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Results 31-40of 61 Reviews
by B&J
Atkins
August 23, 2003
On the streets, there are always timeshare people giving away gifts to get you to come look at their resorts. Most were nice, however they are high pressure sales people at the presentations, so you have to be very firm about your decision. We enjoyed just getting out and walking. Also went to a bullfight -- you at least need to see one. Little children will probably not enjoy, but we were with two teenagers. It is also a safe place and we were not hesitant to let the teens go do their own thing. We went on a boat trip to Los Arcos and another island area. We were disappointed with the snorkeling. The water was hazy and we weren't able to see very much.
From journal Fun week in Mexico
by robinjoy
Phoenix, Arizona
August 22, 2003
From journal Puerta Vallarta
by serandal
Arlington, Virginia
August 8, 2003
The one-bedroom units have a small kitchen with burners, a coffee maker, a blender, a toaster, and a small refrigerator. My unit did have coffee filters and dish soap. There are two couches in the living room; each has a trundle bed underneath. There are two TV sets, one in the living room and one in the bedroom. There is one bathroom, but two sink areas. The bedroom has a king sized bed. My balcony did have chairs to sit on, but the newer building balconies did not have room for chairs.
The lobby is gorgeous and has an incredible reflecting pool in front of it. There is a lobby bar that faces the pool, with nightly live music. The entrance to the lobby has statues of indigenous gods with pulsating music. This Mayan Palace was much less expensive to stay at than the one in Cancun.
Tip was not included on every bill and meals and drinks were less expensive. I ate breakfast overlooking the ocean at the Balche restaurant. Prices were reasonable and the view was lovely.
Staff provide daily activities for adults and children and the pool is divided into an adult pool and a children's pool. You can kayak on the canal if you wish. Overall, I really enjoyed my stay at the Mayan Palace and plan to return next year.
From journal July in Puerto Vallarta
by Delma-in-Philly
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
August 5, 2003
The room was absolutely beautiful and spacious. Our bed was an oversized king, so we felt like royalty. You can't get a bad view in Mayan Palace -- you either have the ocean or the mountains to delight you. The sun rising behind the mountains was breathtaking and the sun setting on the ocean was amazing! I've been here twice and can't wait to visit again!
From journal Palace in Puerto/Nuevo Vallarta
by EricJarvis
Los Osos, California
July 30, 2003
The approximately 10 minute taxi ride to downtown Puerto Vallarta and the Malecon (boardwalk) cost roughly US$4-5. Taking the bus, I hear, is cheaper and also very convenient. A bus stop is almost directly across the street.
The Vallarta-Adventures office and pick up point for their Sierra Madre Expedition and Canopy tour is in the Marina and within walking distance. Best Things About the Resort: My wife and I enjoyed the Mayan Palace's Fiesta, which they host every Monday night. It was US$35 and included GREAT buffet of authentic Mexican food, unlimited drinks, and a full night of entertainment. Perfomers included Mariachi, Native American music, a mock cock fight, horses, roping demonstrations, and a fireworks show.
Overall, the things we like best about our Mayan Palace ownership is being able to go to several destinations without trading and the option to add one additional week for each registered week we own (Vacation Fair Week). Resort Experience: As I stated before, the Mayan Palace in Puerto Vallarta's location is ideal. In front of you is the open ocean, and behind you lies the beautiful Marina.
Our room was a spacious one bedroom unit with a kitchen. The refrigerator was a little small if you were planning to store lots of food. They bathroom has two separate sink areas. The two bedroom units have two bathrooms. There was a TV in the living room and the bedroom (two-bedroom units have three TVs). These TVs were small; but other than catching up on CNN occasionally, we didn't feel a need to watch much TV. Our room had two balconies that had ocean views. They were very too small to be able to sit on them, but I found myself standing out there marvelling at our magnificent views. I'm guessing the smaller balconies allow better views for more rooms.
Their fitness room was state of the art with a full time "trainer" available to assist.
Their main restaurant was overpriced by Mexican standards but excellent. We only ate brunch their once. There many other quality and more reasonable restaurants within walking distance in the Marina.
