The bell boy first took us on a tour of the resort. It was a jungle; you will know what I mean if you look at the pictures or if you have been there! There was so much vegetation all throughout the resort’s property! They also had their own pets: cats, peacocks, lizards, birds, and ponds with various types of fish all through out the resort. I couldn't believe it! It was great to because I really missed my cats!

The resort had a couple of shops. The resort even provided free Internet access. There are three pools; one is a bit warmer than the other and has a waterfall, but you just step out of that one and can float down the lazy river, which is connected to the larger pool that is used for activities. There are bridges that go over the river. There is also a smaller pool for kids. The resort does have childcare set right by the kiddie pool. There are hot tubs, but it was so hot there that we didn't think of using them. If you were to use them, it would be in the evening.

The resort has two restaurants with one right on the beach that doesn't require a reservation for dinner. It serves steak, burgers, chicken, and a salad and desert bar. The restaurant that is not on the beach has different dinner themes each night-one night it could be French and the next it could be Italian.

The resort does provide two tours. One is a cultural tour and another is a city tour where you drink and go shopping on larger air-conditioned buses. The resort also promotes city tours for to explore the nightlife. Bar hopping is $9, which covers your fee for the ride there and back, the cover charge to get in, and one drink.

The resort is open to the outside, just as most others here. The elevators are a bit small, and we did have to share with staff members, but it was all well, as they were always courteous enough to let us go first.

We had a very spacious one bedroom. It had a balcony off of the living room and a bedroom. Our room had a great view of the pool and the ocean. In our living room there were two couches that could both be used as a bed for one person. The room could be set to any temperature that you desired. The kitchen was great-the maids stocked our fridge everyday with beverages, snacks, cereals, and bread. We had a two-burner stovetop, a large fridge, and cupboards filled with all dishes that you would need. We were able to have room service whenever we wanted-it could be 3am, and we could still get some lasagna. We didn't have to do the dishes, as the maids would do them. Some resorts make you do them.

I know that a lot of people are not interested in purchasing an all-inclusive deal for a week, but honestly, we didn't have an all-inclusive deal on our first week on vacation, so we had to cook our own meals, do our dishes, and pay for our activities and tours. I didn't mind cooking a few times, but I was on vacation, and my vacation really didn't start to feel like a true vacation until we came to this resort-they served us our dinner, we had room service whenever we wanted, there were no dishes to do, and we relaxed and soaked up as much of it as we possibly could! They made me feel like royalty! And they did it with the biggest smile! It was wonderful. And I MUST recommend an all inclusive to anyone looking for relaxation on their vacation because, believe me, at this resort, you are getting your money’s worth!!!!!

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Excellent
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Excellent

The weather was perfect – exactly what you’d want for a vacation. The temperature range was 87˚F to 94˚F, and in the 70s at night. The room was very nice. We had a one-bedroom, and it was large enough for my wife, our toddler, and me. We were on the seventh floor, and the view from our balcony was a picture-perfect one with beautiful sunsets each night. The view from our front door was also just as nice, of port Vallarta with all the cruise ships. We have no complaints about the accommodations. The bed was a king, and the pillows were super soft. Towels and sheets were brought daily, and cleaning was done daily.

The room service menu is extremely limited, and only certain items are available at certain times. If you wanted a hamburger at 7pm, forget it. The poolside menu was limited too, although it was fine for what you’d expect for lunchtime. Definitely try the pizzas. They say they make it onsite, and it wasn’t bad.

The service at the swim-up bar was really slow. Don’t waste time waiting there – the waiters walking around the pools are much faster. We tipped the pool waiter $20 early in the week, and he took great care of us every day after that.

The staff is overly friendly. They really made our vacation enjoyable. The serving staff was extremely attentive to all our needs. The only complaint about the staff is the high-pressure sales-pitch that is everywhere. Sometimes a simple "no" doesn’t even work. They must really be incentive-laden in their payroll.

The grounds of the property are gorgeous - the landscaping is magnificent and meticulously kept. There are several cats, two peacocks, and four lizards that call the property home.

Make sure you go to the Fiesta night on Sunday. It was very enjoyable. It is included in the all-inclusive package. Andrea restaurant is excellent. The breakfast buffet is not a varied as I had hoped, but the food was always great. La Ribera was good, but not as good as Andrea.

