There are almost as many different ways to travel to Puerto Vallarta, as there are activities to do.

Airlines and charter companies fly here from major Canadian, US and Mexican hubs, with the highest frequency of arrivals November through April.

Long-distance buses bring people to Puerto Vallarta from up and down the Americas and an increasing number of cruise ships pause here on voyages along the Mexican Riviera.

For those preferring to arrive under their own steam, up to 400 yachts find berth at Puerto Vallarta’s sophisticated marina.

Local rental agencies offer a variety of vehicles by the day, week or month, including cars, jeeps, vans and motorcycles.

Taxis are plentiful – government-established fares paid by zones – and buses more so, with those on most local routes running every five or 10 minutes from about 7 am to 10 or so at night. Just about anywhere you could want to go is reachable by inexpensive public transit.

When it comes to getting to the beaches and jungle towns south of Vallarta, small boats modeled on dugout canoes called pangas ferry you there and back.