Garrett Z.
Yelp
We came to Pueblo Bonito Mazatlán in Mid-February to escape the winter woes of Minnesota (yeah to missing 1 1/2 feet of snow while gone!). I found a great deal online at this resort during their construction/renovation phases with free access to their sister property, Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay so what could I lose? My whole family came with so we were looking for a property that served good food and drinks, had a beautiful beach, and was kid-friendly. I think we found all of that at this resort.
First off, hats off to the staff. They did a great job while we were with them for 10 days. Each person who waited on us and served us was friendly and nice. Sometimes service was a bit hit or miss in timing but we just had to remind ourselves about the "Mexican minute" the staff kept joking about and relax. Hey, we are on vacation, why rush so much? The only annoyance was the time share staff but a polite no worked well.
The Food and Drink: This is one of the most important things to me when it comes to all-inclusives and this location did not disappoint. The food was very good, lots of good Mexican dishes and a nice assortment of other cuisine from around the world. There was a lot of choice to choose from; amazingly fresh guacamole and fresh chips, quesadillas, and absolutely amazing shrimp. Mazatlán is a shrimping capital of the world and you can tell. The shrimp were massive and delicious. You could get them fried, grilled, scampi, etc. We basically ate shrimp every day. The fish tacos were also very good; if you love seafood you will be happy here. I also enjoyed their Mazatlán-styled Banana Cream Pie; it was a great way to end a delicious dinner. Speaking of dinner, there was only one location at this location that served dinner (no buffet option at this location). The menu was pretty good with steak, ribs, Mexican dishes, shrimp, and lobster (extra charge). Everything we tried was great - all the way from salads and soups to the main entrees. I didn't have anything I didn't like.
The drinks were pretty basic to pool type drinks you can find at other all-inclusives like the Pina Colada, Miami Vice, Margarita, Blue Hawaiian, Daiquiri, Dirty Monkey, etc. My favorite drinks were the Rum Runner (blue curacao, coconut cream, and rum concoction) and the Tequila Sunrise (tequila, orange juice, and grenadine). There were a few drinks that were a miss but since we had unlimited it wasn't hard to try and taste my way through the menu. Drinks at the pool were weak but dinner drinks had more of a bunch. I made sure to get a few glasses of Johnny Walker each night.
The Rooms: I was hoping we would time it out just right and gain access to a newly renovated room but we were placed in one of their older rooms. It is styled like a tradition Mexican abode which wasn't bad but did look quite dated. The room layout itself was nice. Every room onsite is an ocean view which includes a kitchenette, bedroom, living room space, and balcony with a screened porch door. With no bugs present and beautiful weather we basically left the screen open and AC off so that the ocean breeze wafted into our room. Beds were comfortable and things worked properly. We didn't use the kitchenette much (just to brew some coffee and used the fridge) but it was nice to have just in case.
The Beach: Amazing beach, one of the best access points in all of Mazatlán. The resort sits at the northernmost part of the beach so it is very private on work days (local beach is right next door and was busy on the weekends). Walk-ability on the beach is great; you can walk for miles on comfortable sand. There also is a large boardwalk that links up to the beach and goes on for miles.
The Pool: This site had only one pool open while we were there as the other one was being renovated. Sadly, the hot tub was also closed for renovations. Bummer. We did manage to find a private little pool on top of the swim-up bar which was cool to use for a couple days. The pool wasn't heated and so it got chilly in the evenings (would have loved that hot tub!). Honestly, the pool wasn't that great but we used it to just dip in and cool off and play with the kiddos. We did wish there was an area for kids to play such as a kiddie pool or something fun.
Location and Grounds: Located right in the Golden Zone, you are well within walking distance to many of the big attractions in Mazatlán (1-2 miles) as well as close to local restaurants, markets, shopping stalls, and convenience stores.
The landscaping and grounds were very nice. Lots of tall palm trees and various tropical foliage where scattered all over the property making it seem like you were in the jungle.
Final Verdict: For what we paid and what we got, you can't beat our experience. Very excited to see what this place will look like after renovations are complete. We didn't get to try Cilantros as it was closed and we really wanted a hot tub at night, but those few disappointments didn't stifle our trip.