Things here have a season. The whales arrive on December 8. The waterfalls run full when it rains. Octopus comes out year-round, before dawn.
Year-round
Paddle out from Chimo beach and follow the coast to coves with no trail to them. The water is flat in the morning; by midday the northwest wind picks up and it is time to come back.
December 8 to March 23
Humpback whales come into Banderas Bay every winter to calve. The season dates are the ones published in Mexico's federal gazette, and operators need a permit and a certification course. We go out with someone who has both.
Year-round
With the people who do it every day. You leave before dawn and come back to eat what you caught. This is what Chimo lives on: octopus and fish are the village economy.
June to October, the rainy months
In the rainy season the waterfalls in the sierra run full and the hills turn green. It is the best time to walk to them, and the cheapest time to come.
Year-round
Yelapa, Quimixto, Majahuitas and the unnamed beaches in between. You stop where you want and eat wherever a kitchen is open.
Olive ridley May–February · green turtle October–March
The camp has run since 2005 and protects four species. It takes visitors and volunteers, and you can take part in a release. It sits on the overland route, out through El Tuito.
Year-round
El Tuito sits at 1,085 metres and runs five to ten degrees cooler than Vallarta. This is where the raicilla distilleries are, along with panela cheese, coffee and honey. Cabo Corrientes is an official stop on Jalisco's Raicilla Route.
Year-round, best at dawn
The jungle of Cabo Corrientes starts where the beach ends. You hear the macaws before you see them, and they pass in pairs at the same hour most days. The parrots move in flocks and make a racket.
Year-round
Available at the house. Tell us how many of you are coming and we will confirm availability with your dates.
Coming soon
We are adding a boat of our own, for fishing trips and running the south shore without depending on anyone else.
The fishermen's boat leaves. If you are going, you are up before that.
Breakfast on the terrace with whatever came in.
Kayak to the next cove, before the wind comes up.
Lunch at one of the village kitchens.
Pool, hammock, or the walk to the lookout.
The wood oven gets lit.
You hear the ocean and nothing else.
When to come
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Humpback whales | Official season | to the 23rd | Dec 8 | |||||||||
| Olive ridley turtles | Nesting | Nesting and releases at Mayto | ||||||||||
| Rain and waterfalls | Rivers and waterfalls running | |||||||||||
| Season | High | Low · long stays and retreats | High | |||||||||
Write to us with your dates. We will tell you what is open, what it comes to with tax, and how we pick you up from the airport.