Choose wisely. Connect locally.Add your business Puerto Vallarta is a resort city on Banderas Bay in Jalisco, where jungle-covered mountains meet the Pacific. It grew from a small village into the state's second-largest urban area, and it has kept an old town of narrow lanes and a seafront promenade alongside its beaches.
Puerto Vallarta was founded on 12 December 1851 as the village of Las Peñas, and it stayed small until the early 1960s.
The bay is one of the largest and deepest on this coast, with whales, turtles, rays and tropical fish. Behind the beaches the Sierra Madre rises to more than 2,000 metres, which keeps the climate humid and green.
This seafront promenade stretches over about 12 blocks in Centro and dates from 1936.
This church, which has a Renaissance-style tower, stands in the old town and is the heart of celebrations for the Virgin of Guadalupe on 12 December. Step in during the day, then continue to the Plaza de Armas, the town square.
The Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe has a Renaissance-style tower in the heart of the old town. Photo: Another Believer, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
A lookout on the hill above downtown gives a wide view across the rooftops to the bay. Go late in the afternoon, when the light is soft, and wear comfortable shoes because the streets leading up are steep.
Mirador el Cerro de la Cruz is a hilltop lookout above downtown. Photo: Wikimedia Foundation, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
This narrow island in the Río Cuale separates Centro from Zona Romántica. Near the sea you find beach bars and vendor booths, and upstream they give way to a quiet park with galleries, relaxed restaurants and sunning cats.
Isla Cuale is a narrow island in the river that separates Zona Romántica from Centro. Photo: Another Believer, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The main beach of Zona Romántica has palapa restaurants where you can rent a lounger or sit for a drink. The contemporary pier extends into the bay and makes a fine sunset spot.
The pier at Playa Los Muertos is a contemporary design that reaches into the bay. Photo: RL0919, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Behind the Parroquia de Guadalupe, this small hillside area is where Elizabeth Taylor and other Hollywood names built vacation homes in the 1950s and 1960s. Some of the mid-century luxury architecture is still on view.
This small village on Highway 200, south of the city, is the place where The Night of the Iguana was filmed in 1963.
Mismaloya is the cove south of the city where The Night of the Iguana was filmed in 1963. Photo: Cintyafloars, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
About 19 kilometres south of the city, beyond Boca de Tomatlán, these gardens cover 8 hectares of tropical dry forest at about 400 metres. They hold thousands of plant species, and you can swim in the Río Los Horcones.
The Vallarta Botanical Gardens sit in tropical dry forest in the Sierra Madre foothills south of the city. Photo: Another Believer, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
The most popular snorkeling areas are the underwater caves at Los Arcos and the caverns at the Marietas Islands. Tours are easy to book online, and scuba diving is also on offer.
The rock formations of Los Arcos are a popular snorkeling and diving area in Banderas Bay. Photo: Feedmepaperr, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
From December to March humpback whale mothers and calves visit the bay, and tours take you out to see them with dolphins and porpoises.
Start with raicilla, an agave spirit from south-western Jalisco whose protected origin covers the Puerto Vallarta municipality. Jalisco classics also appear on local menus: birria, a western Mexican stew of goat, beef or lamb in chile adobo with broth and tortillas, and tortas ahogadas, a crusty birote sandwich filled with pork and drowned in chile de árbol sauce.
Taco stands are never far away, from tacos al pastor in Zona Romántica to the evening stalls around the plaza in Pitillal. The Mercado Río Cuale is a block-sized indoor market for souvenirs, and the Malecón and the Zona Romántica streets fill with restaurants.
Popular dishes to try in Puerto Vallarta
Zona Romántica is the old town core south of the Río Cuale, with nightlife, restaurants and many boutique hotels.
Centro lies between the Malecón and the hillside homes, with shops, the church and the promenade close by.
Marina Vallarta has a yacht harbour, restaurants and a golf course, and it sits close to the airport.
Hotel Zone is a line of large resorts west of the highway, with beaches such as Las Glorias and Playa de Oro nearby.
Where to stay in Puerto Vallarta
The climate is tropical, with a dry winter and a rainy summer. Daily highs average about 27 degrees Celsius in January and 32 in July.
Humpback whales visit from December to March, and sea turtles nest on the beaches from May to October. Carnaval brings a parade in February, Vallarta Pride is in May, and the Virgin of Guadalupe festivities begin around 1 December.
Puerto Vallarta's airport is about 8 kilometres north of Zona Romántica and has year-round international flights from Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, plus domestic flights from Guadalajara and Mexico City. City buses marked Centro run from the pedestrian bridge outside the terminal, and Uber, taxis and an official taxi kiosk are available.
Long-distance buses reach the central bus station from Guadalajara in about four to five hours and from Tepic in about three. By car, Highway 200 comes in from Tepic, and the toll road 200D is faster.
Walk the Malecón, visit the Parroquia de Guadalupe and the plaza, and climb to Mirador el Cerro de la Cruz for sunset.
Spend the morning on Isla Cuale and Gringo Gulch, relax at Playa Los Muertos in the afternoon and stay for dinner and the pier at dusk.
Ride the bus south to Mismaloya and continue to the Vallarta Botanical Gardens, or join a snorkel tour to Los Arcos.
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