From Colima to Puerto Vallarta

In June 2018 at dopamina.travel we had the opportunity to organize an event where specialized and lifestyle media And bloggers could test drive the new infinity QX50 SUV, I was tasked with crafting the route and general logistics.

I wont describe this particular event the way it actually happened, since this itinerary was not designed for leisure purposes and its was a little rushed. But i will be describing the trip highlights…

Colima, (State capital) marks the beginning of this trip, Is a small colonial city full of history, it offers amazing views of el “Volcan de Fuego”. By car it takes about 3.5 hours from Guadalajara or you can fly from Mexico City.

While staying in Colima get up early and take a 1 hour drive towards Hacienda San Antonio for breakfast, this place is a luxury hotel that has been deemed the best hotel in Mexico by T+L Magazine, where after breakfast i recommend to walk around the gardens and admire the property (Its important you make a reservation in advance) the ride to this place is stunning, and if you leave early you´ll get the chance tho see both volcanoes light up with the first rays of sun.

After breakfast, just 24 k away from the hacienda, the magical town of Comala can be found, a picturesque little village that gained fame because it was the setting for a of a short novel called Pedro Paramo written in 1955 by the Mexican author Juan Rulfo. Beautiful cobblestone streets, houses painted in white, cozy main square make a perfect spot to take some great photos of traditional Mexico and have a delicious sweet snack.

A very good high way that offers a diverse scenery that ranges from mountains to farms to coconut plantations and finally the pacific ocean is what leads all the way down to Manzanillo where delicious a seafood lunch overlooking the bay is always a great option.

About 40 km away from Manzanillo, there is a little town in the border between Colima and Jalisco called Cihuatlan, the surroundings of this place offer a very unique scenery: A huge banana plantation, and I mention this because bananas are a staple in every house, its a daily food and its quite interesting to see how this fruit is being produced.

A couple of kilometers after the plantation there is a beach town Called San Patricio, it has several little hotels some of them boutique and a very pretty beach, but my personal favorite highlight was a little spot on top of the nearby hills that boasted amazing views of the of the pacific ocean and the surrounding cliffs, it also had a path that led all the way down to a couple of secluded beaches, this spot is amazing because if you are staying at either San Patricio or Barra de Navidad, you could come and see an amazing sunset from above.

Further down the road to Puerto Vallarta after a very curvy road across some mountains there is a town called La Manzanilla, that also offers some good lodging options and a nice beach, and further down along the coast 2 of the most exclusive destinations in all of Mexico can be found: Cuixmala and Careyes! (In the future i will write dedicated posts for both this destinations)

Once this luxury destinations are left behind, the road keeps leading north where the beautiful beach town town of Perula appears, this spot marks the end of the ride along the coast and the beginning of a 3.5 hour journey all the way to Puerto Vallarta. About half way in to the ride, the road starts to climb up a small mountain range that actually gets so high that oaks and pines can be seen, and finally on the other side of the mountain the pines and oaks leave space for a beautiful tropical forest and finally Puerto Vallarta.

Puerto Vallarta has it all, great food, night life, beaches, many hotels and much more, but it marks a perfect ending for this little ride that can easily be 3 day weekend getaway.