Whether it's a fishing trip, a cruise around the Marietas Islands, or a quick lift to a surf break, renting a panga boat couldn't be easier. In Punta de Mita, a local fisherman's co-op locates all of the boats together in one convenient location, and then bookings are rotated to ensure all of our local boat captains have a steady flow of customers.
Based in Ave Anclote, where the jetties are located just beyond Restaurant Row, this business has a great group of captains-any one of which can take great care of you. Rudi is highly recommended, not only because he is multi-lingual but has an encyclopedic knowledge of the area including sea life, birds and local news! He also has a great sense of humour.
One of the most popular tours in a panga is a day in the Marietas Islands, just offshore of the Punta de Mita peninsula. These uninhabited islands are great places for bird-watching, diving, snorkelling, or just exploring. Blue-footed booby birds (found only here and in the Galapagos) can be spotted all along the islands' rocky coast, and giant mantas, sea turtles, and colourful tropical fish swim among the coral cliffs.
The islands are honeycombed with caves and hidden beachesincluding the stunning Playa de Amor (Beach of Love) that only appears at low tide. You enter a shallow passageway to access this semicircular stretch of sand. There's also a cave 12m (40 ft.) below the surface with an air pocket where divers can remove their regulators and have an underwater conversation. Humpback whales spend the winter around these islands and so pangas can be rented for a do-it-yourself whale-watching excursion.
Rates
The co-op is a standard $70 US per hour.
If you book with Rudi and mention you heard about him through livepuntamita.com. He'll give you the rate of $60 USD per hour.
