PV International Birding Festival to Kick Off at Vallarta Botanical Gardens Vallarta Bird Festival
go to original January 8, 2014

Photo Source: Greg R. Homel

The Banderas Bay Region is home to over 300 species of different birds and will be the site this March 6 through 9 for the Puerto Vallarta International Birding Festival.

The Festival is hosted by the Vallarta Bird Conservancy and will kick off on March 6 at the Vallarta Botanical Gardens. Four action packed days of birding and nature walks with expert guides in unique habitats will be sure to satisfy even the most advanced birders, and lectures from local and international authorities on many interesting bird and birding related topics will round out the festival.

Don’t forget your binoculars!

Festival Schedule

Thursday/Friday festival days include tours south of Puerto Vallarta. Thursday lunch at the Vallarta Botanical Gardens (self-pay), Lunch Friday at Host hotel Best Western Plus Suites (Hotel guests included, non-hotel guests self-pay). Lectures both days at Host hotel Best Western Plus Suites.

Saturday/Sunday festival days include tours North of Puerto Vallarta. Lunch will be at El Salado market day vendors. Lectures both days at El Salado.

Sunday is Family/General public day at El Salado. Continuous tours at El Salado for general public (registration required), children’s activities, films, and market.

See Schedule page for more detail.

Check-In

All tours start at the Host Hotel Best Western Plus Suites. There is a short check-in procedure for your first tour to receive your festival registration package and to submit a signed waiver form (required of all festival participants). Please arrive at 6:45 am for this. Tours leave at 7:00 am.

Standby

We do not maintain any standby lists. Cancellations in the online registration will release places for others.

Cancellation and Refund Policy

If we cancel a Festival Bird Tour or workshop, you will receive a full refund for that event. If you cancel an event by February 7th, you will receive a refund. If you cancel after February 7th, you will not receive a refund. Notify us of cancellation by letter or e-mail to puertovallartabirdfestival@gmail.com. We will refund your payment by Paypal and deduct a $20 US cancellation fee.

Tour Notes

Children under 12 not accepted. Animals (Dogs) not allowed. (Tours are meant for birding and thus quiet at ALL times).

Tours may require walking steep slopes and rough terrain or long distances. Please be aware of each tour's difficulty rating and your ability to do this. We do not provide help as there are only guides giving the tours looking for birds.

Transportation

Transportation is available by van for all tours for 380 Pesos(approx $30 US) per person per day. This transportation will depart from our host hotel Best Western Plus Suites. This will include transportation by van for both Morning and afternoon tours, and transportation to and from the days' lunch and lecture places. If you require this transportation, you must add transportation cost for that day for each person in your registration. Otherwise, you will be expected to provide your own transportation, meeting at Casa Iguana to carpool to the Birding sites. Tours leave on time and will not wait. Tours will return to either Vallarta Botanical Gardens for lunch(self-pay), or host hotel Best Western Plus Suites for lunch and lectures or El Salado for lunch and lectures. See detail Schedule page for more information.

Lectures

All festival participants can go to afternoon lectures that will be either at the Host hotel Best Western Plus Suites or El Salado at no charge. Tours will return to these locations.

Lodging

Best Western Plus Suites is our Host Hotel. It is an all-inclusive hotel located a short distance South of Puerto Vallarta and part way to the Vallarta Botanical Gardens. Tours will depart and return here, and some of the lectures will be held here. Consider staying here. See the Lodging page for instructions on receiving the Bird Festival rate.

Food

All tours will include a snack and water. Lunch will be available for purchase at one of the festival days hosts, Vallarta Botanical Gardens, Best Western Plus Suites (hotel guests lunch included) or El Salado depending on that day’s schedule.

What to bring

• Binoculars
• Please dress in layers. See weather below.
• Good walking shoes (sandals not advised)
• Mosquito spray
• Bird books if you have them

Weather

Nearly perfect, Puerto Vallarta’s tropical climate has an average daytime temperature of 80*F and a nighttime temperature of 60*F with about a 70% humidity level. Areas around El Tuito, at higher elevations can be slightly cooler. The sun rises around 7:00 am and sets around 7:00 pm with beautiful morning lighting and spectacular sunsets for you photographers. March is during the dry season.

Registration

Registration is made online under the Events/Registration page. Confirmation will be sent at the completion of online registration.

In Person Registration

In-person registration is not done prior to start of the festival. Should you not be able register on-line. Please contact Claudia Lovera by email at puertovallartabirdfestival@gmail.com, or by telephone at (322) 222-7407 or (322) 293-7052 for help in registering. You can also contact William Trachtenberg at US phone (484) 821-3736.

In-person registration may be done the first day of the festival for any tours that are not filled at Best Western Plus Suites. There is limited space in each tour so it is strongly recommended to register on-line.

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