Yelapa Beach - anyone have an opinion?

[Winterstale]

I find the descriptions of Yelapa Beach very appealing! There's a water taxi service that goes there and I'm wondering if it's easy to do on your own.

[gottago2mexico]

I find the descriptions of Yelapa Beach very appealing! There's a water taxi service that goes there and I'm wondering if it's easy to do on your own.

 

We like Yelapa a lot. Great place to visit for the day, especially in wet season when the beautiful waterfall is flowing. It's a fairly long boat ride out there, though, (20 minutes from Los Muertos Pier by panga boat) so if you have a sensitive stomach, plan to take a seasickness prevention like Bonine or 24 hour Less Drowsy Dramamine (not regular Dramamine, which can make you drowsy) 1 hour before boarding. It can make a big difference in your experience of your day. Also remember water taxis don't have bathrooms, so make sure to take care of that before you get off the ship. If the water is at all choppy, you will probably get wet, so dress appropriately.

 

To use the water taxi, you would take a taxi from the marina to Los Muertos Pier in the Romantic Zone, where they're located. Hire one and you're on your way. They are readily available. You don't get the snorkeling, open bar, lunch, or sightseeing aspects of an organized tour, and you have to taxi to the water taxi area instead of walking over to a tour boat from the ship, but it's very do-able if you prefer to travel independently, and of course it's less expensive since the level of service is quite different.

 

Hope this helps, have a great time!

[Winterstale]

Thank you VERY much! This sounds right up our alley -- we will be there in November - is the waterfall possible then??

 

It looked like a good beach to get some snorkeling in, too!

 

My husband and I both sail so seasickness is definitely not an issue :D -- we normally do charters in the BVI...but budgets being what they are, we thought we hop aboard the new Carnival Splendor and do the Mexican Reviera since it's close to home.

 

You sound like you guys do things "independently" too! Any suggestions for beaches in Mazatlan and Cabo?

[Winterstale]

Has anybody done the Carnival excursion on the sailboat to Yelapa? Do you which outfit they use for it?

[MSN-Travelers]

Has anybody done the Carnival excursion on the sailboat to Yelapa? Do you which outfit they use for it?

 

If this is the excursion you are talking about - http://www.carnival.com/ShoreExcursionDetails.aspx?region=MR&portcode=PVR&excursionname=Yelapa+Beach+%26+Majauitas+Snorkel+Adventure&excursioncode=305020

 

We haven't booked thru Carnival but we did book an excursion that sounds to be identical theirs a couple years ago. We booked a day-sail aboard Elia Mann, the only 68 foot sailboat I know of on Bandaras Bay. Our tour operator was, and may be for Carnival, Pegaso Chartering. Pegaso's current sailboat to Yelapa is different http://pegasochartering.com.mx/yelapa-waterfalls.html; however, Carnival may charter Elias Mann for the Splendor excursion.

 

The day we spent aboard Elias Mann followed the exact itinerary as described in the Carnival excursion.

 

The rainy season comes to an end in September and normally there is still a substantial flow of water over the falls in November.

 

Enjoy!

[Winterstale]

Thanks, yes - I saw them when I googled "68 foot sailboat Yelapa" so I thought the same thing - how many can there be?? I figured it was the same outfit.

 

did you enjoy your outing with them?

[MSN-Travelers]

Thanks, yes - I saw them when I googled "68 foot sailboat Yelapa" so I thought the same thing - how many can there be?? I figured it was the same outfit.

 

did you enjoy your outing with them?

 

The Elias Mann is a replica of a traditional American Sailing Schooner. It is not a like a party-boat catamaran and doesn't have a sun deck. All of the above deck cabin spaces have thick cushions for seating, the crew was really great and the food/adult beverages were quite good. We are sailors, knew that sailing winds don't arrive on the bay until 11:30 or so and mother nature was not on our side that afternoon. No wind ... but we ended up with a bonus on the way back.

 

A typical tour would have you motor to a snorkeling area on the south side of the bay, then on to Yelapa where we were given the option to hike to the falls or head straight to the beach/town to do whatever we wanted. I can't remember if lunch was included with the excursion but I do remember that we didn't eat until the waterfall hikers arrived on the beach. The Elias Mann sits pretty high in the water and people would transfer to a small boat to get closer in-shore for snorkeling as well as transfer to/from the beach at Yelapa.

 

There was no wind that day so we started to motor back across the bay. It was real sunny and hot so the captain shut the engine down in the middle of the bay and offered us the opportunity to go for a swim (with life jackets). Just as people started to jump in, a pod of dolphins appeared and "hung out" with the swimmers for about a half hour. It was a rare opportunity to swim with dolphins in the wild.

 

Since we are in Vallarta on an annual basis, this excursion was our way of checking out Yelapa before we made did the water taxi thing for a future day-trip.

 

Did we enjoy ourselves? Yes. Would we do it again? Probably not, simply because we accomplished what we wanted to do (snorkel the south bay & check out Yelapa). We enjoy day sailing more on a traditional sloop (like our boat) and often head out with Vallarta Adventures on one of their Beneteau's along the north coast.

