Krystal Puerto Vallarta: Cute, friendly hotel in the perfect location - also great for people with food allergies/sensitivities!

My partner and I recently stayed at the Krystal Vallarta during our first trip to Mexico. The hotel is in an excellent location, being right on the water and fairly close to downtown and the Zona Romantica. The room we had (in the tower) was far nicer than I would have expected for the price we paid - it was very modern, clean, and had a spectacular view of the grounds and ocean! It actually took my breath away when we first walked in. The bathroom had a beautifully tiled walk in shower and the  [... read more]bed was comfortable. The sound proofing in the rooms is a bit lacking as others have noted, but was not really an issue - the quality of the room otherwise definitely made up for that. Just bring ear plugs if you are a light sleeper. The hotel grounds are cute and well taken care of, and the staff were super friendly. The pools were lovely and the beachside drinks were better than other places I have visited, and everything was made with care. It was busy at the main pool and hard to get a chair, but there were spaces at the second pool where it was much quieter overall. This did not bother us much at all anyway as we spent so much time in the city! There is a bus stop right outside the Krystal with city buses going by almost constantly, and for 10 pesos you can easily get downtown once you figure out which buses to flag down lol. It is about a 15-20 minute ride (very approximate, it's hard to keep of track of time when there's so much to see!) and is definitely worth the adventure. The Krystal is in such an excellent location because of this, I would stay there again for that aspect alone. In terms of food, I personally thought the food was excellent. We ate most of our meals in the main dining room when we were on the resort; there is another dining area closer to the beach however we did not eat there much as the hours were a little sporadic. That would be the only "complaint" I would have about the food, but again, if you can go with the flow it's not really an issue as the main dining room was beautiful. There was a great selection of what I came to learn is quite traditional Mexican food (eg. Chillaquiles for breakfast, which are my new love in life), various meat and vegetable and bean dishes, fresh juices, soups, etc. To be fair this was my first time in Mexico so my ability to compare food with other places is a bit limited, however I am a bit of foodie in general and thought it was all delicious! Every dish was full of flavour and not too spicy, and for those who love spicy food like myself there was always a variety of extra "sauce piquantes" to add on. There was also a selection of more western cuisine (e.g. an omelet station in the morning, french toast/pancakes, cereal, pasta dishes) at every meal. I did not eat much of this myself but my boyfriend did and thought it was very good. I have read a few comments from people about the food and I am not sure if they stayed at the Vallarta on a bad week, or perhaps were expected more of a western/European menu. For myself, I loved that there was such a focus on food traditional to the area given that we were in Mexico for a reason, and not back home in Canada. I hope that the Krystal Vallarta continues provide such a regional cuisine as it really did add to our stay and overall cultural experience. The other aspect of the food that I genuinely appreciated is how responsive the staff were to my questions about ingredients, as I have several severe food allergies. Knowing this might be an issue (given one of my allergies is shellfish, sadly!) I wrote out a list of allergens in Spanish, using Google Translate, and showed it to a front desk agent at the hotel. He read it and said the translations made sense, and told me to show it to the people in the restaurants. I talked to the dining room staff several times and asked them about ingredients and showed them my list, and they went through each dish with me, and if they were not sure went and brought one of the cooks out even when it was very busy. I honestly don't think I've had that level of assistance anywhere before, and it really was a huge relief! Overall, my partner and I really enjoyed our stay at the Krystal Vallarta and would absolutely stay there again. While some of the hotel staff we had interactions with did not speak much English they were very helpful and friendly, and we are able to make it work with even our limited Spanish and the occasional help of Google Translate. I think we did get a very good deal when we booked our all-inclusive packages, and for us the value was definitely there in terms of price/cost and the quality of our stay. It is a cute, comfortable hotel that is very welcoming and family oriented. That was perfect for us, and with the price we paid we did not feel compelled to stay at the resort all day to "get our monies worth", so to say, which allowed us to get out and explore the rest of the city and surrounding area, which is amazing! The Krystal was a great "landing place" in this sense, especially for travelers new to the city and to Mexico in general. I was sad to leave and we are already looking forward to our next trip!

