Live Music in Puerto Vallarta, Every Night We’re Open
Drag, salsa, mariachi and Mexican cabaret on a second-floor balcony over Lázaro Cárdenas. This is where the Zona Romántica comes to sing along.
Ask anyone who lives here where to find live music in Puerto Vallarta and they’ll point you to the Zona Romántica. Ask them where the music feels the most Mexican, and they’ll point you up our staircase. La Catrina Cantina is a cantina and Mexican cabaret at Lázaro Cárdenas 315B, and from Tuesday to Sunday our little stage does a lot of heavy lifting: drag queens one night, a mariachi trio the next, a salsa band after that, and an open mic where half the bar ends up performing.
We opened in May 2020, and the idea has never changed. Great drinks, real food, and a show worth staying for, in the heart of the Zona Romántica.
What a week on our stage looks like
No two nights repeat. About twenty local performers rotate through our stage, moving through drag shows, live salsa and cumbia, traditional mariachi, game nights and open mics, and on most weeks there’s a free salsa lesson where beginners are not just tolerated but celebrated. The lesson has a way of turning into a full dance floor by the second song.
The weekly lineup lives on our Instagram, @catrinacantinapv, and on Facebook. Or skip the research, walk up the stairs, and let the night surprise you.
A balcony over the best street in the Zona Romántica
The Zona Romántica is the common name for Colonia Emiliano Zapata, the walkable old neighborhood where most of Vallarta goes out. Our building sits right on Lázaro Cárdenas, one of its busiest streets, a few blocks up from Los Muertos Beach.
Being on the second floor changes the whole night. You get the music at your table and the street theater below the balcony: the crowds drifting between bars, the vendors, the occasional impromptu dance-off. It’s dinner and a show even before the show starts.
Come for the music, stay for the cantina
Plenty of places in Vallarta have a speaker. Very few have a stage with mariachi on it. We’re proud to be a live music bar where the show is Mexican at heart: cabaret and drag sharing the calendar with salsa, cumbia and the songs everyone’s grandmother taught them. Founders Juan and Bill built La Catrina as a place where visitors and locals end up at the same tables, singing the same choruses, whether or not they know the words.
The sounds you’ll hear up here
Puerto Vallarta’s soundtrack is bigger than one genre, and our stage tries to do it justice. Salsa gets the floor moving fastest, which is why the free lessons exist: ten minutes of basic steps and suddenly the whole room is dancing with strangers. Cumbia is the crowd-pleaser, the rhythm every Mexican party eventually arrives at. Mariachi is the heart of the house, trumpets and vihuelas and the songs people request for their mothers. And the drag and cabaret nights stitch it all together with humor, sequins and very high kicks.
If you’re used to live music meaning a cover band in a hotel lobby, an evening in a real Mexican cantina recalibrates things. The music here isn’t background. It’s the reason the tables are full.
The shows at a glance
| The show | What you’re in for |
|---|---|
| Drag & cabaret | Sequins, sharp comedy and showstopper numbers from Vallarta’s favorite queens, close enough that you might get pulled into the act. Lovingly. |
| Live salsa & cumbia | A live band, a free lesson to get you started, and a floor that fills by the second song. You’ll arrive with a table and leave with a dance partner. |
| Mariachi & Mexican classics | Trumpets, vihuelas and every song your heart already knows. The whole balcony ends up singing the choruses, invited or not. |
| Singers & duos | Powerhouse vocalists like Mara Campas, Yoss Bastar, Maria Pacheco and the Tre Tenori trio, sliding between Spanish and English all night. Sadé one minute, rancheras the next. |
| Game night on the patio | Dice, prizes, zero skill required. A rowdy tradition where the winner buys a round and everyone claims they let them win. |
| Open mic | The night the audience takes over the stage. Sometimes shaky, usually glorious, always the story you tell at brunch. |
Most of our shows have no cover, you just walk up the stairs. The exact lineup changes weekly, so check @catrinacantinapv for tonight’s show before you head out.
From the poster wall
A few of the acts that rotate through the cantina, straight from our own flyers. Every one of these nights was free to walk into.
How to find us
From Los Muertos Beach and its pier, walk up into the neighborhood to Lázaro Cárdenas street. We’re at number 315B, on the second floor, across the street from Club 69. Look up: if you can see a balcony full of people who look like they’re having a better night than everyone below them, that’s us. The stairs are right off the sidewalk.
Coming in high season, roughly November through April, it’s worth reserving a table on weekends, especially if you want the balcony. Message us on WhatsApp and we’ll hold you a spot.
Hours
- Tuesday to Thursday6:00 pm to 12:00 am
- Friday and Saturday6:00 pm to 2:00 am
- Sunday6:00 pm to 12:00 am
- MondayClosed
Questions people ask us
Where can I find live music in Puerto Vallarta?
The Zona Romántica has the city’s best concentration of live venues, and La Catrina Cantina at Lázaro Cárdenas 315B has live shows from 6pm Tuesday through Sunday: drag, salsa, cumbia, mariachi and open mic nights.
Is there live music in the Zona Romántica tonight?
If it’s Tuesday through Sunday, yes, our doors open at 6pm. The night’s lineup is posted on Instagram at @catrinacantinapv, or call +52 322 291 8777 and ask.
Is there a cover charge to see live music?
Most of our shows have no cover. You walk up the stairs, order a drink and stay for the set. Ticketed nights are announced in advance on Instagram.
Is everyone welcome at La Catrina Cantina?
Yes, absolutely. We’re a Mexican cabaret and cantina opened in 2020 by Vallarta residents Juan and Bill, and our tables are a mix of locals and visitors, couples, families and groups. LGBT+ friendly and open to all.
Do you serve food?
Yes. We’re a true cantina, with food service and a full bar, so you can have dinner and the show at the same table.
Can I book a birthday or private event?
Yes. You can reserve our VIP area for a birthday or rent the entire space for a private event, entertainment included. Message us on WhatsApp at +52 322 291 8777 to plan it.
What time do shows start?
Doors open at 6:00pm Tuesday through Sunday. Shows run through the evening, and on Friday and Saturday the bar stays open until 2:00am.
Música en vivo en Puerto Vallarta
La Catrina Cantina es una cantina y cabaret mexicano en la Zona Romántica (Colonia Emiliano Zapata) de Puerto Vallarta. Tenemos música en vivo, shows drag, salsa, cumbia, mariachi y clases gratuitas de salsa, de martes a domingo desde las 6pm. Estamos en Lázaro Cárdenas 315B, segundo piso, con balcón a la calle. Reservaciones por WhatsApp o al teléfono +52 322 291 8777.
Looking for drag specifically? See our page on drag shows in Puerto Vallarta.