Villa La Estancia Beach Resort & Spa Riviera Nayarit

First time visiting Mexico and staying at La Estancia has been wonderful for my family. Our room overlooked the courtyard with a view of the ocean. The location of the resort allowed us a bit of piece from busy city, but still close enough for a 10 minute cab ride. Our room was very clean and well maintained. During meals and at the pool, the atmosphere was very relaxed with music playing creating a fun atmosphere at the pool and relaxing calm at dinner. The service was amazing. Jesus/Angel and Santana were top notch with the best customer service, very attentive, they remembered my family from day one and we're always there to help with anything we needed. The customer service through the whole resort was wonderful. Everyone from the gate when we arrived to our random encounters with staff in the elevators or just in passing. Everyone always said hello and asked if we needed anything. As far as value, we got an inclusive package, but it wasn't all inclusive and what we paid for just included breakfast, but all other meals and drinks we purchased in restaurants and bars and they were reasonably priced as an after payment from the package we bought. 100/10 would recommend.

La Estancia was our very first experience 9 years ago with the Villa group of resorts and this was our first time back since. In between, we've been to most of the other resorts and became members. It was such a treat to come back to where our love of Mexico began. La Estancia not only lived up to our memories but excelled! We were able to relax and enjoy our friends and siblings on this trip. Jerry (Gerardo) greeted us when we first arrived and immediately reminded us of why we love it here. Alma and Emily were great as well! Daily at the pool we had amazing service from Jesus, Cesar and especially Daniel! They went out of their way to make sure we were comfortable and near each other (there were 12 of us together on this trip). Raul was such a great waiter at the pool and Luna is the best bartender we've had at any of the resorts. The swim up bar is definitely the best part of the pool here. The iguanas were fun to see but became annoying when food would arrive. One jumped up on my lounger trying to get food. They are easily run off but persistent . We were celebrating a couple of birthdays in the group and both evenings were made special by Rafael and Enrique. We did try out the beach massages this time (not affiliated with the resort) and they were great for the price! What a treat to get a massage while hearing the waves of the ocean. So relaxing. We did a taco crawl in Bucerias one evening that was awesome and another just off the Malecon in Puerto Vallarta that were the best we've been on. They were with Vallarta Food Tours. Only bad part of the trip was having to leave. Until next time!

We stayed here for my birthday week. This property is immaculate. The staff here is exceptional. From Teresa, the masseuse, to Bryan the bell man, and all of the pool and bar staff. Jesus, Josua, Lorena, Angel, Raul, Nico and everyone. They catered to all of our needs. The restaurants were delicious! Everyone is so kind and friendly. Booked through Costco travel and it was pretty easy and seamless. We loved watching the soccer match between the two resorts. The spa was fabulous too! They made the week very special!

It was amazing from start to finish. The service was amazing. Daniel was always helping people around the pool getting good spots and saving them in the morning. He was incredibly friendly and brought really good vibes. If you have kids, it’s easy to head over to Flamingos if you want to use that pool which is a little more kid friendly due to it being a more active environment. Estancia has quieter vibes around the pool. We were constantly going from the pool to the beach, it was great. We ordered a lot of food at the pool, which was just okay. Food wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great. The kids loved the hot dogs and quesadillas, they also have a really good fig salad and a delicious beet salad. Ernesto was our waiter a lot of the time and he was great. We had to get a second room because we have four kids so that was another $200 a night. The second room shared a balcony, but was not connected to our room , you needed a room key to get in. This wasn’t ideal, so one parent would sleep in the room with the kids since they didn’t all get a wristband. We went for breakfast at Flamingos a lot because it’s 2 for 1 between 7-8 am, and it is a delicious buffet. Had dinner one night at La Casona. It is expensive but it was amazing gourmet food. Our waiter Eduardo was wonderful and even serenaded the dining room a few times with a beautiful voice. Venders approach you on the beach. There are tents close by with massages. DO IT. I went to Magdalena in the first tent with blue curtains and she was amazing. The price is a fraction compared to the massages at the resort and she was obviously trained and an excellent masseuse. The ocean waves and ocean breeze while you’re getting a massage are one of my new favorite memories. They try to incentivize you to attend the timeshare/ownership presentation which was annoying. My advice would be to go to the grocery store and stock up for the week as I found the food around the pools quite disappointing, and overpriced. All in all, a truly amazing time here, they took such good care of us.

This resort was absolutely stunning and the service was aboveboard. We had a two room suite and it was incredible. We did the all inclusive package which was a great experience. The kids ordered food and drinks poolside all day and it kept them happy and content. There was Flamingos Resort next door that was more of the fun/party spot and Estancia was more calm, elegant and peaceful. Our family had a great experience at each of the restaurants and tried them all. We loved our vacation.

Our family visited in mid-October for a fall break getaway from the impending fall in Denver. Overall would rate at 3.5 stars. Read all the reviews on Costco's website prior to booking. Arrival / Departure Initial arrival felt very welcoming. Was introduced to the property and provided some early information about restaurants and activities. After meeting with initial host, was moved over to a different desk where a woman began an initial sales pitch for a timeshare. Offered a free breakfast (we were already doing all-inclusive) and discounted spa treatment ($50 massages) for my wife and I. It had been a while since hearing a sales pitch but still felt very pushy. They promised 90 minutes and we needed to refuse at least a half dozen times. At this point, the "manager" came over and sweetened the offer, although I cannot remember was else was offered. Again, had to decline several additional times. Afterward it did feel like the staff attitude at reception changed. The bellhop escorted us and our baggage to the room and did a thorough job of showing us around. We tipped for the service. Pool / Gym The pool is great. Fewer people at La Estancia than at Las Flamingos. The staff will setup lounge chairs with plenty of towels and adjust umbrellas. Wait staff providing drinks and food are wonderful; very friendly and get to know you. We had our waiting on several days and we tipped liberally. He took great care of us and made sure we were looked after. The cocktails felt a bit light on alcohol, but food around the pool was done well. We enjoyed this the most about the venue. The gym is very well stocked on equipment and kept nice and cold. Lots of equipment options and relatively little use (mornings are busiest). Spa Spa services were very overpriced. Equal if, not more expensive than what you'd find in the States. The one consolation prize was that our kids wanted to try getting a massage, and this was the only place where they had a kids option (adults have to be in the room with them). So we bit the bullet and spent a half day. Family of four cost was around $700 for all services. As an alternate, I got brave and tried the massage huts just to the north of the resort. While it initially felt a bit sleezy, this was unfounded. Many others were over in the area and the massage was great. $35 for an hour; I tipped addtional $25. Massage was way better than the resort and the woman checked in to gauge pressure and make sure I was enjoying. Summary Many plusses and minuses overall. I'm not sure I'm dying to go back. Certainly would be open to exploring other options but from our research, seems like other places might be on par or actually a bit worse than this resort. Its important to understand what you're signing up for.

