The Best Bars in Huatulco, Mexico

Cocktails come in kaleidoscopic colors at this smart bar in La Crucecita. Try the pool-blue High Tide or the blood-red mezcalinis – the Mexican take on the martini. The best tables are on the open-fronted terrace at the entrance to the bar, where wooden benches and bucket seats overlook the greenery of the main square park. Peckish? Order a plate of tacos filled with tasajo – a cured beef that’s local to Oaxaca.

Two words sum up this bar near La Crucecita’s main square – micheladas and mezcal. The micheladas are Mexico’s spin on the bloody mary, made with tequila, tomato juice and a beer that’s upended and sunk into the cocktail while still in the bottle. As for the mezcal, more than 10 varieties are served. Every shot comes with a plate of chili-dusted lemon and the obligatory shaker of salt.

This palapa-style bar, with its thatched roof, cane walls and lantern lighting, is set in the heart of La Crucecita. The bar menu is classic – cold beers and margaritas are the orders most regularly ringing through the till. Head here on a Friday or Saturday and you’ll be able to sup to the sound of live music – usually an acoustic soloist. Just be aware, the bar closes in the low season.

Ricky’s, on the main square of La Crucecita, serves more kinds of margarita than there are days of the week. Highlights include the guava, the tamarind and the soursop – a long, prickly fruit that’s native to Mexico. Can’t make up your mind? Just ask for a glass of half-and-half. On balmy days you can sip your drinks from the open-air courtyard at the back.

Nights at Don Diablo start with pizzas, nachos and buckets of beer, and continue with DJ sets, dancing and tequila. Located close to the main square in La Crucecita, this playful bar is decorated with murals and colorful furniture – some of which is pinned to the walls rather than the floor. Illumination, meanwhile, is given by fairy lights strung up inside tequila bottles.

This place wins the title of Huatulco’s quirkiest bar, hands down. It’s set inside a turreted stone building, a 10-minute walk from Chahué Beach, and everything about it is Medieval-themed. Wrought-iron chandeliers hang from the ceiling, torches line the walls, and there are suits of armor, swords and shields displayed everywhere. As for drinks, the place specializes in German beers and mezcals.

Hand-painted murals and frames full of Mexican-inspired artwork fill the walls of this bar, just around the corner from the main square in La Crucecita. For the full La Crema experience, pull up one of the stiletto-shaped seats and order a tequila cocktail – try the Mariachi Melon, flavored with Midori and lemon. And to really do as the locals do, soak up your drinks with a pizza from the bar’s clay oven.

For drinks that go on into the early hours, head to La Papaya near Chahué Marina and Beach. Find a spot in one of the red leather booths and start the night with a tamarind vodka, then graduate onto the dancefloor; DJs play until 5am on Fridays and Saturdays. Keep an eye on the far end of the club, where there are two circular tanks built into the wall – you’ll sometimes see mermaids swimming about in the water.