Latest Reviews for Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta was 2 bus rides from our hotel which took about 50 mins, this cost us £1.20 each which was not to much of a problem, otherwise a taxi would cost you about 200 pesos. The town itself was quaint although you have to be prepared to be enticed into every shop available.

This is the first time we have travelled to Mexico and stayed at a Riu, and we were not disappointed. The welcome committee & drinks on arrival made it very special. The room overlooked the pools and was exceptionally clean and tidy, a phone call just after arriving in the room was to check to see if we were happy with the room allocated - we were more than happy. The whole set up from food, to entertainment and activities were more than we ever imagined. The room was cleaned and sheets changed every day, the mini bar and soft drinks restocked every other day. The four restaurants ensured that you did not have to have the same food every night and the choices were more than adequate for a person like me who is a bit choosy on what I eat, the waiters would not let you do anything. The live entertainment every night was of the highest quality which we enjoyed. In our opinion an excellent holiday from start to finish - highly recommended.

Nuervo Vallarta is the purpose-built hotel zone so you need to travel into Puerto Vallarta to sight-see. It is worth it though even though it is very americanised.

For a better experience, walt for about a hour north on the beach to the next village. The beach is stunning and empty and the bars and markets very good.

This is the fourth Riu Hotel we have stayed in and definitely the poorest. The maid and restaurant service and quality of food were inconsistent. I had booked a surprise champagne meal at one of the restaurants to celebrate our wedding anniversary and they completely messed it up. They lost the reservation and looked blankly at us on our arrival.

The worst part of the holiday was that although the hotel claimed to be a family hotel it was bombarded by groups of young US people who came for 2 or 3 days to get completely drunk with the associated rudeness, noise and obnoxious behaviour that goes with that. This was at the end of May/early June so whether it is seasonal. I'm not sure.

They were rude to staff and guests and made a lot of noise day and night.

We would definitely not recommend this hotel.

not alot to do here unless you are into outdoor pursuits. we went on 2 trips, rhythms of the night and sea safari the first one was a beautifull setting although the show itself only lasted about 20 mins, you couldnt really see what you were eating, and were limited to the amount of meat you could have. the second trip we really enjoyed, the boat crew were made for the job, real characters never a dull moment, we did give the snorkelling a go but the water was very mirky and we didnt see anything. the food was excellant and the journey home great fun. the riu is out on a limb realy nowhere to walk to.

we have stayed in riu hotels for the last 3 years so knew that they are top notch. the riu vallarta was only 12 months old when we arrived but we were a bit disappointed. the other hotels we stayed at were riu palaces, i think we were spoilt. i cant fault the cleanliness it was spotless. our room overlooked the main road and a building site. we we not too bothered, as we were only there whilst sleeping. the food was a bit disappointing too, it was very repetative. the flamingo beach restaraunt is the only place you can eat at lunctime, we all on different days tried a chicken burger, i did take mine to the head chef as it was raw, two occasions before this the same thing had happened. on arrival at the hotel i thought we had booked an 18-30 holiday as it was full of american teenagers obviously making the most of the alcohol, as the state they were from the age limit was 22 i think, they were very noisy, they started drinking about 9.30am through till late evening, usually congregating in the pool bar , i think we only managed to get in there twice. we only watched the entertainment twice, one show was grease, and the other was a local tribal dance. the rest of the time it was a singer or the entertainment crew playing games. please be aware of your luggage on arrival, we were told on the coach to leave all luggage and the bell boys would take it off, when we had checked in and had a drink we found one of our suitcases was missing we went to reception frantic by this stage, the rep had gone so the receptionist said he would make some phone calls, 30 mins later the bell boy came over and said they had found it in the riu jalisico down the road, how that had happened i have no idea as the only stop was the vallarta, he then said it would cost us 5 dollars to send a taxi to colect it, which we refused to do. anyway after complaining at reception again the suitcase was brought up. a scam we thought for a few extra pennies.

After booking our all-inclusive holiday at the Crown Paradise Club we checked the reviews of it on this site and were surprised to see such a mix of ratings from poor to excellent. Our review lies somewhere between the two, but closer to excellent than poor.

We booked thru Thomas Cook and were more than happy with their service from the flight crew to the resort staff. Flight times were spot on and the flight itself virtually turbulence free (although Thomas Cook canÂ’t really take the credit for this!).

We had a few reservations about Cancun airport and the customs & immigration problems some people had experienced in the past, but we sailed thru immigration and customs with nothing more than 1 case being searched for less than a minute. Transfer time to the hotel was about 15 minutes.

