Puerto Vallarta · Backpacking
ON A BUDGET
Cheap beds in the old town, ten-peso buses and a bay where the sunsets do the entertaining.
Zona Romántica
The old town south of the Río Cuale holds the hostels, the cheap fondas and the walkable beach. Avoid the hotel zone entirely on a budget.
What a day costs
About 700–1,200 pesos, roughly $40–70: a dorm 350–550, tacos and a set lunch 150–300, city buses ten to fifteen pesos a ride.
Buses and water taxis
Local buses run flat-fare with the destination written on the windscreen. Water taxis from the Los Muertos pier reach Las Ánimas and Yelapa cheaply.
Free by day
The Malecón sculpture walk, Playa Los Muertos, and the footbridges over the Río Cuale with its island market cost nothing at all.
Playa Los Muertos, sunset
The pier end of the beach fills from six with beer sellers, drummers and hostel groups; it is the town's informal meeting point.