Islas Marietas

Mexico

Islas Marietas is a small national-park archipelago off Punta de Mita in Banderas Bay, Nayarit, on Mexico's mainland Pacific coast near Puerto Vallarta, popular for scuba diving and snorkeling.

The islands lie in federal waters roughly 7.9 km southwest of Punta de Mita and were declared a national park in 2005 to protect the surrounding marine ecosystem. Dive and snorkel sites feature volcanic rock formations, caves, and reef habitat. Divers commonly encounter reef fish, eels, sea turtles, manta rays, octopus, and seasonally humpback whales and dolphins.