Twenty-one kilometers (13 mi) south of La Manzanilla, Bahía de Navidad represents the end of the Costalegre at the border with Colima State. First up (from north to south) is San Patricio-Melaque, the most populous town on the Costalegre, with about 12,000 people. (The town is actually two towns that have now met in the middle.) While parts of town look dilapidated or abandoned, its long, coarse-white-sand beach is rather beautiful, with gentle waves. The best swimming and boogie boarding is about half the length of town, in front of El Dorado restaurant.

Fishermen congregate at the west end of San Patricio-Melaque, but it's most common to hire a panga for fishing at Barra de Navidad (usually called just "Barra"), a laid-back little town with sandy streets. At any time but at high tide you can walk between San Patricio and Barra, a distance of about 6 km (4 mi). It's about 4 1/2 km (3 mi) on the highway from one town to the other.

Most of Barra is comprised of two streets on a long sand bar. Calle Veracruz faces the vast lagoon and Isla Navidad, now home to the posh Gran Bay resort. Water taxis take folks to the Gran Bay's golf course or marina, or to the seafood restaurants of Colimilla, on the lagoon's opposite shore. Avenida Miguel de Legazpi faces Barra's sloping brown-sand beach and the ocean. These and connecting streets have small shops, simple but charming restaurants, and -- like everywhere along Mexico's Pacific coast -- a host of friendly townspeople. Surfers look for swells near the jetty, where the sea enters the lagoon.