Decameron Isla Coral: I’m sorry but people need to know.how bad it really is

I’m sorry but people need to know This “resort” is pure garbage , if you are considering going there DO NOT GO Bed bugs (two separate nights ) and no other room was offered to move too they simply shrugged their shoulders like it was normal . Brand new clothing items disappeared from my room mysteriously , and when I suggested maybe it got caught up in the bedsheets for cleaning they just no , The food is the other resorts leftover I’m sure of it But if you like all your food served from  [... read more]soup lidl And the “meat “ cooked so long it’s almost dusty this might be the place for you . They said it was in Puerto Vallarta when I booked turns out an hour and a half outside of Puerto Vallarta that would’ve been nice to know. There are zero activities plan at this place. They have a ping-pong table and you can rent some bikes, but once the sun goes down, there is nothing the whole place shuts down other places I have activities and things you can do to engage their guests. These guys could care less . I normally when I go to Puerto Vallarta to the main resorts, people speaking English or they understand it at least, but here was a massive language barrier, which nobody tells you about you think you’re going to your normal Puerto Vallarta why would you think otherwise? I will say that there were some outstanding staff members there, Jamie and Evaristo at the front entrance they were very professional and kind and knowledgeable , Angelica and the other “restaurant “ staff were so kind and helpful even. And then last but definitely not least Agustin and is fellow bartenders were super people , very kind and fun .ALL THESE EMPLOYEES NEED A RAISE!!! I spoke with 6 different couples at the resort who were so mad about the conditions but Once Decameron resorts get your money they will only be around to steal from your rooms and make the worst food you will ever be served . Oh and they think regular cut up hotdogs are bacon THEY ARE NOT You have to go eat off resort to find bacon . THE 4.3 “Rating “ on Google is fabricated . I will dedicate my life and let all of my 7000 employees across Canada how terrible Decameron isle coral really is . I spent good money to go on a much needed vacation and added up stress g about bugs on me at night while having an empty stomach You guys could be so much better if you actually valued your customers . I cannot stress this enough . Shame on you isle coral for destroying people much needed vacations . And I expect the same explain away answers all the other one star reviews got , Once they have your. Money they don’t care

Decameron La Marina: Small and noisy

Resort is small with the pool in the middle. Pool is crowded and loud. No were to escape the loud music played by resort and loud karaoke at night. The food was good at the buffet but the al la carte was unorganized and difficult to get into.

Decameron La Marina: Not For Me

I was travelling in group of people 62 to 73. My understanding is that the building is only 4 years old so the rooms were in good shape and comfortable. We found the grounds very limited as the resort has 7 floors on a U shape with the pool, buffet, snack bar, bar and karaoke in the middle, with rooms wrapped around them. There was always loud music playing from 10:00 am till 10:00 pm. Food was good how ever there only the two restaurants, no a lacarte restaurants. There were 10 spots available [... read more] for a lacate at the sister resort ( 3 walking minutes away) but you could only go at 8:00 or 8:30 pm. The resort did not have a clear system in place for these a lacarts and from desk staff seemed to always have to be calling on a supervisor in order to approve any a lacarte bookings. I do realize I am in another country but communication was challenging as staff spoke very little English if any. I have stayed at Decameron resorts at least 4 other times but will no be returning to this one or the other 2 in this area.

