Puerto Vallarta is said to be the safest place in Mexico for tourists and a city I'm visiting for the first time. Jungle, mountains, ocean - pick your poison. Or don't; in PV, you can have it all.
On the beach with a Dos Equis, Santana blares through the speakers - a dance version of Black Magic Woman. With an hour to waste before kayaking, I sit with a copy of Patti Smith's Just Kids in my lap, wondering how I got so lucky.
This is a resort town. There are still guys that walk the beach selling artisanal jewelry and blankets. "Hola, no gracias," I say, before turning back to my book. It's hot out and a grueling job, I suppose, to drag a bag of tchotchkes up and down the sand. I ponder if it's enough to make a living. But it seems like, in PV, locals have living all figured out. It's about experiences, not things, and I get it.
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Three highlights of my trip:
Spending a night out on the town. Downtown PV (cobblestone streets, ocean breeze) has a weekly art walk that I'd highly recommend working into your itinerary. Local galleries stay open a little later than usual and some have free snacks and drinks for visitors. Art walk is also close to the Malecon, so strolling down this 11-block seaside promenade and maybe dropping into a bar or restaurant for cocktails and dancing is a must. Both locals and tourists hang around this part of town.
Observing an assisted Sea Turtle release (those cute little suckers have a 10% chance of making it on their own, but the odds of survival go up to 30% in an assisted release) at the hotel. Mexico has developed one of the most advanced sea turtle protection programs globally, and I think that's pretty cool.
Tasting tequila at the top of a mountain. Rancho Verano is the one and only tequila distillery in Banderas Bay and drinking, I mean learning, about tequila is always a good time.
Though I'm sure I've said it already, I'll say it again: I am so in love with Mexico and everything it has to offer. More about my trip to PV and the stellar Hyatt Ziva hotel experience here.
Though I'm sure I've said it already, I'll say it again: I am so in love with Mexico and everything it has to offer. More about my trip to PV and the stellar Hyatt Ziva hotel experience here.
