Puerto Vallarta: From Sleepy Fishing Village to World Destination

The history of Puerto Vallarta is fascinating, to say the least. The town has undergone several dramatic transformations in the centuries since it was founded and worn many different faces. The current incarnation as a resort town may not last forever, what is next for this amazing destination?

As long ago as the 1600's, the area around Puerto Vallarta was known for safe anchorage for the colonizing Spanish ships and resupply for vital food and water, as well as wood and other items that could only be gotten on shore. Naturally, a village grew up at the point where ships came ashore to resupply. A harbor and ship building facility was built in the area, as well.

In the 1800's, the small village was used as an unloading point for supplies and equipment to be delivered to the mining operations to the north. It was also used as the point to gather necessary salt for the smelting in the silver mines. Not long after this, the actual town of Puerto Vallarta was founded by Don Guadalupe Sanchez, in 1851. The village was named las Penas. The area continued to grow steadily, until in the early 1900's, it reached a population of over 2000 people and was incorporated. The name was changed to Puerto Vallarta in honor of a governor of the state in which the city is found.

Despite the transformation from village to municipality, the town remained a sleepy fishing village well into the 1900's, until John Huston decided to film his movie in the area. From that point, the transformation of Puerto Vallarta from sleepy fishing and pearl diving village into world renowned resort city began. It did not take long for the power of Hollywood stars to draw interest to the area and restaurants and hotels began to spring up everywhere.

Today, Puerto Vallarta is one of the premier resort destinations in the world, with a permanent population over 250,000. The phenomenal growth started by Hollywood interests has blossomed into an amazing city, though the spectacular natural beauty of the area remains a huge draw. The amazing beauty of the Puerto Vallarta area has been remarked on many times, as far back as the Spanish colonization of Baja California. This spectacular natural beauty and productivity of the area has been a draw for thousands of years. The native Indians of the area were incredibly numerous when the conquistadors made their appearance, the sheer number of their flags led to the original name of the great bay, Banderas Bay.

It has become increasingly clear that the area will continue to grow, but steps are being taken by the local government and concerned businesses to ensure that the unspoiled natural beauty of Puerto Vallarta and the surrounding countryside remain so. This incredibly beauty and the amazing diversity of animal and marine life remain a huge draw for tourism and efforts are under way to develop the eco-tourism aspect of the area much more greatly. There are many ecotourism businesses currently operating and these provide great impetus to the movement.