Vallarta Yacht Club

Overview

The Vallarta Yacht Club is a yacht club providing sailing, regattas, cruise-outs, junior sailing programs, clubhouse dining and membership services.

Location and club history

The Vallarta Yacht Club is located on Banderas Bay and operates a clubhouse and restaurant (the Picante Grill), offering breakfast, lunch and dinner with published menus and clubhouse/restaurant hours.

Vallarta Yacht Club communications also reference the club’s previous site at Paradise Village and note changes related to the boat ramp parcel taken over in 2023.

Clubhouse dining and restaurant hours

The club’s Picante Grill restaurant offers breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Restaurant and bar service has seasonal hours: Peak Season (Nov 1–May 16) and Summer Season (May 17–Oct 31), with clubhouse/restaurant hours published by the club.

Membership levels and fees

Membership is offered through six main levels: Flag, Gold Flag, Youth, Associate, Reciprocal, and Corporate/Mega Yacht.

Initiation fees and annual/monthly dues are published; for example, the Flag initiation is approximately MXN 13,000–13,500, with dues varying by age bracket.

Associate and Reciprocal options are described for short-term visitors, and youth pricing includes junior sailing inclusion.

Detailed, current fee tables and application procedures are published on the club membership pages, including membership information and fee details.

Junior sailing and training

The structured Junior Sailing program is for approximately ages 7–18 and includes three training levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced Team.

Training includes multilingual/qualified instructors and safety and seamanship topics, and the program provides club boats including Optimist, Laser, 420 and Hobie 16.

The program also runs regular clinics and cruiser seminars.

The program is described as having produced sailors who compete at national/international and Olympic levels, with the Vallarta Sailing Foundation providing grants/support for competitive sailors and regattas.

On-the-water activities, racing and cruising

VYC’s On the Water program includes regattas and cruise-outs, with an On the Water Calendar, requests for VYC handicaps, documents and announcements, event registration, a crew list, and a Racing WhatsApp group for sailors.

The club also supports cruiser-friendly events and rallies, including examples such as Banderas Bay Blast, Boxing Day beach cruise, and cruiser classes in Vallarta Cup.

VYC organizes medium-distance bay rallies and social cruise-outs that welcome both local and visiting cruisers.

Information about the On the Water program is published by the club at On the Water Home.

Moorings, anchorage and visiting yachts

VYC is located adjacent to Paradise Village Marina and routinely works with local marinas for events.

Regattas and rallies commonly start from Paradise Village Marina, and visiting yachts use nearby marina berths; the club provides guidance for visiting yachts and maintains links to local marinas, while slip/berth booking is handled by the marinas.

Relevant guidance is published in the club’s On the Water materials.

Boatyard and ramp information

The club’s formerly leased Paradise Village site included a boat ramp and parking as part of the property.

Club communications note the boat ramp was part of the parcel taken over in 2023, but the official site does not provide a detailed listing of permanent boatyard hauling/repair facilities at the club’s current location.

Details are discussed in the club’s news update about moving to new facilities.

Seasonal operation and on-the-water calendar

The clubhouse and restaurant publish seasonal hours: Peak season (November 1–May 31) and Summer season (June 1–October 31), with differing daily opening/closing times.

The club also publishes an annual on-the-water schedule covering the November–May peak season and continuing activities year-round, including at club contact and hours.

Social membership offer

Vallarta Yacht Club is offering a 2-week free guest membership in 2025.

Details are published in the club’s announcement at the free guest membership news item.