Puerto Vallarta Museums

The richness of a city’s history and culture is often measured by the number of museum it has. But it is not all quantity, the quality of museums also matters. Such is the case of Puerto Vallarta, a beautiful city steeped in history and culture. While it has less number of museums compared to other cities, its two major museums – the Manuel Lepe Museum and Museo del Cuale (or Museo de Rio Cuale) – house impressive collection of artifacts.

Manuel Lepe Museum

The Manuel Lepe Museum, located within the center of Puerto Vallarta, is an interesting venue honoring the life and work of Manuel Lepe, a well-known Mexican artist. It houses a wide range of works created by the artist himself. He was known for his dramatic oil paintings, but he also produced other unique works other than his paintings.

You will find here displays of fine jewelry, colorful ceramics, detailed papier maché creations, and miniature sculptures of particular interest. You can also buy posters of his well-known and reasonably priced oil canvases.

The Manuel Lepe Museum is located at Juarez 533 Col Centro, Puerto Vallarta, 48300. It is open Monday to Saturday, from 10 in the morning to 5 in the afternoon. Admission is free.

Museo del Cuale

This tiny yet perfectly formed museum is one of the more notable museums in Mexico. Despite its size, Museo del Cuale has a surprisingly rich collection of ancient artifacts and boasts of regular art exhibitions. Located alongside the River Cuale, it boasts of general information about the history of Western Mexico. The museum houses a number of important treasures found within Puerto Vallarta , traditional arts and crafts, well-preserved pre-Hispanic objects, and folklore displays.

Museo del Cuale is located at La Isla de Rio Cuale, Puerto Vallarta, 43810.It is open Tuesday to Saturday, from 10 in the morning to 12 noon and from 4 in the afternoon to 7 in the evening. It is also open on Sunday from 10 in the morning to 2 in the afternoon. Admission is free.