Supermarkets, Groceries & Essentials
Where to buy food, water, nappies and everything you forgot to pack.
If you're in a rental rather than a resort, or travelling with children, or simply staying long enough to want breakfast at home, knowing where to shop changes the economics of a trip considerably. Puerto Vallarta has four distinct tiers of shop and they're good at different things.
The four tiers
| Type | What it's for | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Big supermarkets | A full weekly shop, imported goods, household items, alcohol | Mostly north of Old Town, along the coastal road and near the Marina |
| Convenience stores (Oxxo and similar) | Water, snacks, beer, phone top-ups, bill payments, cash machines | Everywhere, constantly, often 24 hours |
| Neighbourhood shops (abarrotes) | Basics, cold drinks, a few pesos cheaper than the chains | Every residential street, including in Old Town |
| Markets, fruit shops, tortillerías | Produce, tortillas, fish — the cheapest and best of it | Around the municipal market and scattered through the neighbourhoods |
The big supermarkets
The large chains — the international big-box names and the Mexican supermarket groups — cluster north of the centre, along the main road through the Hotel Zone and towards the Marina, with warehouse clubs further out. There is no large supermarket in the heart of Old Town, which surprises people: from there it's a short bus ride or a taxi with the shopping on the way back.
They stock everything you'd expect, including a reasonable range of imported goods, and they're where to buy wine and spirits at normal prices rather than tourist ones.
Oxxo, and what it's really for
Oxxo is the convenience-store chain you'll see on every other corner, and it does far more than sell snacks. It's where you top up a Mexican SIM, pay for things online that you couldn't pay for by card, buy bottled water and cold beer at 2am, and find a cash machine. It is more expensive per item than a supermarket and completely indispensable.
The market and the small shops
The municipal market near the Río Cuale, and the smaller neighbourhood fruterías, are where produce is both dramatically cheaper and noticeably better than in the supermarkets. Buy fruit and vegetables here. Tortillas come from a tortillería, sold hot by weight, and cost a fraction of the packaged supermarket version — a stack of fresh tortillas for a few pesos is one of the small pleasures of self-catering here. For the food side of the markets, see food tours.
What's cheap and what isn't
- Cheap: fruit and vegetables, tortillas, eggs, chicken, local beer, tequila, coffee, avocados, limes.
- Normal: most staples, dairy, Mexican-brand household goods.
- Expensive: imported cheese, imported wine, breakfast cereals, branded toiletries and anything else shipped in. If a product is familiar from home, you will usually pay a premium for it.
Self-catering even for breakfast and one other meal a day makes a real difference to a trip's cost — see what a trip actually costs.
Pharmacies
Pharmacies are plentiful, often open late and sometimes around the clock, and many carry a doctor's consulting room attached for a very small fee. A good number of medicines that require a prescription at home are sold over the counter here, though antibiotics do require one. If you take something specific, still bring it with you — see what to pack.
Water
Don't drink from the tap. Buy bottled water, or better, a large refillable jug (garrafón) if you're in a rental — it's how households here do it and it's a fraction of the cost of small bottles. Full detail on can you drink the water?
Travelling with a baby or small children
- Nappies, wipes and formula are stocked by the big supermarkets and pharmacies. Brands differ from home, so if your child is particular, bring enough for the first days.
- Baby food is available but the range is narrower than you may be used to.
- Buy water for making up bottles, never tap.
- Sun protection for children is widely sold but expensive — bring it.
Practical notes
- Bring a bag. Single-use plastic bags have been phased out in Jalisco and shops often won't have one for you.
- Baggers at supermarket checkouts are usually working for tips alone — small coins are customary. See money & tipping.
- Cards work at the chains; markets, tortillerías and small shops are cash.
- Shops stay open late and most open on Sundays.