Cancun vs Puerto Vallarta
 

I promised my 18yr old dtr I would take her somewhere for spring break.

I have narrowed it down to 5 places.
Cancun: Royal Solaris Caribe Hotel
Fiesta Americana Condesa
Flamingo Cancun Resort & Plaza
Puerto Vallarta: Melia Puerto Vallarta
Grand Nuevo Vallarta By Occidental
Any comments and/or recommendations? Thanks.

I have been to Cancun although I never stayed at the Fiesta Americana Condessa I have to think that is your best bet. If you want to P. Vallarta then the Occidental is your best bet, even
though it's away from the center of town it has much better reviews than the Melia. Try trip advisor.com

Butsey definitely got it right! The Condesa looks terrific, and I think the others in Cancun are not in the same league.

I personally prefer PV over Cancun (the town itself), but I have stayed at the Fiesta Americana Condesa in Cancun twice. It is a very nice hotel, good pools and a nice beach. I never ate dinner there, but the breakfast buffet was very good, menu service for lunch was good food but slow service.

The Fiesta Americana Condesa does have a very nice beach and overall is a nice hotel. It would be my choice of the ones you listed.

I'm not sure what you would define as "Spring Break" but if you are considering the month of March, you will be overtaken by partying college kids in Cancun. If so, I would consider PV.

I agree if you want to get away from the spring breakers then P: Vallarta is your best bet there will be some but not nearly as many as Cancun I go to P. Vallarta every year in March and it's not run over w/ spring breakers.I am sure Cancun is

Cancun was built up by the goverment as a resort destination.

Puerto Vallarta is a town that's been around for years, but with tourist infrastructure added on. So there's still a genuine El Centro -downtown with a large Mexican population going about their business. The resorts out in Nuevo Vallarta are quite a distance from town (1/2 hour by taxi or bus) as far as considering hotel options.

Depends what you're looking for, a resort experience only to get some sun and relax, or being walking distance to restaurants, shopping, galleries, etc., that is offered in PV proper.

PV most definetly is the best choice. Melia has had mixed reviews but I have never stayed there. For my money, I would stay at the Westin or Marriott Casa Magna. It is located in the Marina area and the hotels face the ocean. The Marina area is good because you have access to little shops and nice restaurants while still accessing the buses and taxis to go into town.

I've been to both Cancun and PV and I loved PV and hated Cancun. I am very beach-oriented and I chose PV before I'd been anywhere in Mexico, worried that maybe I should have chosen Cancun because I'd heard so much about the wonderful beaches. I was not, however, disappointed at all by the water in PV. The water in Cancun was beautiful, but the city itself wrecked the experience for me and I'll never return. That said, I would second gyfted1's suggestion for the Marriott CasaMagna. We didn't stay there - we stayed at La Quinta Real, which has a beach club right next to the CasaMagna, so we were able to explore the CasaMagna a bit. It's a beautiful hotel on, what I think, is one of the best beach areas in PV. The grounds were beautiful and we talked to a family staying there who travels every year from London and they have stayed in all the big PV hotels and said they will always choose the Marriott from now on.

I couldn't agree more with beachgirl. We just returned from a week at tbe Royal Solaris Caribe and it is the first vacation I have ever been on where 1/2 way through all I wanted to do was get on a plane and go home. The hotel was horrible, spring breakers were breaking things all over the place, there were bugs at the hotel! I will never go back to Cancun. We have been to PV four times, Playa Del Carmen and Cozumel and just love Mexico EXCEPT for Cancun - too commericalized.

I love both Cancun and PV, but I think it's also really important to research where you are staying before you go. That's why tripadvisor, the AAA tourbook and this site are so important to check before booking, or you could have a nightmare vacation.

Go to Playa del Carmen - it is much better than Cancun!