BEST YEAR EVER!
By Heather Wilson
Spring-Summer 2005

VALLARTA IS ENJOYING an economic boom unlike anything we’ve seen since the 1980s. Why? Well, people are traveling again after sticking close to home following the shock of 9/11 and coming to grips with the war in Iraq, the tsunami in Asia caused extensive damage to the tourist infrastructure there and Americans feel welcome here – unlike in other parts of the world – and it’s comforting to know they can just drive home should the need arise.

Real estate sales are through the roof, those through the Multiple Listing Service doubling 2003’s figures. While real estate developments are not part of this service, the exclusive Punta Mita development itself sold more last year than the entire MLS! People have money these days, and baby boomers are retiring and looking for a second home somewhere warm. And Vallarta fits the bill, Florida’s five hurricanes last year making people rethink buying there.

Five years ago Vallarta had one publication dedicated to real estate, and today there are several. Twenty-two real estate offices made up the MLS, and now there are 40. Construction is booming all around the bay and up and down the coast – particularly to the north in Nayarit. Even in the most modest neighborhoods many are improving their homes by adding another floor.

For 2004-2005, 293 cruise ships are expected to arrive here, up 28% from the previous year. And in 2004,1,112,072 passengers arrived at Gustavo Diaz Ordaz International Airport, compared to 992,199 a year earlier. But don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what a few high-profile folks in the tourist industry had to say.

Hotelier Dennis Whitelaw of the Marriott CasaMagna: “I think that the recovered US economy and the destination’s great portfolio of adventures to enjoy, such as eco tours, adventure tours, sporting activities and the gastronomical experiences – not to mention the long-famed hospitality of the Vallarta people – have led to an outstanding 2005. We have seen the leisure, wholesale and group segments grow by wide portion in our hotel and in the city itself. And the passenger arrival listing at the airport has grown in similar fashion.”

Elizabeth Oropeza, general manager of the Presidente Intercontinental: “This past year has been very good for the hotel and the entire town. And I think because we remodeled the entire hotel and made so many improvements in our service and facilities, people recognized that and our numbers went up. And guest comments have been very favorable about the destination, especially regarding all the cultural events taking place, like the film festival we had in November, which really attract visitors.”

And Velas Vallarta’s Luis Angarita noted: “We had a very good season, and even April, May and June will be wonderful because of the products we have, the service and the fact that we are all-inclusive and well recognized in the high-end market. And the external situation is that the Euro costs a lot now, so fewer people are going overseas. Plus, folks from the States are looking for security, to feel safe wherever they go. And with their economy improving, there is more expendable income, so folks are traveling.”
Restaurateur Bernard Guth, Trio chef and co-owner along with Ulf Henriksson, says that this year the time was right to open a second location, Vitea, on the new section of the Malecon near the pedestrian bridge: “We’re maintaining our reputation in the marketplace in the two locations because we’re both hands-on chefs and managers.”

And Bill Carballo, chef-owner of Barcelona Tapas, sums up the prevailing mood: “We’ve been in business four years now, and this past year has been our best. And it makes me happy to know that, while there are a lot of new restaurants, there‘s business for everyone.”

BRIGHTEST Lights: Top Films Stars
These days we’re front and center on Hollywood’s radar, which is apropos since it was the media coverage of John Huston’s “The Night of the Iguana” that fomented Puerto Vallarta’s reputation as one of the world’s most appealing tourism destinations in the first place.

So, try to be cool when you bump into someone famous at the Puerto Vallarta film or gourmet festivals, the Paradise Village Celebrity Cup or at any of our other high-profile annual events – or perhaps dining at one of our world-class eateries. Not only do Vallarta’s many obvious physical attractions continue drawing celebrities here, but with more and more showbiz types zooming around in their own planes, they appreciate the security provided by Aerotron, Vallarta’s private jet facility. And exclusive developments up and down the coast, some of which boast their own landing strips, respect their desire for privacy – the ultra-luxurious Punta Mita, anchored by the world’s most prestigious hotels and just 40 minutes north of here, proving a favorite escape.

