Cabo, Puerto Vallarta & Mazatlan Excursions

[SuzieeQ01]

If you've been on the 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise, did you do shore excursions thru the ship or privately? If thru the ship, what were your favorites? If privately, what did you do? We don't want beach or water activities. We like to walk, learn history, see interesting sites, and eat good food. Thanks

[CruiserBruce]

If you look on the Mexican Rivera board, you will see many discussions on what to do in these ports.

[fkfad]

We did a shore excursion through the ship to go snorkeling in the Sea of Cortez...  It was such a memorable tour!!!  In fact, this is one of the few cruises that I am interested in repeating!!

[Heartgrove]

On our most recent cruise to the Mexican Riviera, we used three HAL excursions. All three were well worth it and had meals included. From Cabo we visited the town of  "Todos Santos" which has the Eagles inspriration for the song, Hotel California. The excursion from Mazatlan took us into the foothills to visit a few small towns including "Concordia" and "Copola" with lunch at Restaurante Alejandro. And the excursion from Puerto Vallarta drove us around the city with many stops, including a food market frequented by locals, before heading out to "La Dulce Vista" for a cooking class and tequila tasting.

[leerathje]

We have been on the 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise twice; once pre-covid and once just this past March. Like you, we aren't beach people.  Like @Heartgrove did, we did the Sierra Madre tour from Mazatlan....That tour we did in March, and it was interesting.  On our pre-covid tour we did the San Sebastien tour from Puerto Vallarta....Much smaller, and more intimate.  Up into the Sierra Madres again, with a stop at a tequila manufacturer,  a traditional lunch, a coffee plantation and San Sebastien....honestly, that was the best tour I've done.  Here's a few photos from the San Sebastien tour.

 

Edited July 19, 2022 by leerathje

[SeeSun&Sea]

The Vallarta Botanical Gardens are beautiful and offer an excellent walk, have (in 2019) fabulous food with tropical birds dining 10 feet away, and a stream at the bottom of the hill for a cool dip. Taxi, tour, local bus ... all go out and provide their own experience.

[disneyochem]

Have visited these ports numerous times and have done DIY as well as ship tours.  I tend to take the ship tours when I’m on my own on an excursion (hubby likes to stay on board).

 

If you are visiting during whale season, I highly recommend a whale watching excursion in Cabo.  In February this past year, I went on one of the best I’ve ever been on—multiple whales breaching, bubble feeding, etc. 

 

In Mazatlan, I recommend the Salsa & Salsa tour.  I’ve taken my MIL and others there.  You earn how to make quacamole, salsa and margaritas followed by salsa dancing.  Very fun.  You can booked through the ship as well as on their website.  You can stay at the hotel beach after the event and take a pulmonia back to port ($10).

 

We generally like to golf in Puerto Vallarta (El Tigre).  Sometimes I’ll make a resort day while waiting for hubby to finish.  Have been to Las Calletas (fun) and snorkeling.  Not the best but hey, it’s snorkeling!  You can also DIY by taking a cab downtown, walk along the malecon and have lunch at a restaurant on the beach.

 

Have fun planning.  We currently have three Mexican Riviera cruises planned.  I’m intrigued by the San Sebastián tour as well as visiting a turtle sanctuary.
 

 

Edited July 20, 2022 by disneyochem

[crystalspin]

On 7/19/2022 at 7:33 PM, disneyochem said:

...In Mazatlan, I recommend the Salsa & Salsa tour.  I’ve taken my MIL and others there.  You earn how to make quacamole, salsa and margaritas followed by salsa dancing.  Very fun.  You can booked through the ship as well as on their website.  You can stay at the hotel beach after the event and take a pulmonia back to port ($10).

Thanks for the recommendation! I have just booked the S&S shoreEx for our second stop at Mazatlan on next winter's B2B.

 

What would you do on your own in Mazatlan? We are doing a back to back of Sea of Cortez/MR then back to Cabo/Mazatlan/PV... Spending our Excursion credits for the first leg at LaPaz/Loreto. We're good and comfortable in PV on the public bus. Cabo is just Cabo. But Mazatlan is new to both of us.

[disneyochem]

1 hour ago, crystalspin said:

Thanks for the recommendation! I have just booked the S&S shoreEx for our second stop at Mazatlan on next winter's B2B.