The hotel is not 5 stars, regardless of what some brochures might tell you. ItÂ’s probably about a 3 and a half star accommodation. We stayed in the old building which is in need of a bit of refurbishment; a lick of paint here and there. There were a few minus points about our room. There was a slightly damp smell in our room (and everybody elseÂ’s apparently), which you do get used to. We also had a few tiny ants visiting our bathroom vanity top surface on a regular basis and the air conditioning was the loudest IÂ’ve ever heard, again you do get used to it after a while. On the plus side, the room was spacious and regularly serviced to a high standard with plenty of storage space and a king kong size bed. The view from our balcony looking out over the pools and the Caribbean was tremendous. I watched the sun coming up on our first full day and it was beautiful.

The hotel pool areas (and there are quite a few of them) were always kept clean with an abundance of sun loungers available (whether this was due to the time of the year we went I donÂ’t know). The pool area bars and snack bars also provided decent drinks and snacks with very little queuing. The gardens are well laid out and very well maintained. The beach is a narrow strip of white sand and the red flag flyÂ’s a hell of a lot, but when the waves do die down a bit, itÂ’s well worth a dip into the warm sea.

The buffet restaurant is always clean and tidy with an army of waiters and chefs on the go. There is a wide choice for breakfast, lunch and evening meal with separate Italian, Oriental and Mexican counters as well as a deli counter. There is also lunchtime Japanese restaurant with a wide range of fish, rice and meat dishes including sushi and sashimi.

There are 5 a la carte restaurants, which require pre booking to ensure you get a sitting. The Steakhouse offers decent size meals with a mechanical bull competition while you eat. The Italian and French restaurants serve authentic cuisine to a high standard while the Seafood restaurant has all the fruits of the sea, my favourite being the shrimp and scallop kebabs.

In all the restaurants, the staff are well educated in what they are giving you as well as being friendly, funny and courteous. You donÂ’t mind tipping them but on the occasions we forgot, their standard of service never changed.

We spent most of the evenings in the 'Trafalgar' adults only bar which boasts a couple of pool tables. There is also a 'Collage' family bar and a popular 'Lobby' bar both of which we also frequented now and again.

Cancun itself is a purpose made tourist resort so you’ll have to book a trip to see a bit of Mexican history. There are many shopping malls, restaurants and bars and a couple of golf courses in the hotel zone and downtown areas including international establishments like Hard Rock Café and Planet Hollywood. Prices aren’t too bad in any of the bars or eateries. We spent one night in the Hard Rock Café watching a live Mexican rock band who were fantastic.

Taxis are cheap enough but fix a fee before you get in. The drivers are friendly locals who love to talk and tell you all about the area and about themselves. You can also get a bus from the front of the hotel (sometimes with a busker on board) to anywhere along the hotel zone or into the downtown area for 7 pesos (about 35p).

Keep an eye out if you are walking about for lizards. We saw some big beasts hiding among the greenery at the side of the roads. They are a bit shy though and theyÂ’ll scarper if you get too close.

Overall the holiday was very good. If you are prepared to overlook the fact that the hotel isnÂ’t as posh as they make out youÂ’ll be fine. Every Mexican we met, whether it was in the hotel or out and about was friendly, not even one token miserable sod! If someone would move Cancun a bit closer to the UK we would go back more regularly, as it is we will go back again someday.

Well where do I begin. After much deliberation we decided to book a holiday at the Canto Del Sol in Puerto Vallarta with First Choice.

As it was a long haul flight and having read some holiday reviews we decided to upgrade to Premier Class but only if we were guaranteed to be sat together. I phoned the number in the brochure and asked the girl ";will we definitely be sat together because if not then we won't bother upgrading";, she said ";there are still plenty of seats available so you will be sat together, however you might be one on either side of the aisle"; we agreed this would be fine and made the booking. On arriving at check-in the night before the girl said ";you do know you're not together don't you";, she showed us the layout on her computer screen. We were fuming as we were sat one behind the other, so spent a 14 hour journey almost in compete silence as it was not possible to turn round to chat, we couldn't interact with each other on the games - complete nightmare journey. Yes the seats have plenty of legroom but the ones in normal class also have plenty of space. The food was nothing out of the ordinary, chicken, beef or pasta and you have to give first and second choice as they tend to ";run out"; of things, normal class had a choice of chicken or beef. The only reason I would recommend Premier Class if you like a lot of alcohol to drink as this is free well that is until it ";runs out";!! My opinion is save your money for something worthwhile!!

