His legal name is San Francisco, but his nickname is San Pancho. This Nayarit town in the Bay of Banderas has some charms that you cannot stop enjoying.
1. Get to know the town
About 45 minutes from Puerto Vallarta, after passing Bucerías and heading towards Tepic, keep an eye out for the crossing to the coast that gives access to San Pancho. It is a charming place of just over 1,500 inhabitants, where the most Mexican village traditions are preserved, such as riding a horse and talking with neighbors for any reason, living with the most modern customs of beach sports and gourmet food. . Strolling through the cobbled streets of San Francisco in search of a good coffee or a delicious chocolate, is something that you cannot stop doing.
2. Enjoy your beach
San Pancho beach is the prize that the Pacific offers after descending to the coast through the beautiful town. It is a beach long and wide enough to accommodate many bathers on the sand, without suffering from narrowness. The sand is light-grained and smooth and the waves are regular, so surfing is a favorite entertainment. You can also dive or simply sunbathe observing the landscape in which the green of the mountain competes in intensity and beauty with the blue of the sea.
3. Eat deliciously on the beach or in town
If you are one of those who cannot live without tacos and birria, in the town of San Pancho there are several stalls where you can taste your favorite dishes at reasonable prices. To eat on the beach, any selection between fish and seafood is guaranteed the freshness of the ingredients and the inhabitants of San Pancho affirm that their red snapper are the best in Banderas Bay. The town also has highly recommended a la carte restaurants, such as Maria’s, La Ola Rica, Bistro Orgánico and Mexotik.
4. Do yoga or relax in a spa
If you have arrived in San Pancho with some muscular tension, put your body in the expert hands of one of the specialists in relaxing massages in the town. They have hot stones, polarity therapies and other treatments that will leave your neck, back and limbs like new. We can recommend Angelic Spa, which combines the professionalism of its therapists with a very well-kept environment. Your visit to San Pancho could also be the occasion for you to begin to experience the physical and mental benefits of yoga in one of the centers in town.
5. Have a coffee watching the mountain
San Pancho is a postcard of blues on the ocean side and greenery on the mountainous flanks of the Sierra Madre Occidental as it descends to the Pacific. In some of the mountains of Jalisco and its neighbors Colima and Nayarit there are excellent coffee plantations and in the Bay of Banderas there are innumerable coffees that work with the best beans from the Pacific coffee belt and from other regions of the country, such as Veracruz. Sitting in an outdoor café in San Pancho to enjoy this drink while looking at the surrounding mountains is an experiment that is both gastronomic and spiritual.
6. Meet the environmental groups in town
The tourist flow that travels to observe the animal and plant life of other regions and countries is increasingly abundant. Unfortunately, the sustainability of ecotourism is threatened by the extermination of species. Why am I going to go to the Mexican Pacific to observe a certain type of turtle if there are hardly any left to see? That is why it is very important to know and support the activities of the local groups that, almost silenced and with little support, work in the preservation of biodiversity. In San Pancho there are groups that work for the protection of the jaguar and various species of turtles.
7. Whale watching
One of the most punctual visitors to Banderas Bay is the Humpback Whale. They have the advantage that they do not have to make reservations and stay in the endless space of the bay and the open ocean. These striking cetaceans, which can reach 16 meters in length and 36 tons in weight, always arrive in winter, between December and March, when the temperature of the bay is ideal for their reproduction. Tours depart from San Pancho to see the humpbacks at a reasonable distance, ensuring good observation and safety.
8. Try local fruits and vegetables
Almost all the towns in Mexico, beach and inland, very touristy or less touristy, have a tradition, almost an obligation, of sowing and harvesting much of what they eat. Even in the less fertile areas of the deserts, Mexican farmers manage to pluck some fruit from the land. The workers of the land in San Pancho are a minority, but they produce delicious fruits, among which the mango and papaya stand out for their sweetness, and for their acidity, the lemon. Try the fresh fruit of San Pancho and drink some tequilitas with its lemons.
9. Take a fishing tour
Another of the recreational activities you can do in San Pancho is a fishing excursion. Don't worry if you don't have experience; The instructors are able to prepare beginners in the art of fishing step by step, from the placement of the bait to the skills in handling the rod when something bites. If you're already an experienced fisherman, you might just want to wish yourself luck and that you can cash in a nice piece for dinner, unless you'd rather put it back in the water after taking a selfie with it.
10. Meet Entreamigos
It is a private, recreational and educational initiative, supported by voluntary work, aimed at teaching the children of San Pancho the recycling of materials and self-sustainability. In this place located in the center of San Pancho, the boys learn, have fun and proudly display their works. Language classes are also given and other cultural events are held. They will gladly accept your contribution.
11. Observe nature
Walking tours depart from San Pancho to learn about the surrounding nature. There is an interesting diversity of birds and other species, both around the town's lagoon and in the mountainous part. You will be able to admire blue herons, squirrel cuckoos, orange-headed parrots and other rarities that you will surely never see in your city of origin. Don't worry if your vision is not what it used to be, because they provide you with binoculars.
12. Live a new experience with cocoa
Cocoa and its transformation into delicacies is another Mexican tradition. It is said that the emperor Montezuma had to drink about 40 cups of cocoa a day to satisfy his harem moderately. Mexico produces good cocoa in Tabasco, Chiapas and Guerrero. These fruits are taken by many artisans, who do wonders both traditional and contemporary. In San Pancho there is an artisan house called Mexicalote, which has achieved a magnificent understanding between tradition and modernity, offering some products that are worth tasting.
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