40 Beaches near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico: Map & Photos

40 beaches · within 60 km

There are 40 beaches within 60 km of Puerto Vallarta in a straight line, an hour or a little more by road. The closest is Playa Las Glorias, 2 km away; the farthest, Mayto, is 57 km.

The dry season, November to April, brings the calmest seas. From June to October expect afternoon storms, and on the Caribbean coast, sargassum in some years.

Best months, when most of these towns are dry with comfortable afternoons: Mar, Apr, May, Nov.

The Beaches 40

Playa Las Glorias · Beach · 2 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Hotel-zone beach of nearly a kilometer between Los Tules and Playa Tranquila, lined with resorts and condos, about 3 km north of the Malecón.
Playa Los Tules · Beach · 2 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Hotel-zone beach of soft amber sand and gentle waves next to Playa de Oro, busy with parasailing, jet skis and banana boats.
Playa de Oro · Beach · 2 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Kilometer-long golden beach of Vallarta's northern hotel zone, between the cruise port and the Pitillal River, with three public accesses.
Playa Camarones · Beach · 3 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Downtown beach of the 5 de Diciembre neighborhood, just north of the Malecón: named for shrimp fishermen, now loved by local families.
Playa Rosita · Beach · 3 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
The narrow, stony beach below the Malecón, named after the 1948 Hotel Rosita; for sunsets and watching fishermen, not for swimming.
Playa Olas Altas · Beach · 4 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Zona Romántica beach from the Cuale River mouth south to the Los Muertos pier: calmer than Los Muertos and a favorite with Mexican families.
Playa Los Muertos · Beach · 5 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
The busy town beach of the Zona Romántica: palapa restaurants, beach clubs, the sail-shaped pier for south-shore water taxis and the original seahorse statue.
Playa Amapas · Beach · 6 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Small rocky cove just past the south end of Los Muertos, reached over the El Púlpito rock; amber sand, green water, no lifeguards.
Playa Conchas Chinas · Beach · 6 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A string of small rocky coves just south of the Zona Romántica, with shell sand, clear water, tide pools and snorkelling around the rocks.
Boca de Tomates · Beach · 7 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A beach of seafood ramadas behind Puerto Vallarta's airport, by the Ameca river mouth: come for pescado sarandeado, not a swim, as crocodiles live here.
Playa Las Estacas · Beach · 7 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A sheltered cove just south of Conchas Chinas, fronted by the Hyatt Ziva resort; the sand is public, the land behind it is not.
Playa Palmares · Beach · 10 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Puerto Vallarta's south-shore public beach: the first Blue Flag beach in Jalisco, with lifeguards, ramps, showers and a city beach club.
Playa Garza Blanca · Beach · 11 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Calm south-shore cove below the Garza Blanca resort, sheltered by boulder breakwaters; clear water for swimming, snorkeling and paddleboarding.
Playa Colomitos · Beach · 18 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A tiny emerald cove in the jungle west of Boca de Tomatlán, reached on a 30 to 45 minute coastal trail or a short water-taxi ride.
Playa Caballo · Beach · 19 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A quiet beach right next to Las Ánimas on the jungle coast trail from Boca de Tomatlán, home to a small hotel and beach club.
Playa Las Ánimas · Beach · 20 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A 600-meter beach of palapa restaurants on the south shore, the first water-taxi stop from Boca de Tomatlán and the end of the coastal hike.
Playa La Manzanilla · Beach · 21 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
La Cruz de Huanacaxtle's family beach: a mile-long crescent of grey sand with calm, shallow water and palapa restaurants on the sand.
Las Caletas · Beach · 23 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
John Huston's former jungle hideaway between Quimixto and Yelapa, now a boat-only beach visited on Vallarta Adventures day trips and evening shows.
Playa Majahuitas · Beach · 23 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A sheltered, boat-only cove of white sand and reef between Quimixto and Yelapa, the snorkel-and-lunch stop on many bay tours.
Playa Destiladeras · Beach · 24 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A long, wide sweep of fine pale sand on the road to Punta de Mita, with seafood palapas, shallow water and waves for surfing and boogie boarding.
Playa Isabel · Beach · 29 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
Small, calm, shady cove a short walk from Yelapa's pier, with clear water for snorkeling and far fewer people than the main beach.
Playa La Lancha · Beach · 31 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A wild sand beach and point break east of Punta de Mita, reached on foot: lefts and rights for longboarders, best on winter swells.
Litibú · Beach · 33 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A long sandy bay on the north side of the Punta de Mita peninsula, next to Higuera Blanca, with a Greg Norman golf course and beach resorts.
Playa Careyeros · Beach · 33 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A quiet, almost undeveloped beach between Punta de Mita and Higuera Blanca, with clear turquoise water and a rough, poorly signed dirt road in.
Playa El Anclote · Beach · 34 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
Punta de Mita's town beach: long, gentle waves for beginner surfers, a row of seafood palapas and the pangas that run to the Marietas.
Playa Las Cuevas · Beach · 34 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A small cove of white sand and weathered boulders north of Sayulita, reached by a jungle path, with a rock arch to Playa Malpaso at low tide.
Playa Pátzcuaro · Beach · 34 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A quiet, unsigned local favorite on the open coast just southwest of Sayulita, reached by a dirt track and a creek off the Punta de Mita road.
Playa Malpaso · Beach · 35 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A wild, mile-long beach between Sayulita and San Pancho, reached on foot by a jungle trail; strong rip currents make swimming dangerous.
Playa Patzcuarito · Beach · 35 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A tiny wild beach of dark sand southwest of Sayulita, reached by scrambling over the rocks from Carricitos; few people and big sunsets.
Playa de Barro · Beach · 37 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A remote jungle-backed beach north of San Pancho with a small natural mud bath and rock pools, reached by a long hike or a rough 4x4 road.
Playa del Amor · Beach · 37 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
The Hidden Beach of the Marietas: a patch of sand inside an open hollow in the rock, reached by swimming through a short sea tunnel.
Punta Monterrey · Beach · 37 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A secluded, jungle-backed point and beach between San Pancho and Lo de Marcos, reached by a dirt road; camping is not allowed.
Playa Las Minitas · Beach · 38 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A small, secluded beach southwest of Lo de Marcos at the end of the Camino a Las Minitas, between the main beach and Playa Los Venados.
Playa Los Venados · Beach · 38 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A small, quiet bay just south of Lo de Marcos where big waves break into curtains of spray and the south end is calm, with a lookout on the hill.
Playa Punta Raza · Beach · 43 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A wild beach of about 3 km below the Punta Raza headland, reached on foot from El Monteón; strong surf, a turtle camp and no services.
Playa del Beso · Beach · 44 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A small cove among rocks just past Los Ayala, also called Playa Frideras, reached by a 15-minute jungle path or along the shore at low tide.
Playa del Toro · Beach · 45 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A tiny cove of golden sand under a cliff-top lookout on the Punta Raza headland, about an hour's jungle walk from Los Ayala.
Playa El Naranjo · Beach · 49 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
Long, empty beach north of La Peñita at the far end of Jaltemba Bay, with a sea-turtle camp where you can camp and help release hatchlings.
Playa Las Cuevas · Beach · 55 km from Puerto Vallarta · Nayarit
A little-visited surf beach about 2.5 km south of Chacala, under the volcanic hill of Cerro de las Cuevas; strong waves and almost no one around.
Mayto · Beach · 57 km from Puerto Vallarta · Jalisco
A long, empty golden beach on the open Pacific south of El Tuito, with a university sea-turtle camp, a few small hotels and strong surf.