On arriving at the hotel at 9.30, first impressions were good, entrance hall nice, staff really friendly, checked in and at our room in approx 15 mins, room seemed a bit dirty and dingy but it was night time, we unpacked and went for a wander around, everything seemed OK. We woke up early 6.30ish and decided to go for early breakfast and then find some beds and go for a walk on the beach hahahah despite there being big notices everywhere telling people not to reserve beds, they all had towels, books or papers on them, we had to take 2 that were in the shade until about 3 in the afternoon, that was our first disappointment, we learnt that if you didn't have a bed by 8am you stood no chance even though some people didn't turn up until 5pm it was diabolical.

We went in for breakfast uck disgusting, fried beans (re-fried beans by the end of the week), chilli beef, soggy bread, luckily you had a choice of cereal or fresh cooked eggs, we stuck to the fresh cooked eggs, toast and cereal and we were soon to discover that breakfast was actually the best meal of the day!!! If you are fussy about food and like it plain then definitely stay away from the Canto Del Sol. When you arrive - depending on the length of your stay - you are given vouchers for the A-La-Carte restaurant, we ate at 2 of them, the Steakhouse, the food seemed OK but I was actually ill for 2 days after that meal. The Italian (in Villas Vallarta) was really nice and I would recommend this restaurant. We gave the 3rd one a miss.

Once we had settled in we realised we had made a big mistake going to the Canto Del Sol, it was overrun with rude, obnoxious Americans and Canadians, they were loud and uncouth, they treated the staff like personal skivvies, 'bring this, bring me that, I want ex amount of eggs cooked this way', they obviously don't teach manners in their countries as there were none used, no please, no thank you. They put their sun beds in other peoples spaces and didn't like it when they were asked to move. Screaming in corridors at 3.00am, banging doors - absolutely appalling - the staff said they would deal with the problem or they would throw them out, luckily the warning did the trick (on that occasion). On Sat 10th March, students arrived by the coach load, well the hotel changed completely and everything was then geared up to suit beer swilling, dirty mouthed students, we were woken at 2.00am, 4.00am, just what you want on a ";nice relaxing holiday - NOT";. we were so glad that we only had 3 nights left. Canto Del Sol - Puerto Vallarta - NEVER AGAIN!!

On the plus side : Sandra D the First Choice rep was excellent, friendly and very helpful.

The trips she told us about with Vallarta Adventures I would highly recommend, they are worth every single penny. We went to Yelapa, Marietas, Las Caletas and we also did the Dolphin and Seal Lion Adventures out in Nuevo Vallarta. On the trip to Marietas we were lucky enough to see the Humpback Whales and Wild Dolphins it was awesome and something I won't forget in a long time. Swimming with the Dolphins and Sea Lions is great fun and we were in with the dolphins for approx 50 mins and sea lions abt 35, you have to do this it's a fantastic experience. We wanted to snorkel at Las Caletas as there were some lovely fish in the water but unfortunately it was overrun with jelly fish and even though the reps said they were harmless, 3 people from my group got stung so we decided not to bother.

Despite the downside we did have a good holiday but we certainly WON'T be returning, not because of the hotel or staff but because of the Americans and Canadians, it would have been quieter and more relaxing on a tacky 18-30 holiday in Spain!!!

My wife and I are relatively well-travelled and have visited many AI resorts over the past few years. We have been firmly of the opinion that while reviews are interesting, as a result of people's diversity everyone has their own expectations. I think a lot of the negative feedback on the Jalisco is from North Americans who do not seem to differentiate between privately booked five star hotels and package tour five star hotels and hence have a much higher expectation.

Our holiday was booked with First Choice, with direct flight from Manchester to Puerto Vallarta. We had upgraded to Premium class and were well looked after and comfortable: No queuing for check-in at either end is great. Having said that, the Star (standard) class cabin on their long haul flights has slightly wider seats and slightly more leg room than standard package tours, as I witnessed during a walk through the 'plane.

The Club hotel Riu Jalisco is at the north end of Nuevo Vallarta, a 'purpose-built' resort of hotels and condominiums with a shopping mall at its centre, and has no shops within walking distance. A taxi to the mall was 80 pesos, but for 'real' shopping or town life, a visit to Puerto Vallarta will cost about 180 pesos by taxi or if you feel adventurous, take the bus from the hotel immediately next door for 30 pesos. Building work next door, and close by, has little impact on your enjoyment.

