We have been to Caribbean side of Mexico 6 times and thought we would try the other side. We chose the Playa Los Arcos Hotel in the Romantic Zone based on price, we got a great deal through Continental Vacations, and for their location. Within walking distance to restaurants, bars, shopping and the Maceleon.
Hotel - We booked a Superior room and asked for a king bed. Upon check-in we were given room #223. The room had 2 double beds and the smallest bathroom I have ever seen. We literally had to squeeze around the corner of the sink to use the toilet. The shower stall had an approx. 2 inch step down from the floor and was covered with a flimsy curtain. The shower had a slow drain and the first time we used it, and we flooded the room with water due to overflow. Fortunately, we did not have anything lying on the floor to get wet. When I called the front desk to report the flooding the person who answered the phone was unable to understand English and I don't understand much Spanish, so her solution was to just hang up on me. So I went down to the front desk and they sent a maintenance man up to mop the floor and fix the drain. I saw him pull out all kinds of gunk from the drain. After that the shower worked fine as long as the nozzle was pointed against the far wall of the shower. Otherwise, the the water would spray under and around the shower curtain getting the floor wet. I know that the hotel recently replaced all their mattresses as of October. I would have hated to see what the old mattresses were like as the new ones were hard as a rock and very uncomfortable. The good point of this room was the outside balcony and view. The balcony was quite spacious and looked out over the swimming pools and part of the ocean. The A/C unit was not refrigerated air and the room could get quite hot. Also, the room did not have a ceiling fan. The entry door to the room faced the street. I read lots of complaints about street noise, but we couldn't hear anything unless we were in the bathroom. The loud motor of the A/C unit and the TV drowned out the noise. The room contained 4 bottles of water, which was not part of the AI plan. If you choose to drink all 4, the price was $9 US.
Dining - We chose to purchase the AI option at the hotel. For $150 total it was worth it. All the AI dining is buffet, except for a 4 night stay you can get one dinner from the grill and for a 7 night stay you can get 2 dinners from the grill and 1 dinner from the gourmet menu. The front desk will give you vouchers. Our first night they offered a Mexican Fiesta buffet, so we opted to eat there. The food was actually quite good and they had a nice selection. The difference between a hotel that offers an AI option and a total AI hotel is that the food and drinks are open to the public and sold for profit to people that are not necessary guests of the hotel. That makes the food quality and selection a little more above par. We've been to several AI hotels/resorts and do prefer hotels that have an AI option over a totally AI property when it comes to food and drinks. We ate at the breakfast buffet twice. The selection wasn't huge, but had the basics. The fruit was sweet and fresh and they had a grill for fried eggs or omelets. We got huevos rancheros both times. The only item we didn't see was bacon or sausage. The orange juice was fresh squeezed and very tasty. We also had one other dinner buffet which was OK. DH liked it more than I did. The Mexican night was better. Every evening after dinner the hotel would provide some type of entertainment. We saw a couple of singers and one evening they had dancers. The bar served really good drinks. We are mainly beer drinkers, but once in a while we'll get a pina coloda, margarita or mojito. We found the mixed drinks very good especially the mojitos.
Pools - There are 3 pools, but it only looks like they have 2, and a Jacuzzi. The main pool is divided by a wall into two sections. The first section is heated and felt really great since the hotel rooms block out most of the sun. The second section contain the waterfall and is adults only. That section is not heated and was pretty cold. They also had a childrens pool. The Jacuzzi was very, very warm and the jets did not work. No problem getting a lounger around the pool. No need for an umbrella as it was always shaded.
Beach - The beach could get pretty crowded since it is available to the public. The hotel provided loungers and umbrellas to hotel guests. About 6pm they would collect them all and stack them for the next day. The actual beach/ocean was not that great, but we new that up front. The sand was a darker brown and littered with stones and pebbles closer to the water line. The water was quite rough and it was red flagged our entire trip. We saw lots of beach vendors. We never stayed out on the beach.
