Sayulita Travel Guide
Everything you need to know about planning a trip to Sayulita, Mexico
SAYULITA TRAVEL GUIDE CONTENTS
Quick Info | Planning Your Trip | Attractions | Book Your Trip | Money & Costs | Things To Do | Where To Stay | Restaurants | Nightlife | FAQ
Sayulita is one of the most famous destinations in our 2020’s best of the best awards list. Mexico Insider actually started in Sayulita where we lived for 2 years and got to know the pueblo very well. This Sayulita travel guide is in-depth, complete, transparent, and honest. You won’t need any other guides once you read this!
💡 Sayulita quick information
- 🇲🇽 State: Nayarit
- ⏰ Timezone: Eastern Standard Time (GMT-5)
- ✈️ Airport: Puerto Vallarta International Airport
- 💲 Currency: Mexican pesos (MXN) with $ sign used. Don’t confuse it with US$ or USD.
- 🔌 Power plug: Mexico uses a type A socket (US, Canada). For more information about power plugs in Mexico, see this link (with photos)
- 📱 Mexico sim card: The best provider that works in Sayulita area and the Riviera Nayarit is Telcel. See our complete Mexico sim card guide for more information.
- 🛃 Visa: Mexico is no longer giving 180 days visa to tourists so make sure that you have proof of accommodation and outbound flight so you’ll get the right visa.
- 🤟 Language: Most people in the service industry in Sayulita can speak English but only in big restaurants. You will still need to speak Spanish with street food/market vendors.
- 🌵 Culture: Sayulita is home to many expats from the US, Canada, Latin America, and many parts of Mexico. The culture is very laid-back and have a very slow lifestyle. The community is also very close-knit so everyone knows everyone! This is also a very family-oriented town so you will see a lot of children, especially in the plaza.
🗺️ Sayulita Map
🏖️ Book your trip to Sayulita
🚦 Sayulita Transportation Guide
- 🚕 Sayulita Airport transfer: The airport that serves Sayulita is Puerto Vallarta International Airport. It is a 45-minute to 1-hour drive to get to town. You can book your taxi ride with our local driver for as low as $60 USD per car!
- 🚶♀️Walking: Sayulita is a small town and you don’t even need transportation! You can go around the whole town within 20 minutes. The streets are narrow so walking is more convenient than renting a car. However, if you are staying in jungle accommodations which are 15 minutes away from town proper, you may need to rent a car.
- 🚌 Bus: The busses in Sayulita are very efficient. The busses to Puerto Vallarta leave every 15 minutes and costs $3 USD. These busses also travel to nearby towns like San Pancho (10-minute ride).
- 🚗 Rental cars: There are no rental car offices/companies within town so you might want to do that when you arrive at Puerto Vallarta Airport. The car rental in this area starts at $35 USD per day for a Sedan (4-seater).
- 💨 Golf carts: Golf carts is one of the main mode of transport in Sayulita because of its small layout. A golf cart rental starts at $65 USD per day. Sadly, we do not have any company we trust yet (despite living in Sayulita for 2 years!) but we will update this post as soon as we find a reliable golf cart company.
📍 Sayulita Attractions
Best sunset spot
Hidden beach (must-do!)
Hiking trail
Photo spot
Surf beach
Adventure trails
Remote beach
Touristic beach
🏄♀️ Things to do in Sayulita Mexico
🛏️ Sayulita hotels: where to stay
🌮 Essential Sayulita Restaurants
☕ Best cafes in Sayulita Mexico
🍸 Sayulita bars and nightlife
💵 Money and Costs
- 💵 US dollars: you can use USD to pay everywhere but every establishment has its own conversion rate. If the current rate in Mexico is $20 pesos per US$1, you will only get $18 pesos.
- 🏧 ATMs: Take as much cash as you can at the airport because ATMs in Sayulita always run out of cash! The hardest days to take cash is from Friday to Monday where ATMs are not able to dispense money. The best ATM is at Intercam but even though they are a bank, they seem to run out of cash, too! In any case that you urgently need cash, our office can send you money in Sayulita and we exchange a dollar for $18 pesos.
- 💳 Credit/debit cards: Restaurants accept credit cards but Mexico is still a cash society. AMEX is not widely accepted. Visa or Mastercard is preferred.
- 💸 Tipping in Sayulita: Tipping is highly encouraged as the daily wage in Mexico is low (US$7 per working day). If you like the service, you can give 15% but 10% is usually the minimum.
✨ Sayulita Travel Tips
- The best ATM machines in Sayulita are in Intercam bank (pesos) and the ATM machines at Don Pedro’s Restaurant for US dollars). Withdraw cash at Puerto Vallarta Airport upon arrival as the ATMs in Sayulita run out of cash, especially over the weekend.
- The closest thing to a resort in Sayulita is hotel pools and bars that also have day passes. If you want to stay in an all-inclusive resort, stay in Punta Mita.
- Use Sayulita Plaza as a reference on Google maps. This is the town’s center and it will give you an idea of the town’s layout.