Concierge.com's insider take:

You haven't really seen Puerto Vallarta until you've sailed along Banderas Bay and captured the view of simple white casitas and multilevel mansions perched in pine green foothills beneath the jagged Sierras. Vallarta Adventures has a bit of a lock on the bay, with several day and night tours to the company's private seaside complex, complete with a spa, restaurant, nightly dance show, water activities, and a gorgeous beach. The complex is worth checking out in the daytime, when you can use the beach hammocks, chairs, and water toys and book massages at the spa. The nighttime show and dinner are large-group affairs worth attending only if you want to partake in the cruise along the bay. Simpler sailings are available at Boca de Tomatlán, where small skiffs ferry day-trippers to Yelapa and other beaches on the bay's southern shores.—Maribeth Mellin