The Hidden Beach
Sand under open sky.
Luis Carlos Soria Contreras — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Christian Frausto Bernal from Tepic, Nayarit, MEXICO — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Christian Frausto Bernal from Tepic, Nayarit, MEXICO — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Unknown — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ferfive — CC BY 4.0 · Ferfive — CC BY 4.0
A group of small uninhabited islands of volcanic origin at the mouth of the Bay of Banderas, a national park rich in marine life and birds, including blue-footed boobies. Landing on the islands is not allowed; visits are from the sea. Their most famous spot is the Hidden Beach: a small sandy beach at the bottom of a wide hollow open to the sky inside one of the islands, reached only by swimming through a short rock tunnel from the sea at low tide. Accounts say the hollow was blasted by military explosions in the early 20th century, when the islands were used for target practice. To protect it, the park imposes strict limits: the islands close on Mondays and Tuesdays, and the Hidden Beach takes only about a hundred visitors a day in small groups, for half an hour, with a guide along a path marked by buoys. The islands can only be visited with a licensed tour operator, so book early, especially for the Hidden Beach. Ordinary tours snorkel around the islands, and in winter you may see whales on the way.
Sand under open sky.
The only way in.
On the rocks.
About 8 km south-west of Punta Mita, Nayarit; an hour by boat from Puerto Vallarta or 15 minutes from Punta Mita
Only with a licensed tour operator, booked ahead, as it takes about a hundred visitors a day for half an hour. The islands close on Mondays and Tuesdays.