Giving Back in Sayulita & San Pancho: EntreAmigos, Turtle Conservation & Community Events

Sayulita and San Pancho are two of the most-loved towns on the Riviera Nayarit, and part of what makes them special is a genuinely active community of people working to protect the coastline and support local kids and families. If you're spending a week or a month here, there are real, low-key ways to give something back — not as a checkbox, but because these organizations have been doing this work for decades and welcome visitors who want to understand it better.

EntreAmigos: San Pancho's community heart

EntreAmigos is a nonprofit that's been the anchor of community life in San Pancho since 2006, when Nicole Swedlow started teaching informal arts and crafts classes; Indira Santos and Plantate Baronio joined the following year, and leadership has since passed to a new generation. Nearly two decades later, it runs a community library, environmental education programs, a reforestation initiative (Planta San Pancho), a town-wide recycling program (Recicla San Pancho, with collection bins around town), a scholarship program for local students, an Eco-Design Center, and a "Shop Local" marketplace that supports vetted local businesses. In 2009, the Nayarit state government granted EntreAmigos permanent use of a warehouse in town, which it operates from today.

Visitors can get involved in a few ways: volunteer (year-round, with structured programs in summer), donate directly to support scholarships and operations, shop through its Shop Local marketplace, drop off recyclables at a Recicla San Pancho bin, or simply stop by to see what it does. Exact current hours and whether there's a walk-in shop open to tourists on a given day are worth confirming locally — check entreamigos.org or ask your host before planning a visit around it.

Sea turtle conservation in both towns

Both Sayulita and San Pancho sit on an important stretch of Nayarit's sea turtle nesting coast, and each has its own dedicated program.

In Sayulita, Campamento Tortuguero Sayulita is a community, volunteer-run turtle camp and part of the broader Red Tortuguera A.C. network. It focuses mainly on olive ridley turtles, with nesting activity running roughly June through December and public hatchling releases typically beginning around September and continuing through the season. Visitors can volunteer for night beach patrols and nest relocation, or "adopt a nest" for a small donation that includes an invitation to the release.

In San Pancho, Grupo Ecológico de la Costa Verde A.C. is one of the longest-running turtle programs on this coast, founded in 1992 after two visiting Californians noticed nest poaching rates near 95 percent. Now more than three decades in, it protects six beaches in the area using beach nurseries and greenhouse incubation, and released its one-millionth hatchling in 2016. It also runs weekly educational presentations for visitors and welcomes people to see the nursery.

One honest caveat: exact nesting and hatching windows shift from year to year and by beach, and different sources describe slightly different date ranges for each camp. Rather than planning a trip around one fixed date, ask your rental host or check the camps' social media once you're closer to your travel dates — that's the most reliable way to catch a real release.

Community events during peak season

A few recurring events give visitors a chance to support the community directly beyond these two organizations. Pro Sayulita, a nonprofit running since 2005, puts on the annual SUP Open (usually February or March) and uses its broader civic mandate to fund local schools, lifeguards, ambulance and fire services, beach cleanups, and turtle and animal welfare programs — it's the most directly verifiable "give back while you're here" event on the calendar. Both towns also run seasonal artisan markets through the winter season — San Pancho's Mercado del Sol and Sayulita's Mercado del Pueblo — which put your spending directly into local hands, even if they're not formal charity fundraisers. (San Pancho's long-running Music Festival, usually late February or early March, is worth knowing about too, though it's better described as a beloved community tradition than a dedicated fundraiser.)

How to fit this into your trip

None of this requires restructuring your vacation. A short visit to EntreAmigos, a question to your host about whether a turtle release is happening that week, and a stop at a Tuesday or Friday market are all it takes to put a little back into the towns you're staying in — and most visitors find it's one of the more memorable parts of the trip.

Where to stay

In Sayulita, Morro Patio Studio is a centrally located studio, an easy walk to town and the plaza. In San Pancho, Mar Azul at La Esquina Near San Pancho Beach puts you close to EntreAmigos and the main street, just a short walk away. Browse our full Sayulita collection and La Esquina properties for more options in each town.

FAQ

What is EntreAmigos? A San Pancho community nonprofit running since 2006 — a library, environmental education, recycling and scholarship programs, and a local-business marketplace. Visitors can volunteer, donate, shop local through it, or simply visit.

How can I see a sea turtle release in Sayulita or San Pancho? Both towns have active turtle camps — Campamento Tortuguero Sayulita and Grupo Ecológico de la Costa Verde in San Pancho — that hold public hatchling releases during nesting season. Exact dates shift year to year, so ask your host or check the camps' social media once you're close to your trip.

Are there other ways to give back while visiting? Yes — Pro Sayulita's community programs, the seasonal Tuesday and Friday artisan markets in both towns, and simply choosing to spend at locally owned businesses all put money directly into the community.

Do these organizations need volunteers, or just donations? Both — EntreAmigos and the turtle camps welcome short-term volunteers as well as donations, and even a single visit or purchase through their programs helps.

Hero photo: "Olive Ridley Sea Turtle Hatchlings" by Bethany McCarter, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.