What an amazing experience! You start off riding the Funicular up to the top of the hill and catch some amazing views on the way. Once at the top, we chose to walk the Iguana path first. It was fun to walk the winding path through the lush trees and watch the iguanas walk around. We walked the stone bridge over the pond full of fish, said hello to the beautiful peacock, and made our next stop at the aviary. Every 25 minutes they let a group in where you can see toucans, flamingos, macaws, and turtles up close. They let you feed them, take pics, and just enjoy their presence. We enjoyed the cactus garden and liked walking through the museum but the best part was enjoying a drink and some delicious food at the rooftop bar. I had a delicious mango mezcal cocktail and a beet tartar that tasted even better while enjoying with the incredible views. If you are in Mazatlan don't skip on this amazing experience! read more

See all

I wish it wasn't so hot that all the historical details and wonderful tour literally melted into my mind. But it did. If you book ahead of time, you'll get to see a intro video (we came late). The "funicular" train brings you up the rest of the property where there's a small staged bedroom, living room, deck, etc playing homage to the history. Next you'll tour the bird sanctuary that has multiple birds, deer, and a chonk of an iguana. (My boys' words.) The tour ends at the restaurant where you can enjoy the view with a pretty extensive menu of local ingredients. I don't know what the age is for free but we paid for our 8 y/o. Average $17 per person / adult. Shoutout to the gift shop; med price point but great quality gifts. Jewelry, apparel, bags, hats, trinkets, etc. read more

See all

The views from everywhere are indescribable. Take a step into history on a funicular ride. Admire the greatness of the port from the top of the Cerro del Vigía, where you will live a trip to the past inside one of the oldest buildings in the city. A must-see for Mazatlan! Beautiful location and views with a wonderful staff of people. A short stairway takes you to the gift shop and cashier, where you pay for your tour. After a very informative video about the history of this part of Mexico, a funicular takes you up to the main level of the observatory. There are beautiful gardens, and a historic house that used to house the observatory is presently decorated as a home would have been in the late 1800s. There is also a substantial outdoor bird habitat where they have rescued parrots and macaws. They give you food pellets, and the birds will land on you to take the food. There are also iguanas and one rescued deer. The guided tour is very informative. Loved the lush greenery and the cactus garden. The restaurant/bar was surprisingly good with its limited food menu (including a good-sized & tasty "slider" burger for the kid) and extensive wine, mezcal, tequila, sake, and beer offerings. Tips: Don't take a tour but instead explore on your own. Wander around to find a bunch of photo opportunities, and be sure to watch the history of Mazatlan video. read more

See all

La vista está espectacular de acá arriba! Fue muy divertido llevar a toda la familia y disfrutar de un trago en la barra y la vista del mar read more

See all

Really enjoyed a lot!. Better signage would help people know how to get to the various areas. read more

SPECTACULAR! A must for Visitors, breathtaking views, a great piece of history. Discounts for Seniors (take ID). Make sure you have reservations for the Bar as there was a wedding going on and everything was closed off unless you had reservations. We explored on our own and did the Cacao Ceremony with the Shaman...exciting! We started off with the Iguana Land, Cacao Ceremony up to the Observatory, Agave Garden and Aviary. Highly recommend a "Mazatlan Masterpiece." in my opinion. read more

See all

I loved visiting the observatorio in Mazatlán! It was one of my favorite parts of seeing the city. We had a wonderful, kind driver named Oswaldo who was patient with my broken Spanish. We also had a great tour guide named Carla who shared lots of information and was friendly. You get to see the birds rescued and interact with them. They like to approach you and Benjamin was the best bird to interact with. The views were beautiful and I couldn't have had a better experience! read more

See all

How could there be no reviews for this ??? I booked a last minute cruise with my dad and was scrambling to find excursions for the 3 port stops. For Mazatlan this seemed like something neat, not too much effort for a senior and not too pricey or time consuming. This was perfect. We walked from the cruise port to here and it was a leisurely 1.6km walk. When we got there they asked if we were from a cruise - we said yes and for $29 USD we got a private English speaking tour of the grounds, the funicular ride, a margarita or beer at the Sky Bar, and a ride in a nice giant van back to the port. Regular price is $23.50 pp for just the funicular ride and self tour. The old military observation point was filled with period antiques, the explanation of how agave is turned into mescal or tequila was very cool, the mango margarita was so tasty and the views were fantastic. The bird sanctuary was so so neat (the parrot named Hola who yells "Hola!" , the baby deer and the other parrot who hops on your back and tries to make off with a trophy!) . We loved it and the next time I'm in Mazatlan I'll be back! read more

See all

The observatory has been here since 1873 but open to the public to tour only fairly recently - and is well worth the visit - during the day for the various exhibit or at night for the bar. The view is quite good in most directions and this one is the quietest, most relaxing places in all of Mazatlan - easily reached by bus (and some day by zip line from the light house). Bring ID if you want any kind of discount. Recommended after paying admission is to watch a 10-minute video about the history of Mazatlan and then to either ride up the funicular or hike up the stairs to the top and then listen to the guides at each area rather than just walk around on your own. The best order is probably to go to iguana land first, then to a tequila exhibit and garden area, followed by the aviary, museum, bar, and finally to the cacao presentation, and then back down to the entrance and outdoor area. Depending on interest, a first time visit should probably allot at least 2-4 hours after paying - not counting photos before or after. read more

See all

When researching what to do in Mazatlan you will likely get the observatory as a suggestion. Wasn't sure what it was all about but thought it would be a great way to look at the city. Once there I was stunned. There are so organized and so caring of this place that it really shows. The views were magnificent (making me question if I really wanted to hike up to el faro anymore for pictures ) The bird sanctuary was nice to see all the different parrots and a few tucans. The iguana sanctuary has so many to look at, and I preferred it than paying 20 dlls to have the poor thing perched on your back. The small museum was filled with old pictures and artifacts. But my all time favorite was the Shaman ceremony . When I found out about it Ans asked the time the staff explained that although he would tell them a time, he then would proceed And make guests wait another 10, another 5 so that he worked on his own time. We were lucky enough to have him say "come back in 20" and then have him open the door in 35 minutes but totally worth it. So there is no translation here for all my English speaking friends but I was so entertained by this shaman. He went into depth about our ancestors And spirituality And just all kinds of stuff. He then proceeded with the ceremony having you taste some juts made hot cacao straight from the seeds and even try the cacao seeds on their own. It all ended beautifully with a musical part of the ritual with every single person participating with different instruments for 44 seconds that makes you travel into some kind of trance. I loved every part of it, my 19 year old daughter...not so much since this was a total of a 1:44 minute long ceremony. I learned that he takes the time he takes depending on his feeling for the people present and how in depth the explanation is. Sometimes it can only take 20. In the end I understood how he doesn't work with ser times or durations. I appreciated the experience very much. Another must stop was the sky bar. The drinks were ok, food decent I guess but the view .... Breathless. We took our time trying to take in the beauty . So what is said to take a 1.5 hour all around experience, for us turned into a day trip and we have no regrets read more

Observatorio 1873 - Beautiful view from sky bar - Lounges Near Me - Mazatlán, SIN