We have been going to this location every year for some years now. It’s great for my family, convenient of where it’s located too. However, this year we went two different times in July. Both times it was not like how it used to be. To begin with they started doing this thing where you don’t have access to a closet unless you’re a timeshare holder (I’ve never gone anywhere where I didn’t have access to a closet.) Another thing was that on our second time around we still didn’t have a closet and from past visits we know that inside there’s a scale which we needed to weigh our suitcases before heading out to the airport. We asked MANY times for one and it seemed like such an inconvenience. On the second time that we arrived to this location we were walked to our room as per usual. I slipped (there was no caution sign) and I hurt my tailbone/right side of my body) I was crying in pain and the person walking us to our room didn’t even offer a bag of ice. On our second to last day there, my husband, child and myself got food poisoned. We had only ate at the breakfast buffet. It’s been a week since we left and I am still unwell from my stomach. We usually spend several weeks in Mexico so our stomachs are used to Mexican food. (The lady who was doing our check out saw how ill I looked and suggested that it was because we were from the US, like I said though we spend weeks in Mexico) It was a weird experience. Definitely will not be returning to this location or any of the flamingo hotels.

I had a terrible experience at La Estancia and would never come back. My room had a work desk but no chair to sit at. I asked for a chair twice and they never brought one. The glass doors to my shower slid of their trackers, which is extremely dangerous. I had to ask them to fix that. During checkout, I got in an Uber to go the airport and their guard Literally drove a car in front of my Uber so I couldn't leave before I checked out with the front desk. I have Never had anything like this happen In My Life. We were running late to the airport. Awful experience, avoid if possible.

Here are the pros and cons of Estancia and the neighboring Flamingo hotel. We did not do the all inclusive. We booked through Costco Travel. We did not sit through a timeshare presentation. - Breakfast is much better at Flamingo. Food is served hot and has a way better selection. If you eat early at Estancia, the hot food in the chafers is not hot. Limited selection. Barely lukewarm. -The gym is much better at Estancia. Nice equipment. -The lobby is much nicer at Estancia-very elegant. -If you want a less hectic hotel-choose Estancia -LOccitane tolietries at Estancia -Felix the housekeeper is so friendly! -Spa services are nice -Hotel grounds are very clean -Estancia has the best slippers I've ever worn in a hotel -Estancia's restaurant for dinner is very nice -El Patron at Flamingo is nice - Raphael is a great waiter. Daniel too! -Estancia's front desk staff-Rosy is so nice. We had an issue with our first room (2104A) that had no front gate like the other rooms and had frosted window that wasn't totally frosted so people can see inside, especially if the lights are on. We tried to move and had constant pushback. Jair made it happen for us to move. Omar is very nice and helpful. The staff at Estancia is wonderful! -Going to see Buscemi wasn't a great adventure. It is a long walk to get there along the beach and the resorts near there do not allow you to cut over to get to the street. There are security guards that will stop you. Take a taxi to town if you want to see it but don't walk there. Best to get your groceries there. Buying things in the hotel market is very very expensive. It is nice that taxis have a set fee depending on the area you want to go. There's no nickel and diming there. -The hotel is always trying to sell you something or extra items have a fee where normally at hotels, there are no fees like for an extra laundry pod. Everywhere you go someone is always wanting to sell you something. Even on the beach. If you have credits, be sure that the hotel has the same dollar credits in their system. If not, you're out of luck when you check out. -One good highlight. There is wildlife around the hotel. Manta rays swimming along the shore, Olive Ridley turtles hatching in the sand and racing to the ocean, lizards everywhere. -I enjoyed my stay at this hotel and would recommend it.

So let me just say it's not a true all inclusive. So there are pros and cons... Pros: Great service Drinks were flowing Can order room service and from most restaurants 24/7 Pool was well taken care of Staff was on point Flamingo all inclusive next door is included in package Rooms have balconies and big bathtubs Beautiful beach location Cons: Have to sign a receipt every time order Tips sometimes were included but they don't tell you Not everything is included so have to look at the menus to see what is not Only have two restaurants onsite the other restaurants are at the Flamingo After 9:00 it shuts down with nothing to do unless you leave the resort Not a big variety of food Overall it was a good stay. Great service. However it is not a true all inclusive and that bummed me out. Signing receipts every time we ordered and having to ask what is included and what isn't was overkill. Did see a great MJ show onsite.

Overall I had a great stay at this resort. I checked in on Friday and left on Monday. Definitely get the all inclusive option because you get to eat from all restaurants in this resort as well as the neighboring Flamingo Resort. I went on off season so it wasn't too crowded and we got really good service all around. Everyone was very accommodating and made us feel very welcomed to México. Some restaurant service is slow but if you go in expecting to wait maybe 30 minutes for the food then it's not bad. I assume it can get busy during peak seasons but at least it wasn't bad for me. Pools were nice, heated, and empty. Open access to beach as well as provided chairs directly on the beach. Another huge perk of this spot is they have an all inclusive bar right at the pool which makes it so easy to get more drinks. A perfect stay if you're looking for a relaxing vacation. Note - I got our reservation through Costco Travel and it was supposed to include $200 per room that could be used for premium items. I forgot to ask about that so lost out on that credit so be sure to ask when you arrive about resort credit if your reservation includes it.

Sadly the place is getting torn down but this place is where the best memories happens!!everyone there is so sweet and the slide was fun to I have been here so many times and it has never been a disappointment! The chocolate cake is so good! And The place is gorgeous!

We booked the all inclusive option at this resort as we wanted our families to have access to everything without worrying about food. This resort is located an hour away from the airport so transportation will definitely need to be arranged. The resort has their preferred transportation suggestions which you would have to arrange on your own; otherwise Uber worked for us without having to pay the tourist surcharge. Upon arrival we were directed to a desk to handle checkin and then we were handed off to what I call the 'timeshare pitch,' which at first was to be an overview of the resort but then became a timeshare pitch masked as a discounted massage if you attend a breakfast presentation. As long as you catch on and say no, you're good to go. This resort is connected to Flamingos resort next door, so our all inclusive package included access, which was perfect because this resort was quite limited in dinner options. This resort really is more for those have a timeshare as this was more of the 'quiet' side compared to Flamingos. There is essentially one restaurant breakfast, pool side lunch cabana and steakhouse, which is only for dinner and needs reservation. For more dining options we had to walk over to Flamingos as there was much more food choices, from pizza, italian, sushi, mexican and crepe stand. We definitely enjoyed the pool as food as the staff does take orders and will deliver the goodies to you. I got the chance to try to the pool side bar and order a drink :) while sitting on the underwater barstool. The rooms were nice and clean. There was also a refrigerator which is nice to stash some leftovers. It would be nice if they had a restaurant that was open all day because what if we needed a snack. I was disappointed the crepe stand wasn't open every day and was operating 5-10pm. For an all inclusive resort, one would think the one dessert bar would be more accessible. The beach access was great and we mostly had it all to ourselves given how far out we were located away from the touristy beaches of downtown Puerto Vallerta. There is is wifi access but if you're traversing over to Flamingos, you'll need to request access from the receptionist. Across the street from the resort there is a walking trail that'll take you to Bucerias after a 30min walk.

