La Chocolatera sits on Ecuadorian Navy property, inside the Base Naval de Salinas, but tourists are allowed in with nothing more than an ID check at the gate. The base was strategically important during the twentieth century, guarding the northwestern approach to the country, and it still is, but the navy has learned to coexist with the tourism economy that has grown around its perimeter. The headland itself offers a panorama that goes on forever: open ocean to the west, sea lions on the rocks below, pelicans skimming the waves. Surfers arrive at low tide for the left-breaking waves that form here, which are excellent but experienced-only. The bluff is not a swimming beach. The currents are dangerous and the rocks unforgiving. What it is instead is a viewpoint, the continental edge, the place where South America gives up and lets the Pacific do what the Pacific does.

Punta Carnero, a ten-minute drive from Salinas, is where the surfers actually go to surf. The beach runs 2.6 kilometers of fine sand between a rocky headland at its southeastern end, and the waves are remarkably consistent year-round. Water temperatures average 24 degrees Celsius. Other nearby surf breaks include Chulluype and Mar Bravo, and Punta Carnero has hosted international surf competitions multiple times. The waves here are strong enough to be challenging and consistent enough to be reliable, which is a rare combination. The sun is intense; SPF 50 is not optional. The wind comes off the ocean in the afternoon and sometimes sand-blasts the less prepared. Surfers love it for those same conditions. The sunset from Punta Carnero, when the sky fills with orange and pink and the waves keep rolling in unchanged, is among the best on the Ecuadorian coast.

From June through October, humpback whales gather in the warm waters off the coast of Ecuador for their annual mating and calving. Whale-watching boats leave from Salinas and other coastal towns throughout the season, and tours often run up toward Machalilla National Park, the protected marine area centered around Puerto Lopez and Isla de la Plata. Songs of the males, which can last twenty minutes, carry through the hulls of the boats, a sound that no amount of description quite prepares you for. Mothers with newborn calves swim close to the surface. Acrobatic breaches are common; pairs or small pods rise almost entirely out of the water before crashing back down in explosions of foam. Expert guides accompany most tours, and the whale season is the single most distinctive experience the central Ecuadorian coast offers. Bird watching is a natural companion, with Punta Carnero supporting a varied population of seabirds and shorebirds.

The Malecon, Salinas's beachfront promenade, is where the city assembles at night. Cevicheria after cevicheria serves shrimp ceviche and arroz marinero, the seafood-and-rice dish that defines coastal Ecuadorian cooking. Mar y Tierra is among the most established restaurants in town, a name that locals cite when asked where to eat. Cevichelandia and la Lojanita, on the street one block back from the Malecon, compete for the title of best cheap ceviche. Carloncho on the main promenade serves one of the better arroz con menestra, the rice-and-lentils combination that turns up on every coastal menu. Pilsener and Pilsener Light flow through the evening. Artisans selling jewelry made from shells and other local materials line the Malecon, and the nightclubs open late. In 2023, reports of motorcycle-based crime targeting tourists increased, and travelers are advised to take normal precautions after dark.