Sample prices on the home page are based upon:

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico has an International airport - rate code is "PVR". It's about 20 minutes north of the HEART of REALVallarta - Old Town?SouthSide?Muertos & a few other "nicknames"!!

Prices for flying have increased significantly - mainly because of LOTS of new taxes, gas price increases (last I checked, gas has gone up all over the world!!!) & various fees. Last time we checked there were over $90 in taxes (more if you have any stops) hence another reason for the significant price increases.

Cheap tickets are given away when there are seats still available, when traditionally there's a history of slow flights, when you are being inconvenienced (having stop along the way) & during the slowest days of the week to travel. TRADITIONALLY (hahh!!) the cheapest days of the week to travel:

• TO Puerto Vallarta/PVR FROM the U.S.: Sun., Mon., Tues., Wed.
• FROM Puerto Vallarta/PVR - TO the U.S.: Tues., Wed., Thurs., Fri.

In other words, it's NOT when you're going for a long weekend - any days between Thurs.-Mon. or Holidays!!!

I've been flying since I was 14 (paid for my first trip to see my grandparents in Chicago with my baby-sitting $$!!!) & now fly AT LEAST every other month!! I STILL pay full price for my tickets (VERY rarely will I go stand-by) so I DO shop around!! What I've concluded for one of the BEST HINTS for finding some of the BEST prices is to CALL THE AIRLINES FIRST THING in the a.m. - say before 9a.m. - BEFORE the travel agencies open!! "Por Que" "Why?" you ask?!?!?!? My belief is that all the people that were supposed to pay for their ticket the night before & didn't - their seats are open & since I've found overall that fares are heavily based on open seats - I can almost ALWAYS get a good priced seat (or a seat in general) even when they've told me the day before they were sold out or the price was significantly higher!!

Airline ticketing can be VERY challenging & prices can vary drastically!!! One reason I quit doin' airline ticketing YEARS AGO is that you & I could call the SAME airline at the SAME time & get 2 COMPLETELY different rates!! Sadly - often the customer "assumes" the agent is "ripping them off/jacking up the prices" when in fact this is NOT true!!

How much $$ would you say YOUR TIME IS WORTH?!?!?!? We SOOOOO OFTEN forget to put a dollar value on our time & we spend hours/DAYS searchin' the internet to save a few $$s (& you CAN spend DAYS searchin'!! I've listed below 18 resources/sites for airline tickets alone!!). This is where using a professional?Specialist comes in handy & is a LOGICAL choice to make!! Remember - these days VERY few travel agents make any $$ on airline ticketing (basically unless it's through a package or a consolidator) so MOST are now charging a Service Fee to do the search & ticketing for you (personally I think is LONG overdue as they're professionally taken their time to assist you. You wouldn't expect free advise from a doctor or lawyer yet for years people would call all over having numerous travel agents jumping hoops for them to !!). If you're dealing with one that REALLY KNOWS what they're doin' - it's WELL WORTH the value!!! ESPECIALLY if they know what they're doin'!! (FYI - Doin it Right does NOT charge extra fees!!).

MOST Flights Depart the U.S. EARLY in the a.m. or at least before or noon (so you can spend more time IN Mexico!!) & tend to return late afternoon.

If your ticket says 1-1/2 hours - they say you really should be there then because IF that plane is full - it's NOT unusual for it to depart early (meaning those that they factored in with the Double-booking factor [see below "Why Are Flights Overbooked?"]) so those latesters are on their own to get to where they need to get technically (meaning - the airlines have NO OBLIGATION to accommodate you!! With this said - I'm one of THE WORST in this area!! When I lived in San Diego & they have a non-stop flight on AeroMexico that departed at 12:27pm, if the saw my name on the roster they KNEW to leave the gate open as I'd fly in with 6 bags FULL of stuff to give to people in Vallarta having just pulled an all-nighter to be able to get away [I do NOT hold the flight up as it ALWAYS departs ON TIME!!]!!! I'm MUCH better with that now!! I'm not "recommending" anything but I can tell ya that MY experience in the past has been hardly anyone is waiting in line 1/2 hour before the flight departs so I breeze right up but I'm a risk taker & I can DEFINITELY go with the flow!!).

This is one of my favorite questions!! Why are flights (hotels, rental cars, etc.) Overbooked??? Now, go & get that mirror out & look REALLY hard & long & get ACCOUNTABLE people!! If you can say that you've NEVER IN YOUR LIFETIME double-booked (or more!!) a reservation - then this doesn't apply to you (& I say - "YEHHHH for being in integrity!!!"). THAT's why things get overbooked!! Businesses factor in a certain percentage of no-shows (changed minds, cancelled trip, found something cheaper/better . . . ) since they're NOT in biz to sit empty hence loose $$$. So next time you get bumped from a flight - remember ALL the times you didn't cancel a double+ reservation & sit back, take a deep breath & go with the flow & don't do it the next time!!!!! (darlins' - I've been VERY guilty of this IN THE PAST!!).

