"Picture: Map of Resort"
"Picture: Map of Resort"
Our Comments
This was the third time we had stayed at this resort, (previously Viva Vallarta) over a four year period and until now we had been happy with our vacations there. This time however, we were decidedly unhappy and not impressed by the changes. Whereas in the past we considered this to be a four to a four and a half rated resort, this time it came closer to a two.
My issues are listed below, but I presume by now (2007) things will have changed dramatically. I have found there is always a 'breaking in" period with new management.
1)RenovationsThere was major construction and renovations going on at the resort that were NOT advertised on the Signature website or any other site I saw that the resort was shown on. You try relaxing to the sound of a jackhammer. I was never apologized to for any of the inconvenience this construction caused, nor was anyone else that I spoke to.
2)Washrooms The washrooms by the Adults Pool…. There were no doors on the women’s washroom stalls and the men’s washroom stalls were closed. This made it so that anyone using the pools had to travel way around to the other side of the resort to use a public washroom or back to their rooms which were also on the other side of the pool. Neither were any nearby rooms made available for people to use the washrooms in. The men complained that the only thing they closed the men’s washroom for was to put walls between the urinals. However, they doubted that the flush lever was going to work when the walls were tiled because they were only about a quarter inch away from them when they were blank concrete. Some of the taps in the ladies washrooms did not turn on at all.
3)More RenovationsThe renovations were also going on by the main family pools. This made it awkward to get to and from the Snack Bar and frequently the handicapped access was blocked off. They would block off one area and work on it, and instead of unblocking that area and blocking in a new one, they just expanded the blocked off space the next day.
4)Getting Around Many of the pathways between different sections of the resort were blocked off, or partially blocked off with no explanation. You’d get down to the end and find there was no way to go but back to the start. There were ruts across the hallways – six or eight inch deep holes with no boards over them to stop people from falling in them and only just a couple of caution signs beside them.
5)The Buffet. Evening activities are watching the live show, dancing in the nightclub (disco) , swimming in the pool. Sometimes they have a beach dance or a beach BBQ.
Most of the sporting activities have a tournament or a race at during the week and medals are given out at the night show.
The shows in the theatre (free) are not as good as they were in previous years. Their musicals are lipsynced and lately pretty lame! Used to be much better.
We were terribly disappointed this time. Usually we had always been able to find a variety of things to eat that satisfied us. This time, we found the variety and the quality of most of the dishes to have deteriorated. On only two days was there bacon available in the breakfast buffet. The rest of the time there was only red sausage available. There was also only one or two choices of yogurt available each day. It seemed that instead of putting out a selection, they just tossed out what every box they found. On some days we went through the whole breakfast without any of the waiters even offering us coffee.
"Picture: Beach 2004 - Blue tarps are part of Reno"
6)The A La Carte Restaurants. Everything under renovations. Again it seemed like there was a lot of staff missing. The same Maitre’D was at both the Mexican (Wednesday) and the Italian restaurant (Thursday). He was also the manager on a couple of days at the buffet. The same waiters were at all three a la carte restaurants, mainly because the Mexican and the Mediterranean restaurants were at the same location in the Portobello Restaurant building and the Italian restaurant was in the Snack Bar. (Ah, yes. Dining to the backdrop of blue tarps) This meant that there was a lot of competition for booking your meals and if you weren’t there in the first fifteen minutes that the girl was there in the lobby to take reservations, you wouldn’t get in at all because they ran out of spaces. They only had one of the restaurants open each night and it was one of the fastest set of meals I have ever gone through. Appetizer, Salad, Entrée and Desert and Coffee in less than an hour. Also the Maitre’D of the Mexican / Italian restaurant was rude. When we presented our reservation slip, he looks at my husbands arm and says “Show me again.” When we ask, “Excuse me?” because we don’t know what he’s talking about, he says “What, you don’t speak English?” Eventually, he poked at my husbands watch and said, “The light! Turn on the light!” Presumably this was his way of asking for the time, though I do not understand why he wouldn’t have a watch of his own and if he needed to ask, he should at least ask politely. Half the menus we got were (instead of being English one side and Spanish on the other) Spanish on both pages. And I’m sorry, Anitpasto in Spanish does not mean the same thing as Anitpasto in English. Putting Antipasto at the top of the English list of food, does not tell you that it is an appetizer.
7)The staff.
One staff member asked if I had been at another resort. When I said no, but it was the third time I had been at this resort he asked, “What do you think of it now it’s under new management? Do you think it sucks?” This, I think, is rather strange for a staff member unless they are seriously unhappy. I also noted that the majority of the regular staff from previous years was absent. Since they had been there the previous two visits, I was surprised that so few were still there. Their replacements were not that impressive.
