Though it’s a popular getaway for Chiapanecans from Tonalá and Tuxtla, the beaches and facilities at Puerto Arista aren’t exactly glorious. This one-street town has a handful of basic hotels and simple palapa restaurants. The beach itself is ashy volcanic sand and the surf can be quite heavy, but it makes a mellow place to kick back for a day or two.

Puerto Arista is one of those vacation towns that’s either packed—say, during Semana Santa or Christmas—or utterly dead.

Getting to Puerto Arista

Puerto Arista is essentially a one-road town, so it’s nearly impossible to get lost. The main road runs along the beachfront and goes by various names, including Boulevard Zapotal or Avenida Mariano Matamoros, but most people refer to it as simply El Boulevard. Street numbers are equally variable—for simplicity, addresses are listed here as either east or west of the main intersection, where the road from Tonalá hits the boulevard.

Coming from Tuxtla Gutiérrez on Highway 200, the Puerto Arista exit is just past Tonalá, and well marked. From there it’s another 16 kilometers to town and the beach.

Combis and collective taxis to and from Tonalá (US$1.25, 45 mins) pick up and drop off near the main intersection in Puerto Arista, departing every 15–30 minutes from 5:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. There is no direct service from Puerto Arista to Boca del Cielo; instead, you have to wait at the Boca del Cielo turnoff (about 2 kilometers from Puerto Arista) for a combi or taxi from Tonalá.