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    Satellite view of San Juan de Abajo in the Valle de Banderas, Nayarit

    Photo by EOX IT Services, Copernicus Sentinel data 2016, CC BY 4.0, via EOxCloudless

    San Juan de Abajo

    Town Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit Municipality of Bahía de Banderas Banderas Bay Riviera Nayarit

    Farming town in the Banderas valley, below the Sierra de Vallejo: a twin-towered parish, evening taco stands and a big May fiesta for Saint John.

    From Puerto Vallarta: 30 min by car (31 km by road) How to get there ↓

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    Plan your visit to San Juan de Abajo

    Where to stay near San Juan de Abajo

    Compare hotels, posadas and guest houses in San Juan de Abajo.

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    Tours to San Juan de Abajo

    Day trips around Sayulita sometimes stop in San Juan de Abajo; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.

    Find tours on Viator GetYourGuide

    How to get to San Juan de Abajo

    • From Puerto Vallarta: about 30 min by road (~31 km)
    • Nearest airport: Puerto Vallarta (PVR), 41 min by car to Sayulita
    Rent a car at PVR Flights to PVR

    Route, map and directions ↓

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    About San Juan de Abajo

    San Juan de Abajo is a farming town in the valley behind Banderas Bay, in the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, about 6 km east of the municipal seat, Valle de Banderas, and roughly half an hour by road from Puerto Vallarta. With about 11,000 inhabitants in the 2020 census it is one of the larger towns of the municipality, yet it lives from the land rather than from tourism: the irrigated fields around it grow maize, watermelon, beans, tobacco and tomatoes, much of the fresh produce that ends up in Vallarta's kitchens. To the north rise the forested slopes of the Sierra de Vallejo.

    The town's landmark is the parish church of San Juan Bautista, with two slender towers about 28 m high, a Latin-cross plan with a dome over the crossing and a stone high altar. Unusually for a Mexican town, the church does not face the main plaza; the two stand apart. In the evenings, from about seven, tables go out on the pavements and taco and antojito stands open along the main streets and the central boulevard, and the town is known around the bay for its food.

    The big event of the year is the fiesta of Saint John the Baptist, held for ten days from 15 May and ending on 24 May, a month ahead of the church calendar because of the rains. Each neighbourhood sends floats to the church door, there are fireworks, fairground rides, cockfights and jaripeos, and on the last day runners arrive with torches from Talpa de Allende, followed by a large procession that many emigrants come home for. In March the plaza hosts a Día del Taco. Cultural tours from Puerto Vallarta walk through the town together with Valle de Banderas, and the hills to the north offer hiking and mountain biking.

    How to get to San Juan de Abajo

    Drive from Puerto Vallarta: 30 min, 31 km

    From Puerto Vallarta take Highway 200 north past the airport; drivers can turn inland at Mezcales on the road to San Juan de Abajo, or take the old road from Bucerías towards Valle de Banderas; both are paved. Routing on OpenStreetMap data gives about 34 km, roughly half an hour, from downtown Puerto Vallarta. Buses run from Puerto Vallarta to San Juan, and white San Juan de Abajo taxis work as shared colectivos. Pueblos cultural tours from Puerto Vallarta (Mondays and Thursdays) include transport.

    Directions to San Juan de Abajo on Google Maps

    Distances are in a straight line; the road is usually longer.

    Best with a guide Tours to San Juan de Abajo on Viator With transport and a guide, leaving from nearby towns and cities. See prices →

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    From the nearest cities to San Juan de Abajo

    Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic or stops. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.

    Before you go to San Juan de Abajo: hours, prices and tips

    Best time of day
    Come in the evening: from about 7 pm taco and antojito stands set up tables along the main streets. Wikipedia · checked Oct 2026
    Best season
    The fiesta of Saint John the Baptist runs for ten days from 15 May and peaks on 24 May with the torch runners from Talpa and a large procession. Wikipedia · checked Oct 2026
    Guide or tour
    You can visit on your own; the Pueblos Cultural Tour from Puerto Vallarta (Mondays and Thursdays, about 109 US dollars for adults) combines San Juan de Abajo and Valle de Banderas with a cacao farm and a cooking class. Tours: Viator GetYourGuide Vallarta Adventures · checked Oct 2026

    Hours and prices change, especially around holidays. Each fact links to where we checked it.

    Visiting San Juan de Abajo: what to see and do

    Visit the twin-towered parish church of San Juan Bautista.
    Eat tacos and antojitos at the pavement stands that open in the evening along the main streets.
    Come for the fiesta of Saint John the Baptist, 15 to 24 May, with floats, fireworks and the torch runners from Talpa.
    Join the Día del Taco in the plaza in March.
    Hike or mountain-bike in the Sierra de Vallejo foothills north of town.

    Plan your trip

    Places to stay in San Juan de Abajo

    Compare hotels, posadas, and rentals in and around San Juan de Abajo.

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    Tours & activities

    Day trips around Sayulita sometimes stop in San Juan de Abajo; a tour is the easy way to see it without a car.

    Viator GetYourGuide

    Rental cars

    Pick up a car at PVR (Puerto Vallarta): about 41 min by road to Sayulita, then 27 km more to San Juan de Abajo, on your own schedule.

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    Flights

    The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Puerto Vallarta (PVR), about 41 min by road from Sayulita, the base for San Juan de Abajo.

    Kiwi.com

    Travel insurance

    Medical and trip cover for Mexico, by the week or month.

    SafetyWing

    Mobile data

    Signal can drop away from Sayulita: download a map of the way to San Juan de Abajo before you set out, or carry an eSIM with data.

    Airalo

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    When to go to San Juan de Abajo warm

    San Juan de Abajo shares the climate of Sayulita, 27 km away. The best months to visit are March, April, May, and November.

    See the month-by-month climate of Sayulita

    The closest Pueblo Mágico: Sayulita

    Palm-shaded street of shops and stalls in the center of Sayulita, Nayarit warm
    Nayarit Sayulita

    Sayulita is the Pueblo Mágico closest to San Juan de Abajo, with places to stay, food, and more to see.

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    Near San Juan de Abajo

    Drive times by road from OpenStreetMap, without traffic. Times marked ~ are estimated from the straight-line distance.

    Location from OpenStreetMap. Written by Puebloteca.