Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta anchors diving across Banderas Bay — one of the largest bays in the Americas — and the protected waters of Las Islas Marietas National Park just offshore. Giant manta rays cruise the seamounts, humpback whales fill the bay from November through March, and the Marietas hide a collapsed volcanic cave that shelters resting white sea birds and macro life. The bay's warm current pocket and diverse topography make it a year-round destination with genuinely different experiences by season.