Meliá Puerto Vallarta

The staff was very friendly and we really appreciated the help we got from Jesus at the time of check-in. He provided lots of information on the resort and set us up for our stay.

We had some family members visit for the day and they were able to purchase a day pass to the resort. I thought this was a great idea and we took advantage of this service.

Habitaciones - Servicio - Comida - Instalaciones en general

Miguel and Saul are the absolute best, most chivalrous humans and we had the best experience! We will absolutely be coming back very soon!

Top notch restaurant with top notch service. Ruben went above and beyond. Food was exceptional and the service took it to a new level. Ruben was extremely helpful meeting our groups unique pallets with helpful information & suggestions. He was very knowledgeable. It was nice to meet Victor (I believe he was the restaurant mgr) & personally thank him for taking such good care of our family.

Location is great. Food needs improvement. Chair hogging needs to be addressed. Rooms are great. Bathrooms are difficult. Drinks are definitely watered down.

Loved our ocean view and updated room

The hotel is beautiful. Service is great. Even though there's only one restaurant, food is good and has variety. Overall great experience. A better gym would be great though

We have stayed here a few times previously the best part of this resort is the people. We’ve never been pestered for any upselling. The pool and beach is beautiful. The lady cleaning the rooms hilda was the nicest sweetest woman Miguel the buffet mgr is also very friendly and helpful. His evening mgr David is equally attentive out favourite server in morning was Gabriel and a very good bellman was Eduardo who was always happy to help

I ended up with food poisoning so our last day was spent in the room. I did try to go down for dinner but didn’t trust myself. They should have some kind of take out containers so that I didn’t feel bad taking a plate of food up to my room. I can’t remember the last time I was that sick. Very disappointing way to end our trip. In regard to the room, my husband moved the table and there was a child’s sock under it. The shower/tub was a bit of a challenge to get into.

We travelled with another couple.We stayed for two weeks. The resort is just the right size. Well laid out and easy to get around. We had an ocean view room that had upgraded furniture. Our friends had a regular room and we had asked to be near each other, we were on the fourth floor and they were below us on the third? The food was good and always a good selection. The food should be kept warmer though, it was just warm unless prepared at one of the two cooking stations in the main dining room. There is only two a-la-cartes. Another would be nice especially for a two week stay. Miguel the day restaurant manager went above and beyond to make sure my Celiac husband had special food prepared just for him, all he had to do was let Miguel know what time and what he’d like to eat and he made sure it was ready . Fernanda one of the restaurant hostesses always had a smile and soon remembered Mr.Gluten! lol Saul at the front check in counter was very friendly and helpful whenever we had a question. All of the staff are very friendly. Rarely did any of the staff pass by you without saying hello. The marina is a short walk away and has lots of shops, restaurants and bars. The beautiful boat’s moored in the area are a sight to see.

Melia Puerto Vallarta
Oct. 4-11, 2025

This was a repeat visit for us. After our last visit this one was quite disappointing.
Check in was easy as was check out. This is a family oriented resort. The pool is large, the beach is nice.
The grounds could use some repairs but nothing major.
The food was mostly good but not as good as our last visit in August. The buffet did not have as much assortment. The two specialty restaurants were good but limited menus.
Our room was as requested but on top of the dated décor, many things did not work. Having two bathrooms is a big deal for us except one shower the shower head was so filled with mineral deposits water came out ibn little streams. The other shower was in a tub, which would fil to the brim from lack of sufficient drainage before you even finished a shower. We spoke to management about many issues including those with our room and they tried but no acceptable rooms were ready until Thursday of the week, we were leaving on Saturday.
The view was also of what I guess is considered a pond on site. So, a green swamp thing is what we saw from ur room.

Our trip in August we really loved our stay this one left a bad taste in every way. The room we had should not have been rented to anyone it had so many areas needing repair. The curtains were dirty, the kitchen sink did not function, the list just kept growing.

We made the best of our stay and we possibly would consider a return visit if we could know ahead what our room would be like.
The resort has great potential but without repairs where needed, it lacks in many ways.
We lucked out our last visit in August after meany years of not going there. Possibly it will be some time before we return again. Parking was as last visit plentiful.
The nighttime entertainment and bar was a highlight.

The staff and location with proximity to the Marina were excellent. Check-in and Check-out was friendly and efficient. Our room was clean and maintained well during our stay. However, the room was dated and the electrical outlets were not conveniently located i.e. no outlet on the nightstand or near the desk.
The food was good although we did go to the Marina for 3 dinners - twice at La Terraza (excellent food and service!) and once at Meson Iberico.
If good wine and a choice of top shelf beverages are important to you then inquire about upgrading your package. We booked through Air Canada vacations and only had the standard drink package and were not offered an upgrade so don't know what the price would be per room.

