Top 5 Things I Love About Puerto Vallarta
***COVID……….It’s a individual choice to travel at this time. This trip was taken in early February, 2020.
Puerto Vallarta
The resort city of Puerto Vallarta sits in the Mexican state of Jalisco which is said to be where mariachi music and tequila originated from. PV is a city known for its beautiful beaches with classic Mexican charm. Here in PV you can spend your days lazing along the beaches or taking one of the many adventure/sightseeing tours that are offered. The Sierra Madre Mountains that are PV’s lush backdrop add to the allure of this city. If art is more your thing PV has many art galleries to visit. Simply walking along the famous Malecón you can easily see wonderful pieces of art.
I’ve been to this region of Mexico many times in the past but this was my first time to actually stay in PV. Previously I had felt that PV was too busy or commercialized for what I was wanting from my earlier trips. Not this time. This time I wanted adventures, nightlife, beaches, crowds, and an over abundance of food choices. PV fit my agenda perfectly.
I spent almost four weeks here in PV, changing accommodations three times, to get a complete view of this city. A wonderful time was had here, so wonderful that Steve and I have often talked about moving to this part of the world. With so much to love about this city it was hard to narrow down what to cover in this post, but I have picked My Top 5 things.
#1 Zona Romántica
Zona Romántica is “Old Town” PV, both of these names are used interchangeably. Zona Romántica sits along the busiest and most well known beach in PV, Playa de los Muertos. Playa de los Muertos pier is located here, the pier serves as the pick-up and drop-off point for boats taking you to many other beaches or islands you may wish to visit in the surrounding area.
The Zona Romántica has no shortage of restaurants or bars, any time day or night you can find something wonderful to eat here. The Zona may slow down in the early early morning hours but the Zona never truly sleeps. Also, the rooftop pool scene here is fabulous. There’s nothing like a rooftop sunset to get you ready for a night on the town.
PV has open arms for the LGBTQ travelers and the Zona Romántica has gay pride flags flying all around. This accepting aspect of PV has made me fall in love with this city even deeper and it’s why we choose to stay in this area for the first part of our trip. Any place that accepts all love is a place I want to be.
#2 Malecón
The word Malecón means esplanade or sea wall in english. In PV this 12 block 1 mile long esplanade runs along the Bay of Banderas. When in PV this is the “must see” sight of the entire city. Here on the Malecón you can stroll slowly along day or night and know that most of the city’s action takes place somewhere along this walking path.
The Malecón is closed to vehicle traffic now and has been updated with only pedestrians in mind. Therefore there are plenty of places to sit and relax with a nice view of the ocean. The Malecón is one of the more popular places to capture a sunset and food here is easy to find with many oceanfront restaurants lining this entire stretch. I tend to enjoy the food at night here along the Malecón better than during the day. Once the hot sun goes down the locals arrive with homemade foods of all types. They set up their booths or simply walk along peddling their tasty treats. Quick side note, make sure to always have cash/pesos with you, most street vendors do not take plastic.
There are 12 sculptures that dot the Malecón and make for nice points of interest and are seen in many Instagram posts. However, closer to the north end of the Malecón you can see the Voladores de Papantla, the Flying Bird-Men. There is a large pole that sits along the Malecón and several times a day you can witness this amazing show. This dangerous and colorful display of men spinning around a pole dressed in traditional costumes may be the oldest ritual in all of Mexico. When you hear their flutes starting to play, go find yourself a spot for this amazing show. Then when it’s over, drop a lot of pesos down for these flying acrobats. This ritual is an amazing sight to behold, you’ll be sorry if you miss this.
#3 Vallarta Adventures
We had two tour experiences with Vallarta Adventures on this trip. The first was to see The Rhythms of the Night - Savia by Giles Ste-Croix co-founder of CirqueDeSoleil. This was an incredible night that started with a sunset cruise to a secluded beach with a stunning meal followed by the main show. This night was stellar! Really, it is worth every penny. I look forward to seeing this show again, but it’s our second experience with Vallarta Adventures that really unnerved me, but in a good way.
