How's the Scuba in Puerta Vallarta?

[Da real diver]

Is ot worth bringing Mt dive gear?

 

[Johnoly]

I was there in June 2023. Was scheduled to go with PV Ocean tours, but high waves and zero'd viz canceled the 2 days I was to go out. Otherwise was looking forward to the usual critters and 30ft of viz. I stayed at the north end and Uber's were very cheap and fast. Parking is non-existent anywhere near the water in many places so research ahead if renting a car. @Guitarcrazy wrote a great trip report that I used as a scuba guide

Trip Report - Trip Report - Puerto Vallarta Oct 15 to 21, PV Ocean Tours

Trip Report, Puerto Vallarta Oct 15 to 21 My wife and I just returned to Puerto Vallarta after a 4 year absence. We have been there quite a few times, but in the last 4 years we have predominantly been going to Cozumel. We booked flights on United (not my favorite, but had award availability...

scubaboard.com

Since I got blown out, I took a 3hr ATV tour that was really good and well worth $90. It was wild just zipping thru the city's streets as fast as the throttle will go and up into the mountains and parks. www.pvcoolrentals.com/tour.html

 

[Da real diver]

thank you Johnoly!

 

[DreadnoughtNH]

Is ot worth bringing Mt dive gear?

I did 4 days of diving in PV in 2018, also with Ocean Tours. Marc runs a great operation, very safe and professional, and I had a great time. The diving itself is decent, but I don't feel a strong need to do it again. Viz was not great.

The food of PV on the other hand would be have me coming back in a hurry.

 

[Steelyeyes]

I did a couple of dives there in 2012. Viz wasn't great, current came up. One lady on the boat, once we recovered stragglers was heaving over the side from exhaustion. The second dive was better but it was inshore and there was noticeable trash here and there on the bottom. Wouldn't go there for the diving. I have been there seven times now for other things.

 

[Tait]

We just went in January. Weather was perfect and water temps were very nice. The diving is ok. Nothing amazing. Still great to get in the water. Did two days. First day was at Los Arcos. Probably 40' visibility. Fair amount of fish life. Second day we went out to Islas Marietas. Same thing, around 40' visibility. See life was similar. What made this trip well worth it was the pilot whales that ran along the boat and hearing the humpbacks while diving. A mother and calf were about a half mile away breaching over and over again after they dive. No mantas, sharks or other exciting stuff but saw quite a few fish and there are a lot of short swim throughs that were pretty crammed with fish life. We are going back in February, 2025 and January, 2026. Taking my gear each time. Will try out PV Ocean Tours and likely someone up near Sayulita or Punta Mita to try out a new area. Plan is to dive a few days on each trip.

Always worth it to take the gear.

 

[Sure Squintsalot]

I found the seabed at some of the dive locations in Banderas Bay pretty wild. Lots of enormous house-sized angular blocks of rock litter the sea floor creating very localized, fast moving currents. I'd never seen 24" tall sand ripples before! To think that these rocks tumbled off those distant mountains to the east through tectonically driven earthquakes is actually pretty cool. While you don't get massive corals and sponges of other dive locations, you do get many micro-ecosystems lurking within those blocks, overhangs, and swim-throughs. Here's a "highlights reel" I shot in late December 2022: