Tag: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews View All Tags
Tags: Hotel Deals / Marriott Hotels / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / → All Tags
One Hotel Still Cares About the Old People
Hotels have long been catering to your traveling pets, your romantic relationships, your sexual romps, your nerdy museum interests, your shopping libido, your drinking problem and even your fashion week obsession. But what about the old people? And by old people we mean those over the age of 62. And by catering we mean something other than the AARP discount here and there.
Well, at least one hotel is showing respect for our elders--The CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa. This place has been package/promotion happy before but we kinda like this one because it says old people can have fun too. We think Bill Marriott musta had a hand in this Marriott Seniors discount.
Anyways, as the promotion says, "those old enough to remember reading the headlines of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton's romance during the filming of The Night of the Iguana" will get a deluxe room for $110 a night, a 15 percent discount at the new Ohtli Spa and a 15 percent discount on food and beverage.
The deal can be booked online or by calling 1-888-Paradise and using the code S9R. However, it does expire on October 31st.
Tags: Cubicle Dreamin' / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Yelapa Hotel Reviews / → All Tags
Cubicle Dreamin': Verana's Beach and Mountain Paradise
Cubicle Dreamin' is a feature in which we ask the hotel mavens to take some time out of their busy work day, surf the Internet, and tell us what hotel they wish they could beam themselves to right that very second--all on the slave driving companies dime, of course. Oh, like these people aren't surfing aimlessly anyway--at least now their purposeless clicking will be cobbled together into useful hotel stories--we hope. Have a destination hotel you are just dying to leave your cube for? Send the story our way.
In this episode, Hotel Maven barabarab fantasizes about a Mexican getaway. Enjoy.
I have a love-hate relationship with must-see lists. I prefer to find places that make me swoon on my own. My latest coup de foudre is Verana, a small upscale rustic hotel in the fishing village of Yelapa south of Puerto Vallarta. Its transporting and gorgeously designed website reveals plenty of accolades in the travel press. I quickly added it to my list.
Tags: Britney Spears / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / → All Tags
Britney Spears Kicks Off Her Summer at the Four Seasons Punta Mita
Finally! Britney Spears has decided to leave the beleaguered West Hollywood hotel, The Mondrian, alone for a while.
Spears and her crew jetted down to the Four Seasons in Punta Mita, just outside of Puerto Vallarta. The place has everything Brit Brit could want: beach front property (to show off her thong), a spa (for touch-ups on her new hair extensions) and a $12,000 a night private villa with its own infinity pool.
If you're not Britney Spears, you can get a regular ole room/casita for around $600 a night.
Related Stories:
· Britney Spears Shows Mexico Her Backside [The Gossip Girls]
· How much more celebrity vomit can the Mondrian take? [HotelChatter]
Tags: Valentine's Day Hotels / Hotel Packages / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / → All Tags
Valentine's Day Hotel Packages: CasaMagna Puerto Vallarta
Here is another Valentine's Day hotel package to consider should you be headed to Mexico (don't forget your passport). A cheap stay can be had at the CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa for just $189 a night. While the package components are pretty standard---breakfast for two daily, champagne and a welcome gift--the add-on "romantic touch" is the hotels' Tantalizing Turndown Menu.
It includes:
* Luis Perdier sparkling wine and chocolate dipped strawberries (upgraded with Moet Chandon Champagne) * Two towel swans on the bed * Rose petal heart on the bed with kissing doves * Aromatic bath salt and flower petal presentation in the bathroom; citrus essence with Tila tea for relaxation. The tea made from these dried flowers is said to having calming effects (helps you relax) * Chocolate lovers pastry tray served with Kahlua
Just beware as this is the same hotel promoting a family whale-watching trip at the same time. And in the end, do you really need a towel swan to show your lover how much you love him or her?
We will be bringing you more Valentine's Day Hotel packages next week but for now you can click here for more.
[Photo: Wadey]
Tags: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Marriott Hotels / Family Friendly Hotels / → All Tags
Whale-Watching, Family-Style
Last week, Hotel Maven Tim Leffel did a bang-up job reporting on the hotel scene in Puerto Vallarta. Today, we have news that another hotel in PV is worth checking out, but this one involves the whole fam.
This winter, the CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort and Spa is inviting families to take part in a unique educational experience through its "Secretos del Mar" marine-life program. Every year, January through April many humpback whales come to Banderas Bay to give birth. Marriott guests are encouraged watch these stunning creatures in their own surroundings.
