Puerto Vallarta: Take the polite yet firm approach with beach vendors

If you don’t feel like partaking of what the vendor’s offering, don’t feel pressured. Although it might feel rude, it’s culturally permissable to smile and firmly say “no, gracias” only once with no further eye contact, or simply ignore itinerant vendors, especially if you’re in the middle of a conversation. Being blatantly impolite, of course—i.e., shouting at the vendor to take a hike—is rude, no matter where you’re from.