When the kids’ school recently changed Thanksgiving Break to a full week, my family knew I would be planning a vacation! This time, we headed to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Puerto Vallarta is located on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.
Image courtesy of worldatlas.
Puerto Vallarta itself is in the Mexican state of Jalisco, however travelers often visit the nearby city of Nuevo Vallarta which is just 10 minutes away but is located in another state, Nayarit. For this vacation, we decided to visit both!
Fiesta Americana, Puerto Vallarta. Our first stop was to a resort in the city of Puerto Vallarta. Fiesta Americana is a beautiful, small family all-inclusive resort on a protected cove. We stayed in a Deluxe Room with two double beds.
Fiesta Americana Deluxe Room
I was surprised to find that Puerto Vallarta was so incredibly lush and jungle like, with a backdrop of mountains.
Fiesta Americana
The Pacific Ocean was a bit chilly when you dipped your toes in, but even in November, it warmed up quickly! The weather this time of year was incredible with a chilliness at night but a dry, warm day every day we were there. It reminded me a lot of Hawaii!
Beach at Fiesta Americana
Not to mention the gorgeous sunsets that come from being on the west coast!
Puerto Vallarta sunset
What I loved most about Fiesta Americana was their outdoor restaurant La Cevicheria with amazing Ceviche and Fish Tacos!
La Cevicheria
The kids loved the family pool!
Family pool at Fiesta Americana
Fiesta Americana also has an upgraded club level with a private breakfast and cocktail area with an incredible view of the mountains!
Club Level Private Area at Fiesta Americana
Not to mention the adults only rooftop pool with servers for food and drink.
Adults only pool at Fiesta Americana
And if that wasn’t relaxing enough, here is the spa – a lush setting!
Spa At Fiesta Americana
We could have lounged around this pool and beach for days, but we also wanted to explore the Malecon, a boardwalk area with sculptures in the old town section of Puerto Vallarta. A quick complimentary 5 minute shuttle from the hotel took us right into the heart of it!
Malecon in Puerto Vallarta
Street performers on the Malecon
Day of the dead artwork
Art, sculptures, and street performers lined the streets. Not to mention the taco trucks! Oh how we miss Puerto Vallarta! We visited the inside of the local church, Our Lady of Guadalupe, built in 1917.
Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Marival Residences, Nuevo Vallarta. We enjoyed our time in the city of Puerto Vallarta, but then taxi’d over to our next hotel, the Marival Residences located in the state of Nayarit. These are luxury 5 star residences that are perfect for families. They have 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and even a kitchen. We had the all inclusive package for this resort so the kitchen wasn’t going to get any use!
Marival residences
Up until recently, the Residences had one downside: no direct beach access. However, they have now built their own luxury beach club complete with included activities (boogie boarding, Stand up paddleboarding, and kayaking!). My 11 and 13 year old loved the perfect boogie boarding waves here!
Beach club at Marival Residences
The pool was amazing and even had a small wading area for the toddler crowd. There was a pool side restaurant serving up incredible fresh and healthy options!
Marival Residences pool
If you felt like Marival Residences was getting too quiet, you could head over to their sister resort, Marival Resort & Suites which is included and just a short 5 minute shuttle ride away. Marival Resort & Suites has a much rowdier crowd and fun slides for the little ones.
Slides at sister resort, Marival Resort & Suites
The food at Marival Residences is some of the best I’ve ever had at a resort and they even fixed us a special American Thanksgiving dinner! Breakfast was my favorite with coconut creme for the waffles!
It was the little things that made a difference here and this was a favorite of my family. Instead of plastic all-inclusive wristbands, you were given gorgeous hand woven bracelets! You can also find some amazing couples jewelry here.
Wristbands
Adiós Puerto Vallarta! We can’t wait to visit again!
