About 40 minutes inland from the Hotel Zone, past the last houses and up a cobblestone road into the Sierra Madre, a cable-and-plank bridge spans the canyon of the Cuale River. It’s long enough that the far end looks small when you start, and it’s strong enough to carry off-road vehicles. Which is the whole point: most people who cross it do so behind the wheel of an RZR or on an ATV.<\/p>\n
We run tours to the Jorullo Bridge every day of the year, so these are the questions we answer most, with the facts straight.<\/p>\n
The bridge sits inside the Canopy River eco-park, in the mountains east of Puerto Vallarta along the road toward Los Llanitos. There’s no public transport worth relying on, and the last stretch is a mountain road, so nearly everyone arrives on a guided tour.<\/p>\n
Our tours don’t do hotel pickups. Instead, you meet the van at one of four pickup points spread across the bay: Zona Rom\u00e1ntica, Las Glorias in the Hotel Zone, Playa de Oro and Nuevo Vallarta. From the Puerto Vallarta points the ride to the park takes around 40 minutes; from Nuevo Vallarta, plan on about an hour. You choose your point when you book.<\/p>\n
| Detail<\/th>\n | Figure<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n |
|---|---|
| Length<\/td>\n | 470 m (1,542 ft)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Height above the Cuale River<\/td>\n | 150 m (492 ft)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Built by<\/td>\n | 35 farmers from the local community, working with engineers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Construction time<\/td>\n | 18 months<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| How visitors cross<\/td>\n | RZR, ATV, or on foot as part of select zip line tours<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Distance from Puerto Vallarta pickup points<\/td>\n | About 40 minutes by van<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\nBuilt by the People Who Live on the Mountain<\/h3>\nThis isn’t a government megaproject. The bridge was built by local farmers from the ejido, the communal landholding that owns much of this stretch of the Sierra Madre, alongside engineers who designed the structure. Thirty-five people, eighteen months. When you cross it, you’re riding on something the community made with its own hands, and the ecotourism that came with it is a big part of how families in these hills earn a living today.<\/p>\n About That “Longest in the World” Title<\/h3>\nYou’ll see the bridge advertised as the longest suspension bridge in the world, and the sign at the bar on the far side says it’s the longest one built for vehicles. Our honest take: global bridge rankings depend a lot on how you define the category, and we’d rather not oversell it. What we can say with zero hesitation is that there’s nothing else around Banderas Bay where you can drive a side-by-side across a canyon 150 meters above a river. Whether it holds a world record or not, the knot in your stomach on the first few meters is real.<\/p>\n The El Salto Waterfall Stop<\/h3>\nBefore the big crossing, the RZR route makes a stop at El Salto, a waterfall tucked into the mountains and reached by a shorter hanging bridge, a good warm-up for what comes next. The falls drop roughly 30 meters. Water levels follow the seasons: strongest during and right after the summer rains, thinner by late spring.<\/p>\n Jorullo Point, the Glass-Floored Viewpoint<\/h3>\nIf the bridge is the adrenaline, Jorullo Point is the view. This lookout sits 420 meters above sea level and has a glass floor that lets you stand over open air. To reach it you cross another suspension bridge, about 200 meters long and more than 100 meters above the ground, and like the main bridge, it’s built to carry RZRs and ATVs. From the top you get a full 360-degree view of the mountains and the Cuale River, and on clear days you can make out the Bay of Banderas.<\/p>\n You’ll see it listed on our site as the Mirador de Cristal. You can reach it on the ATV + Mirador de Cristal tour (from MXN 2,295), the RZR al Mirador de Cristal tour (from MXN 5,610) or on foot with the Mirador de Cristal hike (from MXN 1,700).<\/p>\n Ways to Cross the Jorullo Bridge<\/h3>\nPrices below are starting prices at the time of writing. Drivers on every vehicle tour must be 18 or older with a valid physical driver’s license.<\/p>\n |