Puerto Vallarta vs Riviera Maya

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

Aerial view of Barceló Maya Palace resort showing blue pool complex, palm-lined grounds, beachfront buildings, and Caribbean Sea.

Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Maya, 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.

Puerto Vallarta guide · Riviera Maya guide · How we score

By the numbers

Puerto Vallarta compared with Riviera Maya
Puerto Vallarta	Measure	Riviera Maya
Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution	U.S. travel advisory	Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution
13	Resorts in our catalog	39 (better)
★ 4.3	Average guest rating	★ 4.6 (better)
$71–$201/night pp	Nightly rates	$46–$635/night pp (better)
2 of 13	Adults-only resorts	9 of 39
Low hurricane risk (better)	Hurricane exposure	In the hurricane belt
June–October: dramatic afternoon storms, lush green hills	Rainy season	June–October, heaviest September–October
November–May; whales in the bay December–March	Sweet spot	December–April
Puerto Vallarta (PVR), most resorts 10–40 min	Airport	Cancún (CUN); transfers run 25–90 min depending how far south
Calm swimmable water, town culture with your resort, LGBTQ+-friendly scene	Best for	Cenotes + ruins + beach in one trip; low-rise seclusion
Banderas Bay sunsets; whales December–March	Signature	Jungle-meets-sea resorts; the cenote belt inland

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

Puerto Vallarta

Riviera Maya

Weather, month by month

Month-by-month average high temperature and rainfall for Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Maya
Measure	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Puerto Vallarta · high °F	82	82	82	84	87	90	92	92	90	89	86	83
Riviera Maya · high °F	82	83	85	87	89	90	90	91	89	87	84	82
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
Riviera Maya · rain (in)	3.5	2.0	1.5	1.5	4.0	6.5	4.0	4.5	8.5	8.5	4.0	3.5

Approximate climate normals for Banderas Bay and Playa del Carmen–Tulum: planning guidance, not a forecast. A deeper tint is a higher number, read within its own row.