An honest review from our stay 2 weeks ago.
Why we picked the place: reviews of great food and kids clubs for both kids under 4 and over 4.

When we first walked into the room, we were surprised at how dirty it was. We read reviews, we expected the room to be dated. But there was something on the bathroom mirror (blood? Snot?... Who knows...), greasy handprints on windows, coffee table and bathroom mirror.

We spoke to the front desk and they said they would love us into a different room the next day.

The next day we headed to check out the kids clubs. We got there shortly after 10, but nobody was there. (The schedule said it opens at 9am for the little ones, and 10 for the older ones). We walked into the little room for the smaller kids and the first thing that hit me was the smell. It was like someone is pouring air freshener to cover something up. It was so strong that I actually got a headache (yea, you get used to it after a while.....). Another mom walking by mentioned that it's just a place to play and nobody is there to watch the kids. Ok, not what we expected, and not what the website said ......
The room was dirty. (I'll add pictures). My kiddo walked around and looked at some broken toys and then I took him outside to go check out the other side, the older kids club. It was closed.
The kids played on the outside structures (which are great) and finally, closer to 11, one of the staff walked in. We asked her if anything was going to be open and with a truly "Southern " attitude she said "yeah, we have an activity later, around 3pm". I asked if there was anything else going on, and she kind of looked at me and said "not really".
Oookay... So now my husband and I are a bit pissed: these kids clubs were the main reason we came to this place. We came very close to actually leaving the resort...
After some chats with the front desk, after being moved to a clean room, we made our peace with the kids club. Guest services told us that "next week there will be someone in the kids club to take care of the kids". Ok....? Maybe nice to mention on the website "subject to someone actually working that week"?..
That was all day 1. We were upset.
The one staff we saw said we could bring our younger child and drop him off the next morning and she's watch him. So we tried that the next day, except the time she said she'd be there, she wasn't (10:30). We waited a half hour , she finally came. I brought the kiddo in, sat with him for a bit and then left.
5 minutes later I could hear my child screaming from the building adjacent to the kids club. And the screaming wasn't stopping... I waited 15 minutes and it still wasn't stopping... So I went in to check on my kid, and he was standing by the glass doors, sobbing and screaming. The lady "taking care" of the kids was hanging out with another kid, TV blasting Paw Patrol... I took my kid and left. After that he was pretty traumatized and didn't want to go back.

During the second week we were there, the did clean the younger kids area and they did start having activities for the older kids throughout the day. I don't know if this lack of staff happens one week a year and we just happened to be there that week?

At the kids club for younger kids, they do seem to have "some" procedure for signing in, although nobody seems to be enforcing it. So you drop off a kid, and then pick them up, but I have a feeling that if theyeft part way through, nobody would notice....
At the older kids club, kids come and go as they please. Nobody signs them in or out... Not sure how I feel about that? If the parent isn't *right by* the kids club and sees their child leave, where is the child going? I understand that some kids are older and parents are ok with that... But my daughter is 5, and luckily she stayed there until I can't to get her... But if not?

The second week they had a few activities during the day, like decorating cookies and tacos, making pinatas, giant blow-up bouncy slide (which looked sooooo dirty....🤦🏻‍♀️). They seemed to have a list of activities in their phones, but usually only ONE was posted on the "activities" board in front of the entrance.

Breakfast buffet was great. We had lunch at the snack bar most of the time, since we have your kids and that was the only thing open at 12, when they usually have lunch. It was also the most popular place for the kids, since they had hot dogs and pizza.
The snack bar was great, always fresh pizza, always lots of veggies and some fruit (usually apples, watermelon and melon), lots of hot sauces.
Lots of local fauna coming to hang out, like birds and iguanas.

Dinners: the buffet was great *most* of the nights, however there were 2 times (in 10 days) when I had a hard time finding something suitable for my kids or myself.
Every night has a different country theme. The back corner where they have fresh, made to order options, is always amazing. That's the place they make fresh omelettes and eggs in the morning, and at dinner they have tacos, enchiladas, stir-fried meat, and other options.
Friday nights are Mexican nights, so the food is Mexican. Outside the buffet they also have stands with fresh tacos, desserts, tequila tasting as well as games for kids and various items for sale. They have live music as well.
Friday's nights are Mexican nights, and the food is excellent.
On Thursday nights there is a market at the Marina (about a 15 min walk), and although I think officially it starts later in the day, we went around 3pm and it was already busy, although many stands were still just being set up. Lots of excitement, local foods and crafts.

