That's good to hear because I really want to go to Cabo next. I felt very comfortable in Puerto Vallarta and we didn't stay in one of the all inclusive resorts. We stayed in the downtown or Al Centro area, about four blocks from the beach near the Malecon. Though still somewhat of a touristy area, we were surrounded by native Mexicans and people who just live there. Never had any time we felt unsafe or uncomfortable.This is awesome to hear. Makes me want to change my trip up and make it earlier.Enhance89 said:Just returned from 7 days in Puerto Vallarta.
Freakin' amazing. Swam with dolphins, zip lined and went on Mexico's longest/fastest zip line, went to the beaches, ate great food and had a ton of laughs with the people I was with. Highly, highly recommended. Things are insanely cheap as well, particularly the food, but there are a ton of peddlers/vendors constantly trying to sell you stuff which sometimes gets obnoxious.
Also, the public transportation buses are frightening and the taxi drivers are mad. But, they give cheap rides! It costs 7 pesos (basically less than 50 American cents) to ride a bus anywhere. Taxis will take you anywhere for about 300 pesos or about 18 bucks, as in they'll take you somewhere 30 minutes away. A normal cab ride to somewhere in Puerto Vallarta is about 100 pesos.
When we went to Cabo back in August, the bus rides were a $1 and that would take you anywhere you wanted to go. There were main buses that ran certain routes and those cost $3 and were a little nicer. The thing I loved about Cabo was that you could walk every where and not feel unsafe. I couldn't say the same about Cancun or Playa del Carmen.
I'm not sure where you're staying, but we did have some troubles finding a good beach. I'm not sure if it was the time of year or if it's like this all the time, but some beaches (including one called La Playa Camarones) and a beach near the Malecon were pretty rocky and choppy in the water. So rocky, in fact, it wasn't even really worth it to go into the water but just stay on the soft beach sand. Eventually, on the last day of our trip, we went to one of the resort beaches near where all the cruise ships dock and that beach was great. So, if you're staying at a resort, you may have an easier time finding a beach.
One of our guides mentioned a great beach in Bucerias which he said was the best one in the area, however, it's about 35 minutes away from Puerto Vallarta so we never made it out there.