 

What would you do on your own in Mazatlan? We are doing a back to back of Sea of Cortez/MR then back to Cabo/Mazatlan/PV... Spending our Excursion credits for the first leg at LaPaz/Loreto. We're good and comfortable in PV on the public bus. Cabo is just Cabo. But Mazatlan is new to both of us.

For Mazatlan, it all depends on what you want to do.  From the port I’ve hiked to the lighthouse; taken a pulmonia to the Malecon, and walked to a Gold Coast hotel and had lunch on the beach; and walked the ‘blue line.’  
 

The Blue Line is a line in the sidewalk that goes from the port to downtown.  Once downtown, you have visit the church, the market, have lunch, see the shrimp ladies—lots to see and experience.  All very safe to do—there are lots of other cruse folks walking as well as police/traffic officers along the way.

 

Here is picture of the blue line—it literally is a blue line (painted, tiled) on the sidewalk!

[TiogaCruiser]

For a couple hundred pesos you can jump on the launch and cross over to Stone Island, and spend some time on the beach. I went early one morning (walk from the port) and the beach was practically deserted. 🙂

 

 

[Lady President]

We were on a similar cruise this fall and had a good amount of OBC, so we took HAL tours at all three ports.  Cabo and Mazatlán we did the standard bus and walking tours with a little shopping.  They were both pretty dull!

 

We did like Best Of Puerto Vallarta: Cathedral, Fiesta, Tequila Factory & Buffet.  IMO, the tequila factory had good tequila in a variety of flavors and we liked the buffet food.

[fkfad]

If you are there during the whale migration, and if you are interested in marine life, a whale watching tour is definitely worth your time and money!  We saw humback whales everywhere -- we could see them breeching miles away!  It was awesome to see!!

[ChinaShrek]

On 7/19/2022 at 10:15 AM, leerathje said:

We have been on the 7 day Mexican Riviera cruise twice; once pre-covid and once just this past March. Like you, we aren't beach people.  Like @Heartgrove did, we did the Sierra Madre tour from Mazatlan....That tour we did in March, and it was interesting.  On our pre-covid tour we did the San Sebastien tour from Puerto Vallarta....Much smaller, and more intimate.  Up into the Sierra Madres again, with a stop at a tequila manufacturer,  a traditional lunch, a coffee plantation and San Sebastien....honestly, that was the best tour I've done.  Here's a few photos from the San Sebastien tour.

 

 

 

 

 

Did you book the San Sebastien tour through HAL or someone else?

[rajkr74]

We go to Puerto Vallaerta every year and have done most of the excursions offered there.  HAL uses Vallarta Adventures for most of their tours.  You should be able to book directly with Vallarta Adv. or thru HAL, compare prices for both.  Very good company.  Some tours leave from the cruise ship dock so its easy to join them if you book directly with VA.  They also have an office in the cruise terminal.

 

https://www.vallarta-adventures.com/en/

[LuAnn]

16 hours ago, disneyochem said:

For Mazatlan, it all depends on what you want to do.  From the port I’ve hiked to the lighthouse; taken a pulmonia to the Malecon, and walked to a Gold Coast hotel and had lunch on the beach; and walked the ‘blue line.’  
 

The Blue Line is a line in the sidewalk that goes from the port to downtown.  Once downtown, you have visit the church, the market, have lunch, see the shrimp ladies—lots to see and experience.  All very safe to do—there are lots of other cruse folks walking as well as police/traffic officers along the way.

 

Here is picture of the blue line—it literally is a blue line (painted, tiled) on the sidewalk!

How far is it from the port to town on the Blue Line?

[LuAnn]

16 hours ago, TiogaCruiser said:

For a couple hundred pesos you can jump on the launch and cross over to Stone Island, and spend some time on the beach. I went early one morning (walk from the port) and the beach was practically deserted. 🙂

 

 

Did you have to have pesos?

[TiogaCruiser]

29 minutes ago, LuAnn said:

Did you have to have pesos?

I’m not sure on that. I had them.

 

Maybe someone else can weigh in on that.😁

 

Edited July 22, 2022 by TiogaCruiser

[Hlitner]

I will weigh in on the Peso question.  For the record we have lived in Puerto Vallarta for the past 17 winters and consider PV our 2nd home :).  The quick answer to the Peso question is , NO!  You can manage in all the Mexican cruise ports with US Dollars!   But the question not asked is "should you use dollars?"  For those of us who live in PV (full or part time) we use Pesos and major credit cards (preferably cards with no foreign exchange fees).  Just about anyone you deal with (as a cruise tourist) in Mexico will accept US Dollars.  However, you will not generally get the best exchange rate so you are going to lose some money by spending dollars.  For most cruisers, the amount of money you lose (because of exchange rates) is not a big deal.  

