Sayulita is a town people bring their people to: a birthday with twenty friends, a family reunion, a surf week, a wedding on the sand. It's small enough that everyone can walk to dinner and big enough to feed, house and entertain a crowd. The planning is what makes or breaks it.
This guide works through the decisions in order: when to come, where to sleep, who to hire, what the beach rules are, how to get everyone from the airport, and what it adds up to per head. Prices and rules are the latest we found for 2025–26; get every quote in writing.
When to come
The dry season, November to May, is when the weather can be trusted for anything outdoors; November to March is the most comfortable, before the heat builds. From June to October it's hot and humid with afternoon storms, it's hurricane season, and many businesses slow down, though planners say prices can be 20 to 40 percent lower.
Within the dry season, a few weeks fill up first and cost the most: Christmas to New Year above all, then US Thanksgiving, Presidents' Day week and Semana Santa, when Mexican families come to the coast. Día de Muertos at the start of November brings a festival and a surf contest. The best planners and venues book nine to twelve months ahead for winter dates.
- Oct 29–Nov 2, 2026Día de Muertos: a festival, altars and the surf tournament in town.
- Nov 26, 2026US Thanksgiving week and the first big wave of winter visitors.
- Late Dec–early JanChristmas to New Year, the busiest and most expensive stretch of the year.
- Feb 15, 2027Presidents' Day week, billed at holiday rates in many houses.
- Mar 21–Apr 4, 2027Semana Santa and Pascua: Mexican holiday weeks, beaches full.
- Jun–OctThe wet season: lower prices, afternoon storms, turtle nesting on the beach from July.
One big villa, or houses next door?
Sayulita has a handful of large houses that take a whole group under one roof, with staff, a big pool and a long table, mostly on the hills at the north and south ends. They suit a wedding party that wants one base, but they book early for the dry season, often ask for four to seven nights, and a single house puts everyone in the same place at the same hours.
The alternative is two or three houses a minute or two apart, which gives a group more choice of price and a little privacy, and is often easier to find for peak weeks. Our Stay section has a groups page that does exactly this: give it the size of your party and it finds houses next door to each other that sleep everyone between them, with the price per head.
As a guide, the median house of six bedrooms or more advertised about US$1,450 a night in high season in 2026 and about US$2,000 over the holidays, before the 5 percent lodging tax and 16 percent IVA. Shared by twelve, US$1,450 is about US$120 a head a night before tax.
One big villa
- Everyone together, one pool, one long table
- Often staffed, sometimes with a cook
- Few of them: book the dry season early
- Minimum stays of four to seven nights are common
Houses next door
- A minute or two's walk apart
- A spread of prices and a little privacy
- Easier to find for peak weeks
- Our Stay groups page finds them by party size
Hacienda Sayulita
A staffed villa on the north side with up to ten king suites, an infinity pool and a 12-person jacuzzi.
Villa Pelicanos
Nine beachfront bedrooms near Playa los Muertos.
Rancho Poco a Poco
Villas in a jungle garden that also work as a wedding venue.
Villas del Corazon
A large house of up to ten bedrooms with a heated pool and a surf break out front.
Venues, planners and the people who make it happen
For a wedding, start with the venue and a planner, then let them lead you to everyone else. Playa Secreta is the in-house wedding team of a boutique hotel at the south end of the main beach, with spaces from a beachfront garden to a large palapa; it asks you to book a block of its villas for at least three nights, and its events end at 11pm. Frente al Punto, a beach club on about 5,000 square metres of beachfront, closes to the public for weddings and private events. Rancho Poco a Poco hosts weddings in its jungle garden.
A La Carte Weddings, a local company working since 2013, coordinates destination weddings and events. Mexihcah, chef Rodrigo Dragonetti's catering, cooks contemporary Mexican dinners at villas, with dinners from 1,100 pesos a guest; its largest wedding so far was 170 people. Sayulita Sound provides DJs, sound and lights, and Dekker Photography, Jenn Farmer and fdfotofer shoot weddings and elopements around the bay. For a smaller gathering, The Picnic Company sets up styled picnics and proposals on the beach.
Book the venue and the planner first. In this town, they know everyone else you'll need.
Playa Secreta Weddings
A hotel's own wedding team at the south end of the beach, with ceremony and reception spaces.
Frente al Punto Beach Club
A large beachfront club that closes for weddings and private events.
A La Carte Weddings & Event Services
Local planners since 2013, coordinating catering, bar, flowers and the day itself.
Mexihcah Catering
Private-chef dinners and wedding catering from San Pancho to Puerto Vallarta.
Sayulita Sound
Sound systems, lighting and DJs for weddings and parties.
