CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa

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Fodorite Reviews

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  Perfect Stay

  I have stayed all over the US and Canada and have stayed in many upscale hotels. This hotel by far, surpassing any hotel I have stayed at. I have now stayed at this hotel 4 times. The rooms and nice and spacious, the views are beautiful, the Japanese gardens are terrific and the service is impeccable. I have never been to a hotel where as, you arrive early, and your room is not ready and they ask you if you want to have a drink at the bar on them since your room was not ready.
  When we arrived through the front gate to in the taxi, the bell boys are there with a stand that has your reservation and will take your bags and give you a key right there, no waiting in line at the front desk.
  
  I could go on and on about the wonderful experiences I have had at the CasaMagna but will just leave you with a few tips.
  
  - If you paid for a non-ocean room, ask for an upgrade to ocean view, if they have it, they will give it to you, but be nice, they value that.
  - Try the Mexican buffet breakfast, a little pricey at $18 but well worth it, the food is amazing.
  - Tip well for good service. These people go overboard to please and they make only $2 a day, they rely on tips.
  - Try the Cerviche at the pool, Brilliant.
  - Do not do all inclusive, there are amazing restaurants at the Marina which is a 5min walk up the street.
  - Again, dont be rude, these people's economy is based on tourism and do everything in there power to please, if you have a problem, be nice and not some snotty american who thinks they are better than them. You may get your way, but this ruins it for the rest of us.

  by chrisjc76, 5/2/08
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  Our 10th visit....

  Returned yesterday from our 10th or 11th stay at the Marriott CasaMagna Puerto Vallarta (this being our third two-week stay). I need to correct a couple of comments from the previous review: Beach chairs and umbrellas are NOT for rent at $9 per day - they are complimentary as are the pool chairs. (Pool floats are rented for $9 per day - perhaps that's where the confusion came from.) And there were at least 40 (or more) lovely, new, cushioned beach chairs available, with umbrellas.
  
  Every day on the beach, we would walk north about 1.5 miles (past several resorts and condos, then past the airport) to the river that separates Jalisco from Nayarit. We did this barefoot, easily climbing over several rock jetties. At the river there are thousands of birds nesting and fooding - what a sight!
  
  The staff at the Marriott are outstanding - many of them have been there from the hotel opening in 1991!
  
  There's a reason (actually dozens of reasons) why we have returned there almost a dozen times now.

  by Annandaler, 2/8/08
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  Detailed Review

  Summary:
  We enjoyed our stay. I’m not a huge fan of big resorts or chain hotels, but this suited our purposes on this trip. The facilities were nice, food was better than expected, and the weather was great. This hotel is a nice size – large enough to have all the amenities but not so huge and sprawling that it takes 10 minutes to get from your room to the beach. In general, I would not recommend PV in general to someone who’s looking for a great beach and resort in a picturesque tropical setting. We chose it because it was the closest to Guadalajara and the town offers an alternative (shopping, sightseeing) to baking in the sun should the sun choose to not appear.
  
  Setting:
  PV is on a huge bay with big mountains in the background. It’s quite scenic. The Marriott is on a strip with several other resorts. The hotel/condo place next door has a tall white tower that partially blocks the view as you look towards the town. We didn’t get a chance to check out the marina area, so I can’t comment on that. The surrounding area of development is not that nice, but not scary, either. There is a Wal-Mart close by, which I went to for drinks, food, and float toys. Basically the environment doesn’t make you feel like you’re in a tropical paradise. It’s more of a developed city that happens to have a beach.
  
  Rooms:
  Fairly standard. Well-appointed, but not luxurious. Couch was uncomfortable. Nice bed and linens. Towels were regular size, not fluffy but not too thin. We had king bed, so the extra floor space that the other double bed would presumably be in was appreciated. We were able to set up our portable crib for our 15-month old in the closet, which worked out extremely well. We had the corner room on the 3rd floor (5th floor if you’re counting from the ground) in the main building (there are 2 buildings). Location was nice and central with a good view. Two things I didn’t like: the balcony was covered with a planter box in front, so you could not sit on the balcony and look out (could only see over railing standing up). Some rooms have this, others don’t, so it’s worth mentioning at reservation time if you’d like that unobstructed view. Also, the open-air bar/lobby was right below us and the nightly band was extremely loud. Although they finished by 11, we were ready to sleep at 10, being that we’re losers who have to get up early with a baby. My earplugs came in handy. Plus the band had a very odd repertoire of ranging from 70s ballads to U2. Personally, I would have rather heard latin-sounding music than REO Speedwagon.
  
  Staff:
  I found the staff to be really helpful and friendly. I used the concierge a couple of times (once to get information on shipping a package) and they were good, but did not really impress me. There was ample staff at the pool area, so I didn’t feel like I had to wait 10 minutes to flag someone down for food or drinks.
  
  Pool:
  The pool is quite large and very pleasant. As far as resort pools go, I imagine it’s somewhat mediocre, in that it doesn’t have multiple nooks and crannies, it’s in more of a regular shape, and there was only one waterfall area. There is a nice swim-up bar area and the side facing the beach has an infinity edge. The chairs were nice, and there was not a problem finding space. On the weekend, in the afternoon, it was hard to find a chair with an umbrella, but on Monday after everyone went home (it’s the off-season), it was fabulously un-crowded. They do allow kiddie floats and rafts in the pool. And they have those foam-style rafts for a rental fee.
  
  Beach:
  Puerto Vallarta is not the place to go for a great beach. However, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the beach. It’s spacious, the sand was clean (and groomed by the resort – they drug a pole behind a truck to smooth it out like we were at a ski resort or something). Not many people hang out on the beach, though They have a small amount of chairs on the beach, but you have to rent them – for $9/day, which I thought was ridiculous. Also ‘cabanas’ are available for $60/day. The ocean water was pretty calm, as it’s a big bay, but there are small waves for little kids to play in. The water is murky due to a lot of sand churn, but if you’re used to the mid-Atlantic like I am, it’s a perfectly normal green color. You are able to walk along the beach past 3 resorts in one direction and 2 in another. I really love to walk along the beach, and I’d say that this is not a good walking beach.
  
  Food:
  I do not recommend the sports bar or pizza from room service. The breakfast buffet was wonderful, and we had a nice dinner and lunch at Cassitas. There’s also a deli where you can get large sandwiches and ice cream. I found the prices to be expensive – even on an American scale, but did not feel as if they were gouging me.

  by pianoandclarinet, 11/28/07
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  Excellent Hotel

  Casa Magna is a very, very good hotel. My wife and I stayed at the Cancun location 3 years ago, and PV is much nicer. The room was clean and the service was outstanding. The weather in Mid-May is incredible (low 80's and a light breeze), while the crowds are minimal - to- low. Prices for beer and drinks in the bar or pool are not much different thant any other resort; slighly overpriced. The Marina is a half mile walk and you can buy all the bottled water you want ($1.10/2 liter is standard). Taxi's are about $5-8 to mid town or just south of the river.

  by keenerd, 5/23/07

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