About this tour
Playa La Lancha is the wave everybody in Banderas Bay learns on, and it is deliberately hard to stumble across. There is no beach club, no road down to the sand and no sign worth the name — just a gap in the trees on the highway out to Punta de Mita, a dirt pull-off, and a footpath through ten minutes of tropical forest that opens onto a long, pale beach with a headland at the end of it.
What makes it the right classroom is the shape of the wave. La Lancha breaks over a sand and reef bottom in a long, slow left that peels rather than dumps, which means the wave gives you time — time to get to your feet, time to make a mistake, time to try again on the same ride. The paddle-out is short, the water is warm enough that nobody wears a wetsuit, and the whitewater inside is where you will spend the first hour of the lesson before anything else happens.
The lesson is private and runs about five hours door to door, most of which is the beach itself. You meet downtown, the boards get loaded, and the drive north takes you past Nuevo Vallarta and Bucerías to the Punta de Mita road. On the sand your instructor works through the pop-up, the paddle timing and how to read where the wave is going to break, then goes into the water with you and stays there. Afterwards there is a beach bar in the trees where everyone sits down with a cold drink and watches whoever is still out.
Quick specs
- Duration
- 5 hours · private
- Departures
- Daily · Morning or afternoon
- Difficulty
- Beginner-friendly — no experience needed
- Group size
- Private · minimum 2 people
- Minimum age
- No fixed limit — confirmed at booking
- Maximum weight
- No limit — you must be able to swim
- Languages
- English-speaking instructor
- Meeting point
- Downtown Puerto Vallarta · we drive to Punta de Mita
Tour highlights
- 🏄A wave built for learningLa Lancha peels long and slow instead of closing out — the single most forgiving beginner wave in the bay.
- 👤Private instructionYour instructor works with your group only, in English, and adjusts to whatever level you turn up with.
- 🌴Hidden by the jungleA ten-minute walk through tropical forest is the only way in, which is why the beach stays quiet.
- 🛹Board and gear includedSoft-top boards sized to you, plus leash — you bring a swimsuit and a towel.
- 🚐The drive is handledYou are taken from downtown Puerto Vallarta up to Punta de Mita and back.
- 🍹Surf bar afterwardsThe lesson ends at the beach bar in the trees — drinks and food are there if you want them.
Photo gallery
Photos: surf lessons and Playa La Lancha, Punta de Mita.
How the day works
- Meet downtownYou meet at the shop in Puerto Vallarta, the boards go on the vehicle and you head north.
- Drive to Punta de MitaRoughly an hour up the coast past Nuevo Vallarta and Bucerías to the turn-off for La Lancha.
- Walk in through the forestA ten-minute path through the trees from the parking area down to the sand.
- Lesson on the beachBoard handling, paddling, the pop-up, safety and how to read the wave — practised on dry sand first.
- Into the waterYour instructor goes in with you, pushes you into the whitewater and works up from there.
- Surf bar and drive backA cold drink at the beach bar to finish, then the drive back into Puerto Vallarta.
What's included
Included
- Private surf lesson with an English-speaking instructor
- Surfboard and leash for the session
- Instruction matched to your level, beginner or improver
- Transport from the meeting point in Puerto Vallarta to Playa La Lancha and back
Not included
- Drinks and snacks at the beach surf bar
- Gratuities for your instructor
- Photos and video from the water
- Hotel pickup outside downtown Puerto Vallarta
What to bring
Come in a swimsuit with something to throw over it for the drive, and bring a towel and a full change of clothes for the ride home. Reef-safe sunscreen is important here — you will be in the water for hours and the reef is protected — along with a hat and sunglasses for the beach. Bring a little cash for the surf bar and your instructor’s tip, and a bag you do not mind getting sandy. Rash guards help if you burn easily; the water is warm enough that nobody needs a wetsuit.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
Do I need any experience?
No. The lesson starts from zero — how to carry the board, how to lie on it, how to paddle, how to stand up — and La Lancha is about the friendliest wave in the bay to do that on. If you have surfed before, say so when you book and the instructor will work on what you actually need instead.
Is the lesson private?
Yes. The instructor takes your group and nobody else, which is why the pace and the amount of attention you get are completely different from a beach lesson with ten strangers. Minimum two people.
How long is it really?
About five hours from the moment you meet downtown to the moment you are dropped back. The drive to Punta de Mita and back takes roughly two hours of that, the walk in and out about twenty minutes, and the rest is the beach and the water.
Is the board included?
Yes — a soft-top board sized for you and a leash. Bring your own if you prefer; just tell us when you book.
How do we get to the beach?
You are driven from Puerto Vallarta to the parking area on the Punta de Mita road, then it is a ten-minute walk through the forest down to the sand. Wear shoes you can walk in and carry.
Can children take the lesson?
Usually yes, if they swim confidently and are strong enough to handle a board in whitewater. Tell us their ages when you book and we will be honest about whether it is a good idea that week.
Are food and drinks included?
No. There is a beach bar in the trees behind the sand where you can buy drinks and food after the lesson — bring cash.
What if the ocean is flat?
La Lancha almost always has something, but size varies. If conditions are genuinely unusable your instructor will tell you before you drive up and you can move to another day rather than waste the trip.