El Tunco – The best spot in Central America?

El Tunco – The best spot in Central America?

El Tunco – The best spot in Central America?

Sunsets were IncredibleOur first stop in the mysterious country of El Salvador was a small beach town of El Tunco.
2 hours from the Guatemala border this tourist town is a landing spot for most travelers coming into, or passing through  El Salvador meaning that you’ve go a lot of like minded travelers in one place, which can make for a huge amount of fun… As we found out.

We planned on spending 10 days in all El Salvador, however it’s been 11 days now and we are only leaving El Tunco, it was that much fun.

The coastline is dotted with fantastic surf breaks from Punta Roca all the way to KM59 which you need to either catch a chicken bus to get to or befriend other travelers with some sort of transport. In El Tunco itself there are 2 great spots which break almost everyday, even if it is over a very shallow rock bottom… Low tide can be a real board-dinger, but luckily the ding repairs are sooo cheap in town ($5 – $10).

Punta Roca... Not firingThe mini van trip from Antigua Guatemala took about 4.5 hours, we never had to change busses at the border and the crossing was super smooth. We were lucky enough to share our van with a fun loving group of travelers who we ended spending the next week with at the same hostel (El Sanzalito).

Our general activities included surfing twice a day, eating braai’s/BBQ’s, partying with the locals, wading through beach caves, jumping off waterfalls and drinking very large beers for $2… All with an awesome group of about 15 people!

Waterfalls in beautifly clear watersThe waterfalls near El Tunco are an absolute must for anybody spending a couple of days in the area. We were sharing the hostel with 2 Aussie surfers who were driving a Van from Costa Rica through to Canada, who offered to drive us to the town where the waterfall hike started. So 12 of us jumped into a 4 seater van and off we went, picking up our local guide on the way.
The waterfalls are all at the bottom of a giant gorge some 500 meters directly down which you had to traverse some extremely dodgy footpath action, and as the say – what goes down!?! Luckily after reaching the first waterfall / jumping point the climb was made worth while.
There are 3 different jumps which can be made into rock pools below. They ranged from 6m, 10m and the giant 15m which nobody was crazy enough to attempt into such a small pool below.

Catching another cracking sunetA couple of the local kids help guide you through the forest, peoples back gardens and an array corn frields as well as be the first so show off their skills of diving off into the waters below, all for a couple of dollars. Further along the track we were led to some rather breathtaking waterfalls, sink holes and warm water springs coming through the stone walls of the gorge. What a great day of adventuring, laughing and enjoying our new family of friends.

The following few days Pat and James (legends with the van) took a few of us with when they went surfing a few spots around town which you needed a vehicle to get to. Finding a surf break in El Salvador, heading out and sharing the lineup with the 4 other guys for hours on end was a highlight of my trip so far. I think I caught more waves in 1 week than I have in all the 5 months traveling so far. Thanks to Pat and James, you guys are legends, stay safe.

After Surf beerThe times between all the surfing and socializing, we would lie in hammocks around the pool reading and snoozing – This is where Larly spent most of her time, getting some chill time!

We found that unlike most places we had been, we were actually coming in way below our budget as the accomodation, local food and beers were all really cheap. Another great reason to spend some extra time in a fun location where it appeared that the weather was all 29 degrees with not a cloud in the sky.

Red Skys at nightWe have made it our mission to make sure that we watch the sunrise at every opportunity we can especially when the sun is seeing over the ocean, which is the entire west coast of Central America. El Tunco however had some of the most beautiful sunsets we have seen so far on our trip… I know that being at the right place at the right time is always difficult to pick when traveling however I think we struck it lucky with El Tunco, as it just feels like this place just keeps on giving. We have since met travelers who were not that lucky while staying which confirms that while traveling its never a garentee to go to a recommended spot and have a good time.

So to come back to the question first ask, I think thus far El Tunco has been the best place we’ve stayed at through our Central America trip… but you never know, the next place might be even nicer!! 🙂

Special thanks to the great crew who enjoyed this part of our trip with us… Jeremy, Caroline, Katrina, James, Pat, Isreal, Teddy, Joaquine, Mike and Mario – Let the good times roll

Family PhotoEnjoy the pics

Neil

This Post Has 37 Comments

      1. Neil

        26 Jan 2016 Reply

        Awesome, have a great time meeting up guys

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