 

Enjoy!

[Winterstale]

The Elias Mann is a replica of a traditional American Sailing Schooner. It is not a like a party-boat catamaran and doesn't have a sun deck. All of the above deck cabin spaces have thick cushions for seating, the crew was really great and the food/adult beverages were quite good. We are sailors, knew that sailing winds don't arrive on the bay until 11:30 or so and mother nature was not on our side that afternoon. No wind ... but we ended up with a bonus on the way back.

 

A typical tour would have you motor to a snorkeling area on the south side of the bay, then on to Yelapa where we were given the option to hike to the falls or head straight to the beach/town to do whatever we wanted. I can't remember if lunch was included with the excursion but I do remember that we didn't eat until the waterfall hikers arrived on the beach. The Elias Mann sits pretty high in the water and people would transfer to a small boat to get closer in-shore for snorkeling as well as transfer to/from the beach at Yelapa.

 

There was no wind that day so we started to motor back across the bay. It was real sunny and hot so the captain shut the engine down in the middle of the bay and offered us the opportunity to go for a swim (with life jackets). Just as people started to jump in, a pod of dolphins appeared and "hung out" with the swimmers for about a half hour. It was a rare opportunity to swim with dolphins in the wild.

 

Since we are in Vallarta on an annual basis, this excursion was our way of checking out Yelapa before we made did the water taxi thing for a future day-trip.

 

Did we enjoy ourselves? Yes. Would we do it again? Probably not, simply because we accomplished what we wanted to do (snorkel the south bay & check out Yelapa). We enjoy day sailing more on a traditional sloop (like our boat) and often head out with Vallarta Adventures on one of their Beneteau's along the north coast.

 

Enjoy!

 

Yes, my husband and I are sailors as well - we did a bareboat through Footloose in the BVI on at Beneteau (33 footer, small for two couples!) with some friends who decided to go at the last minute - my husband has owned 2 sailboats - I just got certified in the BVI last summer so this was our first "solo" sail and we had a GREAT time!

 

Thanks for the feedback -- we may decide to do this excursion, I'm not sure. It's pretty pricey for both of us -- and we've done Windjammer a few times in the past so it's not like we need the "big wooden ship" experience!

 

Was the snorkeling good enough not to miss? We have pretty high standards in that area having snorkeled so much in the BVI - hard to beat Monkey Point!;)

[mpbmark]

Not that Yelapa isn't worth the trip, because it is. Keep in mind, however, this is an all day trip, unless things have changed, and you won't see anything else. If you have already seen PV, go for it otherwise consider Yelapa the next time you visit the Mexican Rivera or plan a single trip to PV and see Yelapa then.

[MSN-Travelers]

Yes, my husband and I are sailors as well - we did a bareboat through Footloose in the BVI on at Beneteau (33 footer, small for two couples!) with some friends who decided to go at the last minute - my husband has owned 2 sailboats - I just got certified in the BVI last summer so this was our first "solo" sail and we had a GREAT time!

 

Thanks for the feedback -- we may decide to do this excursion, I'm not sure. It's pretty pricey for both of us -- and we've done Windjammer a few times in the past so it's not like we need the "big wooden ship" experience!

 

Was the snorkeling good enough not to miss? We have pretty high standards in that area having snorkeled so much in the BVI - hard to beat Monkey Point!;)

 

I would never recommend any excursion along the Mexican Riviera where snorkeling was the central focus. You would be bitterly disappointed if your experiences in the Caribbean is what you would use as a comparrison. We don't bother to bring Marilyn's gear any more.

 

Book an excursion where your enjoyment will be judged on the overall package vs. one small segment. Quite frankly, we cruise so we can checkout the ports as future land vacation destinations. If you haven't been to Vallarta before, I would echo mpbmark and suggest you do an activity or activities that give you a chance to explore Vallarta and see what it has to offer you for your next land vacation.

 

Marilyn and I were certified to/thru bareboat in the San Juan's (Bellingham, WA) last July and will be taking a crew down SW Florida this/next year & on to the BVI in 2011 for a bareboat charters.

 

Enjoy your cruise along the MR!

[Winterstale]

Thanks to both of you -- I appreciate the advice. Brian and I just want to find a nice beach to hang out on for the day -- we would even do the day pass/resort type of thing -- and I had a feeling you were going to tell me that about the snorkeling -- that's very good to know! We're really looking forward to experiencing the Splendor on this trip -- we absolutely LOVE to sail, but since we live in L.A. and we did the sailing charter in January, this was a really great way to sneak in another week of vacation this year without spending a fortune.

 

Paul - you and Marilyn are just going to LOVE the BVI. There's a terrific forum called Travel Talk Online that I joined before we went back this year (we've done it 4 times now!!) for our first solo charter and it was a FOUNTAIN of great advice and information. The BVI is a sailor's paradise, it truly is. Just don't go in August or September when everything is pretty shut down all over the place...End of October/early November is pretty great - water is still warm, winds are starting to pick up from summer and it's quiet enough where every good snorkeling spot isn't overrun with cruise ship folks.