Of course, the hotel has put together an ESCAPE! Family Package which starts at $189 per night and includes, breakfast for two adults and two children 12 and under; complimentary pizza and in room movie one night, and nightly milk and cookies turndown service.
Not included appears to be any whale-watching tours so you'll have to fend for yourself there. Now, if only they offered an Escape Your Family type of package....
Related Stories:
· CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta reviews [TripAdvisor]
· Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews [HotelChatter]
Tags: Killer View / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / YouTube / → All Tags
Another Killer View: Villa Premiere in Puerto Vallarta
[Ed. Note: We have another special treat today. Hotel Maven Tim Leffel has a killer view video taken from his weeklong trip in Puerto Vallarta. Enjoy.]
There's nothing worse that getting to your room at a beach resort and finding that it's a half mile from the shore and the view out your window isn't any better than you have at home. There's no fear of that happening at Villa Premiere Hotel and Spa in Puerto Vallarta. Every room has a killer view of the bay and the sunset video here was taken from room 2111 on the second floor. Higher floors have it even better.
Villa Premiere is not some isolated resort you get stuck at either. It's near downtown, within walking distance of the malecon. There are a lot of extra touches here, some literal. When you check in you get a cool towel, a cool glass of champage, and a complimentary 5-minute chair massage. Nice. The honeymoon suites here are worth the upgrade--they have a Jacuzzi on the balcony, with this view to look out at while you soak and smooch. (See their home page for a picture.) Throw in nice robes, and a pillow menu, and good restaurants that don't serve buffets--even if you're on the all-inclusive plan--and this boutique hotel is a big step up from the vacation factories so prevalent in the area.
Tags: Anti-View / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Mexico Hotels / → All Tags
Room with an Anti-View: Razor Wire and a Water Tank at Plaza Pelicanos Beach Resort
You know the scene. You open the door to your brand new hotel room, run over to the window, open the blinds and bam, you are hit with the anti-view. Maybe you are looking down a dirty alley, witnessing a drug deal, staring at an air shaft in the face, or seeing a brick wall. Whatever you are viewing it is not extremely pleasurable. Help out your fellow hotel mavens by uploading your anti-views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. Remember to tell us the name of the hotel and the room number with the not-so-easy-on-the-eyes view.
Imagine booking a trip to a beach resort and ending up with a room that faces razor wire, a water tank, and a chain link fence topped with barbed wire. All of it facing a swampy stream that's a mosquito colony's dream. That's the view from a whole wing of even-numbered rooms ending in 26 to 40 at Hotel Plaza Pelicanos in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The shot here is from room 326--it's probably even worse from the two floors below it.
This is a strange hotel that's split into two sections. One faces the water and has some good views. The other section is across the street and is centered around a courtyard, with rooms facing either the pool or something ugly.
Most of the guests arrive after booking a bargain vacation package through a travel agent and those who went for the cheapest class of room are definitely in for a nasty surprise. More proof that upgrading to a better room class is often money well spent.
The beach here has been eroded badly anyway and the pool complex is nothing exciting, so this is one of the bottom choices all around. One hint that something is amiss here anyway: the Espanol button on the Web site's home page leads to lots more info. The English button doesn't work at all.
Tags: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Beach Hotels / → All Tags
A Big Hotel Doesn't Always Equal A Great Beach
[Ed. Note: Hotel Maven Tim Leffel is winding down his trip to Mexico with a look at what's important and what to avoid in booking beachfront hotels. Enjoy.]
When you blindly book a room at some big beach resort, you go in assuming there's going to be a nice beach, right? Unfortunately, that's not always the case. Wherever you have a cluster of beach hotels in the world, there are haves and have nots: the haves are blessed with wide and pristine stretches of sand. The others? Well, you'll probably find more pictures of the pool on their brochure and web site.
Don't be thinking you can figure it out by just booking the biggest or most expensive place, however. A lot of times the cheaper places got there first and have scoped out the best spot. Or they weren't concerned about being in the thick of things and went with their gut instead.
More on Tim's Tips after the jump.
Tags: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Killer View / Warm Weather Hotels / → All Tags
LIVE: Room with a Killer View
We are suckers for a room with a killer view. We find that we are even more likely to forgive some minor hotel inconveniences if we can stare out the window at something pretty--yeah we are that shallow. Let's help out our fellow hotel mavens by uploading rooms with killer views to the HotelChatter/Flickr photo pool, or by sending the photo along to us. This week's special edition of Killer View: LIVE has been brought to you by Hotel Maven Tim Leffel who's checking out the hotel scene in Mexico.
