Stay in Mazunte if you want a small village, a calm beach and nights in a protected reserve. Stay in Puerto Escondido if you came to surf big waves, want bars and a town around you, or need the shortest drive from Oaxaca City. The two sit on the same stretch of the Oaxaca Pacific coast, and we're about an hour by road from Puerto Escondido's airport, so plenty of people do a bit of both.
We live in Mazunte, inside El Torón Reserve, so read this knowing which side we're on. We've tried to be straight about where Puerto wins.
How big each place is
Mazunte is a village; Puerto Escondido is a town. The 2020 census counted 651 people in Mazunte and close to 30,000 in Puerto Escondido. That gap shapes everything else. Mazunte is small enough that you walk it end to end, which suits us: we keep bicycles for you and would rather you walked than drove. Wikivoyage describes Puerto as less walkable than Mazunte or Zipolite, so expect to lean on taxis and colectivos there.
The water
Puerto Escondido is a surf town first. It's known for big waves, and Playa Zicatela is the beach serious surfers travel for. Mazunte's main beach isn't known for surfing; skimboarding and snorkelling are what you'll see people doing. San Agustinillo, about a kilometre from the village, has a beach break if you want something in between.
Our own water is quieter again. We have a private beach within El Torón Reserve, and our pools are built into the cliffside rock, including an infinity pool. Villa Pentágonos, Alberto Kalach's clifftop villa, has a private infinity pool of its own.
What there is to do
In Mazunte the draws are small and close. Centro Mexicano de la Tortuga, the national turtle centre, is in the village. Punta Cometa, the rocky headland on the west side of town, is where people go for the evening; from its tip you can watch both sunrise and sunset. The name Mazunte may itself come from the Nahuatl "maxotetia", often translated as "please deposit eggs here". The turtles nest close by. We keep our distance too.
Puerto has more of everything: more restaurants, a party scene, more people. If you want a night out, it's the better choice, and we won't pretend otherwise. From us, The Voyage Within, our experiences program, runs five streams (Nurture, Explore, Create, Connect, Savor) for days you'd rather have planned.
The land through the year
Puerto's hills stay green year-round. Around Mazunte the forest loses most of its leaves in the dry season. We don't count that against it. El Torón changes with the season, green to gold: the rains bring the green, and the dry months turn the 30 hectares we're set across to sun-washed gold.
Getting here
Puerto Escondido has the airport on its doorstep. Huatulco (HUX) is about 50 minutes by road from us and Puerto Escondido (PXM) about an hour, and we arrange private transfers from either. Coming overland from Oaxaca City, Puerto has the edge: a highway opened in early 2024 cut that drive to around three hours. Mazunte is about 264 km south of Oaxaca City and the road trip is longer, which is why most people who stay with us fly.
Where you'd sleep
Puerto has everything from hostels to large hotels. Mazunte's places to stay are mostly simple, with a few up in the hills. We're one of the hill ones: ten suites and Villa Pentágonos, designed by Alberto Kalach and Ignacio Urquiza and spread across El Torón Reserve. Built into the reserve, not placed on the beach. That means steps and stone paths and no elevators, which matters if stairs are hard for you. This is adults-only, from eighteen up. Breakfast is included, and we're a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World.