PLEASE!!! PLEASE!!! PLEASE!!! If you make a reservation & are NOT going to use it - PLEASE cancel it AS SOON AS YOU KNOW so it can be free for someone that's SERIOUS (MOST of us have "double-booked" before!!)!! Think KARMA!! You want those cheap seats to be available for YOU when you're ready to book now don't ya?!?!??!

"Direct" - One of the MOST means you stop somewhere along the way but "don't necessarily" get off/change planes (not the " "). I believe there is a charter that goes non-stop but I believe it's only 1 day a week which would only allow you to go for 7 nights. NON-STOPS are created where there's a heavy demand. You OFTEN pay MORE to go non-stop - the convenient way!!!

I remember when I first got into the travel industry 9 years ago - "Travel Weekly" had a graph on this exact subject. It said you had a MUCH BETTER chance at getting killed in the shower (I actually DO know someone that did die that way [it was a seizure]) or in a . . . DOMESTIC DISPUTE (& how many of us are afraid of the person lying next to us [of course I'm petrified of loosing control & letting someone love me so my odds are even better at surviving!!)!!!! Yes things have changed in most peoples minds since 911 but to me the bottom line is it's STILL MUCH SAFER than getting into that car of yours or crossing the street statistically!!! Most statistics I've seen say that most people that are afraid of flying have MEGA "Control" issues!! Well, honey - I'm the QUEEN OF CONTROL yet for some reason I don't have THAT issue & my daddy actually died in a fluke military plane crash when I was 6, my brother is a pilot for AA/TWA & I fly AT LEAST every other month!! If anyone has a reason to be afraid of flyin' it's moi but I feel REALLY SAFE personally!! Personally, when it's my time to go I'd MUCH rather it be FAST in a plane crash than play a martyr & suffer for any length of time (& I KNOW I could do that!!)! I say - figure out where your "Issue" is coming from & GET OVER IT!! LIVE LIFE & ENJOY IT NOW WHILE YOU STILL HAVE IT!!!!!

Frequent Flier miles aren't the easiest things to cash in!! They're based on availability which is usually only a few seats on each flight & when they're gone - oh well!! (unless you have LOTS of them & then sometimes you can use your pull!!). Good luck cashing them in ESPECIALLY during a holiday or Peak Season & ESPECIALLY on American since space is VERY LIMITED.

Check with the airlines' web site as some have Web Specials &/or some discounts for booking online!! Here are the main airlines that fly from the U.S. to Puerto Vallarta (PVR is the airport code):

CONTINENTAL www.Continental.com 800-525-0280 - You almost always stop & change planes in Houston (they do have ONE NON-STOP flight from Newark to PVR on Sat.!!). If trying to cash in miles or something & you're coming from the West Coast - it's important to know that it's nearly a full day trip doin' it this way.

MEXICANA www.Mexicana.com 800-531-7921 - I believe they're STILL the oldest CONTINUOUS running airline in the world (since 1922!!)!! You usually stop & change planes in either Mexico City or Guadalajara. You also get FREE DRINKS. In Value/low season - Chicago has a non-stop on Wed. In Peak Season it's on Thurs., Sat. & Sun.

AEROMEXICO www.AeroMexico.com 800-237-6639 xt. 1 - English, then xt.1 - You usually stop & change planes in either Mexico City or Guadalajara. You also get FREE DRINKS. FYI - Group rates with AeroMexico start at only 8 people!!

ALASKA AIR www.AlaskaAir.com 800-426-0333 xt. 2, then xt. 1 - They often have some GOOD WEB SPECIALS which come out EARLY Thurs. a.m. & I believe only last a couple of days so subscribe & check regularly!! They fly from the West Coast. Non-stops usually from or if coming from another city - you stop in LAX, SFO. FREQUENT FLIER MILES: You can cash in your Alaska Air miles with flights on American to fly to PVR or you can earn American miles when you fly with Alaska Air.

AMERICAN www.AmericanAir.com 800-433-7300 xt. 2, then xt. 2 again - You go through Dallas/Ft. Worth. During the off season they only fly on the weekends. FREQUENT FLIER MILES: You can cash in your Alaska Air miles with American to fly to PVR or you can earn American miles when you fly with Alaska Air. GOOD LUCK cashing in American Miles as they seem to be one of THE HARDEST to cash in!!! They advertise that they have the most leg room (I found that to be true.

AMERICA WEST www.AmericaWest.com 800-235-9292 xt. 3 - You go through Phoenix.

DELTA Delta does NOT fly to Vallarta!!! They're in a "code-share" agreement with AeroMexico which means within the U.S. you will fly on Delta but when you go into Mexico it will fly on AeroMexico. I've OFTEN found that if you call Delta directly for a price it's HIGHER than calling AeroMexico direct!!

UNITED United does NOT fly to Vallarta!!! They're in a "code-share" agreement with Mexicana. Same description as Delta.