New York - The Mexican Pacific Coast destination of Puerto Vallarta closed a successful awards season yesterday with the announcement that it has been ranked as one of the "Best Cities in the World" and "Top Small Cities Outside the US" in this year's Conde Nast Traveler Reader's Choice Awards.

Puerto Vallarta is one of three Mexican cities to be listed in the Top 40 Cities in the World and one of two Mexican cities listed in the Top 20 Small Cities in the World categories. Puerto Vallarta is the only beach city to rank in both lists.

The awards were announced yesterday by Conde Nast Traveler and will be celebrated during a private ceremony for awarded cities at New York's Burden Mansion today.

"We are honored to be included in this exclusive list of international destinations," said Javier Aranda Pedrero, General Director of the Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board. "We believe this is the result of the welcoming atmosphere offered by Puerto Vallarta's people, the authentic Mexican feel and the surprising diversity of attractions and activities our city offers."

Over 300,000 Conde Nast readers submitted millions of ratings and tens of thousands of comments, sharing their recent travel experiences of the world's cities, islands, hotels, resorts, cruise lines, airlines, and airports - good or bad. All of the winners will be celebrated in the November issue of Condé Nast Traveler as well as online at cntraveler.com/rca.

Puerto Vallarta is not only one of Mexico's top destinations, but also one of the most celebrated, continuously receiving accolades from the media and visitors alike.

US News & World Reports' Best Vacations 2017 selected Puerto Vallarta as #9 for "Best Places to Visit in Mexico," #7 for "Best Beaches in Mexico" and #5 for "Best Spring Break Destination." In addition, TripAdvisor's consumer base of more than 2 million monthly users ranked Puerto Vallarta as the #3 "Overall Best Mexican Destination" in the 2017 Traveler's Choice Award.

In 2016, Puerto Vallarta's Cruise Port Terminal was named the "Top Mexican Riviera & South America Destination" at Cruise Critic's first-ever Cruisers' Choice Destination Awards. The world's leading cruise reviews site and online cruise community, based its ranking on consumer ratings submitted with reviews on the Cruise Critic website. The awards go out to destinations across 15 regions worldwide.

In April, Puerto Vallarta was a TravelAge West 2017 Editor's Pick and nominated in the category of "Destination with the Highest Client Satisfaction, Mexico" as part of the TravelAge West WAVE (Western Agents' Votes of Excellence) Awards.

The Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board celebrated earlier this year as the city was elected Mexico's Top Destination Winner at this year's prestigious International Travvy Awards held in New York City on January 25th. Puerto Vallarta took three Silver Statues for Best Culinary Destination in Mexico, Best City Destination in Mexico and Best LGBTQ Destination at an international level.

Puerto Vallarta was named the #1 "off the beaten path" or "surprisingly gay friendly" travel destination in the world in an August survey pertaining to gay summer travel and conducted in conjunction with The New York Times and SCRUFF, one of the leading gay dating apps in the world (with 10 million members worldwide). The ranking also indicates positivity pertaining to safety in the destination.

Gaytraveler.com also named Puerto Vallarta its first "Gay Traveler Approved Destination in Mexico" and Gay Cities named it "Best Fun in the Sun Destination" in its Best of Gay Cities 2016 poll. The city was the only Mexican destination to rank in the top 50 of Nestpick's LGBT Cities 2017 for its quality of life. Nestpick aims to help people relocate to cities around the world.

Puerto Vallarta is home to the most hotels with Diamond Awards in Mexico - 17 in total - including: Hotel Mousai has a Five Diamond Award, Four Diamond Award rating for the Barcelo Puerto Vallarta (since 2008), Casa Kimberly (2016), CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa (Since 1991), Casa Velas Hotel Boutique (Since 2003), Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta (2001), Garza Blanca Preserve, Resort & Spa, Grand Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta All Inclusive Adults Only (2016), Hacienda San Angel (2006), Hilton Puerto Vallarta Resort (2013), Hotel Grand Miramar Puerto Vallarta (2015), Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta (2015), Now Amber (2013), Secrets Vallarta Bay (2013), Sunset Plaza Beach Resort & Spa (2011), Villa Premier Hotel & Spa (2006) and the Westin Resort and Spa, which has held the distinction for over 23 years in a row. For 79 years AAA has used professional inspectors to conduct in-person property inspections. AAA offers the only rating system using comprehensive, on-site professional hotel and restaurant evaluations guided by member priorities.

As Mexico's leading culinary beach destination, Puerto Vallarta has over 360 restaurants and is home to four AAA Four Diamond Awarded restaurants: Café des Artistes (2016), Emiliano (2014), The Iguana (2016) and Vista Grill (2005). Visitors have also enjoyed and placed 3 Vallartan restaurants in the top 10 of TripAdvisor's Favorite Fine Dining Mexican Restaurants - Bistro Teresita, Le Kliff & La Leche.

About the Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board

The Puerto Vallarta Tourism Board is responsible for promoting Puerto Vallarta as a tourism destination both in national and international markets. Located in the heart of Mexico's Pacific coastline and framed by the rugged, tropical Sierra Madre Mountains to the east and facing Banderas Bay, Mexico's largest natural bay and second largest on the American continent, Puerto Vallarta is easily accessible from the U.S. and Canada. Puerto Vallarta enjoys a warm tropical climate year-round, with average daytime temperatures of 80 F and cooler evening temperatures in winter months. Located 4 miles from downtown Puerto Vallarta, Gustavo Diaz International airport receives over 4 million visitors annually. The destination is home to 300,000 residents and offers an estimated 22,500 hotel rooms with over half in 4-star-plus properties.