this resort is gorgeous. Very clean. rooms are huge w/full kitchen stocked w/all that you need. jacuzzi tub. 2 bathrooms. Washer & dryer. This is a property right on the beach, this resort gets 5 stars from me. from Check in to spending first day here. Everything has been great. I'll add more later:)

We chose this place for the easy access to a long, wide sandy beach area, and it did not disappoint. Nice sand and no crowds (at least in July). 15 min walk on the beach to fabulous massages ($30/hr) and casual restaurants. 15 more minutes to Bucerias for touristy shops and restaurants. (Highly recommend Karen's!) Restaurant at resort is fancy, delicious but overpriced. Still, we really enjoyed their incredible breakfast buffet. Poolside food was okay and very convenient. For better food, we took a quick cab ride to Bucerias and for great shopping we traveled to the adorable town of Sayulitos. Rooms were comfy, service was outstanding. Only 30 min to the center of Puerto Vallarta and the iconic Malecon. Don't miss the fine dining and beachside beauty at El Dorado! My only complaint is that they didn't have cushions on all the pool chairs; they only had them for elite members. Pretty disappointing. But the pools and hot tubs were clean, not too crowded and the temperatures were perfect. Word of warning:, the seats in the hot tubs were rough and very hard on my swimsuits. Wear shorts if you love your suit! My time in the spa was very relaxing and felt luxurious. Pedicure is overpriced and basic, but the facial was divine.

If there was a zero or even negative zero I'd left it for them. The worst experience ever. The AC shut off at out room till the last day of our trip. Mind you this is Puerto Vallarta in July, which is the worst heat and humidity we couldn't sleep or do anything really. The hotel sent many technicians to fix it for hours every day and they couldn't do anything. We go downstairs to eat and they don't even have AC in their main restaurant. It is simply disgusting to come and spend this much money without any AC there. Plus, our dryer in our room wasn't working and it took them 3 days to fix it completely after spending hours with their technician every day. Plus, out last day there out keys to our 2 bedrooms didn't work and they said they'll have to send a technician to fix it!! Also, we paid for all inclusive and when we order room service, it takes them around 2-3 hrs to get it. I finally went to the hotel manager Miguel and asked him for some compensation but refused and said he can't. Simply put don't be wasting your money and especially your time by going to this hotel. The most annoying experience or our travel experience.

4 diamond hotel and it was everything I thought it would be. Clean and beautiful grounds, situated ocean front 5 star across the board. I went alone because I needed a break from los angeles after a drug fueled crazed man tried to attack me in my gallery but thats a story for another day. FYI vibe of the guests are chill, older crowd and mostly trumpers; how do I know this? Cause they made sure everyone heard their conversations. At one point in the jacuzzi I was forced to listen to families compare how much cattle they had on their ranches blah blah blah. Luckily not one person tried to engage with me which is exactly what I wanted. Food, pool, room, drinks etc all were wonderful and I'm so thankful for the hospitable staff for treating me so kindly while giving me my space. This isn't a party resort. There isnt even music by the pool or ocean area actually. So if you're into doing Molly or coke and fist pumping, go to the hard Rock resort.

Just got back from this heavenly resort. This place really has it all! Great pool, genuine and consistent service. Everyone here is super helpful and nice. The food here is great and the prices are unbeatable. We booked a Unique Two-Bedroom Ocean-View Suite. Upon arrival what we found is that it is basically a combination of a One bedroom suite and a Deluxe superior room. They did not have an access door between the two rooms but instead they shared an entry way that was enclosed by a gate. This worked out for us because our kids are older so we were ok sleeping with the doors all closed. However I can see this being an issue if you have small kids, you wouldn't be able to hear them in the next suite without an access door. The hotel is super clean and a great place to just relax. They exceeded our expectations in every way and we felt very spoiled during our stay. It is about 30 minutes from the main part of PV (with traffic) It is also a very safe hotel, they keep tabs of their guest when you go out for the day and they will call you a taxi for all of your needs. The hotel next door has a mini store and a covid testing station for your travels. There is also a great crepe spot and sushi restaurant. Most restaurants in this area requires reservations so plan ahead. The breakfast buffet is held at their steakhouse restaurant called La Cosana. It's one of the best breakfasts buffets I have ever been to. They have an omelet station, fresh baked goods, chilaquiles, yogurts, cereal, chorizo, fresh fruit, salad and much more daily. There is usually a wait to get in so plan on waiting 20-40 minutes.

Love Love Love this resort. The swim up bar is perfect, and the poolside food was great and had healthy options for me bc I was on prep while I was there. Pool service was on point as well. The gym was great and I was able to get my workouts done while being only about 1.5 months out from my show. Hours were accommodating, and it was clean with plenty of options for upper and lower body. the room was nice with a patio that was to die for. A king room attached to a double with a kitchen and living room to share and come together for QT time. And the closet was perfect! Food options were good at the restaurants and the crepes place was to die for! Best crepes ive had. Oh and the spa.. baaaaby, my massage was so good, I cried, and I went back, yep I had two services before I left! She was amazing.

Very disappointing experience. From never getting someone to come by and take drink/ food orders despite asking many times and even being given a menu only to have no one come back after an hour. You have to get up early to get a chair on the beach and you might get anl umbrella if you're lucky. However, today was the worst. We had been sitting by the pool for hours and fairly comfortable, Then one of the pool attendants started moving our chairs and umbrellas without asking to accommodate other guests. While we were trying to understand why, they rudely pushed my chair over my bag containing phones and other valuables. We will absolutely not be coming back here and would encourage others not to as well.

