Things to do in Puerto Vallarta: 9 experiences

3 to 4 hoursGo alone or with a tour

Every winter humpback whales come into one of the largest bays in the world to mate and raise their calves.

3 to 4 hoursGo alone or with a tour

A marine national park of granite islets off Mismaloya, with arches big enough for a boat to pass through.

A full dayGo alone or with a tour

Volcanic islands off Punta de Mita, bombed by the army in the 20th century and now a national park for seabirds and reef fish.

A full dayNo booking needed

A fishing village in the southernmost cove of Banderas Bay that you can only reach by boat.

Half a dayNo booking needed

A garden of orchids, agaves and dry forest 400 metres up in the Sierra Madre, south of the bay.

An eveningFree

The old town south of the Río Cuale, now the centre of Puerto Vallarta's nightlife, dining and gay scene.

1 to 2 hoursFree

A river island of shade and galleries, and the hillside above it where Hollywood stars built their houses after The Night of the Iguana.

An eveningNo booking needed

You are never far from a taco stand in Puerto Vallarta, and the best open in the evening and stay open late.

1 to 2 hoursFree

The bay faces west, so walk the seafront in the hour before sunset, past bronze sculptures, ending with dinner across the Cuale.