We did have one issue at check out. Our e-confirmation for the hotel also contained our vouchers for airport transfers. When we came in, the Rep. at the airport just looked at our transfer voucher and put us in a cab. At check-out the hotel requested that we give them the e-confirmation voucher. When the airport transfer Rep. showed up he asked us to provide the transfer voucher. I told him it was included in our hotel confirmation and the front desk had it. He requested if from the front desk and they refused to let him look at it. Don't know why. After a conversation between the two in Spanish, the front desk staff said they would make him a copy. After waiting 15 minutes for the copy that never came, the airport Rep said forget it, he couldn't wait anymore. He went ahead and put us in a cab to the airport. I told him I still had the information on my computer at home and I would e-mail them another copy, which I did.
Overall, we really liked the Playa Los Arcos. The hotel was quite empty. Most guests were mainly senior citizen age range. We saw a handful of kids. We really enjoyed the atmosphere. Very quite and relaxing. No loud drunk obnoxious people, no pool games, no screaming/crying children and no loud music. Just what we were looking for in a hotel. The AI plan was cheap, convenient and quite good. The location was excellant. Even with the issues we had, I wouldn't mind staying at this hotel again. However, I would pay a little more for a suite.
Excursions - We did the Yelapa & Majahuitas tour with Vallarta Adventures. We really enjoyed this tour. We had to get our own transporation to the Marina. $8 each way to take a cab. The tour was supposed to start at 8:30, but the boat was not there and we had to wait an hour for it to show up. The crew was very nice and quite entertaining. They provided open bar and a buffet lunch that was good. On the way to Majahuitas we got to see several whales. I got to see one actually breach, which was pretty cool. We snorkeled at Mahahuitas. The water was cold. The water around the boat was dark and cloudy, but we could see several orange/black fish on top of the water that came up to the boat. Saw a couple of puffer fish also. Once we swam out to the shoreline the water cleared up some. The snorkeling was OK, but not as great as other destinations. Once we reached Yelapa, we had to trek up to the waterfall. I've read reviews where people indicated that the water was not running, but it was for our tour. The water was not only cold, it was freezing. There is a restaurant at the waterfall. We then trekked back down to the beach area. Lots of loungers and umbreallas. The crew told us there was a section reserved for our tour or we could go to one of the restauarants. We saw the "Pie Lady" and got a slice of cocunut pie. It was OK. We did go to one of the restaurants. I think it was called Funnies. We ordered Corona and a lobster plate to share. The grilled lobster was so good. Nothing like sitting on the beach drinking beer and eating lobster to get you in the vacation mode. Price was $40 US. The only issue we had was with the beach vendors. When we first sat down at the table a vendor came over and just dumped all his stuff on the table and sat down with us. We told him no several times we didn't want anything, but he would not take no for an answer. I finally bought a bottle opener so he would leave and even after that he wouldn't go. Finally, when our food came the waiter told him to move on. When we were done eating, we went down to the beach and was talking to a couple of other people in our group and another beach vendor came by. We all told him no thank you, and he smarted off and called us "cheap tourists". Did not appreciate that.
The Jungle Trio/Escape to Paradise Tour - We booked this tour on-line with Best Day. We did have issues with booking as our credit card company wouldn't allow the charge. They indicated that their web-site was known for fraudulant tranactions. We eventually got the issue resolved and got the tour booked. Our e-confirmation indicated that once we arrived at our hotel to call them to scheudule someone to come give us a voucher. We asked the concierge to help us with the phone call, but every time they tried they just received a recorded message indicating they were closed. There was a cell phone numer listed, but the concierge indicated they weren't allowed to call cell phones. The front desk called the number for us for 10 pesos per minute. We finally got a hold of someone and received the voucher we needed for the tour.
The tour took us to view the Arches, view Mismaloya Beach, Mama Lucia Tequila Tasting, El Eden and Chino's Restaurant. El Eden and Chino's had very nice waterfalls. Again, the water was freezing cold. We ate lunch a Chino's Restaurant. The lunch is not included as part of the tour price. We choose the steak and shrimp platter for two. Very, very good. The plate conatined 3 different kinds of shrimp; fried, grilled and bacon wrapped. Price was $53 US with 2 beers and 1 soda. Best meal of the whole trip.
