Sur (Emiliano Zapata) | Realtors Vallarta

The southern side of downtown Puerto Vallarta is a vibrant region that offers various options for houses and apartments for sale to those interested in living right in the center and near the beach. Commonly known as the Romantic Zone, Centro, Centro Sur, Olas Altas, or Emiliano Zapata, it’s actually a bit of all these names and more. This is an eclectic, modern, and fun area of Vallarta.

A whole city within a city, Emiliano Zapata encompasses a grid of 9 x 9 blocks south of the Cuale River, waiting to be explored. From elementary schools to universities, pharmacies, and 24/7 hospitals, from humble abodes to towering skyscrapers, the Romantic Zone is as multifaceted as it gets.

As you approach the Isla Rio Cuale bridge, the northern boundary of Emiliano Zapata, you’ll discover one of the busiest public street areas in the city, with the magnificent Conchas Chinas hills as a backdrop to its southern end. The Cuale River winds around Emiliano Zapata and, along with the small tunnel of the Libramiento (the name of the road that winds around downtown Vallarta), serves as its eastern boundary. At the opposite end is Los Muertos, the most popular beach in Puerto Vallarta.

Neighboring Colonies and Regions
Emiliano Zapata is bounded at its northern end by Isla Rio Cuale, the sea (Playa de los Muertos) to the west, Conchas Chinas and Amapas colonies to the south, and the El Caloso area to the east. Popular neighborhoods within Emiliano Zapata include Olas Altas Street, home to many shops, restaurants, and sidewalk cafes, making it a popular place to connect to the internet, people-watch, and enjoy a good cup of coffee all at the same time. In fact, Olas Altas’ bustling outdoor coffee scene is the only place in the city where you can buy fine jewelry, find a date, sing and dance the night away, and ride a donkey, all on the same street.

Isla Rio Cuale, located between Emiliano Zapata and El Centro, is a unique destination, one of Puerto Vallarta’s green oases. It stretches for several blocks into the river, is accessible on foot at various access points along the way (including some worth crossing suspension bridges), and features some restaurants, an open-air craft market with Mexican crafts, and is also home to the Centro Cultural de Puerto Vallarta in its easternmost area.

Culture and Monuments
The Malecón continues to the eastern side of downtown Vallarta via a pedestrian bridge over the Cuale River. As you cross over, you have access to the Rio Cuale Island mentioned earlier. The boardwalk continues, now providing access to beachfront bars and restaurants and local craft shops. But it gradually narrows, eventually reaching the end of Playa de Los Muertos and the beginning of Amapas. Along the way, you’ll pass by the pier of the new modern city, offering excellent views and photo opportunities.

The east side of Vallarta, Emiliano Zapata, has become a paradise for music venues and theatrical shows. There are several small theaters and cabarets that have become even livelier with their vibrant and gay-friendly atmosphere. A night on the town with a show and dinner afterward has become very popular, and most of Vallarta’s best and newest restaurants seem to be popping up here.

Playa de Los Muertos
The Emiliano Zapata beach, Los Muertos, is the most popular beach in Puerto Vallarta. Many restaurants are located right in front of it, providing visitors with all the services and amenities they may desire while enjoying the view and the sun in the shade of palapas or beach umbrellas provided by the restaurants. Restaurants allow their use in exchange for consumption. That said, most restaurants don’t mind if you also purchase a snack or other goods from one of the several authorized beach vendors in the area, dressed in white uniforms.

Dividing Playa de los Muertos in half is the new Los Muertos Pier, one of the newest and most beautiful places in Puerto Vallarta, providing easy access to water taxis and day cruises departing from the beach. The southernmost part of Los Muertos Beach is particularly popular among the gay community, with several restaurants catering to them.

Property Options in the Romantic Zone
The southern area of downtown Puerto Vallarta is a vibrant region that offers a range of different properties for sale to those interested in living right in the center and near the beach. This is an eclectic, modern, and fun area in Vallarta. Playa de Los Muertos is very popular and is filled with hotels and condominiums. Olas Altas is a bustling street full of cafes, restaurants, and shops, just one block from the beach. Along and behind this street, you will find apartments for sale, small and medium-sized condo projects (beachfront and ocean-view), and houses (very few with a view).

In recent years, many of the new apartment projects developed here offer reasonable prices with excellent access to the entire Romantic Zone and downtown Vallarta. Most of them have amazing rooftop bars, terraces, and restaurants as private amenities for owners, with views of the city and the bay. If you want to be close to where the “action” is, this is the place to be!