Visiting Puerto Vallarta - Part 1

Puerto Vallarta is a beach resort city that is on the Pacific Coast of Mexico. It is at the centre of the, 5 mile wide, Banderas Bay where the states of Jalisco and Nayarit meet. The Ameca River is the dividing line between the two states. In past times it used to be a colonial port and fishing town. The main town of Puerto Vallarta is located in the state of Jalisco, and its state capital is Guadalajara. You will find that locals and frequent visitors often refer to Puerto Vallarta as simply Vallarta or PV.

The centre of Puerto Vallarta is lively, colourful and awash with the heritage of the area. Visitors are met by quaint and modest handmade adobe brick houses, as well as colonial style buildings which are mostly whitewashed stucco with orange tiled roofs. Along the cities narrow, winding cobblestone streets you will find a wonderful range of boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, bars, shops and street vendors. The one must do of any visit is to take a stroll along Puerto Vallarta’s picturesque Malecon. This is the cities one mile long oceanfront walk that follows the beach as it parallels the main street in downtown Puerto Vallarta.

Around the whole Banderas Bay area you will see the merging of traditional culture with modern resort architecture. You can easily find some of the few remaining beach towns in Mexico that have still kept their historic old town colonial appearance. All this is on offer while still being close to a top range resort with modern amenities. The area has several movie theatres, upscale shopping malls, lots of Starbucks coffee houses and many other U. S. restaurant franchises. If you decide to stay in a self-catering apartment then you will also find Costco, two Sam’s Clubs, Super Walmart and a Home Depot.

One thing that you need to know more than in most locations is the cruise ship schedule which can be found with an easy internet search. Returning visitors who have been to Puerto Vallarta know that during the days the cruise ships are in port the prices for souvenirs are often much higher than normal. When there is a large flow of customers filling their stands the sellers are not inclined to part with their wares at lower prices. Tourists are normally able to bargain these items down when the number of visitors is not as great.

When two or three cruise ships are scheduled to be in port at the same time, many of the adventure tours around the area sell out fast. So if you are making plans for travel to Puerto Vallarta and you have decide on experiencing a specific tour or adventure it would be a good idea to be aware of cruise ship arrival dates. Once you have this information you will be able to put together a plan of the excursions you want to do and then you can make tour reservations ahead of your arrival.

Visiting Puerto Vallarta is continued in Part 2.