Velas Vallarta

We were a group of 5 (me, hubby and 3 college aged kids) and stayed 4 nights. Trip was relatively smooth, but PVR airport security went through my backpack with a fine toothed comb. They asked me if I had a vape pen and I said no, but I guess they didn't believe me because they opened every compartment, every toiletry bag, unzipped everything! I was so glad I didn't have a stray edible lingering inside. Avoid the timeshare hustlers. They are allowed into the airport and aggressively pursue you before you even exit! What they offer for attending the pitch is not worth the 4 hours they steal from your vacation. They tell you it's only 75 minutes but that is a lie. It's 4 mentally exhausting hours of thinking of new ways to keep saying NO. One offer is a free ride to the resort, but if you're in the marina, that trip is like 4 minutes so it's cheap anyway. One tip on Uber/taxis -- if your party is 5+, or you have lots of luggage, you WILL have to book two vehicles. Neither one does full-size SUVs, even though the app says 6 ppl. The maximum is ~4 ppl with minimal luggage. Increase either one and you will NOT fit into one vehicle. Either book two vehicles or book a private company that can verify they have Suburbans or shuttle vans. Our suite 4214 was a 3 bedroom 2 bath. The resort looked better in person than on the YT videos. I think maybe they've done some upgrades because our suite was awesome. The balcony was the entire length of the suite and had a great ocean view. All bedrooms have a TV, and you can access the input ports if you want to bring your streaming service devices. Good thing we did, because one day, it rained almost all day long, so we stayed in. We took cash for tipping. We tipped in USD the first day, then converted to pesos at the front desk. The resort conversion rate wasn't great, but it was worth it to me to not have to leave the resort to go looking for a bank -- especially since it's on the marina (lots of hotels/condos, but no businesses in walking distance). It was hotter than I expected being on the Pacific, but it wasn't unbearable (I'm from Texas). The pool doesn't have a towel station; you have to bring towels from your room, so ask for plenty. The beach was cool starting around 6pm, and the sunsets were amazing. The resort staff were polite and professional but not super friendly. That's just an observation; not a complaint. I didn't have any issues with them and I'm grateful for that. The ppl who sell trinkets on the beach can get aggressive, but they're not associated with the resort. I had pre-purchased some resort credits and used them for massages and facials at the spa. The massages were really good and my daughters liked their facials. The resort food was consistently mediocre. I think all the reviews about how good the food is are left by ppl who don't season their food. We booked an all-inclusive package so all our food and drinks were free, so we didn't complain. Not all guests book all-inclusive, so you will occasionally be asked to pay for your food. Just tell them your room number and that your food is free and there's no hassle. There's two restaurants, one indoor and fancy-ish; and one outdoor and casual. We could eat from the menu, or from the buffet, or both. There is a burger stand, an ice cream stand and a swim-up bar in the pool area. Room service is free 24/7, but the room service menu does not show everything you can order. For instance, it only shows 2 kinds of burger, but you can order any burger that the burger stand offers. If anyone makes your drink weak, you can politely ask them to make it stronger and they do it with a smile. We ate off-resort one night and I think I was expecting Tex Mex. It was authentic Mexican food and it was really good, I just know now that I prefer Tex Mex. There is a resort sponsored event every night so you don't have to leave for entertainment if you don't want to. But we did. On the way out, I noticed that once you turn off the marina road, there's access to a Super Walmart, H&M and other familiar retail. We went up into the hills and did some hiking and also a tequila tasting. In the hills, the roads were extremely rough and unpaved, but we felt safe the whole time. On our way back we stopped at a mini mall called Porto Magico and picked up souvenirs, and we stopped at Office Max to get bubble wrap for the bottles of tequila we needed to pack. When we checked out, they told us how much resort credit we didn't use, so we quickly went to the resort convenience store to buy some snacks. All in all, very solid vacation if you like the resort style trip. I wouldn't hesitate to stay at Velas Vallarta again.

Hello this is my third time here and the hotel is very nice clean and the food is delicious Cristina at the pool really take care of us excellent attention of her she does a wonderful work we really want to come back again hope she continues to work here thanks velas resort

This is our second year at the resort and we couldn’t love it more. Cristina, Erick, and Luis at the pool are incredible. As is Miguel at the beach. The food is 10/10 and the rooms are so quiet. We were worried about hearing planes with the proximity to the airport but you don’t. Can’t wait to return next year!

The pools were glorious. The staff was incredibly attentive and kind. (Extra shout-out to Cristina who kept our pool crew happy with food and drink.) The grounds were beautiful and safe.

Omg, Christina helped make our trip to Vales Vallarta relaxing, fun, and enjoyable.