Decameron La Marina: Not a resort i would go back to

Decameron Marina review Feb 11 to 18 2024 We booked this vacation through SunWing. Transport from airport to Resort: 14 people were transported by a van. The driver took the non toll road which is very windy with sharp drop offs and it was dark. The driver exceeded the speed limit, swerved around rough patches into the on coming lane with on coming traffic. At on point he put on his hoodie while driving. The passenger in the front with him advised he slow down but did not. There wer [... read more]e only two seats with seat belts and my seat had a broken back. The passenger behind me tried to hold up the seat. Check in: We paid extra for ocean view rooms but when we checked in, we were told they would not be able to accommodate but we could try the next am for a room change. Two of the couples traveling with us had asked for one king bed but were give two doubles instead. Once we were in our rooms, we realized that all except a few rooms had ocean view and the others were ocean front. We paid extra, did the rest of the quests have to pay extra. Rooms: We were told the resort is 4 years old but looked much older. Towels were thin, frayed on edges and some had holes. Some days we were only given one facecloth for two people. The rooms were clean and the air conditioning was good. The pillows were very hard, water was left daily in our rooms and if more was needed there was plenty at the front desk. The hotel is built in a U shape and the noise from the pool and bars was extremely loud. It started around 10 am and went till 10pm. Karaoke was done in the bar on the second floor nightly but could still hear noise till midnight most nights. Ear plugs were used and highly recommended if planning a vacation here. The bar had 2 open walls to the pool area allowing the noise to carry to the rooms. Buffets: There was one main buffet open for all three meals and one snack bar that opened from around 11 am to 5 pm. You could always find something to eat if you could over look the fact that pigeons were present in both buffets and were seen often sitting on the serving counters eating off the plates of food put out with out covers The staff tried hard to scare them off. The main buffet had a theme every night. Two out of the 7 nights we were there it was Mexican night. WE went to the buffet around 7 pm and usually by the time we were done there was short lineups. They said reservations were able to be made and the first night we made one but no one checked to see to see if we had one. The staff in the buffet were great and helpful. Ala carte Restaurants: We are unsure of how many there was supposed to be between Decameron’s three resorts that we were able to use. We found out that only one was open every night to serve the 3 resorts at the Los Cocos. Reservations in the description of the resorts said reservations were to be made the morning after arrival. On arrival were told that you needed to line up daily at 9am to make the reservation. Our facility which had around 160 rooms was only allowed 10 spots nightly at 8 or 8:30. We did find out that the person taking reservations at the Los Cocos resort was letting people book multiple days at one time. The 2 we were able to get were very good. Activities: There were a few pool side activities and bikes to use. The road conditions around the hotel and the traffic were not conducive to riding. Pool: There were two pools beside each other, one for the children. Due to the U shape of the hotel no sun every reaches the pool area. The pools were small and water cold. The loud noise in the area made it undesirable to sit by the Pool. We did have access to the pools at the Los Cocos and found one that was quiet and no one used. The weather was not nice while we were there. One day it rained all day with heavy rains for a few hours with high winds. Because the buffets, bar, lobby etc are all open there was really no where to go to get out of the rain, wind and cold except your room. Beach: allowed for long walks and easy walking. There was a shortage of beach chairs and if you did not geta chair before 9 am you would have to rent one from local vendors on the beach. There was a sign that said restricted access to the raised part of the beach but there were ++ people selling everything from food to trinkets on the beach and private vendors setting up tables and chairs. Area around the resort: there was a market in the area on Monday that we went to and found interesting. The market on Thursday at La Penita was not worth going to. If booking at theses hotels understand you are in a rural small town. There are a lot of souvenir shops but all are basically the same. The streets and roads are rough to walk on. This is a hotel for people that just want to lay on the beach. Would I recommend any of the Decameron resorts in Ricon---No. I think the description of the resort given by Sun Wing was not accurate.

Riu Flamingos: Riu Jalisco

Everything was good. The staff at the hotel were very good and they were there to help you if you when we needed something. Cleaning staff were very helpful and respectful. Food was good but the Gluten free food was not well displayed and some of the service staff had problems understanding what we needed.

Grand Decameron Complex Bucerias Trademark: Royal Decameron Complex

The Royal Decameron Complex is welcoming beautiful and clean. Over the years however the up grades in the rooms are needed, the lounges are old. The buffets for us are great, but the a la carts have gone downhill and trying to book a reservation is less the ideal. If you request a particular building or floor good luck when you get there because it won’t happen. You can get it changed but you will have to wait about two days. It doesn’t matter if you’ve asked due to medical issues upon arrival  [... read more]you get what you get.Saving a lounge with towel apparently has become an issue and is not allowed the last I heard which is unacceptable for those who do not abuse the time saving for their lounges for an hour. We hope to return one day but some improvements are needed before that happens.

Riu Vallarta: Great week!!

