Things to do

Local turtle camps release hatchlings into the sea at Playa Bacocho in the late afternoon. Nesting season runs roughly July to December.

Go to a camp that lets you put the hatchling on the sand and lets it walk to the water by itself — that walk is how it learns the beach. No flash, no picking them up out of the sand.

Boat trips to see dolphins leave from town; humpback whales are usually reported along this coast in the winter months.

A lagoon a short drive west of town where microorganisms light up the water when it moves. It is a night boat trip, and it is much better on a dark night — avoid the days around a full moon. The phenomenon is most reliable roughly from May to October.

The same lagoon is also a good early-morning bird-watching trip.

A lookout over the coast, worth the climb for the view down the shoreline.

A national park of coastal lagoons, mangrove channels and barrier islands, about 50 km or more west of Puerto Escondido, usually reached through the village of Zapotalito. Boats go through the mangroves; there are crocodiles and a great deal of birdlife.

Treat it as a full day out, not an afternoon — leave early.