Just three days after winning her second Oscar, Hillary Swank and husband Chad Lowe turned up in Yelapa, a nearby jungle town evoking an idyllic South Seas feel and accessible only by boat, for some well deserved R & R. In town, Hollywood’s best actress of the year shopped for accessories at the fantastic Viva store, as have Roseanne Barr, Nicholas Cage, Raymundo Capetillo, Jamie Gertz, Alejandra Guzman, Anjelica Huston, Diane Lane, Armando Manzanero, Jennifer Tilly, John Travolta, Judy Yuri and undoubtedly others whom we didn’t spot – all appreciating the novelty of 750 distinctive jewelry designers under one roof.

Sharing our cobblestone streets often are Maria Conchita Alonso and Alejandro Fernandez. And this past year, Gary Busey, Minnie Driver, Kelsey Grammer, Ashton Kuchner, Leslie Neilson, John C. Reilly, Julia Roberts, Barbra Streisand, Robin Williams, Treat Williams, the late Christopher Reeve, Kate del Castillo, Eugenio Derbez, Vicente Fernandez, Juan Gabriel, Diego Luna, “El Puma” and many other luminaries joined them.

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BEST Waterworks Display: The Whales
Frank McCann captured these incredible images from a Malecon rooftop, but no matter where you are in Vallarta between November and March, the Humpback whales breeding in our bay put on such splashy shows you’re bound to see these 30-ton, 45-foot-long creatures if you just keep your eyes open. This species is particularly playful, one of their courtship rituals breaching as high as 40 feet. Now that’s the kind of flirting we all like to see! And should you decide to get focused about seeing them, please ensure your tour provider is officially sanctioned and will respect this endangered species.

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BEST Flight of Nature: Birding in Mexico
Seeing some of our prettiest countryside and meeting people who care about the world and the creatures in it are just a couple of the perks that come with a bird watching tour led by eagle-eyed and bilingual Alejandro Martinez of Birding in Mexico. An ideal way to connect with Vallarta on a deeper, more natural level, you needn’t be an ornithologist to find yourself completely charmed by the abundant avian life in the Vallarta area, reported home to some 317 species! On a day trip in February, our group of eight visited four distinct birding areas within an hour of town, spotting, identifying and recording a whopping 52 of them – the gorgeous Citreoline Trogons and Russet-crowned Motmots making particularly powerful impressions. www.birdinginmexico.com

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BEST New Malecon Attraction: The Papantla Flyers
Look up! Look way up, 80 feet in fact, to discover what everyone is looking at near the Sea Horse statue on the Malecon several times a night: five men atop a wood pole recreating an ancient Aztec ritual. After playing ceremonial music with handmade instruments, including a reed flute and small drum representing birdsong and the voice of God, four “flying men” symbolizing the earth’s cardinal points fall backward from a small platform and revolve upside down around the pole – the connection between heaven and earth – as the rope attaching them to it unwinds, suggestive of an umbilical cord and the birth process. Each makes 13 turns for a total of 52, symbolizing the weeks in the Mayan calendar and comprising a complete year. This ancient art of “flying” originated in the state of Veracruz.

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BEST Addition: New Malecon Link
Even the Malecon, Vallarta’s popular oceanfront promenade, is bigger and better than ever, now for all intents and purposes spanning from Hotel Rosita to restaurant La Palapa on Los Muertos Beach! Along with the year-old pedestrian bridge over the mouth of the Rio Cuale, the palm- and planter-studded section now nearing completion between Los Arcos Amphitheater and the new pedestrian bridge is the reason. Attractive and wide, it’s the equivalent length of about three city blocks and fronts condominiums Malecon One and Two and the Benito Juarez Park at the north end of the bridge. Plans call for the park to be replaced by a five-story parking garage.

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FRESHEST Cultural Dining Concept: Agave Grill
In one of Vallarta’s original adobe homes, the new Agave Grill expands on the pleasures inherent in authentic Mexican cuisine by offering a comprehensive cultural experience. Everything conspires to evoke Old Mexico at its best – from architectural features like arches, exposed brick, a hacienda-style courtyard and typical open kitchen to traditional recipes using all-Mexican ingredients and tortillas made by hand, wines from prime Valley de Guadalupe vineyards and more than 200 distinctive tequilas for sale by the glass or bottle, with personalized tastings of Vallarta’s most extraordinary collection available.