Having stayed in Riu Hotels before, cleanliness was never an issue. The place was always kept spotless and our room was cleaned daily. The rooms are a little small, but we didn't spend a lot of time in them, so no issues with that for us. Bed was comfy enough, good A/C, mini bar, which is nice to have. A very cookie-cutter kind of place. Looks like a lot of the other Riu Hotels, but that's okay. I'm a sucker for Mexican food and this place didn't disappoint. Good variety in the buffet. We had ba [... read more]con every morning we ate there. A little chewier than I'm used to, but it tasted good. I had one of the best steaks while eating at the Italian Restaurant. You get unlimited a la cartes, no reservations, but you did sometimes have to wait with one of those vibrating/lighting pucks, even then, it wasn't so bad. The pools seemed to be kept clean, although we only spent time at one with our favorite poolside bartender Abel. He made a mean Mango Margarita! Drinks at this resort were always so tasty. The Sports Bar made really good coffee drinks and had non-dairy alternatives, which was nice. I loved their espresso martinis in late afternoon, too. Perfect pick-me-up! It's not a far walk to the beach and the beachside food bar was good if you wanted a lite snack or lunch. Burgers, hotdogs, fries, nachos and chili. Very tasty and spicy chili. Beach and poolside chairs do seem to get claimed early enough, but we always found a couple free ones. Beach was kept clean, even with the many horses trotting around. Some beach vendors, but we never had any pushy ones. They seemed to respect it when you said, "No, Gracias". Great location to walk the beach in either direction. We even rented bikes not far from the hotel and they have a great walking/biking path just out front of the Hotel. Bucerias isn't far either, if you wanna do some shopping at the little market they have there. You can also go to the Riu Jalisco for the day if you'd like. Have lunch, enjoy the pools. They host a Riu Party every Friday, which we enjoyed. It can be a bit of an older crowd, but there's enough of a mix of younger families and couples, so it's not so bad. One thing I'd say, is I wished they played more Spanish music. They seemed to play a lot of Rock 'N Roll, which is fine, but not what I wanna listen to on vacation. Hotel staff were always happy to help with anything, and you always got service with a smile. We had an amazing time and wouldn't hesitate to book here again.

Paradise Village Puerto Vallarta: Paradise Village Puerto Vallarta

The staff were very friendly and extremely busy. The rooms were very dated and we struggled with the replenishment of fresh towels, toilet paper, coffee, shampoo in the rooms. The entertainment and food were good and the beach was very well maintained. For the type of holiday we had, the resort was perfect but I would hesitate to classify it as a 5 star resort. We did have a wonderful time.

Paradise Village Puerto Vallarta: Beautiful Resort

Our group of 8 really enjoyed the property and the amenities . Only disappointing issue was the rooms we booked. Only 2 of us had rooms with a balcony which we requested and were told we would get. Also we asked for rooms close together which we did not get we were in different buildings far apart.

Grand Decameron Complex Bucerias Trademark: Very good

Well priced for what we got. Good beaches and pools. Buffets ok Rooms good. Staff good and cheerful. Evenings entertainment also good Super location close to town. Friendly attentive staff. Very colourful and authentic location. Went on a few tours which were well represented

Grand Decameron Complex Bucerias Trademark: Mediocre

The main problem with this hotel is that you cannot request a certain room location in advance, even if you have been a guest at the hotel many many times. It doesn't seem fair. We for example only use the adult pool area. That is where we want to stay. But we have to argue and fight for that after we arrive. We eventually got into Block 5, which is what we wanted, but it took over a day and we lost a day of our vacation. Another couple we met there had spent 3 days to get to their pref [... read more]erred location. They too had been at R de C many times Food: medium - we eat out a lot the adult pool: good Staff: very friendly.

Grand Decameron Complex Bucerias Trademark: Very good

Well priced for what we got. Beaches and pools 5 star. Rooms ok. Food is 3 star but lots of it. Entertainment was great. Super location close to town. Friendly attentive staff. Very colourful and authentic location. Went on a few tours which were well represented

Grand Decameron Complex Bucerias Trademark: We were at the resort for 4 years consecutively 9 years ago and it definitely is not as upbeat as before. No welcoming when off the buss, some activities discontinued, and a disaster to reserve an al acarte dining. and

Grounds - not bad Public Areas - not bad Rooms - need attention. Wall plug ins are so loose that they don't always stay. Lamp shades are tattered. Dresser drawers fall if pulled out too far and the some handles to pull out the drawer are attached with wire. Dining - Buffets are good, but one doesn't want to do that every night for 2 weeks. It is next to impossible to make reservations unless you can be in the lobby EARLY and are super fast on your cell phone. There needs to be more areas [... read more] available for internet access and a person able to make reservations for at least 3 times per week (as other all inclusives do).

