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What You Can’t Miss When Visiting Puerto Vallarta: A Place Guide

In order to get to know Puerto Vallarta, we suggest you take at least one week to enjoy this beautiful city. The tourist attractions you will find are really amazing and there is no doubt about it. In this guide we will show you some of the places we consider worth visiting so that you can take a most memorable picture.  So, prepare paper, pencil, and your explorer side for this fabulous adventure!

Historical Center  

The so-called heart of the city is one of the main touristic places of our destination.  Plus, it has been considered and declared a Cultural Heritage of Jalisco for some time now. In this section of the city you can find many interesting places that you can visit, among them:

  

• City Hall. An emblematic building built in brick, with red-tiled roofs, located between the boardwalk and the church.
• Plaza de Armas. A place where you can enjoy constant local art exhibitions, take a tour of our rich and varied culinary offerings, or join the community of locals and visitors and enjoy an afternoon of danzón on Thursdays and Sundays.
• The Malecón (Boardwalk). It stands out as one of the most representative symbols of the port, where our friend “The Subtle Stone Eater” and the staircase “In Search of Reason,” famous sculptures that cannot be missed in your photos, are waiting for you.

Here you will enjoy totally different scenarios during the day and at night.  In the morning you can walk around, eating an ice cream or having a fresh “tuba” as you walk along the boardwalk and enjoy the promenade, seeing the shops, sculptures, and of course, the incredible view of the sea.  At night you can enjoy the party, the bars, and clubs along the boardwalk, and see stone and sand pyramids.

• The open air theatre: Aquiles Serdán Forum. Located at the end of the boardwalk, in front of Los Arcos, it is a 100% family-friendly place, where you can rejoin walkers and locals to enjoy the clowns, music, theater, and dance shows on Sundays.

If you schedule your visit in May, you will be able to enjoy great events like the already recognized “Mayo Fest“, an event with which we proudly celebrate Puerto Vallarta’s anniversary. It usually begins on May 15, giving way to great cultural and artistic events that tour the heart of the city, culminating on the 31st as the official day.  You can join us to cut the cake at Los Arcos on the Malecón to enjoy concerts and fireworks to close this great festival.  Events that, without a doubt, you can’t miss.

• Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. It stands out as one of the most recognized churches in Mexico. From December 1st to the12th there are pilgrimages every year and during this period, this place becomes an amazing show full of lights, dance, and parades with allegorical cars, made with the inventiveness that characterizes us; all of which you can enjoy from the church itself or its surroundings. You can stop and delight in delicious snacks that you will find in the small restaurants that are placed around the plaza, and enjoy a place full of life.

 

Gringo Gulch

Up in the mountains, you will discover an area that was key to Puerto Vallarta’s development, the so-called Gringo Gulch.  This area is characterized by the fact that it is a residential area that extends towards the mountains on the north side of the Cuale River and was originally occupied by American expatriates, thus giving rise to its name.  This type of well-kept construction gave birth to the well-known Vallarta Style, characterized by cobblestone streets, white adobe houses crowned by domes and red-tiled roofs, adorned with iron railings and very colorful plants.  Here you can visit the famous, old Casa Kimberly, property that Richard Burton gave to Elizabeth Taylor, while they were living their great love story in 1963. When Richard Burton was filming the movie “The Night of the Iguana” by director John Huston, that romance placed the then town of Puerto Vallarta on the map by attracting the international media.

The Cuale River Island

Nearby is the “Cuale River Island,” a real oasis in the middle of the city, where you will find a dozen colorful stands with the most beautiful handicrafts, worthy of being a part of your private home gallery and of being taken as a souvenir.

Romantic Zone

One of the most visited by national and international tourists, this area has always been characterized by its bohemian touch. The architecture is based on middle-aged red tiles and narrow streets. Some of these buildings are now used as small art galleries.

