Day Sailing on Banderas Bay

This experience fell short, while the staff were friendly the experience was not as advertised. There was no snorkeling at all, and the staff knew this before we even got to the site. We spent 5 out of the 6 hours sailing - this ment you were stuck in one uncomfortable seat on the boat with your legs cramping up and only 1 hour in the water. The beach we went to was not a remote beach, we layed anchor in front of another resort!!! This also was not on a catamaran sailboat and there wasn’t even one in the marina so I don’t know why that is in the photos . Over all not worth the money and I wish I’d stayed at the resort for the day

Good trip overall but snorkeling was a total bust with very murky water - they should have mentioned that as this was part of the advertised trip.

The whole trip was perfect, sailing with a great crew, great food and lots of sunshine. Saw a few whales and dolphins on the way to a beautiful Sandy cove where we snorkelled, paddle boarded and lounged on a lily pad.

Our family had a fantastic time sailing in Banderas Bay. The 50 foot sailboat was in excellent condition and the staff, food, beverages and amenities greatly exceeded our expectations. I highly recommend this tour!

Amazing day in the water. They used the motor to go out and sail in. Wish it were all sail. I also did not enjoy the number of people on the boat. It was too crowded for everyone to enjoy front of boat. Staff were attentive. Overall 7/10

I enjoyed this sailing trip! The staff on board were informative but didn't overly explain things. We were lucky enough to see dolphins and whales playing and jumping out of the ocean. The food was surprisingly really good. The drinks were great too. I was skeptical about the quality about the included bar selection but was very satisfied. I did not snorkel at our stop but others did and most said it was just OK that the water wasn't very clear and was cold so I didn't take that chance but I did paddle board and it was fun.

There were good, bad and ugly. The good is that the vessel's captain and crew were great, very helpful, cheerful and upbeat. Also good were the refreshments, as much of the limited assortment of drinks you wanted, and lots of quacamole and chips early, then a nice lunch, bento-style, of shrimp, maki rolls, pasta salad, ham chunks stuffed in rolls, jicama, cucumber, melon and berries. More moderately good was the swim stop, not really in a sheltered bay and windy so the only possibilities were to swim tethered to the boat or to use the four swim motors supplied. The sand beach was an impossible swim away so no one went there. Those who did jump in and used the appliances seemed happy to have done so. Also good, the sail back to the marina across the bay was nice, sailing with the wind and waves under jib alone. Some reviewers mentioned the difference in marinas for embark/debark. I think Vallarta Adventures heard this and provided transport to those who were closer to the embark marina back to that marina. The bad began with delays in embarkation we were to told to arrive at Vallarta Adventures by 9 am, but we did not actually leave the marina until 10, with a 30 minute wait at their office, which was nice and had a great large aquarium set up where four dolphins played and we could photograph. More bad we were expecting a 40-45 foot monohull with a small group, but instead were given a 40 foot catamaran with around 20 people aboard, what I would call a party boat experience, and not what was pictured in the Viator advertising. The ugly after the late embarkation, we motored, did not sail, across the bay for most of the way to the swim/lunch area. There were others aboard who also complained of the switch from small group monohull to party catamaran at the outset, and were told we could go to the office and ask for a refund and not take the trip. Since we were all aboard and had planned this day this way, we just took it and went on the trip.Luxurious swimming/snorkeling was impossible as we were not anchored in a protected bay, but in open water, at least 150 meters from the beach and windblown at around 15 knots. The only swimming possible was in the lee of the boat. As for wildlife, some said there was a pod of dolphins nearby, but we did not see them, nor did we see any whales, rays or other wildlife except for the omnipresent seabirds, which one among us took great joy in feeding. So, unless some changes are made in the way this trip is represented, I would not recommend this trip to any sailor or any other person wanting a semi-private sailing experience on Banderas Bay. For others, though, who are not indisposed to taking a party cruise in sun and wind and water, you might like this a lot. And, it is a lot of trip for the money I will say.

terrific day. good food, saw whales and lots of wildlife, and we were lucky to have beautifl weather. however, the boat was fairly crowded, and we departed from one port marina vallarta and came into a different one nuevo vallarta, a 20 minute drive away. while vallarta adventures did then drive those of us who boarded in marina back to nuevo, people on the other sailing that day were sailed all the way back to marina....we weren't iven a choice of boats, AND we weren't told this was going to happen until over 5 hours into the sail and i only knew becaus ei was sitting chatting with our captain, who was fabulous, and asked him why we were not going towards the port we had come from!

Crew were fantastic. Food was good, drinks flowed. Unfortunately the didn't cooperate for snorkeling but saw whales and dolphins. Unfortunately fellow passengers much heavier than pictured. :

Enjoyed the day sailing. Our guide was very knowledgeable, courteous and attended to our every need. Saw lots of beautiful fish when we went snorkeling. Very relaxing day.