One of the top 5 sail, scuba, snorkel, or cruise experience for any visitor to Puerto Vallarta, is a trip to the Marieta Islands. Well worth the 4 or 5 hours it usually takes to get out and back, the trip is must for any visitor that is interested in this kind of a trip. In fact, this topic is so extensive, we will write follow-up posts about it.
CRUISING THE MARIETAS – Justin Henderson, photos by Donna Day
Those mysterious little islands on the horizon in Bahia Banderas are the Marietas, and a trip out there is one of the great Nayarit expeditions. You can get there from Marina Vallarta, but its more fun to book a spot on a sailboat or motorpowered trimaran that sails from La Cruz de Huanacaxtle on daily charters. If you prefer riding the wind, sign up for a cruise on the 50 trimaran Sayula I.
Even better (and not dependent on the breeze), step on board the Chica Locca, an ultra-comfy motor-powered 60-foot trimaran. Both boats provide food, drink, music, fishing and snorkeling gear—the fish are plentiful out there, since the islands are a marine sanctuary—and will track any whales that pop into view.
Leaping rays, dancing bottlenose dolphins, humpback whales in season abound; thousands of seabirds including blue-footed boobies inhabit the islands. What could be cooler than mingling with wild sea and sky life while lounging on the cushy deck of a beautiful boat bounding over the waves?
For more information on sailing to the Marieta Islands you can check out Chica Locca, or Sail Vallarta.
Justin Henderson is the author of nine books on architecture and interior design, travel guides to Costa Rica, Los Angeles, and the Caribbean, and seven murder mysteries featuring amateur sleuth Lucy Ripken. His surfing style is much like his writing, playful, smooth and easy on the eyes.