Beloved Mexican music plays in the background, as the bilingual staff warmly welcomes you to an evening that feels for all the world like a Mexican fiesta.

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MOST Tasteful Cooking Classes: Chef Tierry Blouet
Quite a few local restaurants offer cooking classes from time to time – and most will on request --– but Café des Artistes does it with the same kind of flair and exceptional attention to detail with which it does everything. Limited to 25 students, these classes are events, consisting of demonstrations, hands-on preparation and an incredible sit-down meal of the fruits of your labor with wine pairings. And you’d be hard pressed to find more prestigious instructors, chef Thierry Blouet himself alternating with the president of the Culinary Academy of France, chef Gerard Dupont, for example. Classes are held in the gleaming state-of-the-art open kitchen of Thierry Blouet Cocina de Autor, cleverly designed for just such a purpose. www.cafedesartistes.com

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BEST Learning Opportunity: ISLA CUALE CULTURAL CENTER
It has been a couple of years now since we got our long-awaited Cultural Center on the Isla Cuale, and it has proven a real asset to the community, offering a plethora of cultural activities, with something to appeal to everyone. But some may not yet realize that they include hands-on education in some 39 different art forms, ranging from sculpture and photography to theater and modern dance, as well as piano, violin, guitar and more, open to everyone. Each workshop runs for a month, but with people in this town always coming and going, organizers say stop by and join in anytime! Fun and professionally run at negligible cost, you may be reassured to know that 80% of the instructors are bilingual and about half the participants visitors. www.puertovallarta.gob.mx/cultural

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MOST Romantic Tour: Rhythms of the Night
There’s no doubt about it, this five-hour experience transporting you by catamaran from the twilight town of Vallarta to a hidden jungle cove is hypnotic, with all the ingredients for a magical night you and yours will never forget. Haunting flutes and pulsating drums summon you along a torch-lit path to a pyramid in the shadowy jungle, where Mexico’s mythological past is revealed in the universal language of contemporary dance under a star-studded sky in a natural amphitheater, followed by a candlelight ocean-side dinner and music on the trip back home.

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FASTEST Growing Activity: Canopy Tours
It’s hard to believe it was just three short years ago that the only place we knew of to glide over the treetops was Costa Rica. But in 2002, Canopy Los Veranos brought Vallarta the thrill of whooshing along 1,400-foot-long cables 300 feet above a river and the forest floor. A year later, Vallarta Adventures Canopy Tour followed, as did Canopy Tour El Eden in 2004. Rumor has it that two more bird’s-eye-view tours are in development, one in Itaxpa and the other in Sayulita.

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BOLDEST Residential Construction: Grand Venetian
While many are wondering why on earth Vallarta, which prides itself on retaining much of its typical pueblo feel, would permit a high-density, Vegas-style imitation Italian neighborhood to dwarf the neighboring Holiday Inn and just about every other building this side of Acapulco, others can’t get to its sales room fast enough, eager to take advantage of pre-construction prices and looking forward to unimpeded views from its 31 floors.

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MOST Successful Development: Punta Mita
This exclusive 1500-acre golf resort community at the northern entrance to Banderas Bay, privileged with 9.5 miles of pristine coastline, ultra-luxe hotels, a Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course and two more in the works, had $103 million USD in sales last year – surpassing what the entire Vallarta Multiple Listing Service did in total. And the forecast calls for another banner year in 2005!

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BEST Marketing Technique: Super Saturation
La Punta Realty’s innovative photographer and marketing expert, Mike Garcia, has taken a decades-old photographic process, manipulated it digitally, and revolutionized this area’s real estate advertising. Refreshingly vibrant, his brilliantly hued architectural photos have an immediate emotional impact on the viewer, which can’t help but be good for business.

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BEST Way to Spend Sundays: Doing What The Locals Do
Sundays here have an especially festive, family air, most locals on a six-day workweek and heading to the beach on Sundays. Many start the day by attending their place of worship and/or going to Sunday brunch, which in Vallarta often means getting to see the ocean at the same time – and somet imes even mariachi music and champagne, like at the Sheraton. But the most popular and democratic activity is an evening stroll on the Malecon. That’s when you’ll see most everyone you’ve met here decked out in their Sunday best, ritually strolling back and forth with kids in tow, enjoying traditional taste treats, the invigorating sea air and an eclectic range of cultural offerings including art, music, mimes and other roving and stationary entertainment.