This place is trash!!! It's really overpriced and the quality of service is terrible. We left after only one night thanks to the horrible service from Alma. Upon checking in, she stated our room wasn't ready and we had to wait another 30 minutes. We figured we'd go eat and come back. Their poolside food area is nasty. The chicken was undercooked, I had to send it back and still got sick from it. Be AWARE!!!! There's a 15% service charge they don't tell you about that gets added on to everything you order. They said it's their way of adding in a "tip" , had I known ahead of time, not at checkout, I wouldn't have tipped for everything. After we ate, we want back for our room keys (hour and a half later) just to be told we still had to wait another 20 minutes because it still wasn't available. Ridiculous! Alma needs to learn better customer service and better communication. I immediately noticed that we weren't the only ones in this situation, there were others impatiently waiting as well. When I brought my food safety concerns to ALMA, she laughed. She said had we booked the all-inclusive package, we'd have better service. The room was still dirty, upon getting to the room, I said "hola" to the housekeeper and she literally looked at as, and walked away. A bit rude, but maybe she was having a bad day. We were invited to a "Mexican Fiesta" by the hotel staff upon arrival that was being held that night at the sister hotel FLAMINGOS. They said it was from 6:30pm-10:00pm. Just to find out that it was over when we arrived at 8:45pm. Again, disappointing. We ended up trying their Italian restaurant since we were already there and had a great experience at FLAMINGOS. That night as we were getting into bed, I noticed the pillowcases were dirty with red/orange spots and on the bed were 2 baby lizards. How did you clean, yet left dirty sheets?!! That's when I felt that enough was enough. I made the decision to leave the next morning. When I called the front desk to address the dirtiness, all they did was apologize and sent us a wine bottle. No offer to change our room or sheets. The next morning, we got our stuff ready and I decided to give their in lobby restaurant a chance for breakfast. The food really sucked but the service there was great! Carolina really made our morning and had she been the one to help us with checking in and housekeeping the day before, we wouldn't have left after one night. At checkout, again I had to deal with Alma. Greeeeaaattt!!! She had a smirk and when I mentioned all the concerns and lack of cleanliness in the room, she just laughed and joked about us not getting the all-inclusive package. Again, why would I? And what difference would that have made?! I don't think her "joke" is funny. Alma you need to be retrained or removed. When I asked about the upcharges, she said it's all part of their hotel and asked if I wanted to write a letter to address why I was being charged, she said I could write it in English since she knew I couldn't in Spanish. Why assume? I said yes and wrote them a nice long letter in Spanish. I wanted to make it easier for her to understand. Así es la vida. Moral of my review, don't waste your time or money, go elsewhere.

Visited PVR for the first time and stayed here for 5 days. Family of four and we chose the all inclusive option. It was a very enjoyable stay and I highly recommend the all inclusive especially if you have kids. No, the all inclusive is not a gross buffet style where the food is sitting out. You order at the pool or beach or 24 hours through room service or you can visit the restaurant. They also have numerous food choices next door at the sister property. The service is not instantaneous as some of the other reviewers seem to have wanted it, but it's reasonably fast. The food is great and the staff is extremely attentive and cordial. The pool isn't crazy busy but if it is, you can lounge at the beach. There are vendors on the beach who come up to you but a polite "no gracias" is all you need and they move on. My favorite part was that the rooms are quiet! They're concrete walls and floors so you don't hear anyone/anything from other rooms. All in all, this is a great resort. You can read the negative reviews for awareness but know that those reviews are few and far between or they're from people who generally leave bad reviews on Yelp. Go to La Estancia and enjoy!

Haven't stayed there yet but getting in contact with their front desk is a nightmare. I've left several messages, called multiple times and nothing. I'll update my rating after my trip I guess but not feeling great about the customer service already

Beautiful resort with amazing service!! We will definitely be going back. Great location right on the beach!

My family recently visited this place in November 2022. We've been to a number of different all inclusive resorts. The good ones and bad. This hotel ranks up near the great ones. When you arrive the curb appeal was okay. Not overly impressive but nice. Hotel staff made us feel welcomed with cold waters. Much needed and appreciated. Entering our rooms, we were very much impressed. You can tell whoever designed these rooms knew what they were doing. Ours came with everything you need for cooking meals day and night. Restrooms were well lit and were above our expectations. We did have two issues. One tv didn't work and outside door gate deadbolt was broken. Both fixed the next day. Room service made sure we always had extra towels. Only thing I called for was more pillows which arrived within 15 minutes. While we stayed at La Estancia, we chose the all inclusive and I highly recommend especially if you have children. The dinners can get pricey. Sushi for us went upwards of $200. And one dinner at steak house approx $600. Most of everything you'd want will be covered. The only thing that is not covered was gratuity. I usually tip between 10%-40%. Depending on the service and the food. Throughout our stay we tried, breakfast buffet at El Patron- delicious and so much variety. Dinner here is great as well. Try the Shrimp Enchiladas. I think it was an appetizer. Sushi at the Japanese themed restaurant, Italian, The steakhouse inside the Estancia and the market deli attached to the Flamingos. Note: the desserts and Sandwiches are covered in all inclusive. I say this because there's some verbiage in one of there pamphlets that says they're not. All of these places are absolutely delicious. There wasn't one place that we ate at that we didn't like. And trust me, we've had real bad experiences and really great ones. We also enjoyed the room service quality food. It wasn't the best but wasn't bad at all. Scale of 1-10, 8. What helped me score that high was the quick turn around anytime we ordered. Quick and always accurate with our orders. Staff around the hotel was very courteous and respectful. There was only one person that was slightly rude. And she worked in the day time. She seemed to be one of the main people that greet and check in guests. Didn't get her name cause whatever we needed, we asked another person and received what we needed. She must've been having a bad day. At the gym: the gym has everything you need to get a good workout. It's a short walk. Bring your room key, you'll need it for entry and exit. Bring your headphones, tunes and tennis shoes. They do have tvs playing a variety of things to watch as well. There's is a age limit so if you want to bring your child, check with the staff there on their rules. At the pool: what we loved is that it wasn't overly crowded. I know that's probably not good for hotel business but we truly enjoyed that. We did receive some snarling looks from some of the older folks in their 80s possibly because they forgot what having kids is like. Despite them, the pool was nice and relaxing. My biggest complaint is here. We were on what would be the ...side of the pool furthest from the beach. It seems that maybe because of that the service was real slow. Most times we had to walk over and track someone down to take out order or risk waiting an hour to get noticed. No big deal to us but somewhat bothersome. When we did get service the food was great. All of it a 10. I recommend swapping fries for the wedges. The aguas chiles, fresh and tasty. Drinks alcohol or without all perfect. Alcoholic drinks were NOT watered down! Finally a place in Mexico that doesn't do this. The waiters were nice and courteous as well. Other than eating and more eating and relaxing at the pool, the flamingo (next door) offer daily activities or shows you can enjoy. Also, on the beach you will find a company that offers excursions. Jet skis, parasailing, banana boat rides are just a few. They also have a booklet filled with many adventures that will help make your stay memorable. We tried the jet skis. The waters were calm which made for a comfortable ride experience. $60 for 30 mins. Side note: if you need something the hotel doesn't have, don't be afraid to grab a cab and visit the local mall. They have a huge Walmart there which has pretty much everything, grocery or clothing wise. We needed baby diapers and some milk along with socks and sandals. The cab drive was about 5-8 minutes and we felt very safe. Overall, we loved our stay at this hotel. To all of the staff, we thank you. To the supervisors, keep doing what you are doing. Your work reflects from your staff. Since we've left, I decided to send my parents November 2023. They are excited and can't wait to relax and enjoy everything we did.

