| | |  Travel & Outdoors 
Bienvenido to Welcoming Puerto Vallarta
 Matthew Link - Miami Herald
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August 10, 2010
| Representing the highest quality gay-friendly vacation accommodations in Vallarta, PVRPV is your experienced and reliable choice for quality home, villa and condo rentals. For more info, click HERE.
Going To Puerto Vallarta
• Getting there: Itineraries from Miami or Fort Lauderdale usually include a change of planes in Mexico City, Houston or Dallas/Fort Worth, with travel time of six hours or longer. There are more options from Miami. Roundtrip airfare in mid-September starts around $455 USD.
• Information: Puerto Vallarta Visitors Bureau, VisitPuertoVallarta.com, Gay Guide Vallarta, GayGuideVallarta.com.
Where To Stay
• Blue Seas Resort, Calle Malecon 1; (1) 888-481-7444. Rates from $119 USD.
• Casa Cupula, 129 Callejon de la Igualdad; (1) 866-352-2511. Rates from $119 USD.
• Casa Pericos, La Punta, Yelapa; 888-213-7733. Rates from $95 USD.
Where To Eat
• Joe Jack's Fish Shack, 212 Basilio Badillo; 011-52-322-222-2099. Entrees from $10 USD.
• El Arrayan, 344 Allende; 011-52 322-222-7195. Entrees from $13 USD.
• The Beach House, 182 Amapas; 011-52-322-222-3198. Entrees from $15 USD.
Nightlife
• Club Mañana, 290 V. Carranza; 011-52-322-222-7772.
• Anthropology, 101 Morelos, Plaza Río; (no phone).
• Blue Sunset, 4 Malecón y Almendro (at Hotel Blue Chairs); 011-52-322-222-5040.
Daylife
• Diana's Gay Cruise, 011-52-322-222-1510
• Liquid Men, 245 Ignacio L. Vallarta; 011-52-322-223-3165. | |
Our neighbor to the south has been making great gay gains of late: Mexico City allows same-sex marriage, and there is talk of extending the law all across Mexico. And nowhere is Mexico's new gay vitality on show than in Puerto Vallarta.
Calling this seaside resort city the "San Francisco of Mexico" is not too far from the truth. With about half a million population, Puerto Vallarta may not have the sheer gay numbers of larger Mexico City or Acapulco, but the GLBT presence is overwhelmingly felt here.
Nearly 20 gay bars and clubs jam Puerto Vallarta's streets, and most of the city's open-air restaurants have same-sex couples lounging at their tables. Puerto Vallarta hosts more than a dozen LGBT hotels and guesthouses, and there are daily gay booze cruises, horseback riding tours, gay bingo events, drag shows, go-go bars, and even queer ziplining trips in the nearby rain forests.
And no trip to gay Mexico is complete without sunning in a Speedo along Vallarta's predominantly gay beach of Blue Chairs and its immediate neighbor to the south, Green Chairs.
Located in the Pacific state of Jalisco, Puerto Vallarta is sandwiched between lush tropical mountains and the gorgeous Banderas Bay, Mexico's largest. "PV" attracts not only a swath of gay American and European travelers (particularly in winter), but also its fair share of queer Mexican visitors.
Unwary straight foreign tourists, who may only know Puerto Vallarta as a mainstream port of call from reruns of The Love Boat, gasp at the sight of all the gay guys holding hands while casually walking down the city's streets. The locals just smile - they're some of the most gay-welcoming folks in all of Latin America, and they know which lavender side their peso is buttered on.
Puerto Vallarta is a safe and secure destination for American tourists, and far from the drug crime in other parts of Mexico. Despite its long popularity (tourists have been flocking here since the '60s), PV retains its small-town charisma. The Old World charm of cobblestone streets and white stucco houses is nicely combined with modern world-class resort hotels.
Most of the gay and lesbian infrastructure is in the Zona Romantica, while the "Hotel Zone" to its north has more of the sanitized and straight resort scene.