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BOLDEST Expression of People’s Choice: Hidalgo Park
Despite months of determined demonstrations by concerned citizens against the destruction of downtown’s half-century-old Hidalgo Park involving rallies, sit-ins, petitions and parades replete with controversial “people’s art,” in the wee hours of March 10 the municipal government trumped popular will and began constructing an underground parking structure on the site, which is to have a landscaped surface.

Proponents say its 160 parking spaces are urgently needed to alleviate traffic congestion and that with the dozens of Parque Hidalgo vendors relocated this area can now be more like a park and less like a tianguis.

Meanwhile, opponents, calling to mind Joni Mitchell’s “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot” refrain, insist that the use of public land for privately managed parking concessions sets an ecologically, socially and historically devastating precedent and is a smokescreen for the real and urgent transportation issues the city is avoiding.

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BIGGEST Day Yet at the Maritime Terminal: March 2, 2005
The Puerto Vallarta Port Authority (API) proved that it runs like finely tuned machinery and richly deserves its ISO 14001:1996 accreditation when it managed to seamlessly accommodate the Diamond Princess, the Oosterdam, the Carnival Pride and the Ryndam cruise ships all on the same record-breaking day, March 2. This historic Wednesday was a dramatic change from what Wednesdays used to mean here, that the Jubilee was in town, and that was a big deal! So, you can imagine how our jaws dropped to see two giant ocean liners moored at piers and another two anchored in the bay delivering 10,000 passengers and 4,800 staff to our shores, an estimated 8,000 disembarking to spend an average $60 USD each. Current API development plans call for expansion of one pier and the building of another, for a total of three that can accommodate just about any liner on the sea today.

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BEST Addition to Music Scene: Vallarta Chamber Orchestra
We are so very pleased to announce that this town now has a chamber orchestra, about 200 grateful patrons at the March 19 debut concert enjoying selections from the “Brandenburg Concerto,” “St. Paul’s Suite,” “Bolero” and more. And we were amazed to recognize so many of the 21 multi-talented musicians from local theater, dance and music productions, including flautist d’Rachel, co-founder of the orchestra with Spotlight Productions director Kathleen Hennen. Following in her mother’s footsteps as a violinist, Hennan co-directs the orchestra with Mary MacLachlan, also a violinist who was formerly with the Edmonton Symphony, the Calgary Philharmonic, the Riyadh Chamber Ensemble and the Riyadh Concert Band. Plans for the 2005-2006 season include a holiday concert in December, a chamber music recital in early February and a spring concert in March.

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MOST Wildly Popular Concert: JUAN GABRIEL
In a town accustomed to so many excellent and usually free concerts, the one held November 10 made history. That’s when Juan Gabriel, renowned Mexican entertainment icon for more than 30 years with 40 million records sold, took to the specially constructed Malecon stage. And the crowd was bigger than any ever seen in Puerto Vallarta for any reason – 30,000-plus from all social strata, including tourists in the right place at the right time. He held fans both old and new spellbound while performing some 40 popular Mexican ballads over some four hours, many of which the charismatic crooner wrote. City Hall deserves applause, not only for managing to book such a sought after singer and sponsoring the concert, but for seamlessly handling the considerable logistics involved to ensure this most memorable tropical night went off without a hitch.

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MOST Frequented Theater Venue: Santa Barbara Playhouse
Under new management this past season and focused only on presenting quality and varied theater and music productions, the former Santa Barbara restaurant isn’t serving food anymore, but no one seems to mind with the popular Que Pasa? restaurant right upstairs and the street-level playhouse consistently presenting great shows to sold out audiences. Spotlight Productions Community Theater presented “Steel Magnolias,” “Abba Cadabra” and “Manhatten Nights,” with a multi-media presentation of “The Phantom of the Opera” opening May 8, “La Cage Aux Folles” May 20 and “Son of the Sheik,” based on an old Rudolph Valentino classic, in June. And in March, Santa Barbara manager and co-owner Ed Hutmacher produced “The Mariachi Story,” which he also wrote, featuring Mariachi Pacifico Vallarta and retracing a century of this oh-so-Mexican music originating here in Jalisco.

