Puerto vallarta and Villa Varadero--cheap but would we like the scene if we're not beach resort people?
 

I just stumbled across an incredibly cheap deal--1 week inclusive (food & drink & room)at this place in Puerto Vallarta and including airfare from Minneapolis for $500. The price is right, but that said would we hate the place? We've never been to Mexico before and normally don't like the canned touristy typical places. We done lots of independent travel in eastern and western Europe so we don't really need anything that caters to Americans. In Europe we always stay in samll family owned 2* inns and gasthauses and eat at similar establishments. We've always rented cars there so are used to getting around and along on our own. We are not the type of people who could spend a week just lying around the pool. In the US we always head for a national park versus a hot tourist beach locale. WE like more active things like biking, hiking, fly-fishing, canoeing, cultural activities, historical sights etc. Would we be nuts to go to a place like this (the resort and the town)? Are there any interesting day trips in the area? How interesting is Puerto Vallarta really if you are not someone who vacations to shop? I've done enough research to know that this is a major tourist destination. I'd really appreciate your comments and thoughts. Thanks.

The hotel you mention is in Nuevo Vallarta, about 30-45 minutes outside of PV. I did find a few reviews on "trip advisor", but I am not familiar with the hotel at all. To do anything in town, you will need to take a cab or bus. Personally it would be too far away for my taste, but for that price you can spend lots of money on cabs. I would not rent a car unless you would use it to venture away from downtown. Downtown PV is very hard to drive in, I wouldn't do it for anything. Here is a great website to see what there is to do in PV. I love Puerto Vallarta myself, but watch out for the timeshare sharks! There are some of the best restaurants in PV you will ever find, so if you do take this trip, skip the food that was practically free anyways and hit town for dinner every night. Lots of quaint charm in the town and restaurants, the Malecon on Sunday night in particular is fabulous. Locals come into town for their day off and there is a great vibe in town that night with street performers, artists, music, etc. We are going again in January, I can't wait! I think if you really want to get the "vibe" of PV, you should stay in downtown PV instead. I bet shortly you will get some responses from others who stay downtown (suze?) regularly with some tips on which hotels to pick, and JR who lives in PV and runs the site I mentioned will probably have some advice as well. Do you even want a pool at your hotel? If not, you can stay REALLY cheap in downtown PV in a basic clean room close to the beach...

Duh, I forgot to give you the website about PV...

http://www.vallarta-info.com/index.html

Thanks for the kind words, 'loangalsal' :)
If anyone has questions not covered in the site, I'll be glad to answer them.

There's lots to do and see in Puerto Vallarta besides shopping. But staying out in Nuevo, as already mentioned, is a world away. In El Centro and 'south of the river' you can find normal Mexican goings-ons, certainly the tourist-infrastructure plays a part, but there's plenty of locals living their lives, going about their business. The busses are great to get around. You can find the type of places to stay (as you mentioned in Europe) but they aren't the A-I resort you're considering, but in the downtown area, locally owned, family-run 3-star basic accomodations, near the beach.