Dekker Photography
Wedding, elopement and family photographer who has lived in Sayulita since 2012.
Jenn Farmer Photography
Portraits, couples and elopements, including surf sessions in the water.
The Picnic Company
Styled beach picnics, proposals and small celebrations.
Beach ceremonies, permits and the legal part
Every beach in Mexico is federal land, the zona federal marítimo terrestre, and open to everyone. You can hold a ceremony on the sand, but you can't close the beach, and you need permission. Sources disagree on who issues it, the federal environment ministry (SEMARNAT) or the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, which runs the beach zone under an agreement with it, so make your planner responsible for the permit and ask to see it. Planners advise allowing four to six weeks. Expect removable set-ups only, and leave the sand as you found it.
Amplified music outdoors generally stops by 11pm at venues in town. Turtles nest on the beach from about July to November: keep lights low near the sand and ask the turtle camp where its nests are. In February 2026 the municipality suspended its public fiestas, including Sayulita's, on safety grounds; private events weren't mentioned, but ask your venue how things stand.
To marry legally here, foreigners go through the civil registry, with birth certificates apostilled and translated by an authorised translator, medical tests taken in Mexico no more than 15 days before, witnesses, and paperwork in at least six working days ahead. Bahía de Banderas' 2026 fee for a ceremony away from the office in normal hours is about 1,070 pesos. Most couples do the legal part at home and hold a symbolic ceremony here.
Getting everyone here from the airport
Puerto Vallarta's airport is 45 minutes to an hour from Sayulita by road. For a group, a pre-booked van is simpler and often cheaper per person than taxis: the driver tracks the flight, waits with a sign and can stop for groceries on the way. Several Sayulita outfits run seven-seat Suburbans and ten-seat vans, and some Vallarta companies have eleven-seat Sprinters.
As a guide to 2025–26 prices, one Sayulita service charged 3,800 pesos for up to ten people from the airport to town, and a Vallarta company listed US$225 one way for a Sprinter of up to eleven. Send the transfer company everyone's flights in one list, and expect to pay for more than one run if arrivals are spread across the day.
- 45–60 min
- from the airport to Sayulita
- 3,800
- pesos for up to ten, airport to town (2025)
- US$225
- a Sprinter for up to eleven, one way (2026)
sayulita suburban services
Seven-seat Suburbans and ten-seat vans between the airport and Sayulita.
Sayulita VIP Transportation & Gaby Golf Carts
Airport runs in Suburbans and ten-seat vans, with child seats and a grocery stop on request.
Amanecer Transportation
Airport pickups with a grocery stop, plus taxis and day tours for the group.
Sayulita Luxury Transportation
Private transfers with flight tracking, used to moving wedding guests.
What it costs a head
Wedding costs here swing widely with the guest list, the venue and the season. One 2026 estimate for 45 guests put the venue and catering alone at US$10,300 to 20,000, about US$230 to 440 a guest. Catering typically ran US$80 to 150 a head and an open bar US$40 to 80 a head, and planners charge either a flat fee or a share of the budget, often 10 to 20 percent.
For a group trip without a wedding, the house is most of it: a big villa shared by twelve can come to US$120 to 170 a head a night in high season once tax is added. Private-chef dinners in the villa start around 1,100 pesos a guest. Ask every supplier for a written quote per head that includes tax and service, and what happens if it rains.
- US$80–150
- catering a head
- US$40–80
- an open bar a head
- 10–20%
- a planner's typical share of the budget
Questions people ask
Do you need a permit for a beach wedding in Sayulita?
Yes. The beach is federal land; your planner should get the permit, and you should ask to see it. Allow four to six weeks, use removable set-ups only and leave the sand clean.
Can foreigners get legally married in Sayulita?
Yes, through Bahía de Banderas' civil registry, with apostilled and translated documents, medical tests in Mexico within 15 days and witnesses. Most couples marry legally at home and hold a symbolic ceremony here.
When is the best time for a wedding in Sayulita?
November to March, in the dry season. Avoid Christmas to New Year and Semana Santa if you want lower prices, and book key suppliers nine to twelve months ahead.
How do you get a group from Puerto Vallarta airport to Sayulita?
Book vans in advance: seven-seat Suburbans and ten-seat vans run from Sayulita, and Vallarta firms have eleven-seat Sprinters. The drive takes 45 minutes to an hour.
How much does a Sayulita wedding cost per guest?
One 2026 estimate put venue and catering at about US$230 to 440 a guest for 45 people; catering alone runs about US$80 to 150 a head and an open bar US$40 to 80.
Written by sayulita.co from our own research, checked against 16 sources. Nothing here is paid for. Photos: ; ; ; . See something out of date? Tell us.