Staying at Villa La Estancia was a dream! When we arrived at the resort, we were greeted with champagne, an easy check-in process, and given a brief "welcome" overview complete with maps of La Estancia and Villa del Palmar Flamingos, their sister resort next door which we also had access to. We stayed in a Unique Deluxe Superior Suite with an Ocean View on the 8th floor, and the view from our balcony was incredible! The room was spacious with two queen beds, three closets (one walk-in), and a tub shower. The beds were firm, but comfortable. Housekeeping went above and beyond every day; they even stopped by every night to offer more towels and deliver small desserts to the room for turn-down. The resort was immaculate and smelled of peppermint aromatherapy in the elevators and hallways. The grounds were perfectly manicured. There are two restaurants on site at La Estancia: La Casona (the steakhouse, open for sit down breakfast and for dinner with reservations) and La Parilla (the pool bar and grill). While you also have access to their sister resort's other dining options, we found ourselves prefering the food at both of these restaurants at La Estancia. The quality of food and experience you get at La Casona is unmatched. Expect to spend 2-3 hours for your several course dinner, but trust me when I tell you it's worth it and absolutely delicious. They even have musicians playing live instrumental music at meal times to enhance the ambiance! La Parilla had some of the best pool-side food options, both American and Mexican fare, that could be ordered at the restaurant's tables or delivered to your pool chairs. There was ample seating both poolside and in the water that was perfect to sip your drink after a visit to the swim up bar. We especially enjoyed the pool concierge's padded cushions on chairs and towel rolls for behind your head -they were a really nice luxurious touch! The pool (and resort as a whole) was never crowded, unlike the Flamingo resort which was much louder and had more children running around. Even though this is a family friendly resort and families were present, our time at La Estancia was very quiet and relaxing! When we weren't relaxing in the beautiful pool listening to sound of the ocean, you could find us at Tatewari Spa. They offer a unique hydrotherapy circuit that comes included with the all-inclusive packages. This hydrotherapy circuit is a guided lap through a series of saunas, steam rooms, showers, and whirpools and ends with a warm, aromatherapy neck pillow, cucumber slices on your eyes, and a scalp massage. You can complete the circuit as a standalone treatment or just before your scheduled spa service. So relaxing! The entire staff was extremely friendly and made the trip! Everyone was welcoming, greeted you as you walked by, held the doors, and would even joke around with you (they even taught us some more Spanish!) While we had such an incredible time at La Estancia, there are some things we wish we would have known before arriving: 1. The beach was not swimmable when we were visiting in August. The waves were rough, and they had a red flag out the entire week we were there. I'm not sure if the beach is always not swimmable, but it's still beautiful to look at and listen to! 2. The wifi doesn't really work. The connection in the lobby is good, but it doesn't reach the rooms or the pool. If you'll need to use the internet, plan on using data or a hotspot 3. We had the "studio" suite (B) that attaches to the One Bedroom Suite (A). What we didn't realize was that rooms A & B can be booked as a two bedroom suite and therefore, you share a balcony. This really wasn't an issue because no one was staying in room A for the majority of our stay. However, near the end of our trip, the other room was booked, and it was a bit awkward to have to share the balcony with another group without anything separating us. It appears every room at their resort shares a balcony unless you book both rooms. So that's something to take into consideration 4. This is more of a pro tip: the AC in the room does not work unless your balcony door is fully closed. We learned this the hard way! 5. It's clear that management puts a lot of pressure on the staff to encourage TripAdvisor reviews as we were reminded numerous times to complete reviews and mention staff by name when we arrived home. This is by no means the staff's fault, but it did become excessive towards the end of our stay. It's my understanding there's a certain number of reviews the resort and each staff member must hit each month, and I worry this pestering could leave a bad taste in people's mouths and cause vacationers to either not want to write reviews or give negative reviews. The staff was exceptional, and the review I planned to write regardless before the reminders would have illustrated that. Overall, I cannot recommend this resort enough! I'm counting down the days to my next visit!

We stayed at Villa del Palmar a few years ago so I was pretty excited to come back and now try La Estancia. From the outside you can't really tell the difference, but you'll notice the differences once you walk the grounds. VDP, in my opinion, has a better selection of restaurants and the deli market where you can pick up some nice essentials is really convenient. It's also busier with larger families and you'll definitely notice more kids at the pool. They'll occasionally carry themed nights and events and a few vendors at night if you wanna buy little trinkets. VLE, seems like a more "adult oriented" hotel. We really only saw a small handful of families with kids in the pool. The only real place to eat during the day is the Parilla grill which has some amazing nachos that I highly recommend while you're poolside! Yes, if you go back and forth between the hotels on the beach an employee will ask what your room number is... it's not that big of a deal, and just part of their process as VDP guests can't come over to VLE. Our room was 3807B. An "ocean view" room that was really only ocean view if I walk over to the other side of the balcony where my neighboring tenants are in 3807A... it was honestly pretty disappointing. Luckily, we didn't have any neighbors so we enjoyed the view and large balcony to ourselves. I had a terrible experience at their "welcome breakfast/timeshare presentation" a few years ago so I firmly declined when Lily tried to schedule me in at check-in. After a second "no" she then tried to advise my mom that if I didn't want to do it, that she could.... okay Lily, chill Overall, our stay was pretty smooth. The room was comfy, the gym was open which was a big plus for me, and the staff was of course excellent. I would definitely recommend and come back again like we usually do.

Villa la Estancia is full of bed bugs, the service is mediocre. I would never recommend this hole in the wall to anyone. Poor customer service and poorly train employees. From the spa to the restaurants service is inconsistent. You might find a nice person and next minute a non friendly person. We changed 3 rooms all of them infested with bedbugs. My children had bites everywhere and when we talk to the manager he did not even apologized.

family of 5 just got back from a vacation at this all inclusive resort. the service the good le the food was mediocre. when you check in they promise you the world and upon check out ....surprise ! you owe triple what the say. they are liars and cheaters. I would never go back or recommend to family or friends. not even to my worst enemy!

Después de un día caótico quedarnos sin hotel en plena temporada alta, y encontrar reservación aquí fue lo mejor que nos pudo pasar. Mi hijo esposo y yo estábamos sorprendidos por la calidad de servicio que dan. Wow!!! Mis respetos para todos los empleados, excelente servicio al cliente, un trato increíble, los condominios impecables, la limpieza en todo el hotel es algo que agradezco tanto! La comida deliciosa en todos loa restaurantes, incluyendo la de la alberca! En el spa me topé con increíbles mujeres, Lupita, Marcelina, blanca. El doctor del hotel nos salvó de un gran susto! Meseros con súper trato, Daniel, Lucio, santana. Son los nombres que recuerdo pero todos nos brindaron el mejor servicio!

