Mazatlán (Mah-Saht-LAHN) nicely balances as México's largest commercial port and also as one of Mexico's most popular beach resorts. Mazatlan is Mexico's second largest coastal city (after Acapulco), with nearly 600,000 inhabitants. It has the largest port facility between Los Angeles and the Panama Canal, and is home to Latin America's biggest fleet of commercial shrimp vessels (over 800 boats). Nearly 40 tons of shrimp are processed each year, making Mazatlan "the shrimp capital of the world."
Mazatlan has three distinct zones. The port and downtown area, Old Mazatlan, are at the southern end of a peninsula that separates the Pacific from an enormous saltwater estuary. To the north some four miles is the Zona Dorada (the golden zone), home to nearly all of Mazatlan's visitor attractions. Between the two is a long curved stretch of mostly underdeveloped beach that serves as a sort of buffer between the port and resort zone. This separation allows the resort community to co-exist nicely with one of México's busiest commercial ports.
Mazatlán (Mah-Saht-LAHN) nicely balances as México's largest commercial port and also as one of Mexico's most popular beach resorts. Mazatlan is Mexico's second largest coastal city (after Acapulco), with nearly 600,000 inhabitants. It has the largest port facility between Los Angeles and the Panama Canal, and is home to Latin America's biggest fleet of commercial shrimp vessels (over 800 boats). Nearly 40 tons of shrimp are processed each year, making Mazatlan "the shrimp capital of the world."