The second tour was the Outdoor ZipLine Adventure. This adventure pushed me to the brink of………………..I don’t know to the brink of what exactly. I just know I learned a lot about grit on this day and I met my threshold of fear as well. When I originally reserved our spots for this adventure I knew that ziplining had never been on my bucket list but I knew it was on Steve’s list. So why not book it? I’m not getting any younger, better now than never is my motto. So when the day arrived we left the port of PV on a speed boat to the small village of Boca de Tomates. From Boca we boarded a Unimog that took us deep into the Sierra Madre Mountains where we took our zipline safety class, saddled up horses for our ride up to the beginning of this zipline adventure. Once we were atop the mountain an overwhelming amount of fear set in on me. I have never been afraid of heights before. Buttttt….. I had never voluntarily flung myself off of anything so high before either. I had to coach myself into lifting my legs to allow the zipline momentum to carry me across this huge gorge that laid in front of me. I don’t recall much of this first zipline but I do remember the tears spontaneously running down my face when I finally reached the other side. I instantly wanted to go home, like, back to the United States. Instead I told myself better to die out here having an experience than in a hospital bed somewhere back in the states (this is a morbid thought but when you’re a bit older, that’s what honestly goes through your mind sometimes).
We ziplined , rappelled down waterfalls, slid down hillside waterslides, zip lined upside down, and finished this day off with the new Roller Coaster Zipline. A roller coaster zipline is like free flying zipping mixed with the ups and downs of a roller coaster. Gahhhhhhhh, what a day! The staff were professional and safety was their main focus. I feel like I hated this whole day as it was happening but as I look over the pictures I was smiling for most of it, maybe from relief. Remember friends, you’re never too old to have fun, sometimes it just takes a shit ton of grit to get you through it.
#4 El Centro
El Centro, or in english, Town Center, is butted up next to Zona Romántica. These two neighborhoods melt together on their fringes, but if you turn away from the ocean and wander a few blocks deep into El Centro’s neighborhood you’ll find that the food scene here changes, gone are the over crowded restaurants of the Zona. Here you can find the restaurants that the locals are visiting and random street food stalls seem to be around most corners. The pace is slow here and you can find yourself sitting on the street curb to enjoy your meal. To me, this just adds to the charm of El Centro. The food stalls offer a variety of choices and some are only offering food either in the mornings or late in the evenings. Rarely will there be a stall that runs all hours of the day. So If you see a stall that looks appetizing to you, then you better try it, it may not be open the next time you pass it by.
There is a unique order to getting your food from a street stall vendor, in that it’s not what most people are used to, coming from the United States. Here you order your food from the vendor and then eat it. They allow you time to decide if you’d like to order something else, if you’d like one more thing to eat, all you have to do is politely order it. If after that you still want one more item then you simply order again. This routine can go on and on as long as you like, until you are full or you have tried one of everything they are preparing. It’s all up to you. This Mexican hospitality trait is most inviting. The food stalls will not offer you your tab, you must ask for it. Mexicans don’t want you to feel rushed, they want you to feel satisfied, full, and happy.
#5 All Inclusive Resort
After spending 10 days in each of the Zona Romántica and the El Centro neighborhoods we moved into the Hotel Zone and found a nice all inclusive resort for our final days in PV. The Hotel Zone is just what it sounds like, it is a long strip of huge hotels lining the beach area south of the Port of PV. I’ve found that most people are either pro or con all inclusive resorts and I have to say that I'm in the middle here. It just depends on what type of trip I’m after.
We decided last minute to add this part of our trip into our itinerary. We both knew we would need some rest after all the walking, adventuring, eating and drinking from the previous weeks in PV and we would need this forced downtime to actually rest. So why not sit around a pool all day? It’s been over a decade since we have stayed at an all inclusive resort choosing instead to see a destination for it’s more authentic nature. Though after thinking it over, I came to the conclusion that Mexico is synonymous with the “All Inclusive.” The All Inclusive has kind of morphed into an authentic part of Mexico’s tourism and as such, is now a true part of Mexico. I guess what I’m trying to convey is, a trip to Mexico can be whatever your wanting from a stay here.
We stayed at a lovely resort with two pool areas, each with swim up bars and access to the beach. We were up early each day to get the prime poolside spot and we stayed there until after sunset. This was a relaxing end to an otherwise busy fun filled extravaganza from the weeks prior. We played pool volleyball daily, read from the many books we had packed, took part in pool yoga classes and napped under the palapas. There were no more walks from our AIRBNB to a restaurant and we no longer needed to grocery shop for our basic daily needs. Not to mention we were almost out of our clean clothing and who needs clothing at an all inclusive in Mexico? You truly only need a bathing suit. Ahhhhhh, relaxation never felt so good.
Puerto Vallarta offers so many choices and different ways one can plan their next trip. You can be as busy or as chill as you would like. With the beautiful lush mountain backdrop, ocean views, and Mexican hospitality, it’s no wonder why we have the urge to move and live on this part of the planet. It feels like home.
Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. This church dominates the PV skyline and can be seen from most places in the El Centro neighborhood. All around this church are restaurants and shops. The doors have always been wide open every time I’ve passed by and there is typically some type of activity happening here.
Puerto Vallarta sunset .
