Travel to PV with 2 young children ?
 

Hello,
We are thinking of going to Puerto Vallarta this December'03. I have a 2yr old child and a 5 month old baby (by December). Wondering whether it is safe (traveling, health and food-wise) to go. Heard that the milk in Mexico can cause diarhea in young children. Also, any hotel recommendation for our situation (Westin or Marriott or anything else) ? Thanks for your feedback.

pv is very kid-friendly and extraordinarily safe.
see vallartaonline.com in the past articles section for something about kids in PV- also articles on water and safety.

as for water etc, they say that PV's water surpasses standards set by the US and other dev'ping countries. that having been said, people get sick when their systems aren't used to the bacteria in a new place. Use bottled water everywhere if you're concerned- but it is a possibility that you or the kids could get sick. it's a risk of travel i think.

the westin and marriott are gorgeous and have fabulous kids pools. their beaches are not as nice. good location- not far from downtown tho you can't walk.
go for it- and have a great time!

Both hotels are great!!! Where I live I usually go on Apple Vacations tours from Philadelphia, they rate hotels by apples. 6 apples being the highest. There are very few in P. Vallarta The Marriott and Westin are 2 of them. The others are Camino Real, Sheraton Buganvilla, Fiesta Americana, Any of these are great!!! Good Luck!!!!

Thanks for the feedback so far.
What about carseat for the children ?
Do we need to bring them ? Do the taxicab drivers drive defensively ?
We would like to find a hotel where we can walk to the sightseeing places, is the marina vallarta the right place to be. Thanks.

You bet they drive defensively, the trouble with the child seat is you'll find no seat belts in the back seats to attach it to.
The Westin or the Marriot are both fine hotels, check the prices here
http://vallartainfo.com/hotels.html
and compare to others for value.
BTW never heard of any problems with the milk down here.

My suggestion would be to get a room with a kitchenette. You can shop at a 'supermercado' and get juice, bread, peanut butter, cookies, crackers, fruit, bottled water, etc. etc.

As for hotels, it's hard to recommend without knowing what type of place you'd be more comfortable. PV has everything ... high-end, family-sytle, all-inclusives, local-owned small hotels, condos, etc. Do you want to be walking distance to El Centro (downtown) or simply enjoy a resort? It's all there, just a matter of picking what's best for your family.