The one thing I don't like about the Mayan Palace is their aggressive sales tactics. Every corner in Puerto Vallarta seem to have Mayan Palace representative shouting at people to get them to attend a timeshare presentation. They even came into restaurants while we were eating. As I attempted to ignore one on the street, he shouted that I'd dropped something. I turned around to come back and received a sales pitch. I've also heard that their presentations consists of extremely high-pressure sales techniques; however, we attended a presentation to upgrade the unit we purchased as a resale from a one-bedroom to a two-bedroom. Although we were given inaccurate information about our unit generating an exorbitant amount of rental income, we didn't feel accosted as I've heard so many others say they felt. We were firm in how much we were wiling to pay, and eventually after some pretty good acting on the salesman's part ("My boss is going to kill me for doing this." "We're losing money on this transaction, but we want to make you happy."), we made a deal to upgrade to the two bedroom. Unlike reports I've heard from others, I felt like I could have walked away from the deal easily and the salesman was decent.
Finally, we liked the multi-cultural feel of the Mayan Palace. Their clientele seemed to be half American and half Mexican. I've been to resorts where the guests were almost exclusively American. Nothing wrong with that, except we felt more like we were in another country while staying at the Mayan Palace.
Also fun to watch, were the numerous activities for kids going on. We watched as the kids all seemed to be enjoying themselves making art projects.
From journal Puerto Vallarta's Variety
by dmpena
Midland, Michigan
July 27, 2003
The bus trip to Los Huicholes through Land Tours was awesome. Best Things About the Resort: Clean and very beautiful. The resort offers a shuttle to go to their market for groceries or to catch the city bus or taxi. Our one-bedroom unit was very spacious (enough for 4 easily). Resort Experience: Large and sprawling. Getting anywhere within the resort requires a 10-15 minute walk from whatever building you are assigned. We were lucky to be assigned to the gold building on the beach so we simply took the stairs or elevator down one floor and the entry opened at the poolside. But all the other buildings are a 10-15 minute walk from the pool system.
The staff is very professional, but seemed cold and impersonal.
The resort has daily poolside activities, but everything ends at 5pm. The resort has an on-site disco, but it was dead, even on Friday and Saturday night. Pool-side cafes are reasonable, but the on-site restaurants were very pricey for dinner and breakfast. We ate most meals downtown.
From journal Spring Break in Puerto Vallarta
July 23, 2003
They then moved us to the full one-bedroom. This unit had a kitchen, two bathroom sink areas, a nice bedroom separate from the living room, two small balconies, and a gorgeous view.
The beach at the marina location is fairly small, but this was what we expected from the resorts in this area. The nicer beaches are further north of Puerto Vallarta.
Their restaurants are good but overpriced by Mexico's standards. For a great, inexpensive meal within walking distance of the Mayan Palace, I'd recommend Victor's Place (see restaurant reviews).
They offer a Mexican Fiesta every Monday night, and I highly recommend it. It's $35 USD and includes an incredible buffet meal (authentic Mexican), drinks, and wonderful entertainment.
They had activities for kids and adults. Many of the guests were Mexican Nationals, which I enjoyed. I've stayed at places in Mexico where everyone there was American. I liked the international feeling of the Mayan Palace.
by tnt698
Des Moines, Iowa
June 25, 2003
From journal Puerto Vallarta with Family
by Shellie44
Safford, Arizona
June 14, 2003
When we first arrived, the M.P. staff was very accommodating, but as soon as they found out we already owned, all first-class treatment stopped. One of the things that was a huge inconvenience was transportation around the resort. We had originally been informed that because this resort was so large that there would be all-day shuttles running back and forth from all areas of the resort. That is not the fact. We found it very difficult and miserable everytime we went from point A to point B, especially because we went into the city everyday and it was a long distance from our room to the lobby. (The only transportation available at the resort was for the handicapped.) Our other big disappointment was that our room and inside building was really run down and needed a lot of upkeep and repair, the maid service was poor, and the elevator was not working for two days. Keep in mind that the resort will charge you for every little thing they can--so be aware! We decided we will never stay here at this resort again, and will only use it for trade.
From journal Puerto Vallarta adventure
When we first arrived, the M.P. staff was very accommodating. But as soon as they found out we already owned, all first class treatment stopped. One of the things that was a huge inconvenience was transportation around the resort. We had originally been informed that because this resort is so large that there would be all day shuttles running back and forth from all areas of the resort. But that is not the fact. We found it very difficult and miserable everytime we went from point A to point B. Especially because when went into the city everyday and it was a long distance from our room to the lobby (the only transportation available at the resort is for the handicap). Our other big disappointment was that our room and inside building was really ran down and needed alot of upkeep and repair,the maid service was poor,and the elevator was not working for two days. Keep in mind that the resort will charge you for every little thing they can. So be aware! We decided we will never stay here at this resort again, and will only use it for trade.