Mayan Palace Vallarta

Nuevo Vallarta-Mayan Palace “Paradise”

We traveled as 3 couples to Mayan Palace, Nuevo Vallarta on Feb.28-March 03, 2007 Upon arrival “chaos” at the airport we quickly darted past all the sale/timeshare people and said no thank you not interested. We located a taxi stand very close to the exit and was able to secure a van for 6 folks and all our luggage.
The cost for 6 was approximately $35.00. We confused our driver because he thought we were traveling to the Mayan w/in 5 min from the airport. The one we stayed in was in Nuevo Vallarta is around 15 min. away.

The arrival to the hotel was smooth. The bellman were egar to take and keep you luggage in a safe place. We turned our sights to the front desk in hopes of securing 3 rooms together. What luck, our agent Julian spent 30 minutes trying to keep us together and he did it. Between we 3 couples we had one petite kitchen, one room with a king, one room with a 2 double beds and another room with 2 double beds. Although our rooms were not ready for several hours the process of check in took some of that time and in no time we were in our rooms.

Our rooms were very clean and had a beautiful view of the golf course. We had a very mini balcony but really did not use it much. The air condition worked great and at times left us wanting warmth. The bathroom provides daily nice amenities, shampoo, creme, soaps and a working hair dryer. We located an iron and board in the closet. The tv and remote worked great and it appeared there were more english programs than we anticipated.

Every night our maid would turn down our bed and design swans out of towels etc. The only problem we had with all three rooms was weak plumbing. Weak flushing lead to nervous concerns of overflow. We did report this to the maid and they took care of it asap.

The grounds were lovely, the pool divine and the staff very accommodating. We did attend the fiesta that week. Although it was a $45.00 per person price, the entertainment was great and it made you feel like you were in Mexico. The food was adequate and cold because of the cool ocean breezes. I do not believe many noticed it because the drinks were free flowing.

Following the Fiesta the entrance fee to the disco of $10.00 was waivered and several of us went there to dance. Great disco music and 4 drinks ran us $12.00.

We were never harrassed by time share people once we checked into our rooms. Upon our arrival you are met by them but if you tell them you are not interested in upgrading or any presentations they were very respectful. We were never asked again to attend a presentation.

The pool drinks were expensive, however their daily specials were delicious and priced right. We ate one meal there and that was the awesome Champagne Brunch on Sunday. The cost was $21.00 per person and well worth it. It was a great way to end our trip with a full tummy.

Just a suggestion, we had trouble the first day locating taxis that could accommodated 3 men and 3 women. It made it necessary to travel in 2 adding to our expenses. Our group decided to rent a suburban which ran us about $50.00 per day and unlimited mileage for the duration of our trip. It was the best thing for us and gave us freedom to go anywhere and at anytime. We traveled about 300 miles that week and saw some very primitive sites outside of P.V. We were fortunate to have a bi-lingual person with us which enabled us to get around better.

Had a great meal at “Andale’s” It is very popular with the locals. Hope you can make it there.
Our group drank bottled water when off the property and tap water while staying at the Mayan since they had a purification system. Our meals were all excellent but our favorite was Le Kliff, elegant with a priceless view of the bay. Most meals for 2 averaged $50-$60 per couple including drinks. We could have eaten in more modest places but found peoples recommendations to work out well.

Our vacation was flawless and I was hoping to share all our great experiences with other future travelers.