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MOST Heartfelt Artistic Installation: Patti Gallardo
Yet again, eclectic artist Patti Gallardo has proved that nothing she does is ordinary. Surprising and delighting everyone attending her Valentine’s Day art opening at Cathy Von Rohr’s South Side studio gallery, she had completely transformed it into a romantic boudoir replete with gauzy billowing curtains, a pillow-plumped bed, adorable stuffed animals and that universal symbol of love, fresh flowers, everywhere, her vibrant heart-themed paintings and metal sculptures looking right at home.

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BEST Museum: Cuale Archeological Museum
Reopened last December after being completely remodeled, the archeological museum on Isla Rio Cuale bears little resemblance to its former self. Now under the guardianship of the National Institute of Anthropology, it has a fresh new look for lots of neat old stuff. Offering insight into the diversity of life in western Mexico before the Spaniards arrived, it helps us understand the history of this area and how its current culture evolved. One side of the facility features an attractively presented permanent collection with display notes in both English and Spanish, the other featuring special rotating exhibitions. Free to the public, stairs off the new pedestrian bridge make it easily accessible.

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BEST Established Event: Festival Gourmet
With the prestige and worldwide recognition it enjoys, it’s hard to believe it’s only been a decade since a dozen local restaurants and an equal number of guest chefs participated in Puerto Vallarta’s first Festival Gourmet International. This culinary celebration has secured, beyond doubt, Vallarta’s reputation as the premier gourmet resort destination in Mexico. And today, in-the-know folks schedule their vacations around it, resulting in increased tourism in a traditionally quiet month. So, if you value innovation and exceptional quality in food and drink and the good life in general, mark November 10 - 20 on your calendar because that’s when some 30 fine dining establishments and 35 visiting chefs from around the globe are participating in Vallarta’s eleventh epicurean festival. Organizers have some exciting changes and additions planned, including a four-day gastronomic forum, where, at nominal cost, the general public can enjoy cooking classes, tequila, wine and cheese tastings, demos, cultural events and much much more under one roof. www.festivalgourmet.com

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BEST Professional Improvement: Coparmex
Not only is business booming in Puerto Vallarta, but our local association of business owners, Coparmex, made a giant stride in professionalism last year – good news for those of us frequenting the 120 establishments comprising the current membership. Jumping to 21 in national ranking from 51 the year prior, ratings are based on 11 stringent professional criteria that must be met by the 36,000 member businesses in 56 branches in this country, including paying taxes on time and communicating clearly with both staff and clients.

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BEST New Event: Puerto Vallarta Film Festival
The success of the first annual Puerto Vallarta Film Festival, showcasing films with an independent vision from across the Americas, kind of snuck up on those who assumed a Hollywood-backed festival would never get off the ground here. And no sooner did it end than sponsors began committing to involvement in 2005, the dates set for November 7 - 12. The unwavering faith and hard work of the organizers was rewarded with positive reviews from attendees, like major Tinseltown luminary and independent filmmaker Roger Corman, who will return in 2005 as a special guest. And Vallarta’s considerable charms were duly noted as 332 US newspapers and magazines reported on the event. www.puertovallartafilm.com

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BEST Restaurant in Town: Are You Kidding?
Are you kidding? In a town that has the best food in this country outside of Mexico City, with a thousand incredible eateries and prestigious international festivals celebrating the finest in food and drink, how can one decide? Well, we’ve come up with a couple of ways to help – Vallarta’s first-ever restaurant week running May 15 - 31 giving you the chance to discover or rediscover great local restaurants at reduced prices, and reinstating Vallarta’s most-democratic and effective who’s-the-best survey, Virtual Vallarta’s Readers’ Choice. Just fill in the form at www.virtualvallarta.com/readerschoice, and you’re eligible to win a stay at the luxurious Mexican Boutique Hotel El Careyes and more, the voting deadline June 15.

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