8)Information: Nobody seemed to be able to give the same information as anyone else. Example? We went to do archery. Front desk said go to the Activities booth by the main pool. The equipment is there and they will take you to the archery range. We go there. They say, no, you have to go to the gym and they will take you there. “We do this very professionally,” they said. We go to the gym. The guy says, no, you have to sign up and they will come at 4pm and set you up. We sign up and come back at 4pm. The fellow that does archery is at the archery range already. We go there and two other people who signed up after us are already there. There is a right handed woman and a left handed man who had not shot before. They were both given right handed bows and no protective gear. When I ask the ‘pro’ about his, he says they don’t have any arm protectors or anything. I said they had them the last two times we were there. Then he disappears. When he comes back he offers me an arm protector, but still didn’t bring any more bows or protectors for anyone else. After she hit herself on the elbow with the bowstring twice (nice bruise coming) the other girl gave up and went to play tennis. Professional? I think not. Last time the times for archery were posted at the range and there were lots of people shooting. This time I only saw the two other people there and there were only two targets instead of four. These targets were in poor repair and any ‘bulls eyes’ went right through the centre of the target and came out the other side.
9)Internet. They have business services. I asked at the desk what the price was to get on the internet. One of the underlings at the front desk said it was 25 pesos for 15 minutes. I said that was good and I would be back. When I came back the next day to use it, I was told there were no 15 minute packages and that I would have to pay 50 pesos for 30 minutes. I didn’t need 30 minutes as I just wanted to check my email for messages from home. I refuse to be conned into paying a higher amount for services I do not need.
10)The tours. We took the Rough Guide tour into Puerto Vallarta. Part of the trip was a visit to ‘a restaurant’ and part was a visit to Liz Taylor’s home. We never saw Liz Taylor’s home, but we went to a restaurant out in the middle of nowhere where all that was available were evening-dinner-type meals at dinner type restaurant prices. Our meal of two small mixed shiskabobs and two sodas cost us 360 pesos or the equivalent of about $40 Canadian. Then, of course, a tip is expected. A young couple would not be able to afford this kind of a meal and I was not happy at having to pay for one. Not only was this not really an appropriate meal for the time of day, but there were others on the bus who were not meat eaters. There was little or nothing there for them to eat. They walked the long walk back to the bus only to find it was locked. Then they walked the long walk back to the restaurant and had something to drink. If you are going to put this kind of a restaurant on a middle of the day tour, you should advertise the fact so people are prepared. (And yes, you could charge it on your Mastercard if you wanted to pay a 5% surcharge on top of your meal.) Over half the time of the tour was spent picking up and dropping off people at the variety of hotels. Then we backtracked to halfway back to where we started before the tour actually started. It was a long, long day. The guide spent most of the time regaling us with things about him, rather than things about the city. The itinerary said we should take bathing suits and towels as they would stop somewhere on the way back for people to take a dip in the river. The river turned out to be the stream at the restaurant.
11)The checkout. We had to checkout by noon on Saturday. Our bus came at 5:25pm. We asked on the Monday about getting use of one of the hospitality rooms. We were told to come back on Friday and ask the manager. If our room was still not booked for someone else on the Saturday, we could arrange a late checkout, otherwise we could then book one of the hospitality suites. When we went back on Friday, we were told by the manager that we would have to pay $30 US for a late (5 pm) checkout and that we couldn’t book a hospitality room until Saturday morning. (ah, yes…. Consistency). We were also told we could use the showers in the gym, which we ended up doing. We were told there were towels there, but not that we would have to go and ask for them. The woman with her disabled mother came to the gym while I was there. She was given a hospitality suite that her mother could not access as stairs were a major issue. Nothing but the gym was offered as an alternative. I had to go ask the guy in the gym for a chair for this elderly woman as there was nothing in the change room for her to sit on. There was also no soap in there and the bathroom shower was not clean. No towel racks and no counter space to put your items on. Just a sink, toilet and a shower that was cold. Other people complained that they had been unable to get into the hospitality rooms as they were locked when they went. When we did the archery hunt (looking for archery) a couple days before, I told the guy at the gym that there were no paper towels in the women’s shower/washroom. There still wasn’t when I went to shower and change.
12)Rooms Previously when we went, there were the usual little items in the bathroom. Shower cap, sewing kits, etc. This time there was a comb, shampoo, body wash and towels. Facecloths were there only on three of the days.
