Beautiful Beaches of Rocky Point

Sunset view from a beach in Mexico. (Photo by Christina Stymfal)

Rocky Point, also known as Puerto Penasco in Spanish, is a popular destination for many Arizonans. The appeal mainly comes from its beautiful beaches and resorts. Rocky Point has the closest beaches to Arizona and is just over 60 miles from the Arizona-Mexican border at Lukeville. Being from Tucson, it is about 200 miles to the Rocky Point coastline (4 hours). Many prefer Rocky Point over the beaches of California mostly because of the distance. Rocky Point used to be primarily visited for its excellent fishing opportunities. Now, the town is full of hotels and resorts for U.S. travelers that want to visit the warm, clear beaches.

Since the tides are quite large it creates the perfect conditions for swimming, snorkeling and other water activities. One business in particular is Santiagos Ocean Services. Santiagos has boats that are used for fishing trips, Bird Island eco tours, snorkeling excursions, whale and dolphin watching tours, sunset cruises, and parasailing. For fishing, Santiagos provides its customers with everything from bait to tackle. The fishing excursions take you about 15 miles out in the ocean to catch fish such as the Rock Bass and Cochis. Catch all the fish you want without the mess afterwards. Santiagos will clean, fillet and bag your fish. This way you can enjoy the fishing experience to the max.

Just southeast of the Rocky Point coastline is Bird Island. With 4 and half hours touring the island, you will be able to see all sorts of marine life and over 20 species of exotic birds. The tour of the island includes 2 hours swimming and snorkeling in an ocean full of playful sea lions. But if adventurous isn’t in your vocabulary, then maybe a sunset cruise is for you.

See the spectacular Mexico sunset from a yacht. On this dinner cruise you can relax while you sip your margarita and watch the dolphins swim by. On the cruise you can also enjoy a shrimp or Mexican food dinner. This cruise has the option of being secluded for a romantic getaway or a big family gathering.

With a 9 year safety record, you can feel safe when get the bird’s eye view of Rocky Point. Parasailing offers you an excellent way to get some great pictures of the beautiful landscape.

Shopping in the streets of Mexico. (Photo by Christina Stymfal)

Manta Rae is another business in Rocky Point that adheres to fishermen. Instead of having several different water activities, Manta Rae specializes is sport-fishing charters and whale watching. Synergy Tours offers visitors a complete guided tour of the city, as well as a ecology tour.

There are many different activities that Rocky Point has to offer. A simple online guide may give a traveler a better idea of where to start first.

One thing is for sure, if you spend the weekend in Rocky Point you are going to have to eat. There are many fancy places to eat at all the different resorts located in the town. But some tourists might before to eat at the local restaurants in order to better grasp the Mexican culture.

From El Sombrero to Sunset Cantina, there is an experience you will never forget. The majority of good local restaurants are located along Calle 13. The restaurants are hard to miss, especially El Sombrero with its gigantic sombrero on the front of the building.

If you do end up staying the weekend in Rocky Point, there are some great resorts and hotels located along the beach. Playa Bonita Hotel and Penasco Del Sol are just two places to stay that are located right on the sand. The resorts such as the Mayan Palace Puerto Penasco offer water activity tours, as well as guided tours of the town.

Here is a link to the locations of some of the hotels and resorts located in Rocky Point.