Top reasons why you should go on vacation in Mexico

by  Oliver Weickardt

There are many countries on Earth that you should visit before you die, but not so many that are ideal to spend vacation, not so many that simply seem to offer everything you have always dreamed about. Mexico is one of the very few places that seem to have it all: impressive countryside, beautiful beaches, majestic pyramids, first-class museums, colorful culture, millenary traditions, great wine, delicious food, adventure parks, and so on, and so on. Mexico offers a wide variety of hotels & vacation packages, there is one Website, where you can find competitive rates and hotels in almost all Mexican destinations: www.mexresorts.com. If you prefer to rent a luxury vacation villa in Mexico, you might find your dream vacation home here: www.villaexperiencemexico.com ! We could continue with hundreds of examples, but let’s focus on the most important ones: 

Great and predictable weather

No need to say that if you only have two weeks of vacation in a year you don’t want to see them spoiled by unexpected rain or permanent clouds. An indisputable advantage of Mexico is its predictable weather. There might be rare surprises of course, but this beautiful country has very defined seasons in most places. For example, you can easily discover that you should visit Puerto Vallarta between November and April to have 100% of sunny days guaranteed and avoid hurricanes that if you prefer milder, spring climate you should head to Cuernavaca or Valle de Bravo all year round. 

Great beaches

 If you take into consideration that Mexico is surrounded by Gulf of Mexico, Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, you will know that there are plenty of options for beach vacation. The coastline of Mexico is 5,800 miles and there are 17 states with beautiful beaches, five-star resorts, water sports, and boutique eco hotels. Baja California, Nayarit, Guerrero, Yucatán are only few examples of everything that you may find. 

Great food

I know, you’ve probably heard many scary stories about the Montezuma revenge and how sick you may get with Mexican food I may assure you that this is very unjust stereotype. You are very probable to have stomach problems if you eat in suspicious places in any country, not only in Mexico, and there are very few nations on Earth whose food was added by UNESCO to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The French got pretty mad when the news was released… In no other country you will be offered such a wide range of tastes and in no other places you will see that spicy is a very limited word to describe all shades of chili peppers.

Archaeological sites you shouldn’t miss

Mexico has a long list of fascinating must-see archaeological sites and you won’t have time to see them all. Definitely, the most famous ones are the Pyramids in the State of Mexico, the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon that are on the UNESCO World Heritage Site.  However, there are plenty of others almost in every state. You have Chichen Itza in Yucatan, Yaxchilan and Palenque in Chiapas, El Tajin in Veracruz, Monte Alban in Oaxaca, Tenochtitlan in Mexico City, Cholula in Puebla, La Quemada in Zacatecas, and many others. 

Blog Author Introduction:

Villa Experience Mexico founder is German born but loves all thing Mexico! He has lived in  the country since 2003 and has experienced Mexico´s premier destinations at first hand. His favorite destinations are the Yucatan Peninsula, Baja California Sur, and Puerto Vallarta, where he enjoys the perfect weather and long runs down the Malecon with his sidekick Luka, a beautiful Golden Retriever. 

Website: http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com/

Author: Oliver Weickardt https://plus.google.com/+OliverWeickardt/posts?rel=author

On the road to Mismaloya, Jalisco, Mexico! 

by  Oliver Weickardt

No article about Mismaloya can be written without explaining first why this place is so important for Puerto Vallarta (http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com/puerto-vallarta) Back in 1963, American filmmaker John Huston was looking for the perfect location for its new movie “The Night of the Iguana”, starring Richard Burton, Ava Gardner and Deborah Kerr, when Huston discovered this little cove hidden in a corner of the Mexican Pacific coastline, just a few miles south of what was then a small fishing village called Puerto Vallarta. Suddenly, the region was in the international spotlight, and it got even more attention once Burton brought in here his soon-to-be-wife Elizabeth Taylor. The rest is history, and Puerto Vallarta has never been the same ever since. 

So, you might wonder how is Mismaloya nowadays. It actually hasn’t change a lot, there is a a hotel and resort complex called “La Joya de Mismaloya” managed by an international resort brand, a few villas scattered here and there, and little more. What was really transformed was Puerto Vallarta, as Mismaloya is not of easy access, the force of nature from the rainforest of the Sierra Madre mountains have helped to maintain this place secluded and exclusive. There is only one two-way highway to get there, but you can also arrive by the sea in one of the picturesque water taxis that you can board at several departing points in Puerto Vallarta.

If you want to get the full experience about Mismaloya, that’s the way to come, by the ocean. That way the feeling of adventure will be there from the beginning, and it’s also the best way to appreciate the amazing beauty of Mismaloya. Soon you will find that there’s not much to do in here, but to enjoy the fantastic beach and the legendary hospitality of locals. It is the perfect retreat, far away from civilization, but with all the comforts and amenities you can find in a big resort destination. 

Once you get fed-up with lying on a hammock by the beach, working on your suntan and sipping from your Margarita, you can explore the area. There a few trekking paths that go deep into the jungle, just try not to go by yourself, or please make sure that you didn’t get one Margarita too many. There are also some other interesting and even more secluded beaches in the surroundings. Rent a water taxi and visit Las Animas, Yelapa or Quimixto; any of these beaches are only accessible by sea, smaller and less crowded than Mismaloya (not saying that Mismaloya is crowded, it is not! But in comparison those little beaches look like the lost paradise of Milton). 

