Vegan Family Vacation To San Pancho, Mexico

Our family has taken several trips to mexico over the years but this last trip was by far the best. I feel most alive when we are traveling. I love seeing new places, new people, new things. I love watching my children’s minds expand, submersing in different cultures and learning new things. If you’re not careful life can get so routine. Especially with kids. The daily “to-do’s” that seem so important. I think that’s why we travel. Everyday is a new experience. Our best days are when we are just being..with no agenda. Time literally slows down and there’s nothing better.

I think it’s important to mention how we approach family vacations. For us, we look at a family vacation as more of a retreat of sorts. It’s so much less about what you do on the vacation, and so much more about how you do it. We try to set an intention to go slow and simply spend time together playing, laughing and exploring. For us, it’s not a race to see and do as much as we can, but rather to take some time to slow down and bond with each other while also experiencing something new together. By setting these types of expectations, we have found that as adults we are less disappointed with what we end up seeing or doing on the trip. Inevitably, one of our children will have a meltdown or maybe get sick, so when/if that happens, having a simpler day of staying at the hotel isn’t the end of the world when you don’t have an ambitious itinerary to hold yourselves to.

Why We Chose San Pancho

When we first began planning this trip, we began looking at Sayulita as our destination. But after speaking with some friends and doing some research ourselves, we came to the conclusion that Sayulita had become a little too crowded and touristy for our liking. One friend suggested that we check out the neighboring town of San Pancho (also known as San Francisco). We were told it was a little less busy but still had tons of charm and lots of great restaurants. We had also heard it was a little more family friendly and so it seemed like an ideal spot for us.

Traveling To Mexico From The U.S.A.

A couple of years ago we flew out of the Tijuana Airport to Puerto Vallarta and had a wonderful experience. Even though there are direct flights from San Diego, there are multiple advantages to flying out of Tijuana:

Cost - It’s considerably cheaper to fly out of TJ
Convenience - There is a very easy way to cross the border from the US to TJ using the CBX terminal. It allows you to park your car on the US side and enter a terminal (just like an airport) and simply walk across an enclosed bridge that drops you inside the TJ airport. The process coming back is equally quick and smooth.
Domestic Flight - Since you cross the border on foot, technically your flight from TJ to anywhere else within Mexico is a domestic flight . This keeps your cost down but also allowed us to access an airline that we LOVE called Volaris. They offer all the same services and safety as top US airlines but in a more affordable price. Booking online is also very easy as they offer both an English and Spanish version of their site and app.

Our Vacation in San Pancho

Prior to visiting San Pancho we spent 6 days in Nuevo Vallarta with family. We stayed at an all-inclusive resort that was very nice and had a great experience. But we were really looking forward to heading to San Pancho after to experience a more local and authentic Mexican town.

Our days in San Pancho were spent exploring the town by foot, eating the most delicious fruit off of a cart, walking the beach, eating at cafes and restaurants and shopping (most just looking) at the street market. San Pancho does have sidewalks so a stroller is totally doable here. I would suggest a jogger type stroller or a stroller with bigger wheels as it does make it easier to navigate when the road gets bumpy.

Where We Stayed

Hotel Maraica - I honestly couldn’t recommend this hotel enough. It was just outside of town, but all it took was a $3-4 taxi ride or a 10 minute walk and we were right in the middle of town. I actually liked being a little outside of town as I found it a little more quiet and peaceful. This eco-hotel was a hidden tropical paradise that exceeded expectations. If you’re not familiar with the concept of an eco-hotel, essentially it’s an environmentally sustainable hotel that has made important environmental improvements to its structure in order to minimize its impact on the natural environment. This was one of our first eco-hotel experiences but we now plan to make it part of our regular travel goals. The hotel offered all the same comfort and style we need, plus an opportunity to educate our children on sustainability and responsibility for our planet.

Hotel Maraica had everything we needed including a pool, lawn, restaurant and lounge area and even complimentary breakfast that the kids absolutely loved. The staff was incredibly accommodating and made us feel like family. The hotel itself only has 15 rooms so it felt more like staying in someone’s home than a hotel. They also had a very delicious and affordable restaurant onsite that served food and drinks from 8am-6pm. We found out later that the hotel often hosts retreats and other events here which is no surprise as it seems like the perfect place for that.

