The gateway to the splendid Riviera Nayarit, Nuevo Vallarta is the most developed tourist center of this entire strip, which covers 305 kilometers ( 190 miles ) of beautiful beaches. At this point, on the Bay of Banderas, the great hotel complexes are concentrated with an extensive offer of restaurants, spas, four golf courses, two amusement parks, two marinas and many seaside activities.
Nuevo Vallarta is located between the Pacific Ocean and the Ameca River, which is the natural border between the states of Nayarit and Jalisco, barely 13 kilometers ( 8 miles ) from its sister city, Puerto Vallarta.
Being a relatively young tourist center, born in the heat of its famous neighbor Jalisco, Nuevo Vallarta does not have a nerve center around a central plaza, but rather extends along its coast, escorted by the Paseos de los Cocoteros and Las Palmas.
The extensive and calm beach of Nuevo Vallarta offers the opportunity to rest under the sun or to swim in a sea with moderate waves.
Every year, these same beaches receive the hawksbill, olive ridleys and leatherbacks turtles that arrive to lay their eggs, so there is a turtle camp whose objective is to preserve these species and which, in season, invites visitors to release the small hatchlings at sunset.
The destination is also a magnet for sailing lovers, since it has two of the most important marinas in the country, with a capacity for about 500 boats: Marina Nuevo Vallarta and Marina Paradise Village, offering beautiful views for those who stroll along its docks.
To improve their handicap or to practice their swing in a golf course, visitors can choose between four different options. And, at the end of the game or after a day at the beach, it will be a good idea to let yourself be pampered in one of the spas that offer treatments both with ancestral Huichol techniques as if they were brought from remote corners of the planet.
The days in Nuevo Vallarta end with beautiful sunsets over the sea, but the night continues in its bars and night clubs, so that your vacation can be enjoyed until the last minute.