 

Just keep in mind that many things in Mexico are negotiable.  So you should know the real exchange rate (Pesos to dollars) when you go to Mexico and keep that in the back of your mind.  Lately, most of us just think in terms of 20 Pesos to the dollar.  But this is all further complicated by what many of us call "gringo pricing" and to which I add "cruise tourist pricing."   What that means is that different folks will pay different prices depending on how they are perceived!  So, for example, if a cruiser grabs a taxi in any port and asks the price to a specific destination (which you should always do with taxis) you might be quoted $20 US.  If you ask for that fare in Pesos you might get 350 Pesos.  If I get in that same taxi and they quote me that price I might laugh and say, "I am not a cruise ship passenger" and the taxi driver might say, "200 Pesos!."  And that is the charm and curse of Mexico :).  If I were a Mexican and got i that taxi I might only pay 100 Pesos!

 

Hank

[SuzieeQ01]

Thanks so much everyone for the wonderful information.

 

[Longwood50]

These days Cabo is fine.  I would be very cautious in Matzalan and Puerto Vallarta.  

[dockman]

7 hours ago, LuAnn said:

How far is it from the port to town on the Blue Line?

not far...maybe 15 mins or so to the central square another 5 mins to the beach/ocean malecon...depends on your walking speed....

[Florida_gal_50]

8 hours ago, dockman said:

not far...maybe 15 mins or so to the central square another 5 mins to the beach/ocean malecon...depends on your walking speed....

For me about an hour then 😛.  I was going to do this the last time I was there but after walking out the gate I couldn’t stand all the noise and screaming to get your attention.  Are there several restaurants there?  I wouldn’t mind having a lunch “in town” for a change of pace.  Thanks for any information.

[dockman]

if you follow the blue line to the square there are several restaurants there...if you continue on to the malecon another five minutes or so walk  towards the ocean there are several bigger restaurants there that were affordable and have sea view...when u come out of the gate just ignore the touts and follow the blue line....nice feature...i wish more ports would provide such a line to help passengers find their way to central part of town...

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, dockman said:

if you follow the blue line to the square there are several restaurants there...if you continue on to the malecon another five minutes or so walk  towards the ocean there are several bigger restaurants there that were affordable and have sea view...when u come out of the gate just ignore the touts and follow the blue line....nice feature...i wish more ports would provide such a line to help passengers find their way to central part of town...

Excellent information.  Thank you!  I tend to be very noise sensitive.  Maybe I need earplugs.

[LuAnn]

20 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I will weigh in on the Peso question.  For the record we have lived in Puerto Vallarta for the past 17 winters and consider PV our 2nd home :).  The quick answer to the Peso question is , NO!  You can manage in all the Mexican cruise ports with US Dollars!   But the question not asked is "should you use dollars?"  For those of us who live in PV (full or part time) we use Pesos and major credit cards (preferably cards with no foreign exchange fees).  Just about anyone you deal with (as a cruise tourist) in Mexico will accept US Dollars.  However, you will not generally get the best exchange rate so you are going to lose some money by spending dollars.  For most cruisers, the amount of money you lose (because of exchange rates) is not a big deal.  

 

Just keep in mind that many things in Mexico are negotiable.  So you should know the real exchange rate (Pesos to dollars) when you go to Mexico and keep that in the back of your mind.  Lately, most of us just think in terms of 20 Pesos to the dollar.  But this is all further complicated by what many of us call "gringo pricing" and to which I add "cruise tourist pricing."   What that means is that different folks will pay different prices depending on how they are perceived!  So, for example, if a cruiser grabs a taxi in any port and asks the price to a specific destination (which you should always do with taxis) you might be quoted $20 US.  If you ask for that fare in Pesos you might get 350 Pesos.  If I get in that same taxi and they quote me that price I might laugh and say, "I am not a cruise ship passenger" and the taxi driver might say, "200 Pesos!."  And that is the charm and curse of Mexico :).  If I were a Mexican and got i that taxi I might only pay 100 Pesos!

 

Hank

Thanks Hank! I have been able to get some of the prices down from the "cruise tourist" price when buying items! 🙂  Do you have suggestions for a place on the beach to have lunch in PV?

Edited July 23, 2022 by LuAnn