Patrol And Night Encounter With Sea Turtles

What am absolutely INCREDIBLE experience! We got to see a momma turtle lay eggs and rescue the eggs - so beautiful to witness and feels great knowing we could help! Eddie was SUCH a great person and taught us so much. He's a friend for life now. I can't recommend this experience more! And if you decide to do the baby turtle release instead/ in addition, make sure to book it with the turtle camp directly (not another tour company) as that's how the organizing raises funds to do this vital rescue work!

Like someone else said— don’t let the late night booking scare you. You will be well taken care of and feel safe, especially with Eduardo. We didn’t see the turtles at first, but then we found a nest and participated in the capture, identification, and incubation of olive Ridley sea turtle eggs. In addition, we got to see crocodiles at a safe distance from the mangrove. This was one of the best experiences I had visiting this area. It is so clear that the organization really cares about these turtles. Do it and you won’t regret

This night patrol tour was one of the most meaningful experiences of my Puerto Vallarta trip. I joined the conservation team after dark and walked the beach searching for signs of nesting activity, and we hit the jackpot — watching large sea turtles come ashore, dig their nests, and lay their eggs right in front of us. Eduardo, an experienced biologist, was an amazing guide. His knowledge of the turtles’ nesting behavior, the local threats they face, and the conservation process was clear from the moment I met him. You can tell he genuinely loves what he does to save these turtles, and his passion made the whole night even more meaningful. It’s hard work, and the dedication of him and the rest of the team is incredible to see up close. The real highlight was helping collect hundreds of eggs to relocate to protected nests back at the conservation camp. Less than 30 minutes later, we spotted raccoons at the original nest sites. Without the team’s intervention, that entire clutch would almost certainly have been destroyed. In 45 days those eggs will hatch and the baby turtles will be released back on the beach to make their way safely into the water. While the turtle release tours are likely more popular, this tour lets you see and help with all the work that happens behind the scenes to make those releases possible. Book both for the full experience — highly recommend!

Wow! It’s one thing to go on vacation and try new things. It’s quite another to be a part of protecting an endangered species. During our experience, we rescued an Olive Ridley turtle nest from raccoons, waited and watched over a mama turtle laying her eggs to prevent poachers from stealing her eggs or killing her for meat, and saw several baby turtles emerge from the sand as they hatched. Eduardo and his team work tirelessly through the night to help these beautiful creatures. I was truly humbled by their dedication and knowledge.

We saw a mommy turtle lying eggs and later we released new born baby turtles, about 90 of them! We rescued 2 sets of turtle eggs. One was stolen by a poacher! It was amazing and I’m so grateful for this experience.

Wow, what an incredible journey it’s been to save Olive Ridley turtle eggs from poachers and vermin. By giving these little ones a chance to live their best lives and grow up for future generations, we’re making a real difference. The staff here is absolutely amazing and they’re doing everything they can to protect them 24/7. It’s such a privilege to be a part of this adventure and to help save a species.

What an incredible experience. We saw a turtle lay eggs, assisted with egg collection, data collection, released baby turtles, & learned so much from the scientists about the Olive Ridley. I felt safe with our guides & saw other wildlife along the way. What to wear: I wore slides, biker shorts/tshirt, & lots of bugs spray and was just fine. Thank you for giving us an amazing tour!

We had a great experience our guide was very informative and we were able to see several turtles laying eggs and returning to the ocean and collect of 450 eggs and incubation process also we were able to release a few babies into the ocean Amazing

I can’t say enough good things about this wonderful experience! If you are in Puerto Vallarta during turtle season and have an ounce of adventure in you, you MUST book this! I got to help retrieve eggs from 5 nests and got to see 3 turtles laying or finishing laying eggs. It was so interesting to see the biologist and long-term volunteer locate nests, measure turtles, and retrieve eggs, all meticulously recorded. The value of the conservancy was evident when we saw 7 nests that had been dug up and eaten by raccoons that are rampant near the hotels. It’s not often those of us from the U.S. get to help with work like this, and I left with lots of memories and lots of education. Through the entire experience, I felt safe, well instructed, and blessed to participate in ACTUAL conservancy field work- this is not a ‘tour’ to find turtles for tourists. The area is rustic, so it’s a good idea to bring water and mosquito repellent. And don’t let the late hour or remoteness stop you. You will be safe and well taken care of. Just go!!

