We highly recommend renting a car so that you have the opportunity to explore the area and visit the towns of Sayulita, Bucerias, Punta de Mita, Nuevo Vallarta and Puerto Vallarta.

Casa Obelisco is in San Francisco (San Pancho), 25 miles, or 45 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta on the main highway and just 3 miles north of Sayulita.

Listed below, we've included directions and a few items you should know before traveling.  Have a great trip, and we look forward to seeing you at Casa Obelisco. 

Note: please print this for your trip, including the driving directions. Change your printer settings to print in LANDSCAPE mode.  If you do not, the right side of the text page will be truncated.

Passports   (Important!)

Effective 1 January 2007 it is mandatory to have a current passport to enter the United States.  If you depart the United States prior to 1/1/2007 with a birth certificate it will not be sufficient to re-enter the US after 1/1/2007.

Only with a current/valid passport will you be able to re-enter the United States.   If you have questions, please contact your consulate or Passport Office in the US before you travel.

Changing Money

The airport has a competitive exchange rate.   If the airport bank is closed there is also a money exchange and ATM machine that will dispense your money in pesos.   You definitely want to do this because there is no bank in San Pancho and no one takes dollars (or if they do, the exchange rate is not good).   A money exchange just opened in town but the hours are unreliable.  No one in San Pancho takes credit cards or traveler’s checques– San Pancho is a true cash society. 

Note:  once you clear customs at the Puerto Vallarta Airport you will almost certainly be approached by "Time-Share" sales personnel, even at the car rental agencies (they might even represent themselves as rental car employees-- they are not!).   These fast talking, highly trained people are there for one reason -- to get you to a time-share presentation where you will be met with even more pressure.    We have nothing against timeshare ownership but if you truly are not interested in buying one, stay strong, firm and do not let them talk you into it.    They will present you with a host of compelling reasons of why you should attend a Time-Share sales pitch, including a discount for your car rental, free golf, entrance to exclusive day resorts, etc.   They will promise you it will take only 90 minutes and they may even beg -- telling you they will be fired if they don't get two more people to attend.   If you don't want a time share -- say no!    Many of our guests have good naturedly gone along with this scheme and been bitterly disappointed because they were not allowed out of the room for over 4 hours, received the highest pressure sales pitch of their life and felt the whole experience cast a negative shadow on their vacation.    One guest who received free golf said "I would have gladly paid them double the greens fees if they only would have let me leave",      One of the best ways out of the discussion is to say "no thank you, we just bought a house in San Pancho about 2 months ago and we are going up there now".    Refuse to answer any more questions -- they'll try anything to see if you are lying.   They will also tell you that doesn't matter --but their own rules say you cannot be a Mexican homeowner.     Just look them in the eye and say "I said no, I mean no -- now please let me get to my new home".    If you think you might enjoy a timeshare -- just forget all this information.

Getting to Casa Obelisco

1.  From the airport it is 25 miles to San Francisco (San Pancho), go north on Highway 200 toward Compostela/Tepic.  You will pass signs for a few little villages, ( Nuevo Vallarta, Bucerias and  Punta de Mita).  As you leave Bucerias the road will narrow from two lanes to one lane each way, and there is a military check point,  (it's closed most of the time).  If it is open, this Mexican state border checkpoint is a random check of cars for drugs, the next station is checking for fruits or animals.  It's a random stop, if they happen to ask you to pull over, just answer their 3 or 4 questions and you will be on your way. At this point you are entering the mountain road and are exactly halfway to Casa Obelisco. 

NOTE:  Be careful on this mountain road, people like to pass.    A driver with a left turn signal flashing (when there is no obvious left to make) is indicating it is safe for you to pass.   Do this with caution – I prefer to make my own decisions when driving.  

2.  You will see a small sign pointing to the left for a town called Sayulita.  This is the town just before San Pancho/San Francisco – keep going north about another three miles.  Watch for a sign hanging across the middle of the highway that says San Francisco.  There may also be a sign for the hospital.  This is your left turn. If someone is behind you, pull to the right at the bus stop and wait for traffic to pass.   Then, you can safely cross the highway and head down the road leading to San Pancho.  

3.  After you turn off the highway you’ll be on “main street” – A cobblestone street called Calle Tercer Mundo (3rd World Street in English).  You cross over a little bridge and river (might be dry but it’s a landmark).   Keep going.   You’ll pass three large, brightly colored factories on your left. 

4.  Pass the soccer field on your right – don’t worry, you’re almost there!  Keep going straight.  Pass Calle Africa (there is a sign pointing to the right for the Hospital).   Two streets after the hospital turn right on Calle Latina America.  The "Galeria Corazon" Mexican Arts and Crafts store owned by one of the owners of Casa Obelisco is on the corner.  If the store is open, stop in and meet John and Judi.  Another "landmark" is El Indio, our “Super Mini” liquor store which will be on your right after you make the turn.

5.  Continue up that road and pass the large orange curved wall with arches (that’s a new gated community being built).    The cobblestone will end abruptly and now you have a choice – the dirt road to the right or the one to the left – Go left!      In a minute you’ll see the Pacific Ocean right in front of you.    You’ll then pass under a white arch and you’ll be back on cobblestone.   

6.  Pass Hotel Costa Azul on your left.   After passing the hotel the road will curve to the left  (don’t go straight up the hill – take that left) and then back to the right (you’re following the coast).   Go past a few little houses on your left, on your right you’ll see a large stonewall with a warm beige color house behind it, that is Casa Obelisco.

Pass the house and drive up the hill (to the right) and park wherever you can find space at the top.  (We’ll point you to parking later).  Grab your bags and go down the steps.   Welcome!  You are at Casa Obelisco.

Transportation

All of the major rental companies are represented and available at the Puerto Vallarta airport.  We can highly recommend Gecko Rent a Car located in Bucerias.   They will greet you at the airport and take you to their rental agency.  For details, visit their web site at www.geckorentcar.com    There is a price difference for automatic transmissions and air conditioning -- so make sure you know what you are renting (and bring the printed confirmation you get via e-mail with you).    Some credit cards will cover a portion of car insurance, but check with the issuing bank to be sure.  The credit card covers only certain things; so find out what is and is not covered – you can then just purchase the needed coverage.  

Things to Know

If you want to make phone calls back to the states you can purchase phone cards at stores in San Pancho to use in the phone booths around town and, there is an Internet Café where you can check e-mail, make international calls and send and receive faxes.  For a nominal fee, we do have an internet phone available at Casa Obelisco. 

In case of an emergency, your family can get a message to you by calling  our internet phone at 415-233-4252.  (this is our home phone, so please use as emergency contact only).  As an alternative, the local Mexican phone is 011-52-311-258-4315

You need a passport to enter/leave Mexico.  Don’t lose the visitors Visa they give you when you go through Immigration – you need it to exit the country, or you will have to pay for a replacement visa.

If you are traveling with a young adult under 18 years both parents must be present or you need a notarized letter from the absent parent giving permission for the child to travel outside the country.   Check with your airline for exact details.

We have a wonderful climate in San Pancho.  It is always warm in the day and can drop down into the 60’s in the winter late at night (so you may want to bring a sweatshirt for that occasional cool night in the winter)

Our little town of San Pancho (including the entire Puerto Vallarta area), is quite safe.  We rarely ever hear of incidents and here in San Pancho it is safe enough to stroll the beaches at night enjoying a spectacular night sky lit up with more stars and constellations than you've probably seen in years.