7 Best Hotels in Troncones, Ixtapa and Zihuatanejo

The House of the Smiling Dolphin was one of the first hotels in Troncones, and it remains a small, family-friendly place with a bright exterior and personalized service. Downstairs rooms are sparsely decorated with Mexican crafts, but each is different. The two upstairs suites have chairs and shelves filled with books; they don't have air-conditioning, but fans and breezes off the water keep things cool. If you like, you can buy produce from the truck that passes in front of the hotel and prepare it in the communal kitchen. There are plenty of surfboards for rent, and it's a good place to take them out, since there can be excellent beach breaks.

Each bungalow at this homey haven has a patio with hammocks, table, and chairs, and there's also a house with a full kitchen, two bedrooms, two baths, and a long porch looking right onto the sand and waves—not to mention a coterie of friendly cats who call the property home. All guests have access to a communal kitchen and dining room, as well as barbecue facilities and a cozy reading nook with shelves packed full of beachy paperbacks.

Gorgeous views of Manzanillo Bay, a beach that has both a nice point break and calmer areas for swimming, and large, cheerful rooms have earned Hacienda Eden a loyal following. The property, which is surrounded by palm trees and gardens, has a two-story house with ocean-view rooms and hammock-filled terraces; one-room ocean-facing bungalows with patios; newer air-conditioned suites that can accommodate families, and a small swimming pool in the middle of the property. Throughout, you'll see beamed ceilings, Talavera tile details, and splashes of purple, yellow, and turquoise. The restaurant is one of the best on the beach. While credit cards are accepted, they are discouraged.

This hotel about 6 km (4 miles) north of Troncones is best suited to travelers who want seclusion; there are few neighboring hotels. But with a bar and a restaurant (that mainly serves fresh seafood and Mexican dishes), many guests feel they have everything they need on the resort grounds. Even the simple, clean bungalows feel private, as they're in palapas separated from other palapas by redbrick footpaths and well-manicured lawns.

This small resort specializes in yoga, which is performed in a handsome pavilion facing the beach, but there are other offerings, including meditation, qigong, horseback riding, hiking, and kayaking. You can also arrange for on-site massage therapies. Sand paths lead to inviting, palapa-roof bungalows around a small pool. The rooms are decked out in antique furnishings and tropical hardwoods, with rustic patio chairs and comfortable pillow-top beds, some with romantic canopies. The restaurant serves fresh, healthful spa cuisine, with many items available in vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free iterations.

This small, cheerful beachfront boutique hotel owned by a mother and her two daughters sits right in the center of town, across from the wonderful La Mexicana restaurant. The atmosphere is laid-back and sociable: an outdoor wood-burning oven is fired up for community pizza nights, and an intimate palapa lounge near the small infinity pool encourages sunset socializing. Rooms are done up in bright colors with wood furnishings and open-beam ceilings; each one has its own small patio and private open-air bathroom.

This chilled-out, eco-friendly compound near a top surf spot is an affordable and sociable alternative in Troncones. Partially off the grid, the hostel has solar panels for electricity, outdoor showers, composting toilets, and a gray-water system for watering the plants. If the bunk-bed dorms aren't your style, there are also two private rooms with a private en suite bath and their own patios and hammocks. A tiny camping area offers a "luxury" tent for rent—complete with deluxe queen-sized blow-up mattress—as well as room to pitch your own. The lofted ocean-view communal palapa is the perfect spot to cook a group dinner, grab a beer from the honor bar, lounge with a book, or check out how the waves are breaking.