# Living in Zihua/Troncones/Mazatlan??



## lasirena (Jul 5, 2013)

Hi all,

I've been lurking on this forum & it's been so helpful - thank you all for your posts!

My boyfriend & I are thinking of moving to Mexico in the future. We would like to visit some prospective cities in August. We are interested in a coastal area, so Troncones, Zihuatanejo, & Mazatlan are on the table right now. Does anyone have experience living in these cities? We are trying to get a sense of what it would be like to live in one of these cities, not just visit or vacation. Searching online has been difficult, because the results are all vacation-oriented, & we don't want to make a decision about where to live off of an amazing vacation. Any information you can share about living in these cities, where to live or where to look for lodging, costs of living, features of the cities outside of tourism, etc. would be so helpful & appreciated.

Thanks!


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## Hound Dog (Jan 18, 2009)

Tronconse, Zihuatanejo and Mazatlan are very difefrent places. Especially the Zihuatenejo/Troncones area from distant Mazatlan. If these were my only choices, I would pick Troncones but that may not suit you as it is something of a dump and isolated beach with some unpleasant and dangerous criminal and cartel activities. Mazatlan is a large city with many amenities. Zijuantanejo is for special tastes and those may be your tastes so have at it.

Good luck whereever you go.


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## Anonimo (Apr 8, 2012)

I enjoy visiting Zihuatanejo for about 5 days at a time, when the weather up here in the Michoacán highlands gets cold. I wouldn't like Zihua in the summer heat and humidity. Since we visit as tourists, I can't give a different point of view.

My three days in Troncones, in 2006, were a bore at best. The hotels and restaurants are primarily owned by and operated for affluent gringos. Overall, I felt that the hotel and restaurant operators treated us poorly. Zihua has been much better, in my experience.

Sorry, I have not been in Mazatlán. I know people who live there and love it.


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## citlali (Mar 4, 2013)

It all depends on what you likeand if you will be working or retiring..you hacve a village with nothinggooing on with locals and foreigners with mostly seasonnal houses and tourists, A wtown with tourism and a resort area next to it and a city by the sea , it all depends what you are looking for . All 3 have foreigners living them who like it since the ones who do not leave...


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## HolyMole (Jan 3, 2009)

Hound Dog said:


> Tronconse, Zihuatanejo and Mazatlan are very difefrent places. Especially the Zihuatenejo/Troncones area from distant Mazatlan. If these were my only choices, I would pick Troncones but that may not suit you as it is something of a dump and isolated beach with some unpleasant and dangerous criminal and cartel activities. Mazatlan is a large city with many amenities. Zijuantanejo is for special tastes and those may be your tastes so have at it.
> 
> Good luck whereever you go.


Wow. That's the oddest description of Troncones I've ever read. A dump? No, the "town" is just about identical to every other Mexican town with 200 or 300 inhabitants. An "isolated beach"? What's isolated about it? It's right down at the end of the main drag, right beside the ocean. Is 32 km from Zihuatanejo, all on good paved roads "isolated"? "Unpleasant and dangerous criminal and cartel activities"? Where? When? What in heaven's name would dangerous criminals and cartels do in a town of 300 people? We've been to Troncones many times....we do car and bus daytrips from Zihua. The beach is beautiful - in fact it's one of Mexico's great walking beaches - and almost always virtually deserted.. The town is about as sleepy as it gets. As for living there, it would be wonderful for folks who value peace and quiet and wouldn't mind the 45 minute drive into Zihua a couple of times a week for groceries and other necessities. 
As to your quote: "Zihuatanejo is for special tastes", I have no idea what that means. We don't have special tastes and we've spent 5-6 months each winter there for the past 8 years. We've traveled much of Mexico - including 10 or 11 stays in Mazatlan over the years - and consider Zihua the best of them all for those who want to be on or near the ocean. 
Zihua's population is ballpark 100,000 people and it has all the amenities of any other city of that size. In addition, it has several excellent beaches within walking distance from Centro or a 10 minute bus ride. Troncones (pop. 300) and its beautiful beach is 32 km north, and Playa Larga's 10 km-long beach is only a 15 minute bus or combi ride south. Zihua/Troncones' weather, certainly during the October-May period, is much more predictable than Mazatlan's, (pop. 600,000+). Mazatlan has had some real, bone fide criminal/cartel activity. Maz can be quite chilly at times during that Oct-May period. And, from what we've heard, Maz is usually both hotter and more humid than the Zihua area during the rainy season from May/June to October, even though Zihua is hundreds of miles further south. 
The OP's choice of three areas with such a huge difference in population is unusual. I think they'd be better off deciding first if they want to live in a town or a city, coast or inland, lowlands or highlands, etc.


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## lasirena (Jul 5, 2013)

Thanks for your replies! I guess I should have clarified that we were not so much looking for which of the 3 was best, but just what each one was like. Figuring out what we want involves knowing more about each one. 

We're going to be visiting Mazatlan in August. Zihua was second. Troncones just seems a little too sleepy for us right now.

Thanks again!


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## WiredBob (Jul 16, 2013)

lasirena said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I've been lurking on this forum & it's been so helpful - thank you all for your posts!
> 
> ...


I just moved to Troncones about 3 weeks ago and absolutely love it here. If you need some advice, I have made some friends that could give you some seasoned advice. Let me know and I can put in touch with them. Best way seems to be Facebook. 
Good luck!!!
Bob


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## Deendah (Jun 22, 2012)

lasirena said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I've been lurking on this forum & it's been so helpful - thank you all for your posts!
> 
> ...


Hola La Sirena,
We have lived/wintered in Mazatlán and Zihua(where we presently winter) and know a little of the Troncones area.
Maz= large city that extends about 5 miles from el centro in the south, north to the last hotel. It has an excellent city-bus transportation system. The beaches, also, extend the length of the city but have hotels behind most. Still, plenty of public access. Lodging can be obtained in, I think, any area you decide to live and , probably at your price range. Deciding which area will be the issue. Also, to find all the places that rent, requires WALKING the neighborhood. Shopping for groceries in supermercados/miscelenias/ convenience stores is easy but the large department store type groceries are mainly in the center of the city. The centro Mercado is in the old section/south of the city. Cost of living is subjective but we spend the same dollar amount on groceries/wk in Zihua, Maz and Ontario Canada. Maz had more reasonably priced(read cheaper)places to rent at the time we moved from there to Zihua=¿2002? Things to do, well, again, too subjective but they have concerts, pro baseball, inland and all sorts of tours plus the usual city night-life.
Zihuatanejo= is more centralized, with the ability to walk the entire town, from beaches to mercados to grocery stores to downtown tourist zone, easily. Lodging will be a little more expensive( than Maz) and available in most areas of city. Again WALKING the streets. More of an integrated city, with foreigners living and shopping in same places as locals. Because Z was originally the living area for Ixtapa workers and a fishing port the normal Living activities take place some place close= sports, concerts, parties and cultural events. Z has a great group of locals that promote cultural events for the locals and tourists. One factor that Z/Troncones has over Maz is warmer temps in Jan.-March, a little less wind and warmer water.
Troncones= is adequately covered by Señor HolyMole.
If you would like more specific info contact us by E-mail 
Daryl


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