Home is not where you are from, it is where you belong. Some of us travel the whole world to find it. Others find it in a person.”
Beau Taplin
What to expect
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Back to long distance
After 1.5 years of living together in Germany and sharing an everyday life together, we are back to long distance – thank God for video calls!
The adjustment wasn’t easy after all that time together. Luckily, the time between the summer and autumn holidays isn’t long.
Just like in the previous three autumn breaks with trips to Mexico, Bali and the Greek Islands, we like to extend the summer time in autumn. That is why we thought it’s time for Mexico again. This time we decided to fly to the Pacific side (west coast) of Mexico: Puerto Vallarta – here we come!
How to enter Mexico in Covid times
In order to get to Mexico (at least in October 2021) you neither need a PCR test, nor do you have to be vaccinated to get in. All you need is a health form you fill out online which will give you a QR code after the procedure. Most of the time you only need to show this form/ the QR code when you LEAVE Mexico again. That’s it.
From Backpacker to Flashpacker
Blake’s friend Josh and his girlfriend moved to Puerto Vallarta about 6 months ago and we could stay the first two nights with them. But as soon as we got to their place, we knew one thing: we want to stay longer! Josh lives in a hotel called “The Peninsula”. It is located in the hotel zone right by the ocean and has the longest infinity pool in all of Puerto Vallarta. Being backpackers by heart, this was a major “upgrade” to the other accommodations we usually stay in. And since we didn’t have a concrete plan of what to do and where to go, we were very flexible.
Although I love making plans in “real life”, the good thing about not making plans on the road is: you can do whatever you like! This means you can either leave a place sooner if you do not like it there or – in our case – stay longer. Luckily, Josh was kind enough to let us stay with him for the entire two weeks – jackpot!
“The Peninsula” 
from the 42nd floor 
home for two weeks
Things to do in and around Puerto Vallarta
Besides enjoying the pool and the incredible sunsets from the balcony, there are many things you can do in and around Puerto Vallarta.
- do a free walking tour around Puerto Vallarta (we do them in every town, because 1: they are free and 2: you get a good overview of the city and its history)
- watch the impersonator of Sam Smith, Lady Gaga and Freddy Mercury perform live at the Palm Cabaret
- go diving or snorkelling and swim with sea turtles
- learn about baby turtles and release them into the ocean (October is a perfect month for that)
- go on a taco street food tour (be prepared to roll home)
- take the local bus to the beach town Bocas de Tomatlan and do a hike/ coastal walk to Colomitos Beach
start: Bocas de Tomatlan 
end: Colomitos
- once at Colomitos Beach, have lunch at Ocean Grill and take the water taxi back to Bocas de Tomatlan or even all the way back to Puerto Vallarta (if you are more in a relaxed holiday mood, you can also take the water taxi both ways)
- party in one of Puerto Vallarta’s famous night clubs (eg. Code) or sing in a karaoke bar (eg. Kooky Karaoke)
- take a bus, taxi or uber to the surf town Sayulita (about an hour away from Puerto Vallarta) and a golf cart to explore the town
- you can also rent a surfboard
- get a massage on the beach with the sound of the ocean in the background (definitely try to bargain here!)
- enjoy sunset
- explore the fisherman town Quimixto and do a hike to the waterfall. (Again, if you are in a lazy mood, you can also ride a horse to the waterfall. But we think the hike that also leads through two rivers is more adventurous and makes the beer at the only shop by the waterfall more rewarding)
- explore the beach promenade “El Malecon” in Puerto Vallarta; also by night when there are lots of food stands and other night markets
El Malecon by day 
and by night
Where to eat in Puerto Vallarta
Surprisingly, we didn’t have dinner in town that often but we really liked Langostinos Restaurant and Bar and Joe Jack’s Fish Shack. “Langostinos” is perfect if you want to have dinner right on the beach (I’m talking coconut shrimps for starters), tasty cocktails and fresh fish and all of this for a reasonable price while watching sunset. Or try one of the many taco food stands!
Resumé of Puerto Vallarta
Apparently Puerto Vallarta is known for its cruise ships that arrive here daily. Consequently, we did not have high expectations of the city. Of course, we’ve got nothing against cruise ships (or people who enjoy this type of holiday). It’s just not our type of travelling as we’re not big fans of all the tourist masses that come into the town for one day and then leave again.
But we were both really pleasantly surprised by Puerto Vallarta. In the end we found a great combination of hikes, water & outdoor activities, partying, relaxation, sightseeing and good food.
Puerto Vallarta or the Yucantán?
If you only had time for one side, we’d still prefer the Yucatán area, mainly because of three reasons:
- it’s the Caribbean side (I’m talking turquoise water and white sandy beaches)
- we prefer the food there (lots of fresh seafood, guacamole with chips and tasty tacos)
- we loved exploring the different islands and towns in the Yucatán area (it was amazing to have a base in Puerto Vallarta but it felt more like a holiday than a backpacking trip)
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[…] On the other hand, we were both probably just comparing the tour with our taco streetfood tour from Mexico last year, where we both turned into two big tacos after all the amounts of food. So maybe it was for the […]