Mayan Palace Vallarta

Enjoyed the Nuevo Vallarta Mayan Palace

The Mayan Palace consists of two large condo units - the older, smaller one near the beach / pool and the larger one further away. (Remember this is not the Grand Mayan).

We stayed in a three room condo unit further away from the pool / beach, but not too far to walk. Room was great - tile floors, two bedrooms, nice kitchenette, quiet. Large sitting area. All very clean. A/C worked fine. Both bathrooms had tubs, not walk-in showers. A tip: Odd numbered rooms have a beach view. Try to get above the third floor for the best views.

Food is good, but it’s worth a taxi ride to the nearby Wal-Mart to buy snacks / soft drinks / breakfast cereal for the kids.

Puerto Vallarta is safe and friendly. Food prices drop by 75% if you eat in “local” places off the main harbor road (Malecon Street). Visit Malecon Street late in the day to see native exhibits and a beautiful sunset.

Several restaurants on site - Punta Arenas Restaurant is very expensive - $30.50 for a mediocre rib-eye that would be about $8.00 in Houston. The pool-side snack bar is an OK value.

Pool is great for kids and very, very big - about 500 feet long. Never overly crowded.

Arrangements can be made on-site for fishing, sailing, and other tours, but you can book them in town for less. Example: All day hotel fishing trip is $130/person on site - I went to the marina and booked directly with a boat owner for $85/person (For 4 people.) We had the boat all to ourselves and had a great day.
Helps, though, if you speak a little Spanish.

Tip: For all-day sailing, go to the Marina and ask for “Chuy” or “Alex.” They both speak great English, and the charge for the day was 4000 pesos. (We had four people, but the boat could accommodate maybe six - and I think the price is the same no matter how many.) Go out to Yelapa or just sail around.

The “90 minute” timeshare presentation (not required) gets you a free breakfast, 1000 peso credit on your bill, and 10% off all charges. It will really take at least two hours, probably three. They were moderately high pressure - we did not upgrade our existing timeshare.

I rented a car from Dollar-Rent A Car (using the Dollar site) about six months ahead of the vacation and the weekly rent was an unbelievable $107 + tax. The walk-up rate at the airport was about $400. Even with the low rate, taxes (25%) and insurance ($25/day) brought the total to $330. It was nice to have a car - driving is not too difficult, and you can make quickie trips to the nearby OXXO station for snacks/beer/etc. There are some nice lazy seaside villages about 30 minutes north of the property, where beer is 15 pesos instead of the 45 charged at the resort, the people are friendly, and the food was good with no “after effects.”

We found the property to be relaxing, uncrowded, and pleasant.