Mazatlán

Before the Spanish arrived, the Totorames lived along this stretch of coast. Spanish soldiers under Nuño de Guzmán entered the area in 1531, and in 1576 the governor of Nueva Vizcaya sent Captain Martín Hernández to settle the Mazatlán valley — though the name then belonged to the inland presidio that is now Villa Unión. The port itself was a fishing village of huts until the early 19th century, and took the name when the presidio was renamed in 1828.

Declared a port in 1821, it grew quickly as ships from Chile, Peru, the United States, Europe and Asia called to load gold and silver from the mines of the sierra. It became the largest port on Mexico's Pacific coast; Gold Rush fortune-seekers sailed from here for San Francisco, and United States and later French forces occupied it. It served for a time as the capital of Sinaloa until 1873. German merchants arrived in numbers and founded the Pacífico brewery in 1900, the lighthouse on Cerro del Crestón was lit in 1879, and the opera singer Ángela Peralta died of yellow fever here in 1883. During the Revolution the city was bombed from a biplane, one of the first aerial bombardments in history.

From the 1940s Hollywood actors came for the sport fishing and hotels lined Olas Altas; in the 1970s new resorts moved north to the Golden Zone and the old town declined, until a restoration effort from around 1990 reopened the theatre. The historic centre was declared a Heritage of the Nation in 2001, and its restored houses have since filled with homes, galleries and businesses.

Mazatlán's carnival, held since the 19th century, is one of the most important in Mexico. For the five days before Ash Wednesday the seafront fills for float parades, the crowning of a queen and a mock naval battle recalling the French attempt to land at the port, while giant figures called monigotes stand in important places around the city. Its soundtrack is banda sinaloense, the brass band music of the state, played by ensembles with tuba and clarinets; its origins are debated, but German immigrants and the military bands of the 19th century both left their mark. Banda El Recodo, formed in 1938 by Cruz Lizárraga of the village of El Recodo inside the municipality, is one of its best-known groups.

The city is also proud of its artistic life. The Festival Cultural Mazatlán, created when the historic centre was restored, is held in winter, the José Limón International Dance Festival takes place in spring, and the art school beside Plazuela Machado draws musicians and painters to the square. The actor and singer Pedro Infante, one of the great stars of Mexican cinema's golden age, grew up here and has a monument on the Olas Altas promenade.

Baseball is the sport people follow most closely. The Venados de Mazatlán play in the winter Mexican Pacific League, and the city has hosted the Caribbean Series several times. Visitors notice the local pulmonías, open-topped taxis that have become a symbol of the city, and the cliff divers who leap into the sea near the lighthouse for tips.

The 2020 census counted about 442,000 people in the city, the second most populous in Sinaloa after Culiacán. The municipality also takes in farming and fishing villages such as Villa Unión, La Noria and El Quelite.

Tourism and fishing are the two main industries. Mazatlán has the second-largest fishing fleet in Mexico, and shrimp and tuna are processed in the port, which also handles ferries to La Paz, freight and visiting cruise ships. The Pacífico brewery, a coffee factory and two power plants add industrial jobs, and the Autonomous University of Sinaloa and a marine sciences unit of the National Autonomous University of Mexico bring students and researchers.

Life moves between the old town, where restored houses stand beside market streets and small businesses, the hotel strip of the Golden Zone, and newer residential districts. Evenings bring families to the malecón for the sea breeze and the sunset. In April 2024 the city was the first in North America to see the total solar eclipse. Football in the city changed in 2026, when the Liga MX club Mazatlán F.C. was dissolved and its stadium, Estadio El Encanto, passed to the second-division Dorados de Sinaloa.

Seafood dominates. Aguachile, raw shrimp cured in lime juice with chilli, cucumber and red onion, comes from this coast, and ceviches and seafood cocktails are everywhere. Pescado zarandeado is a local favourite, as are smoked marlin and tuna and tamales barbones, the "bearded" tamales made with shrimp. Tacos gobernador are another local speciality, and chilorio, pork cooked in a chilli sauce and shredded, and Sinaloa-style grill-roasted chicken are the main meat dishes.

The Mercado Pino Suárez in the historic centre sells meat, fruit and vegetables to local shoppers, and restaurants around Plazuela Machado, along the seafront and on Isla de la Piedra serve fish and shrimp from the port's fleet.

To drink there is Pacífico, the pilsner brewed in the city since 1900, and tonicol, a vanilla-flavoured soft drink of the region. Aguas frescas include horchata, barley and coconut, along with tejuino. Coconut sweets and jamoncillos are the typical sweets.