Aquaventuras Park

The slides you see from Highway 200 at the entrance to Nuevo Vallarta belong to Aquaventuras, on the inland side of the road. The tallest is The Happy Widow; Tooth Breaker is another, and The Octopus is a race on inflatable tubes. Between them sit a 160-metre lazy river, ordinary pools and a water playground for small children.

The dry part is what sets it apart from Splash across the road: a 12-metre zipline, a climbing wall, hanging bridges and an obstacle course called El Desafío, all covered by the entry ticket along with lockers. Lunch is an add-on. A dolphin habitat inside the park runs paid swims and sea lion encounters several times a day. Hours run late morning to late afternoon, stretched a little at Easter, in summer and over December.