The city may be small, but it is sophisticated. More than 200 excellent restaurants serve a variety of cuisines. PV is also known as a major art center for Mexico, and you'll know it by the stunning sculptures along the oceanside Malecón, the waterfront promenade. Huge flashy nightclubs rock into the wee hours, while the beaches overflow during the day. Needless to say, no one leaves PV saying they had a boring time.
Where To Stay
One of the obvious choices for a gay stay is the Blue Seas Resort, because of its seafront location directly in back of the gay beach of Blue Chairs. The spacious condos here enjoy sweeping ocean views, a full gym and spa, a beach bar shaped like a ship, a thatched-roof lounge (often with live singers), and a classy beach restaurant. They even have their own dedicated parasailing boat.
Casa Cupula is another upscale choice - think L'Occitane bath products and 400-thread-count sheets. Amenities in the 19-room property include two pools, a gym, hot tub, complimentary gourmet continental breakfast (served in bed if you like), a heated pool, Jacuzzis, and free welcome drinks. The only downside is that it's a 15-minute walk downhill to the beach, and twice as long to get back up.
If you're looking for a romantic getaway from the hubbub of town, the new Casa Pericos is a gorgeous four-story oceanside villa in the sleepy village of Yelapa, about a half-hour boat ride across the bay. The luxurious gay-owned property consists of four large open-air rental units (the penthouse has two levels), overlooking a quiet snorkeling and kayaking bay.
Dining
Joe Jack's Fish Shack is an unpretentious seafood joint owned by a British ex-pat. The narrow two-story restaurant includes a lively rooftop patio dining room, and the menu is full of fun comfort food like huge burgers, iceberg wedge salads, and of course, English-style fish and chips.
El Arrayan is owned by Carmen Porras, a lesbian from Mexico City, and serves great authentic Mexican food - don't ask for fajitas or burritos! It's in a new building designed to look like the courtyard of a Mexican hacienda.
The Beach House is an upscale restaurant and bar right on the sand, just a short stroll from the gay Blue Chairs area, that was opened by Marco Quinonez, an openly gay former Four Seasons Hotel manager. You can sit at the terrace restaurant, or on one of their beach chairs all day and be treated like royalty as long as you spend a minimum of $15. The crowd here is a fashionable mix of gay and straight.
Nightlife
Club Mañana is the undisputed giant of PV's gay nightlife scene. This upscale club was fashioned from what was once a large private hacienda, and the dance floor abuts a courtyard pool and a cascading waterfall. There are a number of rooms and terraces, including a drag queen stage, rooftop patio, brick wall lounges, video bar, pizza bar and piano bar.
Of the handful of gay strip joints in PV, Anthropology is by far the classiest one. Housed in a large upstairs lounge bathed in deep reds, this comfortable bar has friendly - but not overly friendly - strippers who gyrate to mellow tunes on the bar.
One of the best spots for cocktails overlooking the sea is the open-air Blue Sunset rooftop bar at Blue Chairs Beach Resort. High above the beach, it's a tourist favorite with fabulous views and go-go boys and drag shows.
Daylife
Blue Chairs and the adjoining Green Chairs are the names of the gay area of the southern end of Playa Los Muertos, PV's main beach. You can't miss the bronzed boys lounging under thatched umbrellas and enjoying the beachside drink and food service, and the views of each other. On weekends and holidays, you'll want to arrive early to snag a lounge chair.
For ten years, Diana's Gay Cruise has been a local favorite. These full-day snorkel trips to the landmark Los Arcos rocks include a continental breakfast, snacks, a lunch restaurant stop, and all you can drink. There's plenty of space and shade on the trimaran boat.
For gay shopping, you can do no better than Liquid Men. This high-end but reasonably priced gay clothing store has unique designs, as well as name brands like Diesel. Sunglasses, artsy jeans, shirts, undies, swimwear, and a cute staff - you'll find everything you'll need for a gay vacation here. |
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