Puerto Vallarta in many ways is your typical coastal town where the activities include eating, drinking, and going to the beach.  Sometimes you can even do them all at the same time!  Why would you want to do anything else?


Food

The food in Vallarta is top notch.  There are so many restaurants with every type of food imaginable that I can't imagine anyone coming here and not getting fatter.  You don't like Mexican food?  No problem, you can eat at a different restaurant everyday and not touch Mexican food.  In fact we had some of the best Southern food (Southern USA, that is) that we've ever had and it was in Mexico!  You love mexican food?  Even better.  There are enough Mexican restaurants with enough flavor to keep you occupied for a while, or you can just grab a taco from a taco stand on the street.

Culture

There could be a little more Mexican culture, but for a coastal town, it has a good amount.  We have found that the coastal towns in general are less "Mexican" than other places in Mexico, but there seems to be a good number of Mexican families and enough of a Mexican feel to remind you that you are in fact, in Mexico.  And thankfully, people actally spoke Spanish to us when we would speak Spanish to them!  It seems as if most people speak English at least a bit, but it's always nice to have people speak in their tounge so that our Spanish can get a little better.

My Only Complaint

There are people trying to sell you something all the time.  While most are curteous, there are those who would rather shove a blanket in your face while you are reading a book telling you "Look, look!".  And then there are the time share salesmen...  If you are ever in a resort town and you are booking a tour tell them that you are sleeping on the floor of a YMCA (as opposed to a nice hotel) so that they won't bother you about their awesome "hotel".  I haven't been to one but if you ever get duped into a time share presentation, I've heard they are quite painful, so I would suggest not going.

I guess I have one more teeny complaint:  the ocean is cold.  Can't the heat it or put a power plant nearby?  It's freezing!

Overall, PV is a nice family destination that I would like to spend some time in with my family.  Oh wait, I did.  In that case, it was awesome!

Puerto Vallarta is a treat of a resort town, and is definitely more than a typical resort town.  It's situated perectly in a large bay that makes for wonderful panoramic views, and the community that's sprung up is good to the stomach and social life as well.  A diverse mix of Mexicans and Americans call this spot home and many more visit.


La Gente (The People)
Puerto Vallarta (PV) has a large US and Canadian Expat (expatriate) community, but it still maintains much of its Mexican charms.  There's a good size male gay population, which is downright rare to find in Mexico, and it adds to the liberal air of this town where many open-minded baby-boomers, gay men and Mexicans seem to peacefully reside.  (Including Susan and Dan.)  Of course it's a bit touristy with a Bubba Gumps and 3 Senor Frog's souvenir shops, but along side those it's easy to find Mexicans and expats opening so many small shops, places to stay and restaurants that there's something for everyone here.


La Naturaleza (Nature)
It's just beautiful here.  The large bay that PV sits in is said to be the former mouth of a volcano long, long ago, and now it's rich in plants and marine life.  Because it was part of a volcano, the bay is very deep, and dolphins jump as whales choose this as the spot to have their calves all winter long.  In addition to the long beach along PV, there are many beaches reachable only by boat, that although in prime tourist season it gets a bit overwhelming, they're beautiful spots to reach. 

The sunsets were fantastic.  If you're thinking, come on now, the sun must look the same everywhere it goes down, but after many stops along the Pacific coast, I found all horizons are not made equal, and many beaches aren't situated right for a good sunset.  We saw some really fantastic ones in PV with colors so bright you think they're only possible via Crayola Crayons.  As my grandmother, a painter, once told me, I paint the sunsets as I've seen them, bright and bold full of colors people can't imagine are realistic.  Believe me, Grandma was right.  Each sunset is as unique as fingerprints and a beautiful sight to enjoy.

La Comida (The Food)
Is just plain delish here.  With the large expat community there are many numbers to keep the masses happy month after month, but even more than that, the quality of the produce & seafood is beyond what I've had back home.  Sure it's like this along most coasts, but I had some of the best snapper, shrimp, freshed squeezed oj, and strawberries that I'll think back on fondly as we hit the road again.  Of course it helped that Susan was a wonderful chef and they took us to their favorite spots in town, and Kyle and I were growing tired of our PB&J twice a day routine.

Semana Santa (Holy Week)
Now It was the week leading into Easter when we were in PV, and the places was loaded with Mexican and some American tourists.  I mean loaded.  The beach to the right is usually scarce with visitors, but the whole place was packed.  Along with that was people trying to make a buck off the tourists, but also some nice entertainment.  We caught a performance of traditional Mexican dances from every region of the country (which is vast and HUGELY diverse we're learning).  The video includes some machetes and rope twirling.  It's a treat, really.


For more of our pictures in Puerto Vallarta, click Photos above or click this link.