Punta de Mita, Mexico

Compared to nearby villages, PUNTA DE MITA is more developed, with bars, cafés and seafood restaurants strung along the beach. Follow the road parallel to the beach and you'll find the Sociedad Cooperativa de Servicios Turísticos (Tel:329/291-6298), which rents out snorkelling and diving gear and organizes two-hour panga trips to a cluster of volcanic islands known as Las Islas Marietas, a wildlife sanctuary. The boats hold up to eight people and cost around M$800 – this is probably the cheapest way to get close to the humpback whales present in the bay from around December to April, when they come to mate and give birth before returning to the polar waters of the north. Alternatively, you can book an organized whale-watching tour from Puerto Vallarta with an operator such as Open Air Expeditions, Guerrero 339 (Tel:322/222-3310, Web: www.vallartawhales.com ). You can camp on the beach or stay at the pretty Hotel Punta Mita (Tel:329/291-6269; Price: M$500-750) or the ultra-luxurious Four Seasons Punta Mita (Tel:329/291-6000; Price: M$1500 and over).