Sea and something else, sand and something else in Manzanillo, a coastal strip that seduces for the swaying of its waves and its prolonged sunbathes, a place where amusement, pleasure and adventure cannot tell day from night, and can be found in the tourist compounds, on the shores walked by dozens of tanned and athletic bodies, or in the transparent waters inviting to take a dive.

You only need to get along with the sea, sense the gentle skim of the sand and let yourself fall sleepy under the warming sunrays, to realise that Manzanillo is getting in our soul little by little and that from this moment, every time we hear its name, we will let ourselves be driven by nostalgia and the sweet taste of our memories.

Manzanillo, located at 73 kilometres from Colima, the capital of the homonymous state, is one of the beach paradises in western Mexico, and also one of the most dynamic merchant ports in the country. Its modern tourist infrastructure allows fully enjoying its natural charms.

The history of Manzanillo, a place of embarks and disembarks, is full of maritime adventures that started long before the arrival of the Spaniards, when the zone was used as a seaport by the Mesoamerican sailors who weigh anchor at here eastern bound.

In 1522 Hernan Cortes came ashore on these paradisiacal beaches, although Mexico's conquistador simply ignored them. Five years later, Alvaro Saavedra would set foot on the sands of Manzanillo, baptising them with the name of Bay of Santiago de la Buena Esperanza.

The bay was the perfect refuge for the galleons coming from the east during the colonial period. Many of these ships, such as the Nao from China, used to hide in Manzanillo in order to escape from the dreadful pirates.

Eventually, the sly and greedy pirates who dreamt of laying their hands on the valuable eastern goods, found the hidden refuge, so since then this part of the Pacific coast was bombed in more than one occasion by the furious seamen, thus creating havoc on the small shipyard and port cove.

It was only in 1825 that the bay got the name of Manzanillo, in honour of the homonymous flower (Camomile or Manzanilla in Spanish), which emanates its delicate fragrance throughout roughly the entire area of the bay. Its promotion as a city occurred in 1873, and in 1908 it got the denomination of official seaport, thanks to its connection to the City of Guadalajara.

Today this vigorous port city, located at 1290 kilometres from Mexico City, is the tourist jewel of Colima, a state of mountainous geography, with neat valleys and that narrow strip of coast on which Manzanillo and its beaches of golden sands, Manzanillo and its marina at which cruisers coming from all over the world anchor, Manzanillo and its perfect settings for the practice of nautical sports, is situated.

The amazing tourist development of this marine paradise is concentrated on its two bays: Santiago and Manzanillo, where you can find world class hotel compounds, such as Las Hadas, the location where the film 10, which consecrated actress Bo Derek, was shot by the late 1970s.

But the main attractions in Manzanillo still are its beaches: beautiful, warm, for all tastes. Some have serene currents, others are of troubled waters. There are also several ones hidden and many facing the ocean openly. A truly vast fan of relax and adventure.

And this sea full of beauty is ideal for the practice of sport fishing, because Manzanillo is considered "The World's Capital of the Sailfish", one of the most appreciated specimens by this activity's worshipers. Besides, important international championships take place here constantly.

Those who decide to visit Manzanillo must make use of their stay to pay a visit to the state capital Colima, a city of crossbred roots, renowned for its singular ceramics, called izcuintli (they have the shape of a dog), and for the monumentality of its pre Hispanic compounds, heritage of the most representative cultures in western Mexico.

Neither can we ignore the traditional towns of Comala and Suchitlán, or fail to breathe the bohemian airs of Barra de Navidad, a community of inspired artists.

Manzanillo is a warm land (the annual average is of 26 degrees centigrade) of beaches that conquer with the twinkle of their waves, and of adventures that become unforgettable. It is a place that leaves its mark on the travellers' souls, because it is not only the sea and the sun, but always a little more.