6 Unique Date Ideas in Puerto Escondido
Want to impress a special someone? Try one of these memorable date ideas!
Romance can happen quite easily in Puerto. The most common outfit is skin. The activities are surfing, volleyball, and yoga, which all make people a sexier version of themselves. Nights out are not reserved for the weekend.
If you make a connection with someone and want to plan a special outing, try one of these five date ideas below. They’re all fun, unique, and affordable options right here in PXM.
Cruising down the coast for a day or weekend-long adventure is also a great idea. Check out my adventure guides if you’re looking to explore These all make for a pretty epic second or third date!
Note: All hyperlinks on names of locations will take you to the exact spot on Google maps.
1. Vivero Leslie and Taqueria La Playita
This was a real date that I went on, which gave me the idea of putting this piece together.
Toward the end of last year, I was seeing someone who was staying at a hostel in Bacocho. I had just moved to La Barra, so it was about as far away as possible from my place. On a day we were both free, I told her I’d come to her side of town and pick her up on my moto.
She said “What are we doing?” as she threw her leg over my bike. I told her I had a plan, but that it was secret, and I drove the 5 minutes to Vivero Leslie.
Vivero Leslie has always been my favorite plant shop in Puerto Escondido, and it’s set up perfectly for a date. There are rows and rows of organized, labeled, blossoming plants. You’ll walk among a variety of cacti, flowering plants, ferns, fruit trees, and a huge section of ceramic pots.
It’s more interesting and beautiful than most public parks.
Finally, what really makes it an incredible date spot, is that they serve cocos, refrescos, and cervezas, which you can take to one of the cozy nooks they’ve set up, all of which are fairly private and surrounded by nature.
Spend an hour or two and Vivero Leslie, and if you time it right, you can go get some of the best al pastor in Puerto Escondido at an institution in the same neighborhood.
Taqueria La Playita, which opens at 6 PM, has been slinging amazing food for over 20 years in Puerto, and if you want to know why they topped my list of best al pastor in the city, you can read more about them here.
2. El Lugar skate session and the beach in La Barra
El Lugar is home to four different activity-based communities: Surfskate Society, La Roller Gand, La Fit Gang, and Caimán Skate. All four groups gather under their roof to sweat, laugh, practice, and meet for the various classes offered weekly. You can find all of their individual Instagram pages for more information here.
Whether you join a class or not, you can visit their restaurant space anytime, which has a great food, coffee, and drink menu. While there, you can play around with some of their public skateboards. You might just pick up a new obsession!
El Lugar is on the way to La Barra, so after you eat and sweat a bit, you can take your date to the beach in La Barra for sunset, which is an incredibly special place. It’s a beach where nature is still very much in charge.
Take a long walk to the east until you get to the spot where the Rio Colotepec drains into the Pacific Ocean. You’re sure to see a thousand birds. You’re also certain to impress your date, hopefully leading to a sunset make-out session.
3. Hike to the cross and catch a film at Cine Zicatela
The Cruz and the Cinema are both in the more rustic backroads area that joins La Punta and La Barra. The “Cross on the Hill” is a giant cross you can see from a kilometer away, located on a high point in the neighborhood. The cross itself is cool, but to take a date for an incredible view where you can chat and have a cheeky beverage, walk up to the strange childlike statue behind the cross (pictured above).
Up a little path, you’ll find a statue of a man holding a woman, and after climbing a makeshift ladder, on the backside of that statue, you’ll discover what I consider the best view in all of Puerto Escondido. You can take in a perfect panorama of the coast from La Punta all the way to Adoquin.
After you let the sun splash into the ocean, go take in a movie at our mom-and-pop cinema, Cine Zicatela. I know that’s a strange way to describe a movie theater, but if you’ve ever been, you know what I mean. I love it, and the tickets are still just 70 pesos. Check the schedule in advance, and enjoy the show!
Follow them on Facebook for future films and show times.
Note: ESP means the film will be shown in Spanish, while SUB means it’ll be shown in the original language with Spanish subtitles.
4. Torguta Viewpoint and pizza at La Spezia
The Tortuga viewpoint is my second favorite view in all of Puerto Escondido. It’s at the very end of the Rinconada neighborhood, where you’ll normally find 20-30 other motos parked around sunset.
Folks arrive every night to watch the sun drop into the sea on the rocky cliffs of the coast. Bring a blanket to lay down and a few drinks and snacks if you plan to stay for a while.
After the light fades, head up to the main stretch of Rinconada and enjoy what I consider the best pizza in Puerto Escondido at La Spezia. I’ve eaten pizza all over town, and all things considered (price, quality, experience), I rank La Speiza slightly over the 4 other spots that make my top 5 list. After dinner, wander the active commercial street, and grab a beer or ice cream along the way.
5. Adoquin night market and walking path
Adoquin is a really charming neighborhood with colorful michelada stands, souvenir shops, and cute seafood restaurants. A lot of the domestic tourism in PXM centers around Adoquin.
Try to make it over to the area before sunset to explore Bahia Principal (Main Bay). Walk out to the huge marlin sculpture on the breakwater for a sunset photoshoot, watch the fisherman finish their days, and take a minute to appreciate the kids on vacation giggling and rolling around in the waves at the shoreline. It’s the best.
Note: This walking path actually goes all the way to Playa Manzanillo, but is considered dangerous. It is not advised to explore much further than the arched rock bridge, especially at night.
After sunset, every weekend night, vendors fill the street selling handicrafts, t-shirts, and street food. The energy of the street is great for a first date, and will likely give you plenty to talk about over dinner at one of the neighborhood’s many options.
There’s a lot to try in Adoqin, but a couple quality restaurants on the strip that I can vouch for are Benditos Pizzeria and Restaurante Junto al Mar.
Finally, if you happen to plan an Adoquin neighborhood date for a Wednesday, make sure you stick around the area for the famous salsa night at Congo!
6. Pick a Centro gem and wander the market
The main market in centro, Mercado Benito Juárez, is a very interesting place to wander around. It’s another one of those first-date environments that’s sure to rid any chance of an awkward silence. There’s so much activity going on, so much to observe or comment on, that there’s no chance you’ll run out of things to discuss.
The community manager in me also recommens doing something silly, like taking 10 minutes apart and setting a budget of 50 or 100 pesos to buy the other person a little gift. Maybe your new date buys you a little yellow flute, a silly hat, or a cup of chapulines (aka grasshoppers). Either way, you’re certainly bonding over a goofy memory like this.
There are some great little restaurants in the market, but some of my favorite restaurants in the city are also just a few blocks away. Check out my recent post about “5 Great Centro Restaurants” and go grab a table at one.
Las Juquileñas and Las Margaritas are both less than a block from the market, and both amazing places for a slow meal in a lovely date environment.
Finally, if you like to get busy in the kitchen, maybe the plan is to eat lunch at a centro gem first, and then go wander the market for dinner supplies.
After enjoying a PXM institution, you can slowly walk off the meal while collecting some amazing dinner supplies. Grab a whole fish, some fresh veg, and a bottle of mezcal, then see where the rest of the evening takes you!
Find more of my thoughts and words on Medium
Read my 5-star Travel Memoir, Not That Anyone Asked
Insider Info: One final secret date idea…
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Sobre Puerto Escondido to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.