INSPECTED BY: Jay French; Feb, 2007
Justin French; Mar & Nov, 2007
Jay & Justin French; June 14-18, 2008

QUICK OBSERVATION:
Marival is a prime example of what you miss out on when you rely simply on statistics and written descripions. Before our first visit here it was just another hotel option in Puerto Vallarta, make that Nuevo Vallarta to be specific. But as they say - seeing is believing. And to be more accurate - experiencing it is the absolute proof.

Justin was so impressed with a brief visit here he chose to return for a personal stay. Which he loved. It is the sum of small things that make Marival a great place.

Food. This place is a big cut above the rest. The Mexican restaurant, Las Palomas is one of the best we have dined at. Everything is top notch. The chips, the appetizers, the entrees, and especially the Margarita's. This is not just another Mexican restaurant at another all-inclusive.

But the real dining experience is at Bella Vista, their incredibly popular Italian restaurant. You must try the Fragolino Dessert Wine. We are not chefs or food critics. However it is fair to say the word "gourmet" could be used here and not be an exageration. One difference - these are not gourmet portions. You will be full and pleased when you leave. You will also come back. The only place where the cuisine is less than excellent is the buffet, which should not surprise anyone. The food here is better than most all-inclusive buffets, but falls short of comparison to their a la care restaurants.

Drinks. Let us just mention brands like Absolut and Grey Goose. They are standard fare at Marival. There are 7 bars here, including the hopping disco.

One of the biggest praises we could ever deliver is how clean Marival is. We noticed this every visit. When we observed maids cleaning the bottom of patio chairs from a distance - every day, we were surprised and impressed. When we see the staff power hosing pool lounge chairs on all sides every night we really take notice. Large and small instances like that day after day, and visit after visit, go a long way in our book.

The standard Resort Rooms are clean, comfy and respectable. Where the resort becomes impressive is when you move up to the Suite category. The suites are more like apartments or condo's. Large living rooms with fold out sofa's and one more full bath than bedrooms is a real treat. The 1, 2 and 3 Bedroom Suites have 2, 3 and 4 full bathrooms respectively. Imagine that luxury when your family is all attempting to shower and dress at the same time. The ocean front suites are terrific and extremely popular, especially during traditional family vacation times. As you will see in our pictures, and we do NOT Photo Shop, the sunsets from the ocean front suites are spectacular!

The level of service is very good. And while this is not an adult-only resort adults have their own sections around the resort and pool area, as well as their own variety of activities such as tequila tastings. We love Marival!

LOCATION:
In the Nuevo Vallata area just north of Puerto Vallata and about 10 minutes from the international airport. The cab ride into Downtown Puerto Vallarta and the Malecon was about 15 minutes and $14-18 total for four in a cab.

ROOMS: 495 rooms in several categories
RESORT ROOMS
These rooms are located in either the Villa section which has no elevators in the 3-story section, or in the Tower Section. Rooms have either a King bed or two doubles and a fold out sofa. Resort rooms are pretty stndard. Nice, clean and unimaginitive. Of course they are air conditioned with a full bathroom, vanity, telephone, safety deposit (at a charge), hair dryers, alarm clocks, covvee maker, remote control satellite TV, and mini-bar - stocked daily with bottled water and soft drinks, plus patio or balcony.

SUITES - 1, 2, & 3 Bedrooms; Resort View or Ocean View

All suites are large with their own private balcony or patio. The large living room is a great area for families or groups to gather. All suites have one more full bathroom then there are bedrooms. For example - a 1 Bedroom suite has two full bathrooms. In addition to the features shown above for the Resort Rooms, suites also have microwaves, irons and ironing boards. Ocean View Suites are exactly that. They directly overlook the beach with a full view of the Pacific Ocean. These are fabulous accommodations which you won't find elsewhere.


ALL-INCLUSIVE:
All meals and snacks. They just began charging for room service in June 2008. All drinks including house wine, domestic beer and premium brand drinks such as Grey Goose and Absolute - something you don't experience at most all-inclusive resorts. Nightly entertainment, stage shows and live bands. Plenty of activities from Pilates to boogie boards. Kids Club with supervised activities and playground area. They even have a Camping Night. Teen activities include rock climbing, archery, soccer, X Box and much more.


SPA:
Spa services are available at an additional fee. They seem to have all the basic options - massages, facials, manicures, pedicures, etc.
 
RESTAURANTS: 6 - A la carte restaurants require reservations. We can make reservations for your first night. Upon arrival you are able to make reservations for as many nights as you wish in advance. We recommend to plan ahead if you want to enjoy the gourmet restaurants instead of the buffet.
(Dress Code for all Restaurants - Shorts are not allowed for dinner in the a la carte restaurants. While this rule does not appear to be evenly enforced, you may be rejected. We don't recommend you try your luck.

Casual elegance for ladies: Long pants, skirt, blouse, dress shoes. T-shirts and tank tops are not allowed.")