My husband and I went out with a biologist on an amazing nighttime experience, "Turtle Patrol." With our guide, Eduardo, we traveled by ATV (just the 3 of us) and covered a long stretch of beach where turtles lay their eggs. Eduardo showed us how to recognize tracks left by mama turtles, locate the exact location of the nest, carefully collect the turtle eggs, and record relevant data. We found 5 nests and collected approximately 500 eggs. A long the way we also saw a baby crocodile on the beach and rather large adult crocodile in the water! A highlight was finding two mama turtles laying their eggs and very diligently burying the eggs in the sand. We took the eggs back to camp and learned how to recreate the nest in an enviroment that is protected from predators and poachers. Eduardo was an excellent guide as he was energetic, knowledgeable and passionate about helping sea turtles. He even picked us up from and dropped us off at our hotel since it was close to the beach we patrolled. This is perfect for people who enjoy active experiences and want to learn about sea turtle conservation. We definitely got sandy!

Very interesting information shared by eduardo, our guide/biologist. We where lucky enough to discover 2 turtles laying their eggs. Amazing to see and a must do at least once in a lifetime!

Eduardo is extremely passionate about his work and made us feel safe while educating us the entire time we were there. We searched for turtle nests for several hours and managed to collected 85 eggs which was exciting to be apart of. If you care for animals/turtles and want to learn about some of the preservation efforts and challenges going on in the area then this is a truly unique experience for the family. Eduardo was a great person to learn from and made the entire night very enjoyable.

This tour was incredible, I have never done anything like this before! It is incredible the work that this organization is doing to protect the sea turtles and I love that they give you the opportunity to live it since for this you need to be a biologist and have a special permit!!! I recommend this experience to anyone who loves animals and loves adventure and learning new things!!! Just don't do it if you are a person who doesn't like to walk😂

Eduardo and his team were wonderful guides. They were incredibly patient, knowledgeable, and accommodating the entire experience. My girlfriend and I hadn’t done an experience like this before, being able to make change like this was the highlight of our trip. Words can’t begin to express how magical this experience was. Eduardo’s expertise was truly unparalleled, in just a few short hours we were able to save hundreds of baby turtle eggs and observe several mothers begin their nesting. If you have time, do it! We feel as though we’ve made friendships for a lifetime and will be back to hopefully save more and set up more baby turtles for success. Thanks again for everything Eduardo and team, keep up the good work!

Increíble poder ser parte de esta enorme labor. Gracias Eduardo y todo el equipo por hacerlo todos los días. Muy recomendable.

It was very interesting to learn up close and live all about the great work these guys do from the turtle camp. The hike is a bit demanding due to the weather and humidity but worth it when after searching and searching you find the turtles. I only have to see one and collect 2 nests but it was enough to nourish me with knowledge!! I recommend bringing mosquito repellent and eating something light before, comfortable clothes and lots of mindset of what you will walk and sweat, this experience is great for those looking for adventures!!

My girlfriend and I love doing eco-tourism experiences but it really has been different and totally worth it!! Having the opportunity to experience in one night the difficult and great work that biologists do in this turtle conservation area is amazing!! It is a walk of approximately 4km along the beach, it is a reserve so there is no lighting or light, the camp guys bring lamps to be safe, you will feel very safe at all times!! So if you like adventure, do it!! We collected 2 nests and only saw a turtle for a short time when it was returning to the ocean but it was great!!

It was a great experience!! The walk is a bit heavy but it is worth it as it feels like a great adventure. We were lucky enough to only see one turtle but we collected 3 nests, they told us that the season is just beginning, we were very lucky!! Eduardo and the guys at the camp took care of us and it was great to be able to experience a night of the great work they do every day to preserve the turtles!!