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Zona Romántica · Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco
This is the neighborhood most people picture when they think of Puerto Vallarta: Playa Los Muertos, the pier, cobblestone streets and restaurants you can walk to. We own a condo here ourselves, so we can tell you what living in it is actually like.
The neighborhood
Zona Romántica sits on the south side of the Río Cuale, and it is the part of town that kept its character while everything around it grew. The streets are cobblestone, the buildings are painted, and the whole neighborhood is built for walking. You can go a week here without starting a car.
Playa Los Muertos is the main beach, and the Los Muertos Pier is the landmark everyone meets at. Water taxis leave from the pier for the beaches south of town, and the beach itself is lined with restaurants where you can spend an afternoon with your feet in the sand.
Real estate here runs from luxury condos with rooftop pools to older hacienda-style homes with real Mexican character. Many units have ocean or mountain views, and nearly all of them are within a few blocks of the cafés, galleries and restaurants that make the neighborhood what it is. Lázaro Cárdenas Park is the quiet center of it, and the nightlife is a few streets over if you want it.
For investors this is the most in-demand vacation rental location in Puerto Vallarta. Location and walkability are what renters pay for, and this neighborhood has both. We are happy to walk you through what a specific unit actually earns before you buy it, not after.
Living here
Groceries, the beach, dinner and the pharmacy are all a short walk. Most of our clients here do not own a car and do not miss it.
If you plan to rent your place when you are not using it, this is where demand is strongest. Check the building's rules first, because not every HOA allows short-term rentals.
The blocks closest to the beach are flat. Go a few streets up and you get the views, and the stairs that come with them. Decide early which you want.
In Mexico the covered outdoor space usually counts as part of the home. A published size here includes the terraces, which is how we quote it too.
Before you buy
Yes. Everything on the bay sits inside Mexico's restricted zone, so a foreign buyer holds title through a bank trust called a fideicomiso. It is routine, we do it on nearly every sale, and our article on buying property in Puerto Vallarta as a foreigner walks through the process and what closing really costs.
Low. Tom pays about $290 USD a year in predial on his condo here. That is not a typo, and it is one of the first things that surprises buyers from the United States and Canada.
Often, yes, and it works differently than it does at home. We wrote up who qualifies and what a cross-border loan costs in Can You Get a Mortgage in Mexico?
It can be, depending on the street. Some blocks have bars and live music into the night, and others are quiet residential streets a few minutes away. We will tell you honestly which is which for any unit you are looking at.
Zona Romántica
Whether you want a place in Zona Romántica, a different part of the bay, or just to understand how buying here works, the first conversation is free and in whichever language you prefer.