Ali and I needed a break from high season in Zihuatanejo, so we decided on a four day trip to Manzanillo. We had never been to Manzanillo, and it was driving distance, so that was enough for us to decide to choose it as our vacation away from paradise in Zihuatanejo.
The drive wasn’t too bad. From Zihuatanejo to Manzanillo is about 450 kilometers along the coastal highway. The roads were mostly good and we made it about eight hours after we left Zihua. Hardly any toll fees! We spent 65 pesos for on toll road. The road to Manzanillo winds through multiple small towns and hills, but generally stays close to the Pacific coast. I think a car is preferred for getting around Manzanillo. It’s not very walkable, and to really enjoy everything there is you will need to go by car or bus. The city is about 160,000 people, but it feels much bigger.
Over our four days we did our best to do as much touristy stuff as possible. I did play Pickleball one morning with the Manzanillo expats. Centro Historico is the main downtown area. If you are more adventurous this may be a good place to stay. There’s a good market in Centro, as well as an Iguana farm with a handful of wild animals roaming around. Of course there are lots of shops and street vendors, and even some hiking opportunities located in Centro Historico. If you want a more relaxing vacation then you would probably prefer staying in the northern part of Manzanillo. We stayed near Santiago Centro, which is centrally located in Manzanillo and close to some good beaches, but there is nothing to see in the actual Centro.
Manzanillo dates back about 500 years and the bay of Manzanillo is split into two smaller bays, each about 4 miles of beaches. The Port of Manzanillo is 200 years old and is the largest port in Mexico. The beaches are surprisingly nice considering there are these massive container ships in the bay that you can see as you drink a margarita on the beach.
A few thoughts: The food was probably the worst we’ve had in Mexico, and we’ve almost exclusively had great food every other place in Mexico. I’m sure part of the problem was we didn’t do enough food research. The weather was really nice, cool in the mornings, hot in the afternoon. We found some terrific hikes in Manzanillo, including an amazing hike on the north side that takes you to an abandoned mansion. It’s called Casa Abandonada. You can drive up to the entrance to the hike, or start at Playa La Boquita and hike from there.
Our trip home was interesting. On the highway leaving Manzanillo we hit a pothole and destroyed a tire. A young man helped us put the spare tire on, but unfortunately it was in worse shape than the busted tire. We managed to hitch a ride in a tuk tuk taxi and buy a used replacement tire at a local tire shop in Armeria. It all worked out and only cost us 500 pesos and 90 minutes of our time.
I wouldn’t call Manzanillo a must-visit city. It’s not a Pueblo Mágico like our Zihuatanejo is, but it was a nice place to spend four days.