My wife and I just had a baby. We booked a nice suite at Estancia as it's the last trip before my wife returns to work from maternity leave and for my friends' wedding. I booked a reservation in February 2022 for April 2022 for the wedding/vacation that took place at the hotel. The wedding party booked at least 20 rooms at this hotel. I got an email seven days before my reservation that stated to call them. Once I did, they told me, " Oh, sorry, your room is no longer available as it's being "repaired." Working for the travel industry in the past means we overbooked the hotel. Someone else paid more for your room, so we will give it to them. They offered me three choices cancel, move my dates or put me in their lower-end hotel 40 minutes away. I explained to them the only reason I am staying here is for my friend's wedding as all activities are in the hotel. As a "4 Diamond Hotel," I would have expected an apology for hey, we just destroyed your whole trip. Sorry for giving away your room. Here is some future credit. Instead, I got transferred three times and was sorry nothing we could do. This did not just happen to me. It happened to others at the wedding party. So now we are seven days before the wedding, and our flights with no place to stay as almost all hotels are booked during this week. So if you are planning a wedding or a nice vacation, look elsewhere or run the risk of your room being "repaired." Of all the years of traveling worldwide, it's the first time I have had such a horrible experience with a hotel. We go twice a year to Puerto Vallarta, and I will never stay with this brand. Sorry for my rant. I want to warn future travelers so this does not happen to you.

Came here for a family vacation with the all inclusive package. You are not a priority if you wear an all inclusive band. Service is slow and poor. Do yourself a favor and find a resort that cares about your business and don't waste your money. We made reservations at the steak house in person and they wrote it down for the wrong night and sent us away when we showed up with no help to find dinner elsewhere or apologies. We were finally able to snag lounge chairs at the pool one day, to only see a server twice in a 5 hour time frame. We tried to make reservations for another restaurant 2-3 days in advance after the first disaster and had no success. I've talked to the concierge desk, reception people, and even tried online, but nobody is willing to help. Save your money and go somewhere else.

Nicer places nearby. Food was overpriced and under-quality. Room was good, bed was good. Wifi was terrible- had to take a couple meetings in the morning and it was unusable. The place is build for time-share owners- so a lot of salespeople running around trying to give you a pitch. Given the mediocre high-priced food, we went into town a lot to eat for much better food at half the cost- so spent a lot of $$ on Ubers. Recommend you stay much closer to the Malecone.

Ants and bugs are all inclusive including food poisoning from their Italian restaurant This is my first time at this our resort looked very nice and pretty but does not live up to its name at all , we got a penthouse suite to fit 8 people. Upon arrival the room looked clean and great, bathrooms were clean. What really irked me was the bed sheets! There was mascara or something all over the pillows you could see the black stains, it was not on one but multiple pillows and foundation!! Also I was opening the cabinet to get shot glasses , If you come here please enjoy all the little bugs in the glasses,cabinets...I rewashed everything , but decided to go to Walmart the next day to get plastic cups for drinks. We asked room service at night time to bring us new sheets, so we ended up making our own beds. We found a lot of glitter, and hair in the bed sheets with some sand. The hot tub was broken and we had maintenance fix it only 5/14jets worked . I would never come here again due to that and the food being not so great. The pizza was good though.The buffet was disgusting, flys all over the pasta and salads ,some meats were not even covered and a lot of items were not covered. Blanca told us if we did a 90 min presentation we were promised a full City tour and massages for 4 people. We did the sales tour , super overpriced they wanted 48,975$ USD for a timeshare. We said no not at the moment because it was a lot. Paola on the sales team came back and dropped 25,000$USD off the price. Would I go to a car dealer ship and get this same deal anywhere else?! I wish!!! I wouldn't come here because the food is crappy , I talked to other people at the resort they said the same thing. The alcohol is all cheap even if it is labeled as expensive. This place isn't very professional. I'd rather spend more money ( keep in mind we had a penthouse) at another resort. Never coming here again. I'll go to RIU next time. Our room keys don't work again we switched them twice and such a inconvenience because I had foot surgery and it's hard to walk extra miles for no reason. I also ate the gnocchi and chicken Alfredo which gave me and 6 other people in my group a major upset stomach and throwing up continuously. The food is nasty unless you like bland ass food. I even took zofran that didn't even help. The spa was not good either the facial was like WTF. Esp if you get facials regularly. The customer service is really bad they also have tons of hidden fees, we tipped in cash & at the end of our stay they told us they added extra 400$ for additional tips which doesn't make sense. None of this was disclosed. Don't stay in the penthouse suite 1201 on estancia side, there was cockroaches in our room and makeup on our bed, hair & the jacuzzi was not cleaned and it was broken it smelled like piss!!!!!!!! Stay at RIU or elsewhere.

I work customer service and deal w Karen's ALL the time so I know how it is. The resort is beautiful and I'm sure the amenities are all as they seem. We attended a "90 minute" timeshare presentation that promised a bottle of tequila and day passes to the beachfront pool. This turned into well over three hours and then after the fact we were told to wait in a line for the tequila and the pool passes. We were just tired and wanted to leave. We asked to skip the tequila and pool passes and just to get us a taxi. We were greeted with a rude "manager" that didn't help just shrugged and said get in line. Another couple was visibly angry and the wife stormed out she wanted to leave as well. I could go on and on but don't make the mistake of going to the timeshare presentation. ($37,000USD) for one week a year

Villa Estancia, We Love It! This is our second time staying at this resort. Totally a vacation paradise right on the beach. Again, working with Brad and Joey was seamless. They are a wonderful couple who are very professional, kind and prompt. They make it easy to make our reservations. The villa we stayed in accommodated two couples extremely well. We were comfortable with two separate bedrooms, and a large living/dining room space with a full kitchen. Our villa overlooked the pool and the ocean. We could see whale swimming from our fifth-floor balcony. We were able to prepare our own food from groceries we purchased about a half a mile away from the resort. The place is very relaxing with comfortable amenities. We look forward to coming back again in the very near future. We will certainly will again book with Brad and Joey, as we know we will be taken care of without any worries. We would give them, the service, and the property of Villa Estancia Resort a star rating of 10 +. Thank you for making our vacation very memorable.

Villa Estancia was incredible!! Rooms, pool, beach were beautiful!! The staff was very friendly & helpful!! Juan & Fidel we're awesome

This place looks nice but it really isn't my type of resort. We stayed 2 properties down at Riu Palace for a week. It was beyond our expectations. We had a flight cancellation and had to stay another night, I seen this place walking the beach and thought it was nice. Once we checked in we soon seen the difference. This place is for retirees and people who just want to hang out in their rooms. It is far from a full service, all inclusive resort. The coffee machine was broke, the elevator buttons don't work, and when I was ordering room service the girl was rude. This place looks nice but I really disliked it. Btw about a year ago my mom almost purchased one of the condos at Flamingos which is the next building over. Glad she got her deposit back.

