple bougainvillea and over-
looks a stretch of still, turquoise water. At 5pm when the
sun begins to go down, locals and tourists alike congregate
by the water’s edge with an ice-cold beer to watch as the sky
turns gold, burnt orange, crimson and finally lilac.
These breathtaking sunsets are one of the reasons
Londoner Becci Hempseed, 29, decided to extend
her seven-day holiday to seven weeks. “I arrived with
the intention of just getting some rays and
vitamin D for a week, but fell deeply in
love with the place and ended up staying
for almost two months,” she gushes.
“You get hooked watching the sunset
every day and casually seeing whales
jumping out over the horizon.”
Yet Puerto Escondido is not just
sunsets and parties on nudist
beaches, although there’s a lot
of that. Like most of Mexico,
Puerto is home to many artists
and the town is awash with
street murals and pop-up art
galleries. Just an hour’s drive
down the coast you’ll find Casa
Wabi, designed by the Japanese
architect Tadao Ando, a feat of exposed concrete and stark
geometric shapes that has become an artist’s retreat.
In recent years the area has also become something of a
gastronomic hotspot. The town has been hit by an explosion
of new bars and restaurants, with the district of Brisas de
Zicatela becoming an epicentre of culinary experimenta-
tion. After dark everyone heads to the main strip, known as
La Punta, and queues for up to an hour to get into Chicama,
a Peruvian restaurant where modelesque waiters serve
ceviche and spicy margaritas to a soundtrack of raucous
banda music.
However, the pearl in Puerto’s culinary crown is the
unassuming Fish Shack. Nestled in a narrow alleyway
between the beach and La Punta, it has only a handful of
outdoor tables. But don’t be deceived: the chef-owner,
Patricio Sandoval, worked his way around the restaurants
of New York before settling back in his native Mexico,
serving a smorgasbord of succulent white fish, crisp
calamari and tempura vegetables. George Williams, a chef
at the River Café in west London, came to Puerto for a
three-day holiday in January and was completely enam-
oured. “It’s the kind of meal you dream about once you’re
back at home, cold and sitting on the Central Line. What-
ever you do, order the aguachile.”
The night is never over after dinner — regardless of
the day of the week, everyone crams into a taxi to dance
their tacos off on the beach at Cactus club,
where revellers kicks off their shoes on
entry, or a trippy treehouse bar called Mar
& Wana, open until the early hours. Hang-
overs don’t seem to exist here — perhaps
it’s the sun, sea or popular electrolyte
drink sold in every shop; either way,
everyone in Puerto always looks
suspiciously well rested.
It’s easy to see why Puerto
Escondido is so hard to leave. As
Hempseed says, and many others
experienced before her: “Once
you’ve been in Puerto for just one
day and fallen under its spell,
you’ll be tempted to switch off
your phone, delete your emails
and move here indefinitely.” ■Clockwise, from top Puerto people: Douglas Booth, Cara Delevingne, Kanye West and Sienna MillerThe ocean view
from Puerto
EscondidioThe Sunday Times Style • 27