Before we left on our 2 week Spring Break - I decided to look at some reviews of the Playa del Sol Grand. I was a little disappointed to hear so many people complaining about this hotel, but I thought I should go with an open mind. I'm glad I did because I was pleasantly surprised.

When we arrived at the hotel - we were greeted with a Tropical Punch drink and asked if we could sit through a presentation and we indicated that we might later in the week, but we have a fractional ownership here so didn't think it was necessary - we did receive a call daily for the first couple of days in our room but we declined - never to be bothered again.

Check in was slow - which they need to work on but eventually we were taken to our room which happened to be on the construction side. A little disappointing but we weren't in our room during the day. They start to work at 7am and go till about 7pm. We noticed the noise the first couple of mornings but became immune to it after that - besides we don't spend our day sleeping in our room - we prefer to do that by the pool.

We were in a studio and our bed was hard and the sofa bed was something to be desired (new foam mattresses might be in order) but when we asked - they brought us "feather" bed tops which made a difference and our girls slept on the sofa bed on the floor - more comfortable. Our A/C broke but they fixed it that afternoon - all in all the staff was quite quick and addressed our concerns in an appropriate manner. We had no complaints with them. Very friendly.

The second week we moved to a 1 bedroom suite and the bed was much better and the sofa bed was 100% better. We had no complaints as far as the rooms were concerned. Our housekeeper added little touches everyday and even put flowers in our room. Nice touch.

The pool and beach are amazing - alot of people get up early to put towels out at the loungers - which is a little unfair of people to put them out and then leave. We got up every morning and sat out at the pool while our daughters slept in and waited for them to come down. I did witness security staff removing towels when no one was there first thing in the morning after an hour, which is fair in my mind. We enjoyed the quiet time watching the dolphins swim by and having a morning coffee - what's better than sitting looking at the ocean every morning with a cup of joe and enjoying the serenity of it all!

We didn't really eat at any of the restaurants other than the breakfast buffet once and lunch at Shipwreck Kellys. We usually cooked our breakfast/lunch and sometimes dinner in our room. We went to PV and Bucerias and Sayulita and had some incredible meals.

The Mega was great to have - we didn't walk but took a taxi - all taxis are governed by body that charges the same throughout PV and NV - prices are posted in hotels so you don't get caught off guard - always check with the driver before getting in if you are unsure. The Mega had all you could want or need, which cuts down on the eating out prices. We like to have the ability to go to the room or bring something down to eat.

Our girls were involved in the activities at the pool - great job Leo! You weren't bothered on the beach too much by the vendors - they were friendly enough. If you stayed by the pool you were never bothered.

Drinks were a little expensive at Shipwreck Kelly's but we brought our own drinks to the pool and waited til happy hour! 2x1 drinks.

We also talked with a few families who read reviews here and were pleasantly surprised with their stay as well. Hopefully they write in as well to overshadow the negative reviews.

Our flight was late in the day and the hotel allowed us to stay (we had to check out but only needed a change of clothes handy). We were able to shower in the washrooms next to the gym and get ready to leave.

We had a great time and were impressed after having read so many poor reviews. We are not "elite" travellers but we do travel quite a bit - maybe a trip to China would indicate that this resort is a better than anything you could find there - so maybe we are easier to please - everyone has their thing.

We have already booked next year's vacation at the same spot, with the construction being complete this fall next door - it should be that much better.

Hopefully your stay will be great! Ours was.

My husband and I also bought a membership at the Play Del Sol Grand timeshare in 2005. We were told we had to waive our right to cancellation as we purchased a re-sale of someone. I stopped paying annual fees when it was made perfectly clear that it was impossible to book a holiday as a member (1 year advance is needed - pay more $, bank your week, all with no guarantee) It was NEVER disclosed that a huge resort would not have enough space allocated for its members! Only now, 3 years later did I discover that Mexican Law DOES NOT PERMIT THE WAIVING OF THE 5 DAY CANCELLATION POLICY. They lