Jalisco
Destination wedding photography · Puerto Vallarta
In short
Destination wedding photography in Puerto Vallarta starts at $1,800: 8 hours on location with a photographer who works in Puerto Vallarta, and 500 edited photos delivered to a private gallery within 6 weeks.
Why choose destination wedding photography in Puerto Vallarta?
A Puerto Vallarta wedding is usually a resort wedding: a ceremony on the sand of the Hotel Zone or a south-shore hotel, dinner on a terrace above the bay, and a sunset that does most of the work. The photography is planned around that sunset, which falls over open water because the city faces west. The part couples underestimate is the paperwork, because the bay is split between two states and a wedding venue ten minutes from the airport may not be in the state the invitations say.
Worth knowing about Puerto Vallarta
Puerto Vallarta is in Jalisco, but Nuevo Vallarta, five minutes north across the Río Ameca, is in Nayarit, and each state sets its own civil-marriage requirements. A couple who marry legally in Mexico deal with the Registro Civil of the state where the venue stands. Foreign documents generally need an apostille and a Spanish translation by a translator recognised in Mexico, so the local Oficialía is contacted well before the date.
What does the session in Puerto Vallarta look like?
- Hotel Zone beachfront
- Flat, wide sand in front of the resorts for the ceremony and a long sunset line for the first portraits.
- Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe
- The downtown parish with the crowned tower, for couples who marry in church before the beach reception.
- Playa Conchas Chinas
- Sandstone ledges and tide pools for a quiet half hour of couple portraits away from the guests.
What does destination wedding photography in Puerto Vallarta include?
- 8 hours of coverage, from the last hour of getting ready to the first dance
- 500 edited photographs in a private online gallery
- Full gallery delivered within 6 weeks
- A planning call and a written timeline built around sunset and the venue’s own rules
- Outside-vendor registration with the venue coordinated alongside your planner
- A rain plan agreed in advance for every outdoor part of the day
Permits at these locations: Playa Conchas Chinas: No published fee for a session on the sand. Access is down public stairways between the hillside villas.
FAQ — Destination wedding photography in Puerto Vallarta
Can foreigners marry legally in Puerto Vallarta?
Yes. Mexico’s Ley de Migración says the Registro Civil may not refuse a marriage because of a person’s migration status, so foreign couples can marry legally in Puerto Vallarta. Jalisco sets the document list, and foreign birth certificates and similar papers generally need an apostille and an official Spanish translation, so the Puerto Vallarta Oficialía is contacted months ahead.
Is a symbolic beach ceremony in Puerto Vallarta legally binding?
No. A symbolic ceremony on a Puerto Vallarta beach has no legal effect in Mexico. Couples who want a legally valid marriage either marry civilly at a Mexican Registro Civil or marry at home and hold the ceremony in Puerto Vallarta, and the wedding photography is the same either way.
What time should a Puerto Vallarta beach wedding ceremony start?
A Puerto Vallarta beach ceremony is best timed to end about an hour before sunset, which falls at about 18:20 in mid-November and about 19:45 in late June. That leaves the last light for portraits on the sand while guests move to cocktails, and the wedding photographer confirms the exact time for your date.