Facts about Puerto Vallarta!

AREA:
1,300 sq. kilometers

POPULATION:
Approx. 375,000 inhabitants

CLIMATE:
Tropical, humid, with an average of 300 sunny days per year. The temperature averages 28°C (82°F)
and the rainy season extends from late
June to early October.

FAUNA:
Nearby Sierra Vallejo hosts a great variety of animal species such as iguana, guacamaya, deer, raccoon, etc.

SANCTUARIES:
Bahía de Banderas encloses two Marine National Parks - Los Arcos and the Marieta Islands - where diving is allowed under certain circumstances but fishing of any kind is prohibited. Every year, the Bay receives the visit of the humpback whales, dolphins and manta rays in the winter. During the summer, sea turtles, a protected species, arrive to its shores to lay their eggs.

ECONOMY:
Local economy is based mainly on tourism, construction and to a lesser degree, on agriculture, mainly tropical fruit such as mango, papaya, watermelon, pineapple, guanabana, cantaloupe and bananas.

CURRENCY:
The Mexican Peso is the legal currency in Mexico although
Canadian and American dollars are widely accepted.

BUSES:
A system of urban buses with different routes. Current fare is $6.50 Pesos per ticket and passengers must purchase a new ticket every time they board another bus. There are no “transfers”.

TAXIS:
There are set rates within defined zones of the town. Do not enter a taxi without agreeing on the price with the driver FIRST.

If you are staying at a hotel, you may want to check the rates usually posted in the lobby.

Also, if you know which restaurant you want to go, do not let the driver change your mind.

Many restaurateurs pay commissions to taxi drivers and you may end up paying more than you should, in a second-rate
establishment!

There are 2 kinds of taxi cabs: those at the airport and the maritime port are usually vans that can only be boarded there.
They have pre-fixed rates per passenger. City cabs are yellow cars that charge by the ride, not by passenger.

When you ask to go downtown, many drivers let you off at the beginning of the area, near Hidalgo Park. However, your fare covers the ENTIRE central area, so why walk 10 to 15 blocks to the main plaza, the Church or the flea market?

Pick up a free map, and insist on your full value from the driver! Note the number of your taxi in case of any problem, or if you forget something in the cab. Then your hotel or travel rep can help you check it out or lodge a complaint.

TIME ZONE:
The entire State of Jalisco is on Central Time, as is the southern part of the State of Nayarit - from San Blas in the north through to the Ameca River, i.e.: San Blas, San Pancho, Sayulita, Punta Mita, La Cruz de Huanacaxtle, Bucerías, Nuevo Vallarta, etc.)

TELEPHONE CALLS:
Always check on the cost of long distance calls from your hotel room. Some establishments charge as much as U.S. $7.00 per minute!

CELL PHONES:
Most cellular phones from the U.S. and Canada may be programmed for local use, through Telcel and IUSAcell, the local carriers.
To dial cell to cell, use the prefix 322,
then the seven digit number of the person you’re calling. Omit the prefix if dialing a land line.

LOCAL CUSTOMS:
Tipping is usually 10%-15% of the bill at restaurants and bars. Tip bellboys, taxis, waiters, maids, etc. depending on the service.

Taking a siesta is a Mexican tradition. Some businesses and offices close from2 p.m. to 4 p.m., reopening until 7 p.m. or later. In restaurants, it is considered poor manners to present the check before it is requested, so when you’re ready to leave, ask for «La cuenta, por favor» and your bill will be delivered to you.

If you’ve been meaning to find a little information on the region, but never quite got around to it, we hope that the following will help.

Look at the map in this issue, you will note that PV (as the locals call it) is on the west coast of Mexico, in the middle of the Bay of Banderas, the largest bay in this country, that includes southern part of the state of Nayarit to the north and the northern part of Jalisco to the south. Thanks to its privileged location -sheltered by the Sierra Madre mountains- the Bay is well protected against the hurricanes spawned in the Pacific. Hurricane Kenna came close on October 25, 2002, but actually touched down in San Blas, Nayarit, some 200 miles north of PV. The town sits on the same parallel as the Hawaiian Islands, thus the similarities in the climate of the two destinations.

MONEY EXCHANGE:
(caja or casa de cambio). Better yet, if you have a «bank card», withdraw funds from your account back home. Try to avoid exchanging money at your hotel. Traditionally, those offer the worst rates.

WHAT TO DO:
Even if your all-inclusive hotel is everything you ever dreamed of, you should experience at least a little of all that Vallarta has to offer - it is truly a condensed version of all that is Mexican and existed before «Planned Tourist Resorts», such as Cancun, Los Cabos and Ixtapa, were developed. Millions have been spent to
ensure that the original “small town” flavor is maintained downtown, in the Old Town and on the South Side.

DRINKING WATER:
The false belief that a Mexican vacation must inevitably lead to an encounter with Moctezuma’s revenge is just that: false. For the 20th year in a row, Puerto Vallarta’s water has been awarded a certification of purity for human consumption. It is one of only two cities in Mexico that can boast of such accomplishment. True, the quality of the water tested at the purification plant varies greatly from what comes out of the tap at the other end. So do be careful.

On the other hand, most large hotels have their own purification equipment and most restaurants use purified water. If you want to be doubly sure, you can pick up purified bottled water just about anywhere.

EXPORTING PETS:
Canadian and American tourists often fall in love with one of the many stray dogs and cats in Vallarta. Many would like to bring it back with them, but believe that the laws do not allow them to do so. Wrong. If you would like to bring a cat or a dog back home, call the local animal shelter for more info: 293-3690.

LOCAL SIGHTSEEING:
A good beginning would be to take one of the
City Tours offered by the local tour agencies. Before boarding, make sure
you have a map and take note of the places you want to return to. Then venture off the beaten path. Explore a little.

Go farther than the tour bus takes you. And don’t worry - this is a safe place.