A few days in Nuevo Vallarta

Nuevo Vallarta is the newest area of Puerto Vallarta and is mostly a combination of timeshare and all-inclusive large resorts—nothing small here. You can be assured of quality accommodations with all the amenities—big chains own these large all-inclusive, mostly timeshare, complexes, and there is a lot of competition to attract guests and potential buyers.

The beaches are better than in Puerto Vallarta or Marina Vallarta.

A large three-story complex, Paradise Plaza, has lots of shops, restaurants, and a good-size supermarket, enough to get the things that you need for your condo.

Quick Tips:

Don't miss the downtown area of Puerto Vallarta, about a half-hour away for the real feel Mexico with lots of great restaurants and shops.

Walking along the Malecon is always great, but especially on Sunday nights, when all the locals come out to enjoy the evening; you may find entertainment and lots of barbecues.

A walk along the Rio Cuale, with all its shops and restaurants and lush greenery, is not to be missed; it's very romantic.

A fun afternoon is going way out to Mismaloya Hotel to the south. There are shacks on the beach with access from a dirt road just past the hotel: barbecue food, fresh fish, and frosty margaritas!!

If you want to find even better beaches and more surf, head on up north toward Punta Mita—all the beaches are public and many have small beachy restaurants for a refreshing drink or grilled lunch.

Best Way To Get Around:

Busses are the least expensive transportation and will take you to either Marina Vallarta or downtown. It's a bit of a distance, probably close to a half-hour to downtown, and the busses run only until 11pm.

Taxis are readily available and charge about US to the marina and US to downtown.

If you want to explore, a car is great, and they can be inexpensive, especially if you reserve in the States before your vacation.

If you are going into town, parking is a big problem, so it's best to leave the car at a hotel or even in a large parking lot, such as at Wal-Mart or Sam's Club, and then take a taxi or a bus from there. The roads away from Puerto Vallarta toward Punta Mita and Sayulito are mainly highways and quite well marked. If you are going in the other direction, south toward Mismaloya, there is a cut off just before town that allows you to bypass the busy city.

Another neat option for getting to either the marina or downtown is the ferry service from the marina across from Paradise Village—it's per person and runs about four times daily.

We've experienced the all-inclusive Occidental Grand hotel chain in Cozumel and Xcaret and its upscale sister hotel, Royal Hideaway, in Playa del Carmen.We're excited about three nights here in Nuevo Vallarta, although we don't particularly care for all-inclusive resorts, since we feel that there is so much to see and do in Mexico at such affordable prices.

This Grand is smaller than the others -- more to our liking. A three-story, airy marble foyer houses the front desk, tour desk, and bell hops. Large sofas and chairs are spread about. Our check-in is quick, friendly, and efficient -- we're told that we were accommodated as requested with a king bed in an ocean view room, and that our first night’s dinner reservations were set up as requested via e-mail two days prior.

One disappointment - no balcony. Only about a dozen oceanfront rooms have balconies, and they are mostly occupied by "vacation club members" (timeshare, in other words). The rooms are not on par with the Grand standard -- the whole resort is more Allegro-style (Occidental's value brand). Occidental owns and manages, in descending order of luxury, the Royal Hideaway, the Occidental Grands, the Allegros, and budget Caribbean Villages.

The room is spacious enough, but sparsely furnished in mediocre quality -- no sofa or chair -- although there is plenty of room for one. There's a small table and two chairs (no room service), and a six-drawer chest is placed under a table in the entrance as an afterthought, it seems, to provide more storage. The bed is hard -- not firm or plush -- and the pillows are hard (never had one like that before). On the plus side, the room is extremely clean, the A/C works well, there’s plenty of hot water, and most rooms have ocean views. The bathroom is absolutely the smallest I've ever been in, but the shower is of adequate size. Toilets throughout the resort are elongated with regular-sized toilet seats.

Most food is served buffet-style. Each night, one a la carte restaurant serves 60 guests in two seatings, with reservations. The food is home-cooked quality, rather than gourmet, and only one house wine is included (all others have an extra charge).

The pools and grounds are immaculately manicured and very lush, the water a bit cool (here most people swim in the ocean), the ocean calm, and the beach much better than the other Puerto Vallarta areas. Plenty of palapas are on the beach. Beach vendors are persistent, and tour operators entice you to fish, parasail, horseback ride, or tour. The resort has kayaks, sailboats, and boogie boards. A small gym and spa round it out. Timeshare sales are unobtrusive.

All in all, it's a very relaxing vacation, with excellent service and a friendly, helpful staff. If the price is right (we got ours on auction) and your expectations not elaborate, you'll hate to leave, but don't miss the town of Puerto Vallarta, with all its charm, great restaurants, and lovely people.

The Bay of Banaderas is so inviting to sailors. At Occidental Grand, guests that are experienced sailors are allowed to take out small sailboats with one sail - but we wanted to sail a Hobie with a mainsail and jib. Although we were capable of sailing it, an instructor had to accompany us. This made it more relaxing for me - no lines to tend.

Sailing is so peaceful and quiet - you glide along and skim the water seemingly effortlessly. A little breeze cools you or you can reach down and splash a bit of water on yourself. It's also a great sightseeing adventure - you get to see another view of hotels - a peek into the world of villas with their pools and lush landscaping - even your own resort takes on another look from the water.

