We live in Mismaloya, about twenty minutes south of Puerto Vallarta, and the boats leave from the beach at the bottom of our hill. So when we finally booked a full-day boat tour with our three boys, I figured we knew what we were getting into.
We didn't. Not entirely. There were eight things that would have changed how we packed, what we booked, and how we planned the day — and nobody mentions them in the listings.
Watch the full video on Traveling Californian
1. Where you leave from matters more than the price
Most boat tours advertised in Puerto Vallarta depart from the Marina or from Los Muertos Pier downtown. That's fine — but it means a long ride south before you reach the good water.
We left from the shore at Mismaloya, which is already south of the city and only minutes from Islas de Los Arcos. That saved us close to an hour of transit each way. If you're staying in the Zona Hotelera Sur, look specifically for tours departing from Mismaloya or Boca de Tomatlán instead of downtown.
2. Book a small operator, not a party boat
We went with Black Pearl Tours, and our captain was Daniel. His assistant Omar got in the water with the kids and stayed with them the entire snorkel. That is not what you get on a hundred-person catamaran.
With three boys in the water at once, having a second set of eyes who actually swims with them changed the whole day for us. Ask before you book: will someone be in the water with my kids?
- Ask the boat size. Under 12 passengers means you stop where you want, not where the schedule says.
- Ask about a swim guide. Non-negotiable with young kids.
- Ask what's included. Snorkel gear, life jackets, water, and fruit are usually included. Lunch often is not.
3. Los Arcos is a protected marine park — pack accordingly
Islas de Los Arcos sits just offshore from Mismaloya: a cluster of granite islands with sea caves and arches carved through them, and it's a national marine park. The snorkeling is genuinely excellent — parrotfish, angelfish, and enough of them that our boys stopped complaining about the masks within about ninety seconds.
Because it's protected water, bring reef-safe sunscreen. Regular sunscreen is discouraged and in some spots not allowed at all.
4. The donut ride was the highlight — ask if it's available
Nowhere in the booking did it mention an inflatable towable. But at Los Arcos, Daniel pulled out a big donut tube and all three of our boys piled on at once.
Of everything we did that day — the waterfall, the snorkeling, the beaches — the donut ride is what they talked about on the drive home. If you have kids, ask specifically whether the boat carries a towable. It costs nothing extra on most small tours and it's the memory they keep.
5. Water shoes, not flip-flops
This is the single most practical thing on this list.
The beaches south of Puerto Vallarta are mostly rock and coarse pebble, not soft sand. The trail at Quimixto crosses a river. Boat ladders are slick. Flip-flops fail at every one of those moments, and barefoot is worse.
Everyone in our family wore water shoes and nobody had a single problem. It's a $25 fix for the thing most likely to ruin somebody's day.
6. Some villages have no road access at all
Quimixto, Las Ánimas, Majahuitas — these aren't remote-feeling beach towns. They are genuinely only reachable by boat. There is no road in.
That's the reason to take the tour instead of driving somewhere. But it also means that once you're dropped off, you're on the boat's schedule. There's no taxi. Know your pickup time and be at the water.
7. Don't prepay for a lunch stop you might skip
Our itinerary had a lunch stop at Las Ánimas on the return leg. We skipped it entirely.
The reason: at the waterfall in Quimixto, the kids ate fresh coconuts at a little palm-roof family restaurant, and by the time we got back on the boat nobody was remotely hungry. We'd rather have spent that hour in the water — which we did, with an unplanned stop at Madagascar Beach instead.
Keep lunch flexible. Pay for it where you land, not in advance.
8. Build in room for the unplanned stop
The best twenty minutes of our day weren't on the itinerary. On the way back, Daniel cut the engine at a small cove — Madagascar Beach — because the water was flat and clear and we had time.
A tightly scheduled tour cannot do that. A small boat with a captain who reads the day can. When you're comparing options, the flexibility is worth more than one extra advertised stop.
- Water shoes — the one thing we'd refuse to go without
- Reef-safe sunscreen — required mindset in a marine park
- Dry bag — phones, wallets, spare shirts
- Rash guards for the kids — easier than reapplying sunscreen all day
- Cash in small bills — for coconuts, tips, and the beach restaurants
Would we do it again?
Same day, same operator, same order of stops — yes. The only things we'd change are the small ones: more cash in small bills, and skipping the prepaid lunch.
If you're planning a Puerto Vallarta trip with kids, this is the day we'd tell you not to skip. Not the zipline, not the downtown walking tour. This one.