Guanacaste vs Puerto Vallarta

Illuminated beachfront dining pavilion with white railings and thatched-roof bungalows reflected in the pool at dusk.

Resort pool with white umbrellas and lounge chairs, palm trees, and a multi-story hotel building backed by green mountains.

Puerto Vallarta13 resorts · ★ 4.3 average

Guanacaste and Puerto Vallarta, side by side: live travel advisories, our resort catalog's real guest data, and each destination's honest weather picture. Everything you need to break the tie.

By the numbers

Guanacaste compared with Puerto Vallarta
Guanacaste	Measure	Puerto Vallarta
Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution	U.S. travel advisory	Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution
6	Resorts in our catalog	13 (better)
★ 4.4 (better)	Average guest rating	★ 4.3
$88–$285/night pp	Nightly rates	$47–$268/night pp (better)
1 of 6	Adults-only resorts	2 of 13
Low hurricane risk (better)	Hurricane exposure	In the hurricane belt
May–November ('green season'), seriously wet September–October	Rainy season	Usually June–October, with showers and thunderstorms
December–April, bone-dry	Sweet spot	November–May, outside the usual rainy season
Liberia (LIR), Papagayo resorts 30–45 min	Airport	Puerto Vallarta International (PVR)
Nature + beach in one trip; reliable winter sun	Best for	Town outings, restaurants and a beach-resort stay

Advisory levels sync from travel.state.gov; catalog figures reflect the resorts we've researched, not every hotel in the country. A marked row is one we are willing to call; rows without a mark are a matter of taste, or we have no comparable figure for both sides.

On the map

Guanacaste

Puerto Vallarta

Weather, month by month

Month-by-month average high temperature and rainfall for Guanacaste and Puerto Vallarta
Measure	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Guanacaste · high °F	91	92	93	93	91	88	88	88	87	86	87	89
Puerto Vallarta · high °F	82	82	82	84	87	90	92	92	90	89	86	83
Guanacaste · rain (in)	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.7	7.7	9.0	5.9	7.9	13.0	12.2	4.3	0.5
Puerto Vallarta · rain (in)	0.4	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.5	7.0	11.0	10.5	13.5	4.0	0.8	0.5

Approximate climate normals for Papagayo / Guanacaste and Banderas Bay: planning guidance, not a forecast. A deeper tint is a higher number, read within its own row.