Layout of Mazatlán
Mazatlán is built on a blunt headland where the coastal plain of Sinaloa meets the Pacific, with the port on the sheltered south-east side and the beaches facing west and north. The city reads from south to north along a single seafront road, the malecón, which runs about 21 km from Olas Altas to Cerritos. At the southern end is the Centro Histórico, the 19th-century grid around Plazuela Machado and the Teatro Ángela Peralta of 1874, restored from the 1990s onwards and now the densest concentration of listed buildings on the Pacific coast of Mexico. Behind it rise the two hills that define the harbour: Cerro de la Nevería and Cerro del Vigía.
North of the old town the malecón passes Playa Norte and reaches the Zona Dorada, the hotel strip developed from the 1960s around Punta Camarón, and then continues past Marina Mazatlán to the newer building at Cerritos. South of the Centro, past the fishing fleet and the sport-fishing docks, the road ends at the port entrance and the breakwater below Cerro del Crestón, whose lighthouse stands 157 m above the sea — one of the highest natural-rock lighthouses anywhere. The commercial and ferry terminals are inside the harbour on that side. Mazatlán airport (MZT), General Rafael Buelna, is 20 km south of the centre off Highway 15. The municipality counted 501,441 residents in 2020, the second-largest in Sinaloa after Culiacán.
Distances from Mazatlán
| Place | km | Time | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mazatlán airport (MZT) | 20 | 25 min | Hwy 15 south |
| Isla de la Piedra | 5 | 15 min | Panga from the Playa Sur landing |
| Culiacán (state capital) | 215 | 2 h 15 | Hwy 15D toll road |
| Tepic | 285 | 3 h | Hwy 15D south |
| Durango | 320 | 3 h 30 | Hwy 40D over the Sierra Madre |
| La Paz | 400 | 12 h | Ferry to Pichilingue |
| Los Mochis | 425 | 4 h 15 | Hwy 15D north |
| Puerto Vallarta | 455 | 6 h | Hwy 15D then Hwy 200 |
| Guadalajara | 500 | 5 h 30 | Hwy 15D south-east |
| Mexico City | 1,050 | 12 h | Hwy 15D via Guadalajara |
Beaches, the islands and getting out of town
The beaches change character along the malecón. Olas Altas, below the old town, is a short crescent with a shore break and no hotels on the sand; Playa Norte, the long stretch north of it, is where the beach seine fishermen still work in the morning; the Zona Dorada beaches at Gaviotas and Sábalo are the sheltered swimming beaches, protected by the three islands offshore — Isla de Pájaros, Isla de Venados and Isla de Lobos. Cerritos, at the far north end, is open to swell and is the surf beach. Isla de la Piedra, which is in fact a peninsula on the far side of the harbour mouth, has a 15 km beach backed by coconut plantations and is reached by a five-minute panga crossing rather than by the long road round.
Mazatlán was founded in 1531 and grew as a port; German merchant houses in the 19th century built much of the Centro Histórico and started the brewing industry the city is still known for. It remains one of Mexico's main shrimp and tuna ports and the country's principal Pacific ferry terminal, with the crossing to Pichilingue near La Paz taking about 12 hours overnight.
Inland, the Mazatlán–Durango motorway (Highway 40D) opened in 2013 and cut the crossing of the Sierra Madre Occidental from around six hours to about three and a half. It carries 61 tunnels and 115 bridges, among them the Baluarte bridge, 1,124 m long and about 403 m above the river — the highest cable-stayed bridge in the world when it opened. The old free road over the Espinazo del Diablo still climbs the same range more slowly. Closer to town, the colonial mining villages of Concordia and Copala lie 45 and 65 km inland. The road map and the Pacific coast map put the routes in context.
Questions about Mazatlán
Where is Mazatlán on the map of Mexico?
On the Pacific coast of Sinaloa at 23.25° N 106.41° W, just south of the Tropic of Cancer, opposite the tip of the Baja peninsula. It is 1,050 km north-west of Mexico City and 500 km north of Guadalajara on Highway 15D.
How long is the Mazatlán malecón?
About 21 km from the Olas Altas end of the old town north through the Zona Dorada to Cerritos, which makes it one of the longest continuous seafront promenades in Latin America. The historic stretch below Cerro del Vigía is where the cliff divers and most of the monuments are.
Is Mazatlán an hour behind Mexico City?
Yes. Sinaloa keeps UTC−7 all year with no daylight saving, while Mexico City is on UTC−6, so Mazatlán is one hour behind the capital. Nayarit, immediately to the south, is on UTC−6, so clocks change on the road near the state line. See the time zones map.
When is Carnival in Mazatlán?
In February, in the week before Lent. The Mazatlán carnival has been held since 1898 and is one of the largest in Mexico; the parades run along the malecón and hotel rooms in the centre are booked months ahead.