The only places to stay at these hidden gems of Puerto Vallarta South Shore, are the big Barcelo hotel at Mismaloya, (little bed & breakfasts that I wouldn’t recommend that much), or private villas that from my way of seeing things are the best option. In a villa you get the best of the area, without the artificial atmosphere of the big resort, nor the risks of staying at a shady bed & breakfast. You will find in the staff of the house, the best guides of the place that you can ask for, and you will be in control of your own schedule. There are many websites that can help you find the best villa, I used http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com and chose to stay at Casa Playasola  http://youtu.be/RI2UK2axvEM (Video of Casa Playasola at Playa Las Animas, near Mismaloya) an impressive property with tennis court, fitness room and private beach; but next time I want to try Casa La Vista which also looks fantastic and has an even better view if that’s possible. 

If you decide to visit Mismaloya get ready for the most relaxing vacations of your life, but also a life-changing one; as this is a place that touches the soul of every traveler that is brave enough to get off the beaten path, and try new and different things. That’s what got into John Huston half a century ago, and it change the history of a city and the lives of thousands of people, and that’s what you will discover once you get here, as the force of nature in here is just too strong not to be captivated by it…

Website: http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com/

Author: Oliver Weickardt https://plus.google.com/+OliverWeickardt/posts?rel=author

Driving rough and sleeping luxury in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico! 

by  Oliver Weickardt

I always dreamt about a trip like this. Rent a jeep wrangler, put surfing boards on the roof and drive freely from one beach place to another and sleep under the stars. Well, years passed by and at some point you realize that sleeping under the stars is not so funny anymore, and surfing seems like an extreme sport, definitely not convenient for your age. I got quite depressed but I realized that I could still rent a jeep wrangler and drive freely from one place to another and now I had more money than when I was 20 years old and I could stay wherever I wanted. 

Together with my wife we decided to hit Riviera Nayarit in Mexico, for two reasons. First, we could fly directly to the Puerto Vallarta airport and rent a car from there, and second, I remembered that Sayulita had very good waves and I was tempted to try some paddle surf. We contacted two other couples to travel with and I did some research beforehand, as we didn’t want to stay without a roof any night and I rented a car and three different villas: one in Punta Mita, one in Sayulita and one in San Pancho; three days in each one. I found a pretty good website to do both things and after an hour we had a plane ticket, reservations for our villas and 2 cars rented in Vallarta. 

Our car waited for us as we expected and we drove directly to Punta Mita with one stop on our way at “El Coleguita” on our way at La Cruz de Huanacaxtle. A friend of mine had recommended it to us saying that they had big, delicious portions of seafood at incredible prices. And he was right. I will always remember the shrimps I had prepared in three different ways. Magnificent! 

The end to another perfect day at the beach, San Pancho, Riviera Nayarit

We finally arrived at our villa in Punta Mita( link: http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com/punta-mita-nayarit). What a great place! I loved every single spot of it! The beautiful tropical gardens, luxury hotels, magnificent villas, golf clubs with the best views in the world! Really spectacular. Our villa, Porta Fortuna Villa 7, was one of the smallest in the area, it only (!) had three bedrooms but the ocean views were as incredible as from the big, 10-room houses next to it. That day we only had drinks next to our private pool and took a stroll on the beach. The next two days, we did as much as we could. We went whale watching and snorkeling, dined at the nearby Four Seasons Hotel restaurant, played golf and took two paddle classes on the beach in Punta Mita village. It wasn’t easy to leave but there were two other places waiting for us! We were lucky that it was Sunday, so on our way back we stopped at the farmers’ market at La Cruz and had some great fresh food and bought original presents for our family. 

 Our next stop was Sayulita, and we got there after a forty-minute drive from La Cruz. A very different place in comparison to Punta Mita, more laid back and definitely not so posh. The streets were full of tanned surfers and hippies and we couldn’t wait to see our villa. Casa Mis Amores turned out to be a little too big for us, but it didn’t matter at all. You never reject luxury. We loved the Sayulita village; it’s quaint, picturesque and so relaxing. The cobblestone streets add a special charm to the place, and all the shops, bars and restaurants seem ecological, cool and friendly. We practiced our paddle surf skills on the beach but I decided to take one more class before trying some more independent acrobatics. 

After three days we moved to San Pancho.  I imagine that it looks like Sayulita was about 20 years ago. It’s also a surfing and hippie place, but much smaller and with less facilities. A little bit wilder, too. We could even make a bonfire on the beach and nobody told us anything! Our villa, Song of the Sea, was also spectacular; it had an incredible infinity pool overlooking the ocean. Before this visit I had no idea that you could have houses of this level in Mexico! We paddle surfed a bit but the waves in San Pancho were higher than in Sayulita or Punta Mita so it was a little bit more difficult, but we had fun anyway.

It took us only an hour to drive back to the airport. I’m sure that I will want to repeat this experience sometime in the future. I really liked the Riviera Nayarit.

Website: http://www.villaexperiencemexico.com/

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