Casa Las Brisas, in the Punta de Mita area of Mexico, north of Puerto Vallarta, is 7-room boutique hotel on the beach, and a place where your cares quickly melt away. It happens to have quite the killer view, so here's a zen-like movie of the view from the penthouse suite over the pool. Just waves crashing on the shore in the early morning light. The sunset from here isn't too shabby either.
This small hotel, built and run by a hotel architect who knew what he was doing, prices rooms on an all-inclusive plan, so guests can simply chuck their valuables in the room safe and then just ask for whatever they want during the stay. In fact, whenever you want something, a person always seems to materialize at your side to fetch it. Cocktails are poured with premium liquor, the rotating menu is top-notch, and baskets of sunscreen are even placed at the feet of the cushioned lounge chairs facing the ocean.
All the rooms are furnished a bit differently, with plenty of artwork and personal touches, but all have a balcony with a view and a long list of amenities. In a few rooms it's possible to look out at the water from the open shower--without being seen.
The dramtic beach here is close to deserted most of the time and during the right time of year it's possible to see whales and dolphins cruising by. Casa Las Brisas is only a few minutes away from the sprawling Four Seasons Punta Mita, but it's world's away in terms of attitude and price. For boutique hotel lovers who appreciate meeting other guests and having a strong sense of place, this is an excellent choice near Puerto Vallarta.
Related Stories:
· Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews [HotelChatter]
Tags: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / All-Inclusive Resorts / Warm Weather Hotels / → All Tags
Grand Velas in Puerto Vallarta: All-Inclusive with Class
[Ed. Note: Hotel Maven Tim Leffel continues his Puerto Vallarta hotel hopping by checking in at the Grand Velas Resort. Enjoy.]
Let's be real; for anyone with a sense of style, all-inclusive resorts are a guilty pleasure. They are right up there with sneaking rocky road ice cream at midnight, listening to Abba on the iPod, and secretly watching bad reality TV shows when nobody else is home. Great fun while you are enjoying them, but not something you want to necessarily go bragging about afterwards.
There are some all-inclusive resorts that break the mold, however. Bartenders make cocktails with liquor you've actually heard of, there's no chirpy Julie McCoy animation director trying to get you involved in goofy games, and the food is more than just fuel to put down your gullet. In Puerto Vallarta, that mythical nirvana of all-inclusives exists for real in Grand Velas Suites and Spa Resort.
Keep on reading to learn more about this surprisingly un-cheesy all-inclusive resort.
Tags: YouTube / Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Hotel Suites / → All Tags
Video Proof of the Bright Side of Mexico
As we promised earlier today, we have video footage of Hotel Maven Tim Leffel's experience at the heavenly Hacienda San Angel.Here he takes on us a tour of the hotel's Celestial Suite with its killer views, private terrace, hot tub and personal bar. We hate to admit it, but this video has single-handedly changed our feelings about Mexico.
Related Stories:
· Heaven in Puerto Vallarta: Hacienda San Angel [HotelChatter]
Tags: Puerto Vallarta Hotel Reviews / Mexico Hotels / Hotel Pools / Hotel Amenities / → All Tags
Heaven in Puerto Vallarta: Hacienda San Angel
[Ed. Note: Hotel Maven Tim Leffel has headed down to Mexico to check out the hotel scene in Puerto Vallarta. We will be bringing his reports all week long. Enjoy.]
There are hotels. Then there are well-done hotels so special that they leave even the most jaded travelers slack-jawed and speechless. Hacienda San Angel, in the old city section of Puerto Vallarta, is the latter. Ask a guest who is staying there what he or she thinks of the place and the answer usually starts with, "I've stayed in a lot of hotels but...."
This is a boutique hotel in the true sense of the word, every nook and cranny doted over like a unscale store window display. With only ten rooms spread across several buildings that used to be houses (including one bought by actor Richard Burton), this is an inn that reflects the owner's relentless devotion to good design and aesthetics. This is a place where the details are not just attended to. They are fretted over, mapped out, redesigned, and painfully settled upon--with trepidation.
More on this Hotel Heaven after the jump.
Hotels In: Africa | Asia | Australia | Caribbean | Europe | North America | South America
Our Publications:
Jaunted | HotelChatter | VegasChatter
