Fodor's Expert Review Playa la Madera

This is a small, flat, dark-sand beach with a sprinkling of restaurants on the sand (which provide just about the only shade and facilities) and a few more hotels on or just above it. Bobbing boats and the green headlands make for stunning vistas. Waves are small or nonexistent, and as there's no drop-off it's a great place for the kiddies. Young locals always seem to be kicking a soccer ball around. Get here via a footpath cut into the rocks that separate it from Playa Principal, in downtown Zihua, or by car. Amenities: food and drink. Best for: swimming.