Krystal Puerto Vallarta: Mixed report

Our stay had some positives, the grounds were well kept, most of the staff was very helpful, despite the few that spoke very little English. The poolside activities were nice - yoga on the beach was great. The two bars that served did well to keep up with the hotel demands, but left one waiting 10 Deep in line often with one bar tender. I did experience some concerns: the back of our curtains in our room were covered in mould - leaving the room with a strong smell of mould. I came home wit [... read more]h a deep chest infection, I am certain is related to the mould exposure. The view from our room was quoted as “garden”, and it was overlooking the pavement area where from the height we could see the broken buildings, piles of garbage, and I watched one janitor duck behind the fake wall for a pee, then carry on with cleaning (without a hand wash ). My first breakfast I bit into a piece of toast that was mouldy. I did find selections that I could eat, but it was not what I expected for Mexican all inclusive (no shrimp - on any menu). The two sit down dining options were the highlight of the menus offered. Despite the difficulty to get signed up between 9-10 am at the lobby with long lines for that too. The elevator as well had constant long lines and you could add 20 min to your time to get to the room or out of the room. All in all, it is what we could afford and we know for next time to save up for a 5 star location. I would be worth it.

Riu Flamingos: Can’t wait to go back!

Great stay in every way. The hotel itself was clean and well cared for. The grounds are so beautiful-especially at sunset! Food was good with lots of variety. We also enjoyed the entertainment every evening! The staff is our biggest rave as they all went above and beyond to make our stay comfortable. They were so friendly and welcoming at every level! We truly can’t wait to go back!