The pools are very nice. The children’s pool is perfect for those 2- to 5-year-olds to play on their own. The other pools are very large and afford everyone enough room to enjoy whatever without infringing on others. The "lazy river" isn’t really anything more than a connecting pool between the two large pools. It isn’t something to sit in a tube and relax as you get moved though the "river." The beach isn’t that nice. You couldn’t see to the bottom in the bay, and the sand was dark brown. When our daughter went to bed, the TV was way too limited for us before we retired for the night. For some strange reason, they have satellite service, and yet chose to show the Buffalo, NY feed from ABC! There is no NBC feed, just CBS, CNN, and HBO/Cinemax in English. Just about every other station (even ESPN) was in Spanish. It was annoying. When we wanted to relax and catch up on TV, it was next to impossible. It isn’t a huge complaint though since we were on vacation, but maybe a California feed would be a thought. Definitely bring a book or a portable-DVD player if you have children. The nearby marina was not worth the time it took to walk there. There were very limited shops and nothing worth seeing except a few nice boats. You’d be better taking a 15-minute taxi ride ($5) into old Puerto Vallarta town to do any shopping. Here are a few tips:

(1) Pack Imodium! I got sick for two days, my wife for one day, and we knew at least six other people who also did.
(2) Walk past all the scams as you arrive at the airport (trust me…RCI did not send any service to pick you up). It is just a way to sell you something. Go outside and to the right to grab a taxi.
(3) See what you can do about either making sure you have a cell-phone service that works (Verizon doesn’t) or get phone cards right away. I bought some in New Jersey before I left, and they didn’t even work.
(4) Avoid going to the Splash waterpark. There are no lifeguards (at least none we saw), and the water isn’t very clean. The "lazy river" had all sorts of"items floating in it. There are a few slides, and it only cost $12 to enter, but it really wasn’t worth the $10 cab fare.
(5) When you go to old Puerto Vallarta, keep walking. Everyone wants to talk to you to sell you something. You have to keep moving or you’ll never get any shopping done. There is a McDonald’s, Burger King, and Haagen Daas if you are afraid to try to local food. The prices are not really a bargain. They are similar to what I’d expect back home. Each shop is just the same items in a different spot. If you are into silver, you are in luck.

Overall, we really enjoyed our vacation. A week is just long enough to be there for. There isn’t much to do off the property, so it does get repetitive by mid-week.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Fair
• Amenities: Very Good
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Good
• Service: Very Good

There was a well-equipped kitchen and the refrigerator was daily restocked with beer, sodas, juice, fruit, yoghurt, milk, and some other things that you could possibly need without forgetting that room service was also available the 24 hours at obviously no extra charge.

The bathroom was clean and you had all of the required stuff for the shower and since the resort is on favor of the preservation of the species they had a note in there telling you that if you didn't require your towels to be washed or replaced you could just hang them and use them some other time.

Something I almost forgot to mention is that the property overlooks the ocean, and from my unit I was able to just sit in the balcony and enjoy the beautiful sunset and also the nice warm weather of the area.

There are three swimming pools that are suitable for people of all ages and while swimming or sunbathing you could just ask for some drinks from the aqua bar and spend a wonderful time there.

As a part of the all-inclusive program at the resort, you had the opportunity of having all of your meals at the 2 different restaurants the resort has such as "Andrea" (Italian cuisine) and "La Ribera" (Mexican and Mediterranean style), the service provided there was always great and they had plenty of dishes for you to choose and if anything ordered was not of your entire satisfaction you could just have it replaced by something else which was also a big plus.

I can't say I'm the kind of person who eats a lot but I found the program worth the price paid for it, and that way I didn't really have to worry about what to eat or do on my vacation since the resort has also got plenty of activities for the guests such as aqua-aerobics, contests, a tour to the downtown area and also a visit to the Grand Velas Resort which is located in the Nuevo Vallarta area and is also considered one of the leading resorts in the world.

Some of the non-motorized activities also included in the program are snorkeling, kayaking, water polo, tennis, and introductory scuba diving lessons. As a whole I enjoyed every minute inside and outside the property and I'm just looking forward to going back there perhaps some time the following year. It might sound like an expensive place to travel to, but just try it out and you'll be able to say whether it works out for you or not.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Excellent
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Excellent

You have the choice either to eat a la carte or pick the buffet. Both of them are great. The food is delicious and they change the menu every day, so you won't get bored of it. The resort is family oriented, but it is very well suited to couples, too.

The unit in which we stayed was a 1 bedroom, big enough and nice. It had a beautiful balcony with a great view. The living room was very cozy, and what I liked more is everyday you have the refridge full of stuff such as drinks, fruits, alcoholic beverages, etc.

On the other hand Puerto Vallarta is also the perfect place for vacations. No matter what type of activities you are looking for, there is almost everything available.

I always want to come back to this place.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Very Good
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Excellent
• Service: Very Good

You have the choice either to eat a la carte or pick the buffet, but both of them are great. The food is delicious, and they change the menu eveyday, so you won't get bored of it. The resort is family oriented, but it is very suitable for couples as well.

On the other hand Puerto Vallarta is the perfect place for vacations no matter what type of activities you are looking for; there is almost everything. I always want to come back to this place.

• Unit Type: 1 Bedroom
• Activities: Very Good
• Amenities: Excellent
• Unit Satisfaction: Excellent
• Family Friendliness: Very Good
• Service: Very Good