The Romantic Zone also has a large number of bars, restaurants, and cafés that you should not miss. It is one of the best areas of the city, where you can take a break and enjoy the day and the company of family, significant other, or friends.

The month of May is also the set of the “Vallarta Pride,” an internationally-recognized event where LGBT pride is celebrated.  It begins on May 15 with different cultural and sporting events and culminates in the last week of that month, with art events, the well-known parade, and of course, the festivities that tour the entire Romantic Zone.

Marina Vallarta

If you are one of those who likes to visit the most attractive places, Marina Vallarta is one of those that should be on your itinerary.

It is a planned community with a golf course, shopping malls, and a marina surrounded by a large number of cafés, restaurants, bars, and even an art market on Thursdays, from which you can take a nice souvenir home with you. You can visit Marina Vallarta to walk along its boardwalk in the morning or at sunset, enjoying the beautiful view of the yachts, or you can go up to the lighthouse bar and enjoy the beautiful 360° panoramic view of the marina, condominiums, hotels, and golf course. No doubt you will be delighted with what you will enjoy walking around the area.

The beaches of Puerto Vallarta

A Puerto Vallarta sunset is something you definitely cannot miss because, if there is one thing that everyone agrees upon is that there is no sunset like a Puerto Vallarta sunset!

We give you 2 options to enjoy it: the first one is from up above. That’s right!  If you are in good physical condition, you can venture up to the city’s lookout “Cerro de la Cruz.” There, you will be able to appreciate the view of the entire city and see how the sun falls into the depths of the sea.  Without a doubt, you will not be able to go without a photograph from this point, because although it may be tiring, it will really be worth it.

But to appreciate the beautiful sunsets, you can also do it on the beach, where you can also feel the wind, the sand beneath your feet, and the sound the waves make when they break.  This is undoubtedly a super sensory experience that you should not miss, if you visit our beautiful beaches.  Below, we have a selection of the different beach areas.

Central Zone Beaches

On the beaches of the Central Zone you can enjoy a very good atmosphere among people of all ages. However, beyond just sunbathing and enjoying the sea’s salt water, you can visit museums, restaurants, nightclubs, and art galleries.

The main beach is Los Muertos Beach, which is one of the best beaches to relax, enjoy a good seafood meal, and watch the sunset.  Believe me, you will be looking forward to enjoying this beach for many more days.

North Zone Beaches

Undoubtedly, part of the beauty of Puerto Vallarta that you can not miss, are its beaches of the North Zone.

Beginning with those of the northern zone, which runs from the Historical Center to Marina Vallarta. Here you will find a lot of interesting places, such as golf courses, hotels, restaurants, bars, and nightclubs. This is undoubtedly one of the best areas in the city.

Not to mention the most popular beaches in the Hotel Zone: Playa Flamingos, Las Glorias, Playa de Oro, Boca de Tomates, and Camarones. In these beaches, besides sunbathing, swimming, and playing in the sand, you can practice some water activities, such as kayaking or flyboarding, and of course, enjoying all the natural beauty that this area of Puerto Vallarta has to offer.

South Zone Beaches

We enter another very attractive part of Puerto Vallarta, which are the beaches located in the so-called South Zone. The main beach is Conchas Chinas, named because of the undulating shape of the shells found there. This beach is recognized for being excellent for snorkeling and kayaking.

Palmares Beach is another of the best beaches in the whole area, as it stands out for its great vegetation, palm trees being its highlight. This allows it to be a very pleasant place to spend time on, and, if you want to go a little further, there are the beaches which can be reached by water taxis.  These are notorious for being semi-virgin, and the difficulty to reach them, makes them very well-preserved. Among the most popular are Las Ánimas, Yelapa, and Colomitos.

With all that we have shared with you, we are sure you will fall in love with Puerto Vallarta.  We hope you feel like escaping for a vacation to this city, and why not? That it makes you want to be a part of this great community.  It is one of the most important tourist destinations in all of Mexico, so it’s time to enjoy it.