ATV Tours in Puerto Vallarta: Three Hours or Five, a Waterfall or a Bridge, and What You Pay for the Difference
6 min read
For most people the answer is the Río Cuale and Sierra Madre ATV tour with tequila tasting: €70.53 per person, 4.6 stars from 32 reviews, three hours, and the most-reviewed of the five tours compared here. If the 470-metre Jorullo suspension bridge is what you want, it is the Jorullo Bridge ATV, waterfall and tequila tour at €178.29, which is a different day and a different price.
See dates and prices for the Río Cuale and Sierra Madre ATV tour
Four of the five head into the Sierra Madre behind the city, mostly along the Cuale River, and most include a tequila stop. The wider ATV and buggy category lists 41 offers from €47.11, but many of them have only a handful of reviews. These five are the ones with enough bookings to compare.
The five compared
| Tour | Duration | From | Rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Río Cuale & Sierra Madre ATV Tour & Tequila | 3 hours | €70.53 | 4.6 from 32 reviews | Most people: river crossings, a waterfall swim, the lowest price |
| Sierra Madre ATV Mountain Adventure | 3.5 to 4 hours | €132.21 | 5 from 27 reviews | A group of at most six, through the old town |
| Jorullo Bridge ATV, Waterfall, Tequila Tour | 5 hours | €172.92 | 4.8 from 26 reviews | The bridge, and El Salto waterfall |
| Sun Buggy Sightseeing Tour with Lunch | 5.5 hours | €125.14 | 4.8 from 24 reviews | Sightseeing in a buggy rather than a mountain ride |
| ATV Tour with Tequila Tasting from Puerto & Nuevo Vallarta | 2 hours | €98 | 4.6 from 7 reviews | A short ride; but only 7 reviews |
The three-hour river tour
The operator is Cool Rentals & Tours, and the group meets at their shop in Puerto Vallarta, which the page says has a big sign. After a safety briefing and fitting of a helmet, goggles and bandana, you ride through the streets, along the Cuale River and up into the Sierra Madre, crossing riverbeds. There is a stop with views over the city and Banderas Bay, an optional swim at a waterfall that the page says depends on rainfall, and a tequila tasting at the end. Food at the mountain restaurant is at your own expense.
Bring a driver’s licence, cash and sportswear. The page lists children under 6, wheelchair users, visually impaired people and people over 70 as not suitable. One reviewer, who rode in a storm, says to expect to get a little or a lot wet, since rain can come at any time.
The one that crosses the bridge
The Jorullo bridge is 470 metres long and hangs 150 metres over the Cuale River, according to the booking page. The tour starts with a 45-minute ride through the mountains, stops at the El Salto waterfall, and crosses the bridge by ATV, with a welcome drink, a snack and a tequila tasting. The page offers single-rider and double-rider options, and the meeting point depends on which you book: Nuevo Vallarta, Playa de Oro, the Las Glorias hotel zone and the Romantic Zone are all listed.
It is five hours instead of three, at a much higher price. The page lists pregnant women, people with back problems and people with heart problems as not suitable. The bridge also features in the zipline parks guide, where other operators cross it differently.
Check availability for the Jorullo Bridge ATV, waterfall and tequila tour
The small-group version
The Estigo Tours ride, at €136.32, is limited to six participants on the booking page and starts at Calle Honduras 135, half a block from the beach. It follows the Malecón and the colonial streets, passes Casa Kimberly, the 1960s house of Elizabeth Taylor, then goes into the villages and up a river trail. There is a break midway to buy snacks and drinks. Children under 6 and people with mobility impairments are listed as not suitable. If a group of six is what you want, this is the reason to pay for it; if you only want the river and the waterfall, the cheaper tour has both.
The buggy day
The Sun Buggy tour is not really an ATV ride. It is a 5.5-hour sightseeing day in your own buggy: the Botanical Gardens, a tequila factory, lunch at Mismaloya beach, then a short hike to a viewpoint with the iguana statue, and snorkelling at Los Arcos or time at the beach. One reviewer says the vehicles needed repair, with loose steering and a manual gearbox where it was easy to miss a shift. Another reviewer calls the day unforgettable, with fun buggies and good scenery. If you have never driven a manual vehicle, ask the operator what you will be given.
See dates and prices for the Sun Buggy Sightseeing Tour with Lunch
The two-hour tour
Gray Line Vallarta’s ATV ride is the shortest, at two hours, with a swim at El Salto waterfall and a tequila tasting, and €96.66. It has 7 reviews, so its 4.6 says little yet. Its list of people who should not book is the longest of the five: pregnant women, people with back or heart problems or mobility impairments, wheelchair users, and drivers under 18.
Who should skip all of them
Every page here lists someone as not suitable, and the lists differ, so read yours before paying. Back problems are listed on two of them, and heart problems on two. An ATV on a rough trail is a physical ride, not a sightseeing bus. If you have a bad back, the jungle hikes and waterfalls page lists walking alternatives, and the horseback riding guide compares five rides.
Our recommendation
Book the Río Cuale and Sierra Madre ATV tour at €70.53 unless you have a specific reason not to. It is the cheapest of the five here, the most reviewed, and it has the river crossings and the waterfall swim. Pay the €178.29 for the Jorullo bridge tour only if the bridge is the point; pay the €136.32 for the six-person group only if the group size is. The buggy day is a sightseeing trip with a hike and a snorkel in it, and should be booked as that.