Other annoying things:
1.The massage therapists. Why does it cost almost one and a half times as much there to get a massage as it does in Canada. The massage girls sit up there all day doing only one or two short massages a day at the most and the rest of the time reading books or chatting. (Actually, we were settled on the beach just below them and during the whole week I saw them give three massages.) If they cut the prices to a reasonable rate (like by a third or a half.) they would have been busy most of the time, because I would have had a couple of massages and I’m sure others would have as well.
2.The exchange rate: Why is it that the resorts need to soak people for the exchange rates? They only gave 7 pesos to the Canadian dollar and 10 to the American. The banks gave 9.26 and 11.25. Respectively.
3.The bar. It became a game to see how many different kinds of Singapore Slings my husband would get. No two bartenders made them the same and very few of them made them the same way twice.
What was good this time?
1.The signature Rep was available on a regular basis which was a change from previous trips.
2.WestJet was awesome compared to AirTransat. Nice leg room, decent food – though it would be nice if their website gave the same information as the Signature ticket. eg. Westjet info – 70 lbs. of luggage - Signature 40 lbs luggage.
3.Julian, a waiter at the resort’s buffet was awesome. When he was there, he went out of his way to make sure we got our coffee and juice. He was always cleaning up or setting up or making himself generally helpful. Something we couldn’t say for a lot of the other waiters and there were some days we were not even offered coffee by them. This boy should be promoted.
4.Caesar who helps with bussing was also awesome and extremely polite and helpful.
Other peoples’ comments:
1.One couple I met in the adult pool stated that they had purchased the upgrade when they arrived at the resort. This was to include (among other things) a robe for each of them and a coffee maker in the room. They never got the robe. They got the coffee maker after three days of complaining. They never got cups, cream or sugar to go with it and only received one coffee package. In the past, when they came to the resort (they, too were repeat customers) received one meal in each a’ la carte restaurant for each week they stayed there. This time they were only allowed one meal in each over the two weeks and did NOT get any preferred reservations in the restaurants.
2.Another gentleman who had come on the bus stated he would from now on make sure that he asked if they were doing renovations before he came to a resort. If they were, he would go elsewhere. That’s something I will do from now on as well – look for bulletin boards.
3.A lot of complaining over the quality of the buffet and not being able to find stuff to eat.
4.Lots of complaints about the washrooms.
5.The Signature people and the bus drivers should be instructed to load handicapped people first. They put the luggage out and everyone crowded around and climbed on the bus. No one (but us) helped the lady whose mother was legally blind, frail, and hearing impaired get on the bus and by then, the only seat available was way at the back. At least one bus didn’t have a working washroom and the other one absolutely stank in the back quarter of the bus.
THE BEACH They have some nice thick sand on the beach. It is cleaned and raked clean for each morning. Now there are lots of beach umbrellas and shades. The first time we went there weren't. However the water can be somewhat dangerous if you are not a good swimmer. There is some serious undertow along the shore caused by the wave action on the sand. This is NOT a particularly good snorkeling area. The waves churn up the sand. There are lots of rocks in the shallow water and some rather awkward deep holes between them.Wear Shoes! or protective footwear. Be careful when boogy boarding. The waves can knock you over and grind you into the sand and rocks.
GETTING THERE
Palladium is something like 40 miles north of Puerto Vallarta which is where our plane landed.
If you are calling home, there is a 1-800- number to call Canada. This is much cheaper (supposedly) than trying to call any other way. Or use email.
What is there to do?
Included
There is LOTS to do. You should never be bored (unless you want to be) - especially if you are there to relax. If you want to keep busy, there are tons of activities. The free daytime activities are kayaking, archery, volleyball, bocceball, tennis, sailing, arobics, water arobics, weightlifting in the gym, swimming in the pool or ocean.
Evening activities are watching the live show, dancing in the nightclub (disco) , swimming in the pool. Sometimes they have a beach dance or a beach BBQ.
Most of the sporting activities have a tournament or a race at during the week and medals are given out at the night show.
The shows in the theatre (free) are not as good as they were in previous years. Their musicals are lipsynced and lately pretty lame! Used to be much better.
GETTING INTO TOWN
You can walk to the end of the driveway and take the bus.This cost about 4 pesos per person in 2004.
You can take the hotel shuttle in. They will drop you off and then pick you up at a certain time and place. There must be at least 11 or so people before they will send it out. Number seems to vary.
You can take a taxi. They wait outside the hotel or at the end of the driveway. You will pay about $30 - $40 US to take the cab into town. This can be split with 4-6 people depending on whether its a van or a car). If you take the cab, be prepared to barter or you'll get soaked. Again. Make sure they are talking pesos or dollars. Make sure they are telling you if it is for the cab or per person.