Canto Del Sol: The happiest day of my life

That was yesterday, when I checked out of this third rate, fourth class, chintzy, cheapskate operation that they have the nerve to call a hotel. If this is a four star, then the Motel 6 is a ten star. Walk with me through the two week experience I've just endured , stick with me and you'll save yourself a lot of grief. As you approach the resort, a sunset orange and cream highrise soars from the beach, just gorgeous, then as you get closer, another highrise in beige, immaculately  [... read more]clean and oozing luxury climbs up next to it. Then you turn off the main road and your heart begins to sink a bit, there's a ramshackle property squeezed in between these two elegant properties. As you approach it along a road that looks like an earthquake has just rolled through, you realize that this is the horror show that you are going to be dropped off at. Canto del Sol. Most of the businesses , shops, etc on the ground floor are boarded up or are masseuses/ pharmacies that ply their trade, and they were all friendly folks trying to scrape out a living in a hardscrabble environment, talk about thorns between two roses! The hotel part itself is quite a nice looking place but the haciendas, studio apartments called Villa Vallarta , a place that they've recently acquired, are like something out of a Pancho Villa black and white movie.. dirty, dusty, forlorn and neglected. I honestly thought we were checking in at a funeral parlor when we got to the lobby , the lobby where our troubles began the moment we stepped foot in the place. Although we thought we had booked into the main hotel, they took us to one of the "studios" ( and let me tell ya! it wasn't MGM) . It was furnished as sparsely as a Mexican prison cell and contained a king size bed, when we had ordered two queen size. No couch.. nothin' The headboard of the kingsized bed served also as a kitchen countertop, as the bed was slid under it to make some room. This studio had a kitchen in it that would have kept Gordon Ramsay in expletives for a month or two. So, unimpressed we crossed the earthquake zone to get back to reception (because all of the studios are in the "Villas" dump of a building), to get them to change us to the room we wanted and thought we had paid for. Now it gets interesting, the front desk manager says " no problem, we'll move you to the main building. Being experienced in these sort of bait and switch operations I had him confirm that there would be no extra charge . With my wife standing next to me he said that there would be no extra charge, so we moved our bags to the new room, which was OK but still starting to show wear and tear . Tipped the lobby guy 50 pesos and then he told us that we would have to go back to the front desk to get the key change. Once there the desk manager told us that there would be an upgrade charge of ... wait for it ... 760 US$ for the move. Of course I told him that I would be paying not a dime and now that I was in the new room I was going to stay there. His response? "We will call the police, oh! and by the way, Welcome to the Canto del Sol." The bellboy urged us not to get the police involved as we would probably have to pay them off as well as the hotel. so we suffered the first night in the prison cell with the fridge making a noise like a jet engine and the air conditioning pounding like a meat locker with no off switch. The next morning we're talking with the Sunwing agent who was about as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike in his dealing with the hotel management. He said that they just wouldn't budge and were insisting that we stay in the cell. I had to take things into my own hands . After a morning's argument with the front desk manager and the guest relations guy and us showing them the actual photo on the website, they finally partially relented and offered us a downgrade, would you believe it? A downgrade to a room in the welfare section of the hotel that had two queen beds but was so far away from the main action center that you almost had to take a cab to get there. We reluctantly accepted this compromise because the downgrade was better than the original ( but they didn't offer a refund for the downgrade!) Time to take a breath and give you my first words of advice. Don't expect any help at all from the booking agents, not because they don't want to but because they are powerless to do anything from a distance. Don't expect any substantial help from Sunwing 'cos Canto's hotel management doesn't respect them or their business AT ALL. You're on your own. Now we're settled in it's time to take a look around the place. As I've said , the hotel itself is OK.. maybe a two star at best but all of the furniture is old and battered, the washrooms are constantly blocked, closed or under repair (the pool washrooms were out of order for the entire two weeks we were there) The elevators are powered by a donkey turning a wheel somewhere in the basement, so slow you could climb ten sets of stairs in the time it takes them to cover one floor. Don't go to this place if you want handicapped accessibility, the stairlift doesn't work and even if it is working, it only goes up one floor and the one elevator doesn't have any room for a large wheelchair. One unfortunate couple were left stranded getting to their room and had to go OUTSIDE the building to find an elevator that could get them to their floor. Just another sign that the senior management at this place don't give a rodent's anal aperture about guest services. The domestic staff were quite nice although they themselves are on a strict economic budget. They restrict the number of towels they place in your room, no hand towels or washcloths, the cheapest soap imaginable, you couldn't get a bubble from it if you poured 7UP on it. The bed linen was so old and limp that you could spit through it NO ice machines for the guests in the entire place, no coffee machines in the rooms ........ , and the gym? Well the gym in Sing-Sing penitentiary is probably better equipped that this tiny little rabbit hut, strangely located next to a fabulous set of covered tennis courts where you had to pay to play. Anywhere you had to pay extra, they paid attention to. I'll take a moment to tell you just in case you think I'm being overly critical but I didn't encounter ONE guest who was happy with the place in the entire two weeks! And now we turn to the food. The buffet food was 90% INEDIBLE, I wouldn't feed it to my dog, although ironically dogs would probably like it 'cos it's mainly cold and mush. Just absolute canteen garbage. Pastas and potatoes were in heating trays that barely got them tepid and the meat that they served came from animals that weren't slaughtered, they must have just given themselves up. The bacon, eggs and hotcakes saved the day but the bacon was rationed like it was a refugee camp, sausages came from some animal we haven't yet discovered up in Canada. As for the specialty restaurants , we went to the Italian and they somehow managed to serve up a plate of stone cold ravioli (being able to do that in itself take some special type of incompetence ) The Lasagna they boasted of wasn't as good as the one we buy regularly from Costco and to be honest it looked like it HAD come from Costco. These cooks wouldn't last a half a day in Vancouver. We went a second time to the Italian (it being the only option of avoiding the buffet ). I ordered a dish that was a variety of three pastas and believe it or not they managed again to mix in some COLD tomato penne in with the two other types.. it's physically impossible to do that but somehow they pulled off the terrible task. Another guest had been to the Asian restaurant and in chatting to us told us that it was the WORST Asian food he'd ever had in his LIFE.. so we gave it a miss in favour of the Mexican palate. On a bit of a tangent ,Mexicans don't do beef very well and the one piece of carved beef I had at the buffet would have made a nice sole for my leather shoes. The menu at the Mexican place was no great shakes either, better food at Taco Bell that's for sure. The seafood in the tortillas was old and way past its "best by date " but you could stuff it inside yourself if you had a good appetite. The final scene at the Mexican restaurant leads me conveniently to the wait staff and the bar staff at the place. At the end of a mediocre spread, my wife gave the smiling waiter a 500 peso note and asked him to bring back 400 in change (I figured an $8 tip for a $40 so-so meal was pretty good) but he disappeared with the note , pretended that he'd forgotten about the change, mumbled and sniggered with the other staff (who were too slow to realize that I understood Spanish) and he walked past us about 5 or 6 times before I asked him where our moolah was. He acted offended, suddenly couldn't understand a word of English (or Spanish for that matter) and sarcastically said that he'd sent the note to the hotel next door for them to make change , none of the other waiters intervened so I lost my rag and told him to give me my money back. He didn't want to, of course, but he made the mistake of waving it in front of my face so I grabbed it and told him in both Spanish and English that he would be getting sweet F.A. from me for his "Ladrona" type behavior. He was not a happy camper but I was, 'cos I'd got my money back. I reckon that these guys see a gringo and figure that 500 pesos is chicken feed so most of them won't complain. Wrong person muchacho! So folks, there you have hard story on the food quality and the real nature of the staff. None of the staff in the entire complex will break up large notes for you , not reception nor the bell boys. They are especially reluctant to change US$ notes (because then you'll be obliged to give a bigger tip if they don't ) If you do get one to grudgingly change say, a 100 peso note, then you'll only ever get 80 back 'cos that's the cost of doing business down there. Even the banks won't change notes in P.V., so my advice is to get a big wad of US$ one dollar bills before you leave and you can sprinkle them around as you see fit . They seem to be happier getting greenbacks than those worthless pesos, plus you'll be able to spend what you've got left over when you get home. And finally a bit more about the hotel environment, the beach is unswimmable because of the strong undertow ( and it's like that in the two glamorous hotels either side.) The general locality gets pretty seedy off the main road and there are homeless camps on scrubland vacant lots , failed developments and eyesores just steps away from the luxury. You have to be really careful while walking because there's holes and bumps in the sidewalks, missing manhole covers, cobbles that can turn your ankles and parapets that fall a foot and a half to the roadway I would not go to this place again even if they offered it to me for free, if a judge said "one month in jail or two weeks at the C*ño del Sol , I'd take the jail without a moment's hesitation. Some may disagree but that's the way I saw it. As for value, well we paid $5300 for the two weeks , Take out air fare of around $1500 Vancouver return for two adults and you're left with a hotel bill of about $3800, which works out to 270 bucks a night ( one night of which you don't get any food) I wouldn't pay a dime more than $50 a night for this place, even all inclusive (in fact you should pay less for all inclusive) But truth is I wouldn't even pay a single dime 'cos I'd never ever stop at the place again It won't be here in a couple of seasons from now even though there's a tourist boom on.

