Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta was a last-minute selection as a holiday destination.  We probably picked one of the most popular weeks of the year, Christmas to New Year's, but it has been a very enjoyable experience.  Arriving at the PVR airport, we were just a few individuals in a long stream of people waiting through immigration and customs.  But it was all handled in an efficient and friendly manner.  After making our way through all the hucksters trying to sell time shares, we found our shuttle and were deposited at our luxury condo on a hillside overlooking the "old town" section of town. It appears that the Puerto Vallarta layout has old town at the south end of the bay, downtown in the central area, and massive hotels and the cruise ship pier at the north end of the bay.  The restaurants and shops are countless.  Many gringos here on vacation, but also many Latinos in town to celebrate the holidays.  The beach promenade is crowded.

Our condominium building was located high on the mountainside overlooking the city.  Definitely quieter, and a bit cooler with more breeze than the city itself.  The view was superb; we kept the sliding glass doors open and spent our time on the balcony or at the pool.

Balcony off our master bedroom.  Most nights we slept with the doors open.

The pool was heated; perfect temperature.  Our accommodation was far more than a place to unpack; we really enjoyed having breakfast and a few special dinners here, relaxing, watching the evening
 fireworks.

View from the balcony.

Restaurant prices are modest, and street food is extremely cheap; a street taco and a beer for less than two dollars.  I am surprised by how much business is done in US dollars.  Wonder if that isn't a reflection on the current leftist government causing instability?  Taxis here are also a bargain; why walk up the steep hill from the beach to our condo when a taxi is about $3?  Many first class hotels, stores, and restaurants; but around the edges you still see the trash, disorganization, and poverty of a third world nation.  We included our daughter & son-in-law in this trip.  Somewhere along the way, they had credit card information stolen and several hundred dollars in false purchases were rang up. Fortunately, it was spotted quickly.

We hired Manuel and his boat yesterday to take us snorkeling. Manuel did a great job; took us out of the way to show and explain as we went along. We saw three humpback whales, a manta ray, and a sea turtle along the way.  We didn't expect much in the way of snorkeling, and that is what we found. Some schools of fish gathered around some rocky outcroppings with significant waves.... which caused a complication.  Manuel's stainless steel boarding ladder, which was hanging off the side of the boat, came loose and quickly sank to the ocean bottom, almost 20 feet below. I was already in the water nearby, so I went for it.  Surface dive, kicking downward, then grabbing the metal frame and struggling back to the surface (heart pounding & almost out of breath).  This was my first snorkeling in several years.  Nearby were some scuba divers; but I really didn't take time to think before the recovery.  I am not ready to acknowledge that, with my 74th birthday almost here, I should be more cautious.  Stubborn fool.

Snorkeling area ahead. Crowded with other boats constantly maneuvering for position to launch or retrieve their groups of snorkelers or SCUBA divers.

A huge area of handicraft and souvenir stalls is located under the trees along the river.  I can't imagine that these sellers make much money.  Meghan is in the foreground.

The beach was always crowded and why not; the conditions were perfect.  Our condo was about a 10-15 minute walk to the beach; a little more going uphill to return.

Porto Vallarta beach at sunset.  I only brought my inexpensive underwater camera on this trip which means I missed some better photos.  Even my underwater photos didn't turn out; slow shutter speed with a small sensor.

One nice thing about tropical vacations: all you need to pack are T-shirts, shorts, and sandals.  We are loving our condo: 24/7 security guard, infinity pool, and music on request from Alexa among other features.  For food, we initially went to the Mega Mart, which is equivalent to the best Wal-Mart you can find, but required a taxi to get there since it is located in the newer northern part of the city.  For re-stocking, we found a local carneceria and panaderia.  Between our limited Spanish and their limited English at the butcher, we had them cut some steaks off a side of beef for us. Finishing a treat from the bakery, we were depositing the container in a nearby trash bag when a man asked if we were disappointed with the food.  Shockingly, he was hoping that we had left part of it uneaten so that he could finish it! We encountered people going through trash bags at several points in our walks.

We arranged an ATV tour yesterday.  Big disappointment: it started with 30 minutes of travel through rundown neighborhoods, leading to crude farm roads connecting isolated ranchettes on the mountain sides, then ending at a remote cash bar for drinks (not us).  On the way back, we were subjected to a sales pitch for local tequila.  I am sure there must be better such tours; avoid "Unique ATV tours".  The employees were friendly, but the operation was poorly designed.  On a previous ATV trip in Costa Rica, it was just Dawn, me, and our guide on ATVs following jungle trails.  This time it was a parade of 18 ATVs thundering down the roads.

Recommendations on how much cash to bring are difficult.  Large establishments will accept credit cards. Smaller mercatos, taxis, tips, and other vendors want pesos.  Excursions want pesos, or dollars at a discounted exchange rate.  At the ATMs, the exchange rate is okay, but additionally you are charged a transaction fee of about $3.00 per exchange by the local bank and Chase Bank charges us an additional $10 per conversion.  Better to bring your pesos with you. I use a mental conversion rate of 20 to 1; thus, 1000 pesos is a bit more than $50, which is about what we spent per day.