09 June 2026
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Puerto Vallarta, the resort city on Mexico’s Pacific coast, has always been defined by its high glamour. It was Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, the two movie star halves of last century’s most famous couple, who first put the fishing village on the tourist map when they came down to shoot 1964’s “The Night of the Iguana.”
As captured on the big screen and by the paparazzi that trailed the Old Hollywood stars, there’s a remarkable natural beauty here that sets the port town apart. It sits on the wide Bay of Banderas, a scoop of azure ocean protected from strong waves. Palm trees and lush jungle foliage crowd the shore around the Malecón, a bustling waterfront promenade. Further inland, the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains rise up, full of winding roads to postcard villages with colonial central squares.
Popular with the midcentury jet set (in the 1970s a trip to “PV” was a coveted prize on T.V. game shows), by the 1980s, it had caught the eye of gay U.S. travelers for its private beaches, welcoming politics and an expanding nightlife scene. Today, the country’s LGBTQ+ capital hosts international and Mexican devotees who come back year after year.
Pride Month begins here in late May, with a weekend of celebrations filling hotel rooms and beach clubs along the gay-friendly Playa Los Muertos. But the Zona Romántica, or Romantic Zone, is the year-round gay hub, with beachfront restaurants that will appeal to all travelers and a strip of rowdy LGBTQ+ bars and clubs.
Below, our picks for where to eat, where to stay and what to do in Puerto Vallarta.
Where to Eat
Pancho's Takos
Pancho's Takos has all the telltale signs of a popular beach town taquería: the long lines, no-frills sidewalk seating and massive beer-ritas, served with a beer bottle floater flipped over into the drink. But the cooking here sets it apart. Out front, a spit of roasting pastor meat the size of a keg is the key to tacos and tortas that are juicy and flavorful. Try it served as a volcán, or volcano: atop a fried tostada coated with melted cheese.
ICÚ
ICÚ is an elegant retreat in the Zona Romántica with a serious dining offer that’s a salve to the lively scene outside. Chef Mauricio Leal is at the helm, applying French culinary training to local ingredients and traditional Mexican recipes. The à la carte and tasting menus change with the seasons, though the sea always plays a starring role. In the summer, tuna is served as a tiradito — raw and thinly sliced in a peanut-chile salsa — and seared with a recado negro, a black sauce made with charred tortillas.
Where to Stay
Hacienda San Angel
The Hacienda San Angel unfolds across a hilly estate like an Italian countryside retreat. The 12-suite boutique hotel was the labor of love of Janice Chatterton, an American entrepreneur who decorated the space in handpainted frescoes and religious antiques she sourced from rural Mexican churches. Across the property, archways are covered in ivy, pool decks are lined in bright tiles and a charming brick staircase leading from one villa to the next climbs through overflowing landscaping. Inside, the rooms are spacious and private, a kind of cloistered luxury that feels entirely special in this overdeveloped city.
Casa Kimberly
A portrait of Elizabeth Taylor — pearl earrings, magnetic blue eyes and all — hangs beneath a chandelier on a central staircase at Casa Kimberly like the hotel’s patron saint. For over a decade, the two homes that comprise the nine-suite property were the mega-star’s love nest, shared with Richard Burton, her leading man husband. Today, the glamorous 1960s stylings (like Spanish-style clay roof tiles and an original pink marble tub) persist across the property with various nips and tucks, like the addition of a new building with a gym and a spa.BellView Boutique Hotel
There are few views as impressive in Puerto Vallarta as the one from the pool of the BellView Boutique Hotel. From its perch on the hills that climb up from the city center, guests look out past the domed spire of the Guadalupe church and into the wide sea. The seven-room hotel has the same medieval beauty as Hacienda San Angel (Chatterton was a previous owner of part of the property) and a popular Italian restaurant on its terrace that takes full advantage of the view.
What to Do
Stroll the Malecón
The Malecón, a half-mile beachfront promenade by the city’s historic center, is the most emblematic stretch of Puerto Vallarta, filled with bric-a-brac tourist stores, legendary watering holes and a collection of eye-catching bronze statues. Start your walk early and you may spot the local fishermen as they ship out in search of marlin, sailfish and mahi mahi. Bar Océano, a double-decker spot with a wrap-around balcony, is said to have been a favorite of the hard-drinking Burton. “El Niño Sobre El Caballo De Mar” is the most famous of the boardwalk’s sculptures, built in 1976 and depicting a boy waving off the back of a patinated bronze seahorse.
See Cirque du Soleil’s Newest Show
In December, Cirque du Soleil premiered LUDÕ in Nuevo Vallarta, its first water show since “O” bowed more than 25 years ago in Las Vegas. The experience is — as can be expected with the Canadian troupe — out of this world. The theater, called “an aquarium for humans,” was custom-built to wrap around the seats. Inside the tanks, acrobats and high divers from 20 countries perform completely new stunts, while guests dine from a tasting menu that complements the different acts of the show.
Discover the Gay Culture
The history of Puerto Vallarta as a gay capital can be traced through its bars and nightclubs, the after-hours churches for a community that wasn’t always able to peacefully convene. The scene is centered on Lázaro Cárdenas street, where the side-by-side spots often spill their parties onto the sidewalk.
Paco’s Ranch, dating back to 1989, is an institution, a campy, raunchy spot still spinning their disco balls late into the night, while Cc Slaughters is known for the city’s best drag show. For a more mellow introduction into Puerto Vallarta gay culture, have a drink at Margarita Grill, an open-air restaurant where the speciality is in the name.
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Hero image: Malecón boardwalk of Puerto Vallarta. © Jalisco Es México
