Marietas Islands
Island in Banderas Bay off Banderas Bay
Two small islands at the western mouth of Banderas Bay, reached only by boat, with seabirds to watch and water to snorkel and dive.
- Blue-footed boobies, February to July
- Humpback whales, December to March
When to see Marietas Islands
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue-footed booby | Seen | Best | Best | Best | Seen | Seen | ||||||
| Humpback whale | Seen | Seen | Seen | Seen |
The darker mark is the months the source names as best. Months from doi.org, sidof.segob.gob.mx.
Near Marietas Islands
- Surfing
- Fishing
Punta de Mita
The headland that closes Banderas Bay to the north, in the Mexican state of Nayarit.
- Swimming
Litibú Beach
A Pacific-facing beach on the north shore of the Punta de Mita peninsula, reached by boat around the point from the Banderas Bay marinas.
Banderas Bay
The Pacific bay itself, closed by Punta Mita to the north and Cabo Corrientes to the south, with Puerto Vallarta on its shore. Its islands, rocks and dive sites sit in this water.
La Cruz de Huanacaxtle
A fishing village on the northern shore of Banderas Bay, in the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit, about 25 km from Puerto Vallarta.
- Whale watching
Banderas Bay Whale Grounds
The open water of Banderas Bay, where humpback whales spend the winter, a short run from Puerto Vallarta, Nuevo Vallarta and La Cruz. It is an area, not a spot: the whales move every day, and a sighting is never certain.
Wild Dolphins of Banderas Bay
Wild dolphins share Banderas Bay with the boats that cross it, and a morning spent looking for them is one of the quieter ways to see the bay. It is a search on open water, so a sighting is never certain.
- Snorkeling
- Scuba diving
- Surfing
- Fishing
- and 1 more: Whale watching
Sayulita
A surf and fishing town on the Nayarit coast just north of Banderas Bay, and a long day out by boat from the bay's marinas.
- Snorkeling
- Swimming
Pizota
Pizota sits on the far southern shore of Banderas Bay, 2.4 nautical miles west of Yelapa. Yachts anchor off its quiet cove for a swim and a snorkel in calm, clear water.
Maps © OpenStreetMap
About Marietas Islands
Two islands and their caves
The Marietas are a small group of volcanic rock: two islands, Isla Redonda and Isla Larga, with two islets and a scatter of rocky, sandy shoals around them. The municipal tourism office of Bahía de Banderas describes them as known for a formation shaped like a crater. Early in the twentieth century the Mexican government used the empty islands for military testing, and the blasts opened caves and reshaped the rock. Inside one island lies a beach you can only reach from the water; its days, its limit and the swim in are on the Hidden Beach page.
Seabirds
CONANP, the federal commission for protected areas, records breeding colonies of seabirds here in their thousands. From the boat you can watch blue-footed boobies and brown boobies, along with Heermann's gulls and frigatebirds. The municipal page names the blue-footed booby as the bird the islands are best known for.
Under the water
Snorkelling and scuba diving are both popular around the islands. Their protection followed an international outcry that the scientist Jacques Cousteau started in the late 1960s, after which the government declared the islands a national park. The park joined the Ramsar list of wetlands on 2 February 2004, and its decree is dated 25 April 2005.
The Isla Larga trail
In August 2016 CONANP announced a walking trail of about 350 metres on the north-west side of Isla Larga, led by park staff, for groups of up to 12 people during a trial period. We'll confirm whether it is open for your date.
Getting there by yacht
The islands lie about 9 km (4.85 nautical miles) off Punta de Mita, by the park's own figure. The nearest boarding point is Marina Riviera Nayarit at La Cruz, about 12 nautical miles away in a straight line, or some 36 minutes at an assumed 20 knots. From Marina Nuevo Vallarta and Paradise Village the line is about 16.5 nautical miles, roughly 50 minutes at the same speed, and from Marina Vallarta about 18.8. A sailing yacht takes longer, and sea state changes the run.
The national park
The islands and the sea around them are Islas Marietas National Park, which Mexico's protected areas commission, CONANP, runs. The only way in is by boat. Guests swim and snorkel from the boat, and everyone in the water wears a life jacket.
Days, hours and the fee
The park opens Tuesday to Sunday, from 8:00 to 18:00, and is shut on Mondays. The hidden beach, Playa del Amor, keeps shorter days: Wednesday to Sunday, from 8:00 to 17:00. Entry costs 125 Mexican pesos per person per day. The park lists exemptions and reduced rates for some visitors who carry a valid credential. We'll confirm the fee and whether any reduction applies to your party when you book.
Rules on the water
Alcohol is not allowed inside the park, nor are single-use plastics, and nothing is left behind. Sunscreen must be a reef-safe kind, put on half an hour before swimming. Guests follow the instructions of guides and park rangers. Visitor numbers are capped, with a tighter limit at the hidden beach, and only boats that hold a park authorisation may take guests ashore, so plan the day around the park's calendar rather than a free date. For whales in the bay in winter, see the Banderas Bay whale grounds.