We took off along the coast and our captain pointed out hotels and luxurious villas along the way. He has total control of the sailboat - the rudder steers the vessel into a desired direction and the sails fill with wind to provide the power. Pull the sail taut - more power - go faster - may even heel (tip somewhat on its side) don't worry it won't flip over. This is what novices fear most -but this is controlled and can be avoided by letting the air out of the sail. A resort is not apt to allow this with guests aboard but avid sailors love the feeling. The 1/2-hour sail turned out to be 45 minutes because we were searching for dolphins that frequently play along with the boaters. We didn't succeed in finding them but the couple that sailed just after us were lucky - about a dozen frolicked alongside the Hobie for a few minutes.

Everyone should try it - you don't need any experience - the water is usually quite calm but do wear a hat and sunscreen. There is no cost (they do expect a tip) - safe (a mandatory life jacket) and fun - the instructor will even throw in a few pointers if you care to learn.

We've been to Puerto Vallarta a number of times and always avoided Nuevo Vallarta - It's about 10 miles or so from downtown - You fly into Puerto Vallarta an old Mexican city on the Bay of Banderas. Recent development has grown to the north along the coast. First there's the marina area with a cruise port, hotels and condos - some timeshare and a few all inclusive resorts. A few miles further north is Nuevo Vallarta this area is mostly all inclusive large resorts. We're not fans of all inclusives or mega resorts - we love the old town and all it's restaurants, mariachis, fun bars or even must strolling the malecon and people watching.

This year we go two exchanges through RCI - one in the marina area and one in the hotel zone so it was a perfect opportunity to arrive a few days early and experience NV. We're happy to say that we did like it - we did stay at an all-inclusive - most of the resorts in this area are. I would certainly return to NV if I were coming for longer than a week - a week in NV and a week closer to town.

The beach is about two miles long - some hard sand makes it perfect for the early morning or evening sunset walk. The water is warm and relatively calm. All resorts are oceanfront with views from Punta de Mita to the far end of Banderas Bay beyond PV. since everything is fairly new all is well landscaped and very neat.

Paradise Village Shopping Center is beautiful - a large two-story building with branches of the downtown shops, restaurants, bars, real estate, laundromat and a large supermarket with pharmacy.

There is limited bus service to downtown - taxis are about $13 each way and car rental gets more expensive each year - about $60/day. Parking and driving in town is a nightmare. Not as bad if you are going toward Punta de Mita.

If you walk along the beach and have an urge for a cervesa or a snack - some of the resorts - even some that are all inclusive - are opened to the public. Make sure that you carry both cash and a credit card - some accept only cash and others only credit. It's easy to lose track of time and distance when wading in shallow water and taking in the sights - Isn't it always a much longer walk home? A refreshing drink or snack makes it more pleasant.

Many vacationers like the safety of an all-inclusive resort. If you are one of them - please let me share that the Mexican people are very pleasant and helpful - most speak English. There are many restaurants of all types - all less expensive than in the states.

venture out once - enjoy their culture, food and music - You'll be hooked forever.

One day in port on a cruise ship - What to do and how to get around is a major topic of discussion.

SHORE EXCURSION: If your stay is short and you want to be totally escorted - the cruise line excursions, although expensive are probably for you.

CAR RENTAL: If you are more adventuresome, renting a car gives you lots of freedom - My recommendation is to pre-book prior to your cruise. We found a National car available at the airport, just a short cab ride away for less than $20 a day including tax, without insurance. We chose to pick it up at the Sheraton, a 30¢ bus ride away. The problem with the hotel pick-up is that you have to wait for them to deliver the car from the airport - even though we had stated a pick-up time. But the hotel is a beautiful place to while away a ½ hour or so - or PV Internet is just across the street to let you check your email (see other entry).

Check with your credit card company to see what insurance coverage they provide in Mexico. If you refuse this coverage, National requires a $5,000 hold on your credit card until you return the car undamaged. Make sure that your limit is high enough - and they do not accept debit cards for payment.

Most of the driving is on highways. If you have to get through town, I suggest that you take the loop to bypass the city - Traffic there is very slow and parking is a problem in the city. Roads are well marked and outside the city, parking is not a problem. The hotel car rental desk closes at 5pm. We returned the car to the airport and they provided a complimentary ride back to the pier.

BUS: Really adventuresome?? Busses run every minute or so. If you miss one, another is just around the curve. For about 30¢, you can get from the cruise pier to downtown. Exit the marine terminal and turn right. Wave down any blue bus that says "Centro." Pay when entering and pull a cord when you are ready to exit.

If you prefer to head to Marina Vallarta or to Nuevo Vallarta- cross the street to Wal-Mart and Sam's Club - on the street you will see a bus "dispatcher". Tell him where you are headed and he'll direct you to the proper vehicle. These fares are about $1.20 each way and will take about 20 minutes to the marina and 45 minutes to Nuevo Vallarta. Lots less expensive than a $20 cab ride.

Headed to the Mismaloya area - You'll have to take a blue bus headed to "Centro" and get off at the last stop - the terminal. You can ask there which buses go to Mismaloya or you may spot one that says "Mismaloya" - another 30¢. The busses are reliable in that they come around often, but the traffic is usually what makes the trip unpredictably longer. Plan to do less than more - time goes so quickly that you never seem to do all that you plan.