Three Days in Puerto Vallarta by by Jill K. Robinson

Right on the Pacific Ocean, Puerto Vallarta has it all: coastal waters, lush jungle, luxe resorts, relaxing spas—and it’s the base for a variety of adventures. Even if you can’t spend an entire week in this Mexican seaside destination, here’s how to enjoy your vacation in a town where it’s almost impossible to have a bad day.

Arrival

Arrive in Puerto Vallarta just in time to settle in to you room at the CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa in the Marina Vallarta and watch the sun set over Banderas Bay.

The hotel’s 404 luxury guest rooms and 29 suites include either a private balcony or terrace, and mine looked out over the garden with a view of the pool and the ocean. The CasaMagna is conveniently situated on the beach (with a luxurious family pool for loungers), near golf courses and within an easy walk to shops and restaurants in Marina Vallarta.

Take it easy on the first night and have dinner at La Estancia, the restaurant at the CasaMagna. Offering authentic Mexican regional cuisine with a blend of the contemporary and traditional, this sleek restaurant completed a $1.3 million makeover in 2008 and makes it easy to forget about any travel hassles earlier in the day. Be sure to ask for a sample of the hotel’s private-label tequila—its production is overseen by the CasaMagna’s own tequila sommelier.

CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa. Paseo La Marina 435, Marina Vallarta. Tel. +52-322-226-0000. www.marriott.com

 

• The CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa.

Day One

After a leisurely breakfast at La Estancia (its breakfast buffet includes made-to-order omelets and chilequiles, as well as a bevy of fruits, juices, sweets and more), head out to the main part of town—El Centro.

One of the best ways to begin your discovery of Puerto Vallarta is to just wander through El Centro and linger at places that catch your eye. Start along the Malecón, the seaside sidewalk studded with amazing sculptures every few feet. The Seahorse, installed in 1976, has become one of the most recognized symbols of Puerto Vallarta.

From here, streets radiate up to the hillside, and are rich with bars and restaurants, art galleries, jewelry shops, Huichol galleries and clothing stores. Be sure to stop at the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, a crowned church that’s named after the patron saint of the city.

Two of my favorite shops in this part of town are Dulces Tipicos Mexicanos con Orgullo Azteca (1449 Avenida Juarez, tel. +52-322-223-0707) and Niuweme Gallery of Huichol Indian Art (190 Guerrero, tel. +52-322-222-3419). The first is a candyland where owner Gerardo Muñoz creates delicious treats specific to the state of Jalisco (where you are), from candied pecans to chocolate to caramels. The art gallery is owned by a Huichol family and features the intricately woven and beaded designs for which the indigenous culture is known.

 

• The Seahorse sculpture on Puerto Vallarta’s Malecón.

Just south of Puerto Vallarta is Mismaloya, made famous as the site of the film, The Night of the Iguana. It’s nice to spend some time here, out of the bustle of the city, and see what the area may have been like before Puerto Vallarta really took off for tourism.

In Mismaloya, start at Tequila Don Crispin, and get a taste of the local tequila and raicilla made here. Raicilla is a distilled spirit made from agave, but not the same agave that’s used to make tequila. [For more information on tequila, read Fun, Sun and Tequila.]

Now that you’re loosened up, head to the El Edén Eco Park in the jungle where Predator was filmed. Here, you can take a zip-line canopy tour, swim in the river, chill out at the palapa bar and restaurant that overlooks the river, or particpiate in a temazcal (an Aztec spiritual cleansing and purifying ceremony) at Spa Mayahuel.

The temazcal typically takes five hours, although I participated in an abbreviated one. The ritual involved mud, refreshing water, a sweat lodge and a shaman who told us to “move your asses” when we were too slow following his lead.

El Edén, Mismaloya. Tel. +52-322-222-2516. Canopy tours cost $81 per person ($71 for kids 7 to 10 years old); the temazcal ritual is $125 per person. Transportation from select locations in Puerto Vallarta and Mismaloya is included in tour and spa prices. www.canopyeleden.com

 

• El Edén Eco Park offers zip-line tours through the rainforest canopy.

You can also get spa treatments back at the CasaMagna. The newly-built Ohtli Spa is 22,000 square feet of luxury. Choose from a menu that includes Swedish to Thai massages, facials, wraps and even a Fire Opal Balancing Stone Therapy (which is what I chose) that involves Mexican fire opals in a hot stone massage. Absolute heaven. Prices range from $65 to $230 for treatments.

After all that adventure and relaxation, treat yourself to dinner at La Palapa, located in a thatched-roof building right on Playa Los Muertos in the Zona Romantica (Romantic Zone). With heavy emphasis on fresh and local ingredients, dishes range from lobster tacos with jicama and red pepper salad, to grilled shrimp with tequila sauce (especially yummy), to adobo grilled beef filet with huitlacoche (Mexican corn truffle).

La Palapa. 103 Pulpito. Tel. +52-322-222-5225. Open daily, 8 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. www.lapapalapv.com

Videos about the Swine Flu in Puerto Vallarta

As you can see in the following videos, the swine flu has been controlled and its not very safe to travel to Mexico (it always was safe to travel to Puerto Vallarta)

See you at the canopy!