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State of Mexico
Photo: Andres08sandoval, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Nayarit, a state on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, is a popular travel and vacation destination. There are large international resort hotels in the southernmost part of Nayarit (a spillover from adjacent Puerto Vallarta), but most of the coastal communities are smaller, less known destinations that have historically attracted backpackers, surfers, and the "off the beaten path" crowd.
By plane
By bus
There's different kinds of buses you can use to get into Nayarit and to get around. Local or long-distance.
Most foreign visitors to Nayarit come for the many Pacific coast beaches in the southern half of the state. This area is very easy to drive in and rental cars can be arranged at the Puerto Vallarta airport.
Read in the guideChoose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Tepic · Regional · TPQ
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the state capital, nestled in a green valley
small town at the foot of Ceboruco volcano, a Pueblo Mágico
small town known for its thermal mineral spas
quaint colonial town that is one of Mexico's Pueblos Mágicos
small town in southeast Nayarit, Ixtlan del Rio is an archaeological site (also known as "Los Toriles") and is the only pre-Hispanic site in Nayarit open to the public
a beach town popular with expats
a beach town known for its unhurried lifestyle
it attracts Mexican and foreign tourists, particularly retirees and RV dwellers
the service community for the nearby resort of Rincón de Guayabitos
a resort community immediately north of Puerto Vallarta that is home to luxury villas and canals lined with tropical gardens, along over 18 km of white sandy beach
mellow, low-key beach most popular with Mexican visitors
relaxed scene and lack of condos and package tourists
offers Playa San Pancho and jungle hikes
small, laid-back town increasingly popular with tourists, long popular for surfing
Pacific island, 34 km off the coast of Nayarit, protected natural habitat
archipelago of four islands, 100 km off the coast of Nayarit, a former penal colony now a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
Bahia Banderas islands off the coast of Punta Mita, UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
unusual island village that some historians regard to be the original homeland of the Mexica (Aztec) people
a private beachfront village surrounded on three sides by the Pacific Ocean
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