Go hiking and jungle exploring at the Vallarta Botanical Gardens up in the mountains south of Puerto Vallarta,  It is a PV highlight. Stunning scenery,  jungle trails and  swimming in a crystal river among giant boulders,  There is a wonderful old Hacienda on the grounds with a restaurant with a wood burning oven,and brimming with handsome waiters to bring your cerveza,  Theres a local woman making homemade tortillas in the kitchen with blue corn and had one of the pizza from the brick oven,  This internationally acclaimed botanical garden displays native orchids, vanilla vines, chocolate trees and pineapples growing there with lots of other rare plants in the conservatory.  It costs 50 peso to go in,  From the balcony of the hacienda a birdfeeder lures brightly colored birds from the jungle,  The garden is 15 minutes south of Mismaloya Beach on the coastal hwy that leads up into the mountains, The Vallarta Botanical Gardens are not to be missed!  Arrive using public trasporttion using the EL TUITO bus that you catch on the cornor of AGUACATE Street and Caranza Ave, It cost 40 pesos to ride the bus there round trip. A taxi from old town cost 200 pesos each way, your cab driver can wait for you while you ex´plore 

After you leave the gardens you can catch the bus heading south again for another half hour to the town of El Tuito, Its a real Mexican Village with a small historic town square,  There is a beatiful hotel there called Hotelito Jardin del Tuito run by a French couple that gave a tour of the hotel, .