Where We Ate

Here’s a list of all the restaurants we ate at and loved. All the places below have several vegan options and also have meat options, so they are a great option for vegans or any group with various diet needs.

Fruit Carts on the Street - Can’t miss these. They are out on the main street everyday. The perfect snack for the whole fam.

Gaesha (Amanda’s Falafel on the street) - Amanda is an ex-pat who’s lived in Mexico for over 10 years. She’s got an awesome little cart where she sells vegan (and non-vegan) falafel wraps with mexican-inspired hummus. So so good. If ever you see Amanda pushing around her cart selling her delicious homemade falafel wraps, don’t miss out on the opportunity! She doesn’t really have set hours, she just sells them until they’re gone.

Hotel Cielo Rojo (Bistro Organico) - The name of the restaurant is technically Bistro Organico but it’s located inside Hotel Cielo Rojo. We first came for breakfast and it was so good we had to come back for dinner. We had two of our best meals at this restaurant and its our top dining recommendation here. It is a little pricier, but oh so worth it.

El Gallo - Phenomenal little outdoor restaurant. It’s a little farther away from the beach than the other spots, but worth the walk. The menu is very approachable and affordable. Lot’s of vegan options here.

Itzalanyasayan - This was a super cool street restaurant concept. Run by a mother of 6 children, some of her daughters work with her in the restaurant and it’s truly a labor of love. We tried the sopes, emoladas (enchiladas with mole sauce) and the tacos. Everything was unbelievably good.

Barra Cactus - Cute little smoothie, waffle, and sandwich spot. Super tiny spot but great for an afternoon snack or quick breakfast. The owner looks just like Cash too! haha!

Miscelania (Sayulita) - This one is in the neighboring town of Sayulita but we had to mention it. We came her e for lunch and both the atmospehere and cuisine was top notch. Highly reccomend the Huevos Rancheros here.

Mar Plata - We didn’t actually get to eat here but we heard amazing things from a trust friend. Worth checking out. If you go let us know how it is!

Taquiera Los Arbolitos - Another one we didn’t get a chance to go to but we heard good things and that they have tons of vegan options.

Other Things We Did

Entreamigos - This was one of the major highlights of the trip. Entreamigos is a community center built specifically for the local children of San Pancho. The vision of Entreamigos is to provide the children and families of San Pancho with the skills needed to contribute to their changing communities in a positive way. The space itself is constructed with primarily recycled materials and there’s an impressive recycling workshop on property that you can tour. What’s great about the facility as a tourist is that it’s open to the public and provides a great space for your children to play and engage with some locals. They offer a public library and community space to play games, read or just relax. Classes, workshops, conferences and special events are also scheduled throughout the year. They also have a cute shop that has creative, original and locally made products. We ended up stopping in here a few times to let the kids play and read, it was a great way to break up the day and also meet some locals.

The Beach - We went to the beach everyday while in San Pancho. The sand is soft and it was never overly crowded. The water is known to be rougher and not suitable for small children. The first day we were there the waves were pretty mellow and our 5 and 8 year old were able to swim with no issues. But the second day the waves were larger with a strong current so they just played on the sand. We were told that there are a couple of beaches about a 20 minute drive away that are much more suitable for small children but we had plenty to do and never made it out. Next time we plan to check them out though.

Shopping/Markets - Right by the main beach of San Pancho and along the main street and lots of little shops. We found some great baskets and bowls and we let the kids each pick out one small toy to bring back with us. Definitely lots more cute stuff to buy here but I restrained myself. lol.

Yoga - We didn’t get a chance to do any Yoga on this trip, but it’s definitely on our list for next time. We were told there are a ton of health and wellness options here and look forward to digging in next time.

Click here watch my San Pancho Instagram Stories

TRANSPORTATION

From The Airport - Expect to pay about $50-$60 US for a taxi or van ride to and from the Puerto Vallarta Airport. It’s usually about a 45 minute drive.

Transportation around town - Although the town is very walkable, there were a few times we opted for a taxi because our 4 kids were very tired. A cab ride within town should cost 50 Pesos (About $2-$3 US) but a few times the driver asked us for more.