This place just gave us issues upon issues. My group of 8 booked a penthouse 3 bed with a private balcony and hot tub with an all inclusive package. What we got was dirty bed sheets, a hot tub that didn't work, and a charge of 100+ USD PER DAY that was charged for tips. The service staff was amazing so we tipped for every service provided but we weren't made aware of this additional charge that was going to be added to our bill. We were also told by Bianca the concierge that if we attended a 90 min breakfast tour (AKA time share sales pitch) we would be given a coupon for 4 $40 massages and a city tour with tequila tasting. This turned into a 3 hour sales pitch that made us miss a work meeting and we had to walk out because they wouldn't let us leave otherwise - WITHOUT our promised discount massages and free city tour. Once we finally got to the spa and talked to the staff they were surprised by how we were treated and informed us that each room got 2 free massages... On top of all this the food overall was subpar and 3 members of my party ended up with food poisoning at one point from a cheesy pasta dish. Fabio and the wait staff get 5 stars but Bianca and the hotel management get -5 from me.

I was interested in returning to the resort until I realized they made changes to the amount of tax charged, 16.5% to 21.0 %. Not sure who's decision that was. I also notice they now charge $12 per day for "service charge", otherwise known as a Resort Fee. If it makes it a posting, this is only an informational posting to check all the fees.

Scenery is nice if you get ocean view room. The set up is complicated at this location for food and drink purposes. There is always a wait time on any restaurant you eat at and limited seating. Would recommend staying at a RIU property instead if you are in Puerto Vallarta. RIU is easier to maneuver around, more food options at one location and no enough tables for seating arrangements.

This is our first time to Puerto Villarta and my wife booked as a package through Expedia. We were pleasantly surprised! The staff is incredibly friendly and accommodating, the room was way bigger than we needed, even for a one bedroom. This is off season apparently which made my wife very happy. We nearly had the place to ourselves! I would prefer it to be more lively but hey, I'm along for the ride. #HappyWifeHappyLife Coupons, concessions, presentations... they bend over backwards to please you! We were paired with Alma for our presentation of the hybrid fractional ownership program/real estate sales. She was amazing! Such a genuinely nice person... ypu could tell she truly loved her job! But come on, who wouldn't with her surroundings! We did end up purchasing fractional ownership which fits perfectly for us at this time. I look forward to more visits!

I've stayed here several times and have always been so pleased with my stay. The accommodations are lovely, and the staff is fantastic. I can tell you they each go out of their way to make sure your stay is everything you could ask for! Omar the Bell-man, Lorena waitress in the main restaurant, the omelette bar - these people ensure that your trip is fantastic! Thank you for the vacation I hoped for!

Amazing property and service. Very relaxing and well designed - every room has a balcony overlooking the ocean and sunset. Way more calm than other resorts. If you get all inclusive you can partake in everything at the sister resort next door which is more even-oriented. We had the one bedroom suite and it was huge! Kitchen, dining room, living room, large balcony with breakfast table, master bedroom, two bathrooms, two showered, jacuzzi tub - even washer and dryer! You can live here - and many people do. I highly recommend this resort if you need to get away from the hustle of LA!

Amazing. Everything was wonderful! From the moment we were greeted to the room. It kept getting better & better. They said welcome home! And I felt right at home!! Everything you'd want and more. You have full access to the neighboring resort Villa de Flamingo- paddle boarding kayaking volleyball.. To the spa, the very nice gym (has real weights!), hot tubs near the beach, beach access, market, restaurants.. We did not do all inclusive so we could try the local restaurants and the front desk helped a lot with recommendations. Bucerias is 1 mile north, 1 mile south marina / Nuevo Vallarta. Maybe 30 minutes to downtown PV. Easy drive or taxi. Thank you for making my vacation perfect!!

We stayed here last week and had a great trip! The food exceeded expectations for an all-inclusive resort and the wine was good as well! It was not overly crowded and we were able to get a top floor suite with 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, 3 bathrooms, a living room, and a large balcony. The pool and facilities were clean, the staff was friendly and attentive, and if we wanted more activities we could walk over to the adjoining hotel, which was great. Also the spa is very impressive! Only minor cons to report: tennis rackets for rentals were not good, had a few small lizards show up in our room , we wished there was a bar where we could go hang out (the were a couple bars but all were very small; only one with more than 5 chairs), the wait for food at lunch was quite long at la estancia, and would have been nice to have an extra restaurant or two to eat at as we were there for 7 days.

Wow it is truly amazing here! Hospitality all around, everyone is so nice! Jose the bartender was so friendly! He even remembered our 4 month olds name and would ask us everyday how he was. Gabriel made sure we were comfortable and secured our seats to enjoy the pool. And don't get me started on the food, WOW !! so good!!!! Daniel was an excellent server at the pool! He had a smile on his face everyday and took care of us, everyday he took the time to come say hello.

Overall: This resort is really incredible. 5 star in Mexico! Great location next to Bucerias, 30 minutes to Sayulita and 25 minutes to Puerto Vallarta. You can walk on the beach to Bucerias restaurants and flea market but it is a good 40 minute walk. Ocean View in most rooms! Incredible sunsets! The wifi is only in lobby and pool area, no room wifi and poor cell service. Property: The grounds are beautiful. They keep it very well maintain and the lush green is very tropical. The resort has 1 big pool area split into 2, the lower one has a swim up bar. There is also several hot tubs right on the ocean. It was very peaceful and not overcrowded. There is a gym on site as well. Food: The food was all inclusive for us. There is a great steakhouse, La Casona right off the lobby. It offers breakfast and dinner. The pool area offers lunch. There is room service 24 hours. The food options are limited but very good and we were able to use the Mexican and Italian places at the neighboring resort. Room service is delicious. La Casona has awesome lobster and bacon wrapped shrimp. Service: The service is really 5 star. Everything the staff does has the guests in mind. Everyone says "hello" and is always available to help. The top service and employee we interacted with was Oscar, the pool attendant. He is 1st class. He greets you as soon as you approach the pool and sets you up for the day, he checks on you throughout the day to adjust your umbrella and bring a cool towel. He is great to talk to and so friendly! Thank you Oscar! You are fantastic! Highly recommend this resort!

When you go to the pool ask for Daniel! He is the best!! The resort itself is very nice and clean. All the employees are super kind and helpful! But ask for Daniel at the pool! 10/10 service from him!!

Wow! Is the first word that comes to mind. We got a villa right in front of the pool 4th floor. Amazing view and service. Everything was perfect. I would highly recommend this place. So close to Bucerías and you can visit the neighbors at villa del palmar flamingos which is way busier than la estancia. Pool was never crowded. Great location and service. Thank you villa la estancia for an amazing vacay.

Lovely resort - beautiful villa, gorgeous grounds, good service, EXCEPT... Our experience was spoiled by my son-in-law, who is African American, being stopped and questioned about who he was, where he was staying, his room number etc. This was APPALLING and totally unacceptable. The rest of the family is white and had no problems. This same thing happened at their sister resort in Cabo 6 years ago - he is the only one who has ever been questioned, I complained to the Asst Manager, who said she was appalled as well, but employees don't stop and question guests unless they are told to. RACIAL PROFILING IS NEVER ACCEPTABLE. No matter how lovely the resort is, I will NEVER go back there. We were paying almost $700 a night for a 3 bedroom villa - the last thing we ever expected was this kind of treatment.