Additional Dining - We went to Andales for drinks and dancing. We had a great time. Met several other people and had a lot of fun with everyone. This bar is for the "older" crowd, which we liked. I'm in my 30's and was one of youngest people in the place that night. They played lots of hits from the 70's and 80's. We wanted to go back on another night, but they were closed on Monday for their Christmas party and we had plans for the other nights.
PiPi's Restaurant - We took a cab for $6 each way. The atmopshere was fun and very touristy. The "complimentary" table side guacomole was very good and the server requested a tip. I ordered a combo plate and DH ordered beef enchiladas and tacos. The food was below mediocore. Down right awful. I had one of the huge coconut margaritas, which was good and DH had a huge margarita on the rocks. His was pretty bad. We also had flan for dessert. It tasted like they forgot to put in the vanilla and there was no carmel sauce. It was pretty dried out. $50 US. During the night, DH woked up and ran to the bathroom to vomit. What a waste.
Paradise Burger - We wanted to watch the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions. We were out shopping on the Maceleon when the game started so we popped into Paradise Burger to watch it and eat lunch. The place was empty. We had several beers and ordered the cocunut shrimp and the fish tacos. Both were very good. $36 US. At half time, we decided to go back to our hotel and watch the rest of the game in their bar and get AI drinks. We were very disappointed in the Cowboys' performance, but glad they won by one point anyway. Go Cowboys!
Rythems of the Night - Again, we had to provide our own transportation to the Marina. I was amazed how many people they squeezed onto the boat. Had to be at least an 100 people. Very uncomfortable going over and coming back. Make sure you bring a jacket. The wind blows through the boat and it's very cold. They did provide open bar and appertizers of chips with pico and fresh fruit. The ride over was pretty rocky. DH wasn't feeling too well by the time we got off. Once we reached land, he was better. The view coming up to Caletas was absolutely beautiful. There had to be at least a 1,000 candels and tiki torches lit. Very romantic. We saw the show first. The show was very nice and entertaining. However, the 2x4 wooden benches they called seats were very uncomfortable. After the show, we trekked to the area where the food was being served. We had a candlelight table for two right on the beach. Very nice. The buffet was suprising good. It included white or red wine, which was nasty. They also provided bottled water. After dinner we had another long trek back to the boat. I wished I would have known how much walking and going up and down steps this required, so I would have worn the proper footware. I felt sorry for the girls I saw in high heels.
Daquiri Dicks - We decided to eat breakfast there on our last day. I had the breakfast burrito with guacomole salsa and DH had a ham and cheese omlet with fruit compote. Both were very good. We also had a side of bacon, which was cooked to absolute perfection. We were the only customers, so received really great service.
Shopping - Spent one morning shopping on the Maceleon. Bought several things including glassware, pottery, picture frame, decorated plate, and tile house numbers with a metal frame. I am a shopper and I love to window shop as well as buy, but it was very challenging shopping as the shop owners and time share reps wouldn't leave us alone. DH and I went into one store to buy a cigar. They also had clothes, but none in my size. The clothes were very pretty and I would have loved to had bought a capri set, but the shop person couldn't not understand that I wasn't going to buy clothes I wouldn't be able to fit into. Also, we told several people, "no, we are not going to buy a timeshare and we're not going to waste our precious vacation time listening to a sales pitch when we know we weren't going to buy". I felt like I just need to hold up a sign so they would stop asking. One afternoon of shopping was enough. We didn't get harrassed this much at any other destination we've been to.
We purchased liquor at the airport going home. Bought a bottle of Partida Anejo Tequila and a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue Label. Also purchased a box of liqour infused chocolates. I had wanted to purchase a bottle of Piper Red Label Champagne at the duty free in Houston to take with us, but they wanted $50. We can buy it at home in the grocery store for $27. We did have to put the liquor in our checked luggage when we reached Houston for our flight to Midland. No problem getting it home.
Overall, we had a great trip. We loved the laid back atmosphere, no crowds and the topography was just beautiful. Remined us a lot of Jamaica. We may or may not return. The beaches aren't great and the vendors and timeshare people are more than annoying. Seemed like everyone had their hand out. The nightlife was decent, and we got a steal on a 4 night AI package, so if we ever wanted another long weekend getaway, we would consider going back. Pictures are at:
http://community.webshots.com/user/kvrlvn