Water: the pool was good. It's big enough that there is pretty much always a spot you can find to put down your things, and it doesn't feel crowded (even though there is just one pool).
The swim-up bar is a great addition, although one day the floor around it (on the outside of the pool) smelled very strongly of vomit. Luckily no vomit in the pool during our trip...(Whew.... I wonder how they manage closing the ONE pool when that happens...🤔)
They had activities at the pool, like water aerobics daily, foam party (once a week), a floating casino (we saw it once, so not sure what the frequency is on that)

There is also a small pool on the way to the beach, great for little ones as the depth is about 1.5 feet.
The beach was good, kids had a great time. The sand is soft, even though it's not the "Carribean white sand", and not rocky. The ocean was quite warm and not too wavy, so even the kids were fine to get in. The entrance to the water was nice and not rocky at all.
There are some vendors on the beach in front of the hotel, but there aren't too many and they're not pushy.

Overall...
3 out of the 4 family members got upset stomach. One lasted for 4 days, the other 2 only one day (yes we bring medication with us and took it as soon as the first run to the bathroom happened).

Will I go back? Probably not.

But we had a good time...

Pros
Let me start with the pros about this hotel. It is well-located near the marina. The rooms, while not spacious, are adequate and the beds are comfortable. There were plenty of electrical outlets and they even had USB ports. The staff was very attentive.
Cons
We were disappointed with this hotel almost from the very start. We got in late and we were hungry. We found out that the main restaurant was buffet style. The others required reservations and we were too late for that. We went to the buffet. There was a good variety of food, but it was mediocre at best, and most of it was either cold or not very warm. But that wasn’t the most disappointing part. We found out that you either had to pay extra for the other restaurants or use a voucher. You got one voucher for every 3 days of stay. We used the vouchers for a la carte meals at the other restaurants we had vouchers for. The food there was very good. For the other days, we went into town. The only place that was open during the day was a snack bar that had hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza. Other hotels in the area we’ve been to have had all sorts of food available all day long. For breakfast you could choose the buffet or a la carte. We chose the a la carte, and they were good. Lunch was again buffet. I have to say that the food was our biggest complaint about this hotel. The hotel itself is a bit dated, especially the bathrooms. The faucets and fixtures could really use renewal. They had a shower/bath combination. We would have preferred separate tub and shower. The calking around the tub was very worn and looked dirty. The rooms could really use more lighting as well. There was a very limited selection of channels on the TV. The drinks weren’t very good and they were very, very stingy with the alcohol, even though we were told that because we had booked through Expedia, we were entitled to premium drinks. I seriously doubt they ever gave us premium drinks. The entertainment at night left a lot to be desired. The last hotel we stayed at here in Puerto Vallarta had absolutely wonder entertainment and we looked forward to something different every night.
All that being said, once the hotel found out we weren’t very happy, they bent over backwards to try to accommodate us. Unfortunately, there really wasn’t much they could do about the mediocre food. If you like buffet-style food, then you might like this hotel. We will be going somewhere else the next time we come to Puerto Vallarta.

We recently stayed at Meliá Puerto Vallarta and overall had a very enjoyable experience, with a few frustrations worth noting.

The location is excellent—close to the airport and the marina, which made getting in and out incredibly easy. The resort itself is well situated and feels lively without being overwhelming. We spent every day at the pool, and it was one of the highlights of our stay. That said, the chair situation was frustrating. There are signs posted stating that reserving chairs is not allowed, yet nearly everyone did it. When we came down around 10:00 a.m., it was often impossible to find four chairs together, which took away from the otherwise relaxing pool experience.

I really enjoyed the fitness offerings and participated in water aerobics, a weight class, and Zumba. The instructors [Valentina from Chile and Sofia from Cuba] were so great, but I do wish there were multiple classes offered throughout the day, as they were something I genuinely looked forward to.

The food was good overall, and the specialty restaurants were the standout. Fish House and Mole & Tacos were consistently delicious—fresh food, friendly staff, and attentive service every time. These restaurants alone made dining feel like a treat. The buffet, however, was a different experience: it was often very busy, service felt slow, and the food quality was noticeably below that of the restaurants.

Our room was spacious and clean, but the beds and linens were not very comfortable. The bedding lacked that soft, cozy feel you hope for on vacation. Room service was hit or miss even when leaving tips. Towel service was inconsistent (sometimes replaced when not needed, sometimes not at all), and water bottle restocking varied daily, which felt oddly uneven compared to other rooms in our group.

Despite these inconveniences, what truly makes this resort shine is the staff. Everyone we encountered was friendly, welcoming, and genuinely eager to help and make sure we were comfortable and happy. That warmth goes a long way.

All things considered, we would absolutely return. The location, restaurants, pool atmosphere, spa and staff outweigh the frustrations, and with a few improvements, this could be an exceptional stay.

And don’t skip the spa! I very much enjoyed my massage and facial.

This was my second time at Melia Puerto Vallarta. It's a great place with great staff. The rooms are nice, the pool is large, the beach is decent, and the view of the water is beautiful. The food in the main restaurant is OK and at the other restaurants in the hotel is good. If you're there in January or February, be sure to take the excursion out to see the whales!