Living in or visiting any new city, especially a foreign one, can be a bit overwhelming at first as you work to get your bearings.  We have compiled some helpful information on Vallarta in general, to help minimize the stress involved.

Puerto Vallarta is a new city by the standards of Mexico - only about 150 years old.  Initially called Los Peines, an earlier name for the Los Arcos Islands nearby, Vallarta was founded as a port for gold, copper and silver mined in the mountain village of Cuale nearby.  Shipped back to the mines was salt, extracted from the Tres Mariettas Islands about 25 miles offshore.

Due to the extreme depth of the bay, it never was really useful as a sea port like Acapulco was.  Another factor working against Vallarta then too, was the rugged terrain that made for a very difficult trip overland to any major city.  These features (remoteness due to the mountains and an extraordinarily deep bay), though, combine to make Vallarta the excellent resort location it is today.

Since Vallarta was founded after Mexico's colonial period, the architecture prevailing in the town simply doesn't rival the splendor of the colonial silver towns found far inland.  Instead, Vallarta has a much more modest and quaint style of stucco whitewashed buildings and orange tiled roofs.  The streets are simple cobblestone affairs rather than the glorious granite avenues found in the rich colonial towns.  It has left Vallarta with a far less ostentatious, but nevertheless beautiful, look.

In 1963 when John Huston brought the worlds attention to Vallarta during the filming of the Night of the Iguana, the town was still a very humble fishing village set in a tropical paradise.  All that soon changed, as the rich and famous discovered this wonderful place, and notables like John Huston, Liz Taylor and Richard Burton took up residence.  Expensive homes now line the hillsides, set in the lush jungle, and modern high rise hotels run in a line along the beach from the town out to the airport.  But the original character of Puerto Vallarta, including the cobblestone streets, still exists on the southside of town away from the hotel zone.  Today this area is called the Zona Romantica, and this is where you'll find Gay Puerto Vallarta.

Puerto Vallarta is located in Jalisco, the most conservative State in Mexico.  Mexico has a Latin culture, strongly influenced by the predominate Roman Catholic faith.  Latin cultures tend to be more circumspect with regard to clothing.  Beachwear, such as skimpy thongs, are not appropriate on the street.  This isn't the place to try a topless look on the beach either (presuming you're a woman)!  It is a tolerant city, but not one that deals well with nudity or demonstrations of homosexual affection in public.

This is the land of the siesta, the notion that the middle of the day is an extended break when many stores and offices are closed.  Normally the down time starts around 2 pm and places reopen by 4pm.  Government offices many times close for the day at 2pm.  You'll find that locals don't eat lunch at noon but during siesta, when the day is hottest.

Vallarta isn't a particularly large city, but is a narrow area running along miles of coastline.  The areas are known as (starting downtown and heading south, then north):

Located just north of the river, this is where the large church everyone calls the cathedral (but it's not one), the main square (called the zocalo) and the malecon (boardwalk along the waterfront) are located.  While this is not the real center of gay activity, which  is nearby to the south, it is where much of Vallarta's straight nightlife is located.  There are many shops, restaurants and galleries in this area.

Also known as old town or southside, this is the area where most of the gay venues are located.  A more bohemian area, with older buildings that have retained much of the old flavor of Vallarta, this area has cobblestone streets, and quite a mix of artists, shops, gays, and locals.  Part of the area is zoned for the late night entertainment.  Along Basidillo Badillo Street are so many good restaurants that is it known as restaurant row, and along Olas Altas Street there are bookstores and charming cafes with side walk seating.

Conchas Chinas

The mountains immediately south and east of the downtown area limit Vallarta's growth south.  These mountains are now home to Vallarta's most expensive area, Conchas Chinas, with multimillion dollar homes up in the jungle mountainside overlooking the bay and the town.  Many of the gay accommodations are here and in the area at the waterside below this area very near the gay beach.

Much further south along the mountainous coastline is the bay Mismaloya, where the movie Night of the Iguana was made.  There is a small village up the river here that is somewhat primitive, but the cove itself is lined with very expensive condos, villas and a resort hotel.  The remains of the set are still there and can be visited.

South of Mismaloya the coastal highway curves around breathtaking cliffside views of the bay, eventually reaching a bay where the Tomatlan river comes out.  Boca de Tomatlan is a small Mexican community, not very resorty or touristy, which many people enjoy for is simplicity.  This is the last town going south on the bay that can be reached by road.  From here on the south coast of the bay is only accessible by boat (or by a determined person with a burro).

Going north along the coast from the center of town you'll find a string of huge hotels and resorts, many with names you'll find in most of the world's resort areas, full of families.  This is the more modern and plastic side of Vallarta, the place where so many first time gay visitors book themselves only to change (or wish they could) to the gay hotels in the Zona Romantica and Conchas Chinas once they get here.

Just before you get to the airport you'll find the cruise ship terminal (where the Love Boat would dock!) and Marina Vallarta, a large modern yacht marina for about 600 boats.  The Marina is lined with condos, shops and restaurants, and is a lovely place, but not particularly gay.  In the marina area are several mega resort complexes (Marriott, Westin) and a golf course.

Going north past the airport, you cross the state line and enter Nayarit.  (Vallarta is in the State of Jalisco).  There is a large mega resort development area (without any town) known as Nuevo Vallarta (new Vallarta) which has a strong orientation toward timeshare resorts.  These places are nice, but very remote from Vallarta's gay scene ($20 dollar taxi ride).

North of Nuevo Vallarta you'll find the small village of Bucerias on the coast.  This unassuming town will likely eventually boom with huge hotels and development, but for now is a small community, generally more affordable than Vallarta.  Many retired folks from up north live here during the winter.  There are affordable restaurants and several small shops that often have cheaper prices than in Vallarta.

Beyond Bucerias you'll find the small fishing village of La Cruz.  This sleepy little town is waking up fast now that the new new highway goes out that way, but La Cruz has a mix of gringo due to the visiting yachts from Canada and the United States that anchor off the beach.

On the north coast of the bay, the headlands for the bay are called Punta Mita.  The original town that was there is now gone, replaced by the new mega-resort by Four Seasons.  Unless you're a guest of the resort, you can't get anywhere near this place anymore.