Quick answer
Puerto Escondido with kids works if you pick the beach before the plan. Swim at Puerto Angelito, Manzanillo and Carrizalillo, if the flag allows it; Zicatela and La Punta are surf beaches and Bacocho has rip currents: watch those three from the sand. Out of the water, we'd go for the turtle release and a boat ride on the Manialtepec lagoon. To get around, a car or SUV: kids under 12 ride in the back, in a car seat.
Which beaches to visit in Puerto Escondido with kids?
Zicatela is the most famous beach, and people drown there every year: a child doesn't go into that sea. Their water is in the three coves of Rinconada, west of the town center. Puerto Angelito is the most sheltered, with almost flat water that rarely gets past your knees. Manzanillo is calm too, and early in the day there's good snorkeling by the rocks. Carrizalillo has gentle waves for a first surf lesson, but you get down to it by more than 150 steps: with a stroller or a cooler, plan for the climb back up.
Zicatela's shorebreak crashes right on the sand and the currents pull you out to sea in seconds: it's a wave for expert surfers. There, kids play on the dry sand and watch the surfers. Bacocho is open sea with rip currents, so you go for the turtles, not for a swim. La Punta breaks more gently than Zicatela, but it has a current: it's for surf lessons, not for the kids to swim.
What to do with the kids besides the beach?
Late afternoon at Bacocho, baby turtles crawl to the water on their own: with kids, that's the plan we wouldn't skip. The release runs on a voluntary donation and isn't guaranteed: it depends on nests hatching that day; check with the turtle camp or your hotel before heading out. Go over the rules with them on the way: no flash and no white flashlight, and nobody picks up the hatchlings, because sunscreen and the oils on your hands harm them.
How to read the sea before the kids go in?
Among waves breaking evenly, the darker, calmer strip with foam drifting outward isn't the quiet spot: it's a rip current. It carries you away from shore, and it's the main cause of drownings on coasts like this one. Before every swim, check the flag: green, swim with care; yellow, stay close to shore and within your depth; red, nobody goes in. With no flag, nobody is assessing the sea for you: treat it as a yellow or red flag depending on how it looks; lifeguards are seasonal and don't cover every beach.
Heads up
Our rule: an adult in the water with the kids, within arm's reach, not watching from the palapa. If a current takes them, hold on to the child and swim parallel to the beach, never straight against it; if you're not making progress, float with them, raise an arm and call for help. From November to March the sea is usually calmer; from April to October, when the swell builds, stick to the coves.
“With kids in Puerto Escondido, you don't pick the plan and then the beach, it's the other way around. The coves are for the water, Bacocho for the turtles and Zicatela for watching surfers from the dry sand.”
— KORU RENT
How to get around Puerto Escondido as a family?
One of the questions we get most on WhatsApp is how many people fit, and with kids you count seat belts, not people. Mexico's General Law on Mobility and Road Safety requires a seat belt for every passenger and says children under 12 ride in the back, in a child restraint system. A compact car or a sedan usually has five seat belts; an SUV usually adds trunk space for the stroller and the cooler. Our take: a car or SUV with A/C; the coves and Bacocho are on the west side, along steep streets, and stringing them together by taxi is pricier and slower.
Vehicles in Puerto Escondido
Enter your dates, see what's available and check the total before you pay.
Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca
Neighborhoods, beaches and what's worth knowing before you arrive.
Safe swimming in Puerto Escondido
The coves for swimming, the beach flags and what to do in a rip current.
Frequently asked questions
Puerto Angelito, the most sheltered cove, with almost flat water and a gradual entry. Next come Manzanillo and Carrizalillo, which has a long staircase. At all three, the flag of the day rules: if it's red, nobody swims.
Yes, it's one of the best plans for them. At Bacocho it happens late in the afternoon, for a voluntary donation, and it isn't guaranteed, so confirm before you go. No flash, and nobody picks up the hatchlings.
Most compact cars and sedans have five seat belts, two in front and three in the back. An SUV usually gives you more trunk space, not always more seats. Kids under 12 ride in the back.
We don't recommend it. Neither the ATV nor the scooter has seat belts or anywhere to secure a child seat, and for kids under 12 the law calls for the back seat with a child restraint system. For the family, a car or SUV.
It depends on the vehicle and the provider. Delivery to where you're staying has a cost that varies by location, and the team confirms it beforehand. You pick the time when you book, in 15-minute slots, within each provider's hours.
Yes, if they're registered on the contract. The additional driver has a cost that the team confirms. That person needs a valid driver's license, from Mexico or another country, and must meet the vehicle's minimum age.
If you already have dates, go to the Puerto Escondido page on korurent.com, see which vehicles are available and check the total before you pay; you book and pay right there with a card or Apple Pay. If you have questions about seats or delivery, message us on WhatsApp and we'll tell you what we'd take ourselves.