It is a large hotel, which would possibly be noticeable in high season, and caters mainly for Americans, Canadians, Mexicans then Europeans. This is by no means a complaint but is probably a result of travelling distance. This was our second stay in a Riu group hotel and we were not disappointed. We found all the staff to be friendly and helpful - civility costs nothing and I think some of the complaints about staff were where the complainants forgot that. The food was of good quality and variety, and would become repetitive only if you treated yourself to gourmand six course dinners.

There were theme nights in the main restaurant with Asian, Mediterranean and Mexican themes. The Nayarit restaurant, which has to be booked between 7:00 and 8:30 for the same evening, has a Brazilian theme and is a meat-fest. It was enjoyable, but may require dieting in preparation. Wine with the meals is part of the AI and should not be expected to be connoisseur or vintage quality; it is palatable, and I found the red more so. Drinks throughout the hotel will be made to your requirement and if you like them a little stronger or with less/no ice, just say so. Noise after midnight in the corridors can be an irritation and must be difficult for the hotel security to curtail; its just a pity some people forget that they are not the only ones on holiday. We had room 6140 looking onto the well-kept gardens through the centre of the hotel. There was a slightly musty smell but certainly not overwhelming. The beds were very firm but we slept well on them. If you have any requirements - extra towels, glasses or bottles of water, a call to reception gets it sorted. During the rainy season, insect activity is at a high. If you do not bring repellent with you, buy 'Off' when you are near a pharmacy as it is very effective. Evening entertainment would benefit from more variety but again must be difficult when they are trying to satisfy a multi-national audience. It is generally either an audience participation fun theme or dance performance by accomplished dancers. The animation team works very hard throughout the day and are not as pushy as some we have encountered. Quite often, they announced at the end of the evening's entertainment that they were going to a club in Puerto Vallarta and interested parties should join them in reception at 23:45. Next to the Nayarit restaurant, there is a Disco which opens after the evening's entertainment )but is more popular nearer 01:00). There are two large swimming pools: One with a pool bar, for adults only and the other for both children and parents. Fresh beach towels available as required.

The First Choice representative was Sandra D. , a Canadienne who was very helpful. She was not pushy with the trips which was refreshing, however the trips were very popular getting booked up during our first week. We went on four (all through Vallarta Adventures; vallarta-adventures com): Swim with dolphins, Las Caletas boat trip, Sierra Madre off-road in ex-army lorries and a Cultural experience by air to two towns in the high Sierras - Mascota and Talpa. The guides were very knowledgeable, friendly and fun, and we had a great time. Trip transfers to Vallarta Adventures in Nueva Vallarta were not included in the price of the trips: This was the result of a transport 'war' between the tour operators/hotels and local taxi drivers. If you are confident with on-line booking and payment, it will be significantly cheaper to book your trips this way rather than at the hotel. However, you are not likely to accompany other hotel guests if you book this way.

In summary, this is a comfortable, well-run, large hotel with good staff, enjoyable food and a relaxed atmosphere. The standard is what one would expect of an all-inclusive 4+ rating.

Liked: Hotel and staff.
Disliked: Remoteness

4.5 out of 5

This was our first longhaul holiday. And what a holiday it was.
First the flights. On the way out there was an 8 hour delay due to a technical problem with the aircraft,better for them to fix it on the ground, but First Choice gave us vouchers to buy food and drinks ( nearly £40 in all) and what was not spent in the airport could be spent on the aircraft. It was a long flight (13 1/2 hrs) but the inflight entertainment was great, your own tv screen in the back of the chairs with a good choice of films,games,programs and music to chose from. The meal and snacks were o.k. too.
On arrival at puerto vallarta we were quickly through and onto our coach (about an hour and then a 30 minutes drive to the hotel.We arrived at about 2-3am and they had kept a snackbar open for us to go to if we wished ( there were about 40 guests arrived.)

After a good nights sleep and a good breakfast we decided to view the complex.
It is HUGE. 5 pools plus splash pools for kids. 3 buffet restaurants, 5 speciality restaurants and 2 snack bars, plenty of bars, great beach, fantastic gardens and loads more.
The rooms... We had two rooms of good size, a kingsize bed in one which is over 6 foot wide and a twin which had two double beds. Both rooms had large walk in showers,a large wardrobe,cupboards etc. a t.v. with lots of channels including american news and film channels and a balcony with table and chairs. We were in block 4 which is right near the beach, in fact its near everything except the evening entertainment and probably the best block out of the 5 or 6 .

