PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO

Puerto Vallarta

PHOTO BY DEVON REGIER.
FRIENDS/PHOTOGRAPHERS: @LMACIUK, @MMMACIUK, @DEVONREGIER, @AMBIEGRAMS

Where we stayed: Hilton Puerto Vallarta Resort
Trip Highlight: Sayulita & travelling with friends

For our second annual Mexico trip with the Macuiks, we invited our friends Devon and Amber. We choose Puerto Vallarta because of the short flight time from Vancouver, meaning we would enjoy more vacation and less flying.

The hotel we chose was near to the airport but not so close you hear planes day and night, making for a quick transfer. It was also a fifteen-minute drive to the Malecon Boardwalk, a seaside boardwalk with lots of shops and restaurants to check out. The Hilton hotel was fantastic, we must have visited in a low season because there were very few people there. They had a few of their pools under construction while we were there, but the adults-only pool was still open and where we spent most of our time. At the adults-only pool, they had an excellent sushi bar, so between blended Malibu and Coca Cola drinks, we were well fed. The food at the hotel was decent; it was your average all-inclusive restaurant food but an abundant variety and lots of vegetables. The drinks at this hotel were STRONG; they were delicious but punchy, we learned very quickly upon arrival that we should be pounding back drinks; Wils passed out on the beach for a bit during sunset. The rooms were spacious and clean. We had effortless access to the beach, although locals were trying to sell you hats, sunglasses and purses alike.

We really wanted to explore Puerto Vallarta and all it had to offer so we took a couple of trips off the resort. We spent some time at the Malecon and ate the BEST tacos at Tacos El Bigotes. This taco shop to the side of one of the Malecon bridges and it was bustling, so we felt like it was a safe choice. We shopped at La Isla, a very nice mall in the hotel district and a quick walk from our hotel. We went on a Tequila Tour with ATVs. The company was called Unique ATV Tours, and they were excellent, very professional, and fun. We stopped at a river where we could swim, drink Coronas and order food. Then we went to a tequila farm with some of the tastiest tequilas we’ve ever had. We bought a couple of bottles each before returning to the hotel.

Another one of our explorations took us to Sayulita. We rented the scooters from Cool Rentals PV, and the six of us drove an hour and a half, one way, to a little town. This town was amazing, we spent the whole day there just wandering and exploring. We had more great tacos, drinks and spent some time at the beach. There was so much to see and do; we didn’t want to leave. Thanks to a shared iPhone album, we have lots of pictures taken by our friends (who are much better photographers than we are).

See what I mean??

Thanks for the memories, Puerto Vallarta, we will see you soon!