This is a beautiful hotel with nice food but the customer service is abysmal. Housekeeping found a vampire bat in my three year old son's bed and management did not try to help in any way. Further, maintenance threw away the bat and management refused to help locate it to have it tested for rabies. We finally convinced them to arrange transportation to a hospital where he could have prophylactic rabies treatment, but they initially told us they could not help. We knew this was untrue because they helped us find transportation the day before. In addition, they did not offer to move us to a new room or do anything to make up for the fact that a day of our vacation was spent seeking medical treatment due to poor management of pests in their rooms. Even a drink on the house would have gone a long way to making us feel like appreciated guests. This is not the level of service I expect when paying over 500 USD per night.

The worst place to stay !! Feels like they tell you one thing when booking but when you get there something different . The servers and bells man were amazing . The front desk staff wasn't friendly at all nor helpful . I would not recommend this place to anybody . Omar , Alberto , Oscar , and Fidel were the best and helpful ! FYI I had to put a star to continue.

My girfriend and I just came home from 8 days at this fabulous resort! It couldn't have been better. The staff is marvelous, kind, attentive and helpful. Especially Cynthia, the morning breakfast supervisor...amazing and made the day start off well. The pool guys were wonderful. Great food and I'm very picky (my family owned a restaurant whem I was a child). Everything is immaculate and the grounds are beautiful.Our room was extremely clean! Its a great resort and can't wait to return. A perfect "10" Thank you to all!!!

One of the best resorts I have ever stayed! And I have been to some incredible resorts. The staff was incredible and so nice. We could not have had a better experience. I felt like a celebrity staying here. We were greeted with champagne and a hand massage. Very luxurious. We did all inclusive and it was the best choice ever! It took off a ton of pressure. We took total advantage of it and the staff had no problem with that, they were always so nice and seemed happy to have us. We even lost a cell phone and the staff returned it! We accidentally left out room safe open one day and our passports and iPads and cell phones and money were all still in it when we came back. We felt so safe here. We left several times during our stay to only realize all we wanted was to be at the resort for the swim up bar. The pool was the perfect temperate. Pretty fun. I will be back. Favorite vacation ever. This is the place to stay. Book here! The steak house was great. The sister resort next door we had access too. They did not have access to our resort though. We thought that was exclusive and smart on managements part. It was a little more mellow at our resort and we liked it that way. We liked ours more, Although they were both excellent. Only suggestion I could make was that past the 3-4 floor the wifi was pretty crummy unless on the patio. But who cares, it's vacation who needs wifi! Loved everything about it! Thank you for an incredible experience!

It's lovely, but as other reviews will attest: When things go wrong it's a very bumpy experience. You've paid top dollar but that doesn't mean they run a professional operation as you'd find at a luxury hotel in the States or even in Cancun or Cabo. We arrived early and were told our rooms weren't ready. No problem, here are some hand massages. The lobby smells so strongly of an artificial minty scent that a woman in the family next to us had an allergy attack. It wasn't an unpleasant smell, just very strong. We looked around and found a well-kept facility. The small market and grill next door was convenient, but we had several problems with our order, and they were out of three different flavors of ice cream, and it took a long time to receive our food. Odd. But it was nice because we could purchase laundry soap, as none is provided for the facilities in your suite. We also had bites after the beach as we haven't had in Vallarta, so again, handy to have a place to shop for things you didn't bring, like bug spray and anti-itch cream. Two hours later when we were told that our rooms are ready, it ended up that they had given us the wrong type of rooms and the second bedroom didn't have the correct number of beds. This was a problem because we couldn't accommodate our guests in a single king bed. They said they had nothing else available and kept offering to put a rollaway bed in the room. Nearly $600/night and they wanted us to take a rollaway bed. Uh, no. We kept refusing and asking to speak to a manager. She finally "found" the right suite for us (no way they were at occupancy). She simply erased someone else's name off of the rooms and gave them to us (sorry, other family who ended up unhappy about their rollaway bed!) When we got to the right rooms, the key cards didn't work on the second room! Another hour wasted waiting for key cards that worked and the teens couldn't get in their room. Then we noticed the gate outside our suites (that make a suite of rooms more private) was broken and didn't lock. It was one problem after another. There are only so many times a person paying nearly $600/night can be expected to roll with the punches. We ended up wasting our afternoon because of these problems. Did they offer to comp a meal? Send over a bottle of champagne for our troubles? Offer a free spa service? Nope. There were other problems: stains on the couch, cushions and on dining room chairs (gross) in an otherwise beautiful room. The dryer never got hot so it took three hours to dry a load of wash. Room service breakfast came quickly but was missing multiple items. And nothing tasted good: from a dry omelette to beans that tasted burned. WiFi worked in our main room; nothing in the second bedroom. And when the air wouldn't go on, they told us to make sure the sliding doors were closed or the air wouldn't come on. The doors were closed but apparently even though they are closed enough to latch, one wasn't closed "enough". We thought we'd love the pool, but the pool bar has tiles missing, service was slow (they seemed under staffed), and by 8 am nearly all loungers were claimed with towels...and no people. The food by the pool was better than room service, however. An hour after our meal we still hadn't been presented with the check though. Did I mention that this is an ownership property with sales pressure like a timeshare? That was the LAST STRAW. We are used to staying at first class hotels in Mexico, and this was a huge disappointment. As I said, the rooms are solidly built and well-furnished, the grounds are nice, it's quiet at night, but there were too many annoyances, both big and small. Thank goodness we didn't go all-inclusive. Bucerias is a 15 minute Uber drive away with some great restaurants and a charming downtown. Overall we found this "resort" too isolated for our taste. Another reviewer thought that owners left a lot of positive reviews. I believe it. To top it off? We answered a survey from the travel agency detailing the problems we encountered, which they must have forwarded to the property. We received an email (that they must have taken off our registration:) "Good morning, *************, I appreciate your attention, It is very important for me to tell you from the bottom of my heart that it is the worst person and the worst client we have ever had. We would be grateful if you never return to Mexico because it is an unpleasant contamination to our country. People like you please. take it personally is just a favors comment for you, so you can reconsider and maybe if it is a bit smart as a normal human being that even the stupidest could do, and stop being a person with a disgusting personality, because the truth is that it only gives pain to others and I remind you that we would love it, it makes us want to never go back to Mexico, have a good day, It is always a pleasure to tell our favorite customers what they deserve with affection the good Zamir"

Bar service pool side leaves so much to be desired. Slow. Unresponsive. Love this place. If you want good pool side service. This is not the place. You have to beg for 10.09 drink.