The food.... If you want good old British food then stay in Britain. It's good food and somedays very good. Mexican food ,fish , pork, beef etc rice, potatos, pasta etc . If you go hungry you must be a fussy eater.
The snack bar serves burgers hotdogs pizza and fries from 11:00 to 17:00 . We used it some days for our youngest but its right next to one of the main buffet restaurants so we could use both and carry the food from one to the other.
Drinks .... Plenty of choice and plenty of bars to choose them from.
The hotel itself.... The hotel is great. plenty to do. Very clean. Good staff. Lovely tropical gardens to walk around with green lizards Iguanas , and geckos all freely walking around. Huge Butterflies , Pelicans , and other large birds flying around.
The pools....5 great pools ( 1 adults only) kids pools and Jacuzzies. all the pools we used ( and i think the rest too)are a max of about 4 1/2 ft deep.

Days out.... We went swimming with Dolphins.Brilliant is the only word to describe it. And we did a day out were you fly to a couple of the local villages in the mountains/jungle in a small 12 seater light aircraft .Sample real local food and learn about the area and the local people . This is a fantastic day but is expensive ( about £75 each but worth every penny).
The bad bits .... I say bad bits but they were just silly annoying things .
1. Trying to get a cup of tea/ coffee in the morning. Sometimes you have finished eating before the restaurant staff come around to ask if you want a tea or coffee. MY TIP .. sit near the staff areas.
2. Trying to get drinks in the evning. do the same as above.
Thats the bad bits , but another tip . Buy cold drink flasks , the bar staff fill these up , this keeps the drinks cold and stops the wasps getting into your drinks.
3. a fridge in the rooms would be ideal.

The weather was HOT HOT HOT . There were some fantastic thunderstorms of an evening which everybody loved to watch and some great sunsets .
Overall.... Would i recommend this hotel? YES definately.
Would i go back again ? YES
Finally score out of ten for the overall holiday 9/10..

This was our first long haul holiday, and we were anxious, as we had read some of the reviews, but we neednt have been, Because it was the rainy season, we were concerned our weather would be dissappointing. This could not have been further from the truth.

Our hotel was fantastic,rooms were huge and spotlessly clean, fresh towels every day. Food was excellent but if you are looking for tradional british meals (cooked breakfasts etc forget it) we liked this fact. You could have room service at anytime of the day or night, and could even have your breakfast delivered. There were other restaurants on the complex, and the french was by far the best Our experience of the italian was not good - (food cold twice after being sent back- maybe they were having a bad night, but we did not go back)The staff were the friendliest we had come across, even the sellers on the beach, were polite and took no for an answer. Bear in mind that the staff work extremely hard and for the eqivalant of £15 p week!

Weather was fantastic, and there is no need for the family to take it in turns to get up early for sunbeds! there were always plenty, and towels were provided. Hotel did not tolerate the reserving of sunbeds, which was great.
We did have rain more or less every night but it only came around 11pm, which did not effect us. The Shows that the entertainment team put on at Club Nitro are fantastic, but unfortunately they begin at 9.30pm and finish at 10,30pm, if you have kids you have to leave the club by 11pm. Obviously there are still bars open on the complex, but no other entertainment, that is probably the only negative comment we could make about the hotel.

We will definately go back

This was the first time that I have been to Mexico and the hotel really made it special. The hotel was very clean and spacious the food was wonderful with 3 a la Carte restaurants to choose from. The hotel situation was great not to far from the local town. The rooms were very spacious and were cleaned every day. There was always lots going on day and evening. The staff were wonderful they could never do enough for you so nice and friendly. The sea and the swimming pools [4in the hotel]were warm never cold. There was plenty of trips to go and that were good value for money and I would recommend to try these, myself and my children thought that they were great.

All in all a fantastic holiday and I would definitely go back when I get the chance.

Collette

I am always really wary about reviews that slate a hotel, but I feel really strongly that this hotel should be avoided at all costs. We were travelling through Mexico for 2 months and had a wonderful time and were really excited about arriving in San Cristobal. The Posada Jovel isn't a nice place however, from the first day we were surprised at the unhelpful and at times rude attitude of the staff, which was in such a great contrast to everywhere else we had stayed.

We were then subject to a really unfortunate incident where the rather highly strung owner, who seemed to enjoy a drama, kicked us out of the hotel for pointing out that they had ruined all of our clothes in their laundry. Jovel is a pretty hotel, but I would hate any other travellers to experience what we did, which was a stressful and upsetting stay when there are so many other great places to stay in San Cristobal.