My wife wants to do a long weekend trip for her birthday (11/5) somewhere warm. Granted it's "her" trip but I want to try and play my cards right and see if I can't get bit while I'm down there. What can I expect from a charter down there? Any recommendations? Has anyone had any luck making nice with a local "commercial fisherman" down at the marina and get them to take them out in their panga and trade a couple of the day's catch for a case of beer? What are the legal requirements for me to fish in Mexico?

thanks in advance!

I didn't fish down there but you might contact by email a hotel on the waterfront of the Old Town near where I saw pangueros picking up and dropping off fishermen and ask them for a referral. It is the Hotel Los Arcos in Puerto Vallarta (google will find it), and their English is fine.

If your wife is along and actually likes Mexican culture instead of "mall culture," she will like Old Town, the part of town south of the river. The gringo-style malls are all at the "new" end of town. The harbor is in between the two, and that might be where the the party boats leave from. We saw both party charters and pangas fishing in the bay when we were walking on the seafront Malecon..

Good value now; the peso mexicano is in the toilet.... As far as I know, all you need to fish in Mexico is a fishing license. You might look at a website called (I think) www.discoverbaja.com. They have lots of info for gringo fishermen in Mexico on there.

Have a great time!

PS, if you fly, ignore all the "uniformed" shills in the airport terminal and just walk past them and get a cab from the cab rank in front of the airport. They will offer you all sorts of inducements to dump your hotel reservations and go to one of their timeshares. A huge waste of time, just keep walkin'! This is a notorious "feature" of Puerto Vallarta, look at any guidebook. Otherwise, it's a very nice place. Seafood!!!!!!!

Be sure Take a nice 10' spinning surf rod for casting 2-3oz jigs from the surf. Lots of game fish can be caught from the surf like roosters and Dorado.

No way yer gonna do a bit of fishing for a few cases of beer! Their rates in pangas are a few hundred a day. I take the surf rod.

Pay the big bucks out of Naryitt and go catch 200-300+ # Yellowfin Tuna!

The charters in PV for the most part suck balls. They are so used to plucking gringos, you'd be lucky to get a decent trip out of a friggin panga. Almost got in a fist fight with one hawker at the marina area once several years ago when ex-wife and I were out for dinner because I refused his advances on a charter.

I'd bring a 7-8' 14-18 lb class spinner and flip tipped or scented jigs in the surf. If you go north, go up to Nuevo Vallarta and try it there, or south of the river from PV.

May want to check out Sayulita (hear it's good, but never been) or Bahia de Banderas (cool spot, friendly ex-pats. Cheap food and beers on the beach, but that was a several years ago).

Be serious!

The airport is near the old marina, which is my favorite place to stay, and which has a couple excellent restaurants. But you might want to try to charter a panga out of Punta de Mita, which is in Nyarit, not Jalisco, where Marina Vallarta is located. Most of the sight seeing and shopping will be found in town south of old Marina Vallarta, not north, where Nuevo Vallarta is located. Casa de Tequila is worth seeking out, in town. And for a very special dinner have a cab take you to La Chosa, in Mismaloya, just south of town.

Second that motion. Probably one of it not the best idea(s).

Wow! Lot to think about thanks guys!