Los Arcos - Arches From a Hacienda
Photo: daryl_mitchell, CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
A stop on Puerto Vallarta: Malecon and Old Town, a free self-guided tour.
The four arches framing the sea here are almost as famous as the seahorse. They stand over the Los Arcos amphitheater, formally the Aquiles Serdan open-air theater, where steps face a small stage with the bay as backdrop.
The original stone arches came from a hacienda near Guadalajara. They were brought here in 1970, when Puerto Vallarta hosted a meeting between Mexico's president Gustavo Diaz Ordaz and US president Richard Nixon. In 2002 Hurricane Kenna destroyed them. The neighboring city of Zapopan donated a replica made by the sculptor Martin Distancia, and the new arches were in place by December of that year.
The amphitheater is the town's free stage, with folk dancers, musicians, clowns and festivals, especially on weekend evenings. Sit on the steps for a while. At sunset, the sun drops into the bay right through the arches.
Getting here: Continue a few steps south along the Malecon to the arches facing the main plaza.
Did you know?: Hurricane Kenna struck the Pacific coast as a major hurricane in October 2002 and damaged much of the Malecon along with the arches.
Photo op: Climb to the top step of the amphitheater and frame the sea and setting sun through the four arches.
More on Wikipedia: Los Arcos · Richard Nixon · Gustavo Diaz Ordaz
Stops on this tour
- North End of the Malecon - Where Time Begins
- Nostalgia - The Sculpture the Town Paid For
- Rotunda of the Sea - Thrones You Can Sit On
- The Boy on the Seahorse - Vallarta's Emblem
- Los Arcos - Arches From a Hacienda
- Main Plaza and City Hall - The Heart of Old Vallarta
- Our Lady of Guadalupe - The Church With a Crown
- Gringo Gulch - Where Hollywood Came to Stay
- Isla Cuale - An Island in the River
- Zona Romantica - Old Town South of the River
- Los Muertos Beach and Pier - The Sail at Sunset