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Mexico Vacation Reservations & Travel Information For Ixtapa |
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Overview |
Zihuatanejo (aka:
Zihuatanejo de Azueta) is
located in the municipality
of José Azueta in the state
of Guerrero on the Pacific
Coast of Mexico about 240 km
(approximately 145 miles)
northwest of Acapulco. The
modern tourist resort of
Ixtapa is only 5 km away.
Zihuatanejo is the seat of
government for the
municipality and the
principal community in the
region. Ixtapa is a
government-planned tourist
resort that was begun in the
early 1970s and constructed
on what was once a coconut
plantation and mangrove
estuary. The approximate
population of
Zihuatanejo-Ixtapa is 85,000
inhabitants (source: INEGI).
An old-world Mexican fishing
village nestled around a
small bay dotted with
beautiful protected beaches
and no high rises, residents
of Zihuatanejo hope its
location at the water's edge
will not discourage tourists
who fear the occurrence of
tidal waves. (source:
zihua.net)
Zihuatanejo has the
old-fashioned charm of
traditional Mexican culture.
It is a town that sprang up
from a handful of families
who were mostly fishermen.
Fishing continues to be a
way of life for a large
number of families, and the
increasing popularity of the
area as a sportfishing
destination has given new
impetus to their livelihood.
(source: zihuatanejo.net) |
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General Facts & Information |
The name Zihuatanejo is
from the Nahuatl "Cihuatlán",
meaning "the place of women"
because it was a matriarchal
society. In pre-Columbian
times, the Tarascan leader
Calzonzin settled in the
area and constructed the
rock barrier on Playa Las
Gatas (named for the
harmless whiskered sharks
found there) to provide a
sheltered swimming area and
harbor for the women and
children, and that barrier
continues to protect the
beach to this day. With the
arrival of the Spanish, the
name Cihuatlan was
transformed first into
Cihuatlán and then into
Ciguatanejo. Zihuatanejo’s
current name form has only
been in use for the past
couple of centuries.
The Spanish Conquistadores
believed Cihuatlán to be a
land to the northwest with
beautiful Amazon women,
gold, and precious gems, and
perhaps another name for the
Seven Cities of Cibola
Zihuatanejo is the dream
"getaway" where prisoner
Andy Dufresne escapes to in
the film "The Shawshank
Redemption", although the
scene in the movie that
supposedly takes place there
was shot in the U.S. Virgin
Islands. |
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