Travel Guide Barra De Navidad

Located just under 300 kilometers south of Puerto Vallarta, Barra de Navidad is a narrow peninsula between Bahía de Navidad and Laguna Navidad. The locality is renowned for having been an important shipyard shortly after the Conquest, from which Miguel López de Legaspi's expedition set sail in 1563, paving the way for the colonization of the Philippines, islands previously discovered by Magellan, who himself lost his life in a battle with the natives. This new route was to inaugurate a major trade route over the following centuries, linking the Americas and Europe via Asia. It's worth noting that Legaspi took with him an essentially indigenous crew: in today's Philippine language ( Tagalog), we still find many words of pre-Hispanic origin, the fruit of this little-known linguistic crossbreeding.This fishing village enjoyed a kind of tourist heyday in the 70s and 90s; all it needs today is a lick of paint to make it a little more attractive, but Barra de Navidad's charm lies in its affordable prices, its human scale and the harmonious way it offers what you'd expect from a seaside resort - lounging on the beaches (facing the ocean or on the islands of the lagoon) and, above all, kayaking at sunrise on its lagoon. For those who love a stroll along the beach, head for the pretty village of San Patricio de Melaque.