Summer in Puerto Vallarta has plenty to offer, but one experience that continually “wows” visitors is witnessing the nesting turtles. Through the end of September, tourists can catch the tail end of turtle nesting season in which thousands of Olive Ridley turtles swim to Puerto Vallarta’s shores to lay their eggs. After about 45 days of incubation, the nesting turtles’ hatchlings are born and released into the sea. For the last 37 years, the Banderas Bay has served as the nesting and birthplace for these spellbinding sea creatures.

 Dedicated to marine turtle conservation and protection, Puerto Vallarta’s Department of Environment and Ecology, along with local professional marine biologists, help ensure the majority of the eggs laid survive and make it into the sea successfully. Visitors are invited to come out of their shells and participate in the process, including naming the turtles, setting them back into the ocean, volunteering or attending tortoise tours at number of nurseries in the area, including: Campamentos Tortugueros Puerto Vallarta, Grupo Ecologico de la Costa Verde’s Marine Turtle Nursery, Platanitos Turtle Camp and Grupo Ecologico de Nayarit’s Playa el Naranjo.  For more information visit, project-tortuga.org.