TOURS
"Picture: Looking Down on the Family Pool May 2003"
FOOD
There were supposed to be three a la carte (order from menu) restaurants open for dinner. You do have to sign up to attend these. One visit per restaurant per week. The main buffet was open from 7am to 11 am for breakfast. From 1 to 3:30 for lunch and from 7 to 10 for dinner. There is a snackbar open from 11 to 4 and again at about 11pm to 2(I think). The snack bar has pizza, hamburgers, hotdogs and fries.
ALCHOL AND DRINKING
If you have a hotel bracelet, the meals and booze are free. Bars open about 11am and stay open quite late. The beach bar is only open during the daytime.There are bars by both pools and by the lobby. The drinks are generally their product though some international liquors are on site. They will put as much alcohol in as you ask (generally).
WHAT TO TAKE-
in the way of clothes
Don't need long pants or long sleeve shirts. Don't need sweaters. Don't need to bring a beach towel.
The club supplies each person with one beach towel which you can exchange for clean ones as often as you wish between 8 am and 5pm ?
Ladies could use cotton tops, t-shirts, shorts, cotton or rayon loose dresses and skirts. Bathing suit(s). Beach cover up or pereo (long or square piece of cotton or rayon that you can wrap around you in of about twenty different ways).You can make your own pereo by getting a piece of light cotton, rayon, or blend 45" wide x 1 1/2 to 2 yards long. finish the edges and tie it around you any wihich way you want. If you want long pants make sure they are light weight, loose and cotton. The best piece of clothing since sliced bread is zip-off legs on pants. You'll want to wear these when coming in by plane so you can remove them quickly and easily on the bus to the hotel.
Men could use a few short sleeve t-shirts and shirts. Shorts. Bathing suit(s) One pair long pants to get into the A la carte restaurants. THERE IS a dress code there.
Everybody could use sandals or those really light weight runners or flip-flops to walk around in. Your feet will be too hot in socks and shoes. Trecking sandals are good.
Nothing dries out completely and nothing stays dry in October. It gets drier as you go into November and December. The dress is CASUAL though the a la carte restaurants have a dress code. Not sure if topless is allowed or not. I've heard it both ways but haven't seen it there. Mostly it was regular bathing suits or bikinis. The only place I've seen topless so far is on the east coast and in the Dominican.
IN THE MEDICINE CHEST
Immodium or other anti-diaretic (take extra for your friends who didn't bring any)- the whole club is on a water purification system. This is the water that is used for cooking, water dispensers, bathroom sinks and showers - Drink the bottled water and refil at the dispensers in the hall. The tap water smells and tastes funny though is supposed to be safe.
antihistamines (for bug bites) such as benedryl tablets and antihistamine cream or lotion such as caladryl - Some small biting bugs were a problem, but this was the middle of November and the end of the wet season. I am told it dries up in December. I believe its better to expect the worst and be prepared.
bug spray - In the fall and early winter for sure. Can't hurt to have it around. There may be bugs. I got stung by a wasp or something.
lots of sun screen (15 or better) - It's about three times the price to buy it at the resort. We used 30 and got a good tan. Remember the water reflects sunlight. You can still get a bad burn when sitting in the shade or on a cloudy day. I used dark tanning oil and did fine. Just make sure to reapply. My hubby stayed in the shade (yes) and got a burn because he didn't use anything (even in the shade) Fabric sun umbrellas do NOT stop all the sun's rays. They do leak through the fabric and you CAN get a burn.
and whatever you would normally take along such as:tylenol or aspirin: bandaids, antibiotic ointment, etc.
DEMOGRAPHICS There was a are a lot of Mexicans that come to this resort. Mostly the other people are from Canada and the US. There are often a lot of children, especially in April when they have their spring break down there and on the weekends. Most Mexican children seem to be very well behaved. There were people from early twenties to mid seventies, all body types.Most were under the age of 60. I don't think anyone would feel out of place regardless of whether you went alone, part of a group or as a couple.
Since our trip, they have built a big WalMart at the north end of Puerto Vallarta. If you forgot something, you can stop there and pretty much find whatever it is at US/Canadian prices. It's probably a lot cheaper than trying to buy it at the hotel. And, since the bus exchange is in front of the WalMart, it is quite convenient if you are taking the trip into town to the flea market.
If you have any questions, or comments, please email me (below) with them. I will be happy to help (and add any info to my page that may be of interest or of benefit to others). I like to hear if this has been of any benefit to you on your travels or even just making up your mind whether or not to go.