Mazunte for training participants

Mazunte is a small village on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca, where jungle presses against ocean and many streets are still sand. It was a turtle-fishing village until 1990. When the trade ended, the community turned toward protecting what it once hunted, and the Mexican Turtle Center now stands in the village. That change of heart is part of why we teach here.

The days are slow and warm, the nights are quiet, and the horizon does half the work for you. A nervous system settles differently in a place like this. You will feel it by the second morning.

Fly into Puerto Escondido (PXM)

Puerto Escondido is our first choice. From the airport, Mazunte is about 67 km east along coastal Highway 200, roughly an hour by road. Most international travelers connect through Mexico City.

Or fly into Huatulco (HUX)

Huatulco also works well. The drive west to Mazunte takes about 50 minutes.

From either airport to Mazunte

• Rent a car at the airport. This is a great option: the coast road is simple, and a car makes the week easy. Compare rates for Puerto Escondido airport on KAYAK.
• Take a taxi. Door to door in about an hour. Expect roughly 900 to 1,500 MXN from Puerto Escondido and 1,200 to 1,500 MXN from Huatulco, depending on season and where you book. Agree on the price before you get in.
• Go by colectivo. The budget route: ride a van along Highway 200 toward Pochutla, get off at the San Antonio crossroads, then take a local colectivo or shared taxi the last 10 km down to Mazunte. Allow two to three hours, travel light, and go by day. Public transport thins out in the early evening.

Students often share rides from the airport. Once you are enrolled, post your arrival time in the cohort WhatsApp group.

Mazunte is walkable. Most places are ten or fifteen minutes apart on foot, and you will rarely need more than sandals.

• Colectivos run along the main road all day, linking Mazunte with San Agustinillo, Zipolite, Puerto Ángel and Pochutla. A ride costs about 20 MXN. Wave one down and pay when you get off.
• Taxis are easy to find on the main road. Agree on the fare first.
• A rental car is the most flexible way to explore the coast on your day off.

Lodging is not included in tuition, which lets you choose the kind of week you want. February is high season on this coast, so book early.

Good value, close to everything

• Bliss Haven. A garden retreat in the center of Mazunte with cabañas, studios, a communal kitchen and one of the larger pools in the village.
• Posada Arigalan. Adults only, on the hill between Mazunte and San Agustinillo, with six suites looking out over the Pacific and a pool.

More space and comfort

• Private homes and villas on Airbnb, many with ocean views, kitchens and pools. Search Mazunte for the training dates: Airbnb homes in Mazunte, 17 to 26 February 2027.

The simplest option

• Basic cabañas and hostels start at a few hundred pesos a night. Browse current options on Mazunte on Booking.com.

Ask the village

• Rooms, houses and sublets are often shared first in the Mazunte housing group on WhatsApp. Join it and ask for the training dates.

Wherever you stay, look for a fan or air conditioning, a mosquito net, and a walk of fifteen minutes or less to the center of the village.

One meal a day is included in the training. For the rest, these are places we return to.

• Arena Negra. Fresh seafood and coastal Mexican plates, up a flight of stairs off the main road.
• El Armadillo. A plant-based kitchen with Moroccan leanings, falafel, tagine and hummus, in a garden on a quiet lane.
• Tribu. Tacos, burgers and bowls in a lively open-air room, with good vegetarian options.
• Tadeo. Traditional Oaxacan cooking and seafood, tlayudas, generous portions and honest prices, on the corner of two of the main streets.
• Doba. Breakfast and brunch, with many vegan and gluten-free plates.

Most kitchens here are small and family-run. Hours shift with the season, and many places take cash only.

February is the driest month of the year on this coast. Expect clear skies, daytime highs around 32°C (90°F), nights around 23°C (73°F), and almost no rain. The sea is warm, about 27°C (81°F).

Pack for heat, sun and bare feet. The list below covers the rest.

• Light, breathable clothes you can move in, and be worked on in, comfortably
• Swimwear and a sarong or light towel
• Sandals you can walk sandy streets in
• A hat, sunglasses and reef-safe sunscreen
• A long, light layer for the evening breeze
• Insect repellent
• A refillable water bottle
• A small flashlight or headlamp for unlit streets at night
• A notebook and pen
• Pesos in cash
• A plug adapter if you are coming from outside North America
• Earplugs, if you are a light sleeper. Roosters keep their own schedule.

The Pacific here is beautiful and strong, and it deserves respect.

• Mazunte's main beach has powerful waves and currents that shift with the tide, and there are no lifeguards. The sheltered cove at its west end, Rinconcito, is where most people swim.
• San Agustinillo, the next village east, has calmer coves and is the gentlest place to swim nearby.
• Zipolite and Mermejita are for walking and watching the sunset, not for swimming. Their currents are dangerous. Zipolite is also a nude beach, the only legal one in Mexico, so expect bare bodies.
• February falls in humpback whale season, which runs from about December to March. You can often see them from Punta Cometa, or from a local boat at dawn.

If you are unsure, ask a local before you go in, and never swim alone or after dark.

Approximate costs in Mexican pesos for nine nights, 17 to 26 February, per person. Prices change with the season, so treat these as a guide.

Sharing a room, a taxi or a rental car with another student brings these numbers down quickly. Flights are not included in these estimates.

• Bring pesos. Many places take cash only, and the nearest dependable ATMs are in Pochutla, about 20 minutes away. Withdraw at the airport or in Puerto Escondido before you come.
• Wifi is slow and unreliable in much of the village. A Mexican SIM card with data is the simplest fix.
• Do not drink tap water. Refill a bottle from the large purified-water jugs most lodgings provide.
• Bring insect repellent for dawn and dusk.

Mazunte is a small community before it is a destination, and we are guests here.

• Water is scarce in the dry season. Keep showers short.
• Use reef-safe, biodegradable sunscreen. What you wear ends up in the sea.
• This coast is a nesting ground for sea turtles. Never touch a turtle or a nest, and keep lights and flash off on the beach at night.
• Spend locally. Eat at family kitchens, hire local guides, tip 10 to 15 percent.
• Learn a few words of Spanish. Buenos días goes a long way.
• Keep the nights quiet. Sound travels far in a village this size.

For your free afternoons, and for the days before or after the training.

• Punta Cometa. A rocky headland fifteen to twenty minutes on foot from the village, and the southernmost point of Oaxaca. The best sunset on the coast. Bring a light for the walk back.
• The Mexican Turtle Center (Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga). An aquarium and conservation center in Mazunte itself. Go in the morning, before the heat.
• San Agustinillo. The next village east, a short walk or a 20-peso colectivo ride, with calm water and beachfront restaurants.
• Zipolite. A long, wide beach further east, known for its free spirit and its sunsets. It is a nude beach: clothing is optional along the sand, and many people go without.
• Puerto Ángel. A working fishing port in a sheltered bay, about twenty minutes east by colectivo.
• La Ventanilla. A community-run lagoon west of Mazunte, where local guides paddle you through mangroves among crocodiles, iguanas and birds. Go early in the morning.

What is happening in the village

Concerts, classes, markets and gatherings are posted in the Mazunte events group on WhatsApp.

The next training runs 18 to 25 February 2027 in Mazunte, limited to 20 students.