BELLAVISTA:

Gourmet Italian - and we mean it. This restaurant is delicous. Be sure to make reservations if you want to experience the best restaurant in a resort that is reknown for outstanding cuisine. 6:30pm - 10:30pm


PERGOLA: Mediterranean cuisine in the evening. Seves as the air conditioned location for breakfast and lunch, so we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of dinner and the quality of choices on the menu. I can't say enough about the seafood soup I had. It was genorously loaded with fish, shrimp,crab, octopus an veggies. 6pm - 10:30pm

PALOMAS: Very good Mexican restaurant where everything tastes fresh, like you wish it would back home. Even the chips were surprisingly fresh and tasty. And the Margarita's are nothing like the watered down version you consume at many all-inclusive resorts - believe me. 6:30pm - 10:30pm

PORTOFINO: Casual outdoor snack area with an outstanding brick oven, which constantly churns out a wide variety of freshly prepared pizza's. This is my favorite spot for lunch. They feature a different yummy every day during lunch, i.e. paella, lobster, etc. There is also a respectable buffet and full bar, so plenty to choose from. This service continues from noon until 2am. 12 Noon - 2 am

LA BAMBA: Snack bar and outdoor buffet by the beach and kids pool during the day. But turns into a steak grill in the evening for dinner.

CASA BELLA: Buffet for breakfast, lunch and dinner. This is the only restaurant we were not impressed with. It could be better, buffet or not. For dinner a different theme is featured each night. Monday - Mediterranean; Tuesday - Mexican; Wednesday - Shrimp; Thursday - Oriental; Friday - Seafood; Saturday - Tex Mex; Sunday - Italian. 6:30pm - 10:30pm



BARS: 7

Drink quality is very high here. You will be served Absolut and Gray Goose, especially at M&M. There are two lobby bars - Volare and Mirabel. Big screen TV's usually have sports on. There are two swim-up bars during the day. M&M is located upstairs from the lobby and located between the Italian and Mexican restaurants. It's a great open area to relax before or after dinner.

GROUNDS:

The grounds are quite nice. Well maintained and pleasant, nothing sensational or over the top.

ACTIVITIES

All you want, or as lttle. 4 lighted tennis courts; tennis clinics; Pilates; Spinning; Yoga; bikes; Italian bocce; horsehoes; shufleboard; stretching; aerobics; beach and pool volleyball; table games; fully equipped gym; boogie boards; introductory diving lesson; aquaerobics; water polo; bartending, cooking, dancing, and Spanish lessons; plus kids and teens activities, including movies and Camping Nights. Teens get rock climbing, archery, soccer, basketball, pool tables, ping pong, darts, X Box video games and volleyball.

ENTERTAINMENT:
Nightly entertainment programs with live shows, live music, karaoke, and disco.

BEACH:

The beach is outstanding. You can literally walk for miles in either direction. Marival is very generous with providing shady palapas and plenty, plenty of lounge chairs. And yes, you do have drink service on the beach.

GROUPS & MEETINGS:
They have a facility to accommodate 1,000 people theater style. There are meeting rooms, a business center, and wireless sevice. The staff is very good at decoratng areas for cocktail receptions. You may also have access to a private area for group check-in with welcome cocktails.

HONEYMOON & ANNIVERSARY PACKAGE:
We highly recommend Marival for weddings. You have a wide variety of room categories to accommodate everyones budget, outstanding restaurants, premium brand drinks, and many wedding packages to select from. You can even earn a FREE Wedding. Honeymooners receive perks.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES:
Doctors on call 24 hours a day, laundry and dry cleaning service, laundromat, beauty salon, baby-sitting, shops, businss center are all available for an additional charge.

CLIENT FEEDBACK:

Very good trip! First time in Mexico for us, and the all inclusive resort was great. Only one restaurant that we didn't like, but everything else was fine.
Grant G, Aug 11, 2008

The Marival was beautiful and the service was great. It took us a little time to get used to the food (not quite the same as American Mexican Food) but we were able to work it out! The Italian and Mexican restaurants were great and we visited them a few times during our stay. We also enjoyed the restaurant downstairs for breakfast.
DeLynn J, Jul 31, 2008

The resort was nice and you were right about the suite. It was an enjoyable adventure.
Lawanda F, July 29,2008

Buenos Dias Senor! We had a wonderful time at the Marival. The weather was perfect; the ocean was perfect; the beach was perfect; the food was perfect; the bed was hard as a rock. We spent a lot of time on the beach - exactly what we wanted to do. Some of the time, we tried to figure out how we could get our whole family there next year. We loved that it was so family friendly - not just a bunch of grownups. Yet, the children did not interrupt our enjoyment of the facilities. OH! we did get caught by the condo trap. You might want to elaborate on that issue for other unsuspecting folks. The guy at the airport who greeted us lied through his teeth about being the Tourist…. whatever that was we were supposed to look for. He said he was from the hotel, etc. You know all that stuff. Anyway, we did sit in for their "non pressure (ha)" sales pitch, which lasted longer than they said. However, we did get to swim with the dolphins for free for our efforts. We will know better next time. Truly we did not want to come home. You did a great job. We'll contact you again in a few months to maybe talk about the family deal next year. Have to see how the income goes for a few months. Thanks again.
Paulette and Danny B, Mr 31, 2008