San Sebastian del Oeste: Historic Getaway in Mexico's Sierra Madre Mountains
4.5
308 Ratings
Puerto Vallarta

San Sebastian, tucked away in the Sierra Madre Mountains, is one of Mexico’s remaining hidden gems due to its isolated position and historical charm. The route through the mountains presents captivating views and common glimpses of rural Mexican customs, making the trip both awe-inspiring and tranquil.

Duration: 7 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Puerto Vallarta - This tour can depart from Puerto Vallarta
  • Nuevo Vallarta - This tour can depart from Nuevo Vallarta
  • San Sebastian del Oeste - Marvel at this beautiful remote village and the mountains carpeted in dense tropical vegetation. To arrive in San Sebastian del Oeste is to take a step back in time. This antiquated town dates…
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What's Included
  • Bottled water
  • Professional guide
  • Lunch
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pickup and drop off
Additional Information
  • Comfortable walking shoes and a light sweater are recommended
  • IMPORTANT: this tour is not available to cruise ship passengers
  • You must contact Vallarta Adventures to confirm the check in time & location on your booking. It may change according to our operation
Location
Vallarta Adventures
Mástil
Please contact Vallarta Adventures if you have any questions regarding meeting details and check in instructions.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.5
(308 Ratings)
5 stars
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1 star
Kara_p
May 11, 2025
Excellent day trip from Puerto Vallarta - This was a perfect day to spend away from the beach and resort. We learned a lot about the history of San Sebastián and how it relates to PV of today. Juan Carlos was a knowledgeable and entertaining guide. Stops were well timed breaking up the drive perfectly. It was a slow paced and relaxing day, which was perfect for us. Lunch was delicious!
Review provided by Viator
Flower71
Apr 25, 2025
Fantastic Tour! - Excellent tour! Franco and Nery were fantastic as was the food, tequila and coffee. Franco was very knowledgeable, this trip was the highlight for my group.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
G1282cydebc
Apr 19, 2025
San Sebastián tour - Great experience great guide great driver Super informative super kind great van. I felt very taken care of the entire time with Alexa and our driver
Review provided by Tripadvisor
04honda599
Apr 10, 2025
Highly rated experience - Although it is an all day bus(air conditioned) adventure there are interesting stops to a family bakery, a coffee producer Mary La Quinta(only wish that we had bought more of their chocolate covered coffee beans), agave and Tequila(tasting) farm and historic San Sebastián which just turned 420 years old. Alexa our tour guide was enthusiastic and knowledgable about history. We learned about 3 original families who had kept the blood line for over 300 plus years, touring through Spanish inspired buildings, a walk back in time. Highly recommend tour if you visit Puerta Vallarta for a taste of true Mexican culture in a rural environment.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Y2157usca
Apr 5, 2025
The best way to visit San Sebastian del Oeste is with Vallarta Adventures - Franco was our guide and from the first minutes of the tour he took care of us like we were family. It's a bumpy, curvy ride so he put those subject to car sickness in the front of the small 15 passenger van. No one got car sick. He was interested in where we were from and what we wanted to see in San Sebastian. He was passionate about the history of the town and the area. Lunch was generous portions of delicious Mexican cuisine with wine or beer if desired. It was the best lunch of my entire vacation. Beautiful San Sebastian and its history of silver mining, coffee growing, and mesquite growing for tequila is essential to the colonial history of Mexico.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laura759
Mar 27, 2025
Tavo and driver Sainte made this a great day!! - We had a great day trip to San Sebastián with Vallarta Adventures. Our guide, Tavo, was so helpful and so knowledgeable of the history and culture. He and our driver, Sainte (sp?) are a great team! They found the way around a major traffic tie up on the way back…amazing navigating through narrow back streets! We had a stop at a tequila farm and a bakery, then had a wonderful lunch; Tavo and the chef paid attention to our dietary concerns and made everyone comfortable. Wonderful day!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ju103
Mar 25, 2025
Eventful Journey to Authentic Mexican Town - Our excursion to San Sebastián del Oeste was amazing. This is a beautiful Mexican mountain town hidden away high above the coastline. The journey up was relatively smooth on a winding paved highway until we hit the cobblestone roads for the last part up and into the town all navigated well by our able driver. The views get lovelier the higher you go and, Juan Carlos, our excellent and very knowledgeable guide made the history of the region come alive through his stories. Our first stop was at a small family owned coffee plantation then into the town for an amazing lunch followed by a visit to a local museum and tour of the charming town all led by our guide with his funny and well informed stories. He really did seem to enjoy the job and made it fun for everyone. On our descent we stopped at a small tequila distillery where we enjoyed an informative presentation and a tasting by the owner himself. All in all it was a long but enjoyable day exploring a piece of authentic Mexico that we highly recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Constance
Mar 8, 2025
A Good Day Out - The trip was varied in that it included a stop at a coffee Plantation with a small cup of coffee and tge opportunity to buy bread and cookies, an overview of the town with visits to the church and museum, couple of stops at shops, and a stop at a tequila distillery with tastings. The tour guide, Sophia, did an excellent job--she was very informative and very pleasant! The driver, Julio, also did a great job navigating the windy roads with the bus, and was very funny. A good day out from Puerto Vallarta!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Eastcoastband
Mar 5, 2025
Our guide Tavo made this trip special! - The tour has fun stops (bakery, tequila/riccia distilery) besides San Sebastion. Ultimately it all comes to life only because of the tour guide. In our case Tavo crushed it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Q9664azcharlesb
Jun 25, 2025
Okay - Bad Tour Guide - The Trip was okay… unfortunately we had an extremely annoying tour guide named Alexa. Driver was great. Alexa was not. She made everyone feel like a child and belittled you. All I wanted to do was enjoy some views. Instead, it felt like a 5th grade field trip.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).
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