During my recent visit to Puerto Vallarta on a press trip to write about what’s new in Puerto Vallarta for TravelAge West (where I cover Mexico every month), I was a guest at the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center, one of the city’s longest-running, large-scale resort hotels. Here’s what I liked most about the experience.
THE STYLE: One of the first large-scale Puerto Vallarta beach hotels just north of downtown, the Sheraton Buganvilias has benefited from a major renovation over the past couple of years, with its 437 guest rooms brought up to date and new dining venues and spa facilities now up and running. The décor is fresh, contemporary and comfortable, and the ocean breeze that greets you as soon as you walk into the lobby is decidedly refreshing.
THE HOTEL ROOMS: I stayed in room 2236, a spacious place with a king bed, small couch and seating area. I liked the open sink area, and the separate water closet, as well as the large shower with a frosted glass wall that lets in natural light. A giant, wall-mounted TV provides a large variety of channels in both Spanish and English (including MTV and Vh-1 channels that actually show music videos, both old and new — that’s something I love about Mexico; music channels actually play music!). Especially enticing was the spectacular 22nd-story view from my room of the ocean and expansive pool area.
Since I stayed on a club floor, I had access to the 23rd-floor lounge, a handsome and tranquil space with spectacular view and free breakfast, snacks and drinks (even if you don’t pay for the hotel’s all-inclusive program, if you stay on a club floor, you still get access).
HOTEL FEATURES: This Puerto Vallarta hotel’s grounds are spacious and lushly landscaped, with lots of greenery and places to relax by two large swimming pools. The beach, of course, is just a few steps beyond that.
The hotel’s open-air restaurants are especially pleasant, and I enjoyed the large lunch buffet at La Villita, and the pizza place is a great place to sit outside and dig into custom-made pizzas. The formal restaurant, Las Gaviotas, is especially elegant, with artfully presented gourmet cuisine, live piano music and an extensive wine bar. Also worth a visit (at least for the grownups) is Embarcadero Gastro Bar, where we enjoyed tasting a few of the venues’ more than 50 varieties of tequila, mezcal and pulque, as well as an irresistible signature cocktail called the Curado.
The hotel features better-than-most on-site shopping, with a variety of clothing and décor items, and the recently upgraded Maiave Spa is an especially big selling point for this Puerto Vallarta hotel. It’s a peaceful getaway, and larger than one might think from the entrance, with a hydrotherapy circuit that includes multiple pools, showers and treatments. The spa’s most beautiful treatment area is called “village,” an open-air section tucked into a corner of the lush grounds, surrounded by palm trees and other vegetation that can make you think you’ve stepped into another world.
Other selling points include the children’s club, which is free for guests with kids, while the well-equipped 24-hour fitness center, which I walked past every day to get to and from my room, made it difficult to not stay on my usual fitness routine. The hotel also has its own tennis courts, which is another uncommon and attractive feature.
Of the large hotels in Puerto Vallarta’s northern zone, this is the best located in terms of being close to downtown; it’s even possible to walk to the Malecon.
BEST FOR: Families, travelers looking for a Puerto Vallarta vacation with upscale amenities and the option of either an all-inclusive or European plan, and travelers looking for a large-scale hotel experience with proximity to downtown. Business travelers and wedding groups, meanwhile, can also make good use of the nearly 30,000 square feet of meeting and event space.