Playa La Poza
Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, Mexico
Playa La Poza, also called Playa Todos Santos, is a Pacific beach about 3 km from downtown Todos Santos in Baja California Sur, Mexico, with a 35 acre freshwater lagoon behind the sand. The lagoon is one of the best birding spots in the region. Powerful waves make the beach itself unsafe for swimming.
A rich lagoon and a quiet beach close to town, though the surf is too strong for swimming.
How we score beachesBring binoculars and visit in the morning, when the lagoon birds are most active. Skip swimming because of the waves.
Drive the dirt road from town and park near the lagoon edge.
A short walk leads to the sand and the lagoon edge, with soft footing and no facilities.
Migratory birds are most numerous in winter, and the water is cooler than on the Sea of Cortez side. Hurricane season runs roughly June through November.
More Mexico & Central America beaches
Soliman Bay
Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico · Mexico & Central America
Soliman Bay sits about 20 minutes north of Tulum on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, a quieter alternative to the beach clubs further south, with a coral reef sheltering the mouth of the bay and villas tucked right against the sand. Puffer fish, octopus, and the occasional manta ray turn up in the clear water, and a public access point at the north end of the coast road has kayak rentals and simple seafood.
Playa Xcacel
Xcacel-Xcacelito, Quintana Roo, Mexico · Mexico & Central America
Xcacel Beach sits along Mexico's Riviera Maya coast, protected since 1998 as a sea turtle sanctuary where green and loggerhead turtles nest from April through October, releasing more than 200,000 hatchlings most years. A cenote sits just inland from the sand, and the whole stretch has stayed undeveloped specifically because of its protected status.
Chacala
Chacala, Nayarit, Mexico · Mexico & Central America
Chacala sits in a small cove on Mexico's Riviera Nayarit, about 90 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta, a nearly mile long beach of soft, pale sand lined with palm trees and palapa restaurants. The town holds around 300 full time residents, though visitor numbers climb sharply during Semana Santa and Christmas, and jungle covered hills rise up on either side of the bay.