Krystal Grand Nuevo Vallarta: Good Resort

The hotel was clean and staff were kind and helpful. Our room was very small with a double bed, couch and a shower/toilet room but we booked the daily double and got what we paid for. The buffet was good but not amazing while the a la carts were fantastic with a reservation required the day of at 8:00am. Nightlife was none existing after the show and required a trip into town but there were plenty of activities during the day to tire you out. Also, food and snacks did not seem available after 1 [... read more]0:00pm. The adult only infinity pool was amazing with a swim up bar but hard to find a chair unless you got up early to reserve a lounger. 2nd pool for all was large and seemed to accommodate everyone with a bar and food close by. There was very little seating in the lobby bar area and could have used some tables and chairs to gather with others to play games, cards, etc... Beach walks into Bucerias took about 30-40 minutes and was a nice break to visit the market and some of their local restaurants. The beach was good but also hard to find a lounger unless you were up early. Better signage could be helpful for use of their amenities as they were off the beaten path and well hidden. On our last night we stumbled into the kids building to find out it turned into an adult games room in the evening with air hockey, pool tables etc.... It was a fun place to be.

Friendly Fun Vallarta: Great place

We were last at The Friendly 14 years ago. It's improved a lot with new pools, new restaurants and new loungers. Food is still good and the staff is fantastic. Will definately go back soon! If you would like a clean, a little dated, awesome staff and location...this place is for you!!

Riu Flamingos: Subpar at Best

I’ll just start by saying if you expect this to be even close to a 5 star resort you’ll be greatly disappointed. I knew it wouldn’t compare with the other resorts I’ve been to but did not expect the food to be so horrible. I work in Northern Alberta and stay in a camp where the food is better. The beds are terribly uncomfortable as well and didn’t get a full nights sleep once during my stay. If you want a budget friendly resort this will do you just fine. However if you want a quieter, comfortab [... read more]le resort with food that’ll leave you wanting more then this is not it. I guess you get what you pay for and this place has affirmed in me that I’ll never stay here or any other 4 star resort again.