Week in Puerto Vallarta

Best Things Nearby:
The ocean and the Gigante shopping center

Best Things About the Resort:
Quiet, quaint old-world Mexico feel and eight swimming pools

Resort Experience:
Let me just say that I consider myself a vacation snob. I like a clean, nicely appointed place with charm and lots of amenities. I would say that Los Tules is a nice place, with lots of old-world charm. I knew it was an older place, but the pictures I saw seemed nice enough. But I was still kind of prepared for a not-so-comfortable place. We had to book one additional night because we flew in a day earlier than our reservation, and we just decided to stay at Los Tules in a small hotel unit (it was my husband and two children (ages 3 and 5.) The room was okay, but the beds were pretty hard and we heard people talking outside out room all night. I was kind of depressed, thinking the three-bedroom we were getting there the next day would be about the same.

The hotel part of Los Tules and the timeshare part are completely different. We were there just after their Independence Day, so after the first couple of days, the place was empty, so we got a very nice unit. When we checked in, I asked if the beds were any softer than the hotel room, and they said that they thought they were, but that they would be happy to have "feather beds" put on if we weren’t happy, so the maid put comforters on under our sheets, which helped a lot. Our unit was much better than the hotel room!! It was very large. We had a master suite with an ocean view, which was right next to the kitchen/living room area, also with a view. There was another suite with two double beds and its own bathroom, and then a third bedroom with one double bed. The maid cleaned our room every day. We had the ocean right in front of us, literally 20 steps away, and the largest pool right on the other side. There was a security guard at the beach entrance, so you felt safe at night. They have a little restaurant by the main pool. The food is good, not great. There is a shopping mall (Gigante) right across the street that my husband ran to get tequila and playing cards. Downtown was a short cab ride away, usually $8 round-trip. And we could squeeze all six of us into one cab. There are a lot different ways of driving down there; you just have to trust your cabbie!

We stayed there during the rainy season, and it was also incredibly hot! It really only rained a couple of times during the day, but the lightening shows at night were very cool. Overall, I would recommend Los Tules, unless you like things really plush. We ended up spending most of our time at the Grand Mayan, which can read about that in my other post.

• Unit Type: 3 Bedroom
• Activities: Fair
• Amenities: Fair
• Unit Satisfaction: Good
• Family Friendliness: Very Good
• Service: Good

Best Things Nearby:


Best Things About the Resort:
Pool area, water park, good restaurant, and beautiful rooms

Resort Experience:
We started out staying at Los Tules using our RCI points. We got talked into going to a presentation at the Grand Mayan, up in Nuevo Vallarta, with the promise of letting us stay at their pool area for the day, four free tickets for a cruise to Yelapa, $20, and a bottle of pear tequila (YUM!). So we went, and they talked my stepfather into buying into their vacation club. My husband made the deal only valid if they put us up at the Grand Mayan for the rest of our stay. They agreed, so we moved on our second day. I was kind of sad to leave Los Tules, as it has a certain charm, but it is nothing compared to the Grand Mayan. This hotel is still being built, but what they have now is incredible! I was kind of bummed about being farther away from downtown, but with the pool area they have and the restaurants, there's no need to leave. They had a swim-up bar (one was closed) with great food, a casual dining area out by the beach, and a nicer restaurant in the middle of the pool area. There is also a sandwich/ice-cream bar inside, as well as a tapa restaurant that we never ate at. All the food we had there was great. There were no huge portions or really authentic Mexican cuisine, but it was good. The pool area had two wave pools, a big water slide, a river you could float around on, and a couple of kiddie pool areas. They also had beach volleyball as well pool volleyball. We even joined a spinning class one day in the pool!

Our room was a two-bedroom both with king-size beds and their own baths with big tubs. There were trundle beds in both the living area and in one bedroom, perfect for the kids. We had all the amenities you would want, including an infinity pool on our deck. The kids loved to splash around in that every day after swimming in the pools downstairs. The resort was top-notch, and we can’t wait to go back!

• Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
• Activities: Excellent
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Excellent

My husband and I celebrated our seventh wedding anniversary while in PV, and I read that La Palapa was a romantic place, so we made reservations. We were NOT let down! We let them know that we were celebrating when we called, and they asked if we wanted the romantic dinner. My husband said yes, of course. When we got there, the hostess asked if we understood what the "romantic dinner" was and showed us this beautiful table set off to the side on the beach, with an umbrella, flowers, a candlelit path leading to it with flower pedals, and two lounge chairs with another little table for after dinner. It was an additional $50 charge, but we had to do it. It wasn't quite dark yet, so they asked if we wanted to wait in the bar until it got darker to light the candles, so we did. I had a really good martini and Rick had a margarita. The view can't be beat to watch the waves crash and sun set. We did have a couple of vendors come up to us while in the bar, and we bought a necklace for my husband. When we got to our table it was amazing. We felt like royalty! The food was soooo good, and being from Seattle, we know what good seafood tastes like. We had a tuna tartar and some little pork tacos that were both really good. I had the most delicious, mouth-watering sea bass for my main course, and hubby had some kind of steak, also very good. They gave us a special dessert with a candle it. And we had to order the "Sexy Coffee" from reading a post on here. We were both very happy we did, as it was amazing.

We had the most romantic delicious dinner ever with our feet in the sand! The sunset was gorgeous and even the thunderstorm that came and soaked my hubby's back didn't put a damper on things. We were kind of bummed we didn't get to lounge because of the rain, but we couldn't have asked for a more perfect dinner!

We found this restaurant just wandering along the beach, looking for a place to have breakfast with our feet in the sand. It’s at the south end of the boardwalk, right on the beach. It looks like a little hole and the sign even says, "I dare you to come in," so we did. We were the first ones there; they were just opening, so we got our pick of front-row tables along the beach. My husband speaks Spanish pretty well, but the waiter talked so fast that even he couldn't understand him, but he was a very nice guy. We each had an omelet, hash browns, orange juice, coffee, and toast for $13, including tip! And it was sooo good, the best hash browns I’ve ever had!! We were very excited to find this place, but bummed we couldn’t eat there every day, since we were staying in Nuevo Vallarta.

Our last night in town, we were looking for a place to have a good Mexican meal, even asking a couple of people we had met over the week, but we ended up at Burros Bar. I was kind of nervous, since we had only had breakfast there. We sat down and found out that there was a special for margaritas and beers, so of course we ordered them! As soon as the waiter left, a woman sitting at the table next to ours came over and told us that they had eaten there almost every day and gave us her recommendations. We were relieved to know they had repeat customers! We started with all-meat nachos, which were very good. Then my husband and I shared a combo plate of an enchilada, a chile relleno, a steak taco, and a burrito! Tons of food! Even our kids liked their meals, my daughter having a steak (from the kid’s menu) and son having an enchilada from his grandma’s plate. The portions are huge, and the price was about $13 for most dinners, with a free margarita included.

We watched a beautiful sunset with our feet in the sand, drinking margaritas and enjoying our last night in Mexico. My mom and son went for a walk in the waves before dinner, and my mom bought this really cute woven hat from some vendors.,P> If you’re looking for a totally laid-back Mexican restaurant on the beach, Los Burros Bar is the place!

We went to Pipi’s because of its high recommendations, and we will second them all! This place is total authentic Mexico, like you would expect. We went there on our first night and back again a few nights later. The have big portions and big margaritas, the wait staff was all very nice, and the music is great! It was a very lively restaurant, even though our 3-year-old slept on a couple of chairs pulled together for the first 20 minutes! They make guacamole right at your table to your specifications, and it’s VERY good! We asked for two, one with spice for the adults and one without for the kids. This place is a must for any visit to Puerto Vallarta!

We were given tickets for this for going to a timeshare presentation and were very happy with it! It was through Vallarta Adventures, which leaves out of Nuevo Vallarta but picks up people in Puerto Vallarta on the way. It was an 8-hour tour, giving us breakfast in the morning before we left. We had a very funny tour guide who kept us entertained the whole time. They stopped in a little cove for snorkeling for an hour. We didn't want to snorkel, so we used their kayaks instead. We were then served a pretty good lunch and drinks. Next, you land in Yelapa, a cute little village that is only accessible by boat. We took a short hike up to a waterfall and gladly jumped in! Then we hiked back down to the beach for a little R&R, until it was time to board the boat. We heard about the pie lady and had to try a piece of her pie. We had the coconut, and it was delicious! We would totally recommend this cruise to anyone, and if you can get it for free, even better! If you have a tendency for seasickness, they give out Dramamine, but I used my electronic sea bands and was fine. It's a pretty rocky trip, though.