Calle Delfines - Downtown on Foot

A stop on Sayulita: Surf Town Walk, a free self-guided tour.

Calle Delfines links the beach to the plaza, and it gives you the downtown in one short stretch. Strings of colorful papel picado, cut paper flags, often zigzag overhead, the houses are painted in bold colors, and the sidewalks spill over with racks of hats, ponchos and bright textiles. Golf carts, bikes and people on foot all share the narrow street, so keep to the side and look both ways.

Among the stalls you will see Wixarika (Huichol) art. The beaded pieces, from jaguar heads to small bowls, carry symbols from the Wixarika spiritual world, such as deer, peyote, corn and the sun. The yarn paintings tell stories in thread pressed into wax on a board.

Take time to look closely at how fine the work is, and if you buy, buying directly from the artist keeps more of the money in the maker's hands.

Getting here: Retrace your steps through the cemetery and back along the beach, then turn inland at Calle Delfines, the street that leads from the sand toward the plaza.

Did you know?: In traditional Huichol beadwork, each tiny glass bead is pressed one by one into a layer of beeswax spread over the carved shape underneath.

Photo op: Stand at the beach end of the street and shoot uphill toward town, catching the papel picado overhead against the sky.

More on Wikipedia: Huichol art · Papel picado

Calle Delfines - Downtown on Foot

Stops on this tour