Sayulita is not a 5-star (or even 3-star) destination, but is pleasant enough to visit for a short stay of 3 days or less. Unless you thrive in oppressively hot and humid weather, you may want to consider visiting any other time than the summer months. I was there mid-July, and found the humidity to be smothering. Streets are rustic, with only the village center paved with cobblestone. The rest are dirt roads. Dogs wander the streets, leaving their signatures of where they have been (watch where you step). While there are a number of restaurants, I found none memorable, although several have a wonderful view of Sayulita's small bay.

Remember in Sayulita that when booking accommodations, to ask whether it is on a hill or not!! wow, what a hike - do it once a day or rent a car!

We loved the Villas Chula Vista (hilltop). We paid $99/night for 2 rooms/baths, 3 balconies and there was almost nobody there (Jan mid-week) to have to share the pool with.

Living room/kitchen are open air - beautiful view of the valley, town and ocean. Kitchen had all amenities.


Sayulita is a lovely town with lots of restaurants and shops to check out. The beach is nice and the Playa de los Muertos is a very short walk.

I have been twice and will return.

We just returned from Sayulita and had a great overall experience. The town is very rustic and simple and the people are very nice. It was not hard to relax here. No high rises, not too "Americanized", prices were reasonable.

We went surfing every day, snorkeling is within walking distance, we went on a fishing trip with Fidel (who is wonderful) and caught a TON of Dorado. San Francisco or San Pedro is the next town up and is a great day trip.

We stayed at Casa Angel which was a beautiful property. I would highly recommend it (we had 2 couples in our group-no kids). It is a gated property with gardens, a private swimming pool with beautiful views, extremely well maintained. It is up on the hillside so you get great ocean breezes and sunset views.

We sampled a lot of places to eat but missed a lot too- the best were Sayulita Fish Taco, Leysa's for dinner (simple), and Don Pedro's was great for dinner (more $$). Breakfast was good at Rolle's and the coffee at the Sayulita Espresso Co. was fantastic.

The Buddha Bar was awful. We had been warned by friends who had been there the week before not to go and we did anyway and regret it. The service was terrible,the staff was rude, the food was marginal and expensive, and it was just a mistake. There are too many other places to go where you are treated well and can sample the local flavor.

All in all, Sayulita was a great find. We will return.

Avoid Sayulita! We stayed at a place up the hill run by the same people who run Papa's. Within 2 days of surfing in the bay, we were both sick. My wife was bedridden, had to be given an I.V. drip and tons of meds. She is currently still on anti-biotics.
After we checked out to head to Puerto Vallarta, the owners admitted they knew the bay was polluted, and that raw sewage was being dumped right into the bay. There is no sewage treatment so it all just runs into the river, then into the bay where we were surfing.
The town has grown so fast that the sewage problem is now huge. I met a member of a wedding party who said over half of the guests were now sick in bed, and all I heard on the beach was how everyone was getting sick. I later saw dead fish, and a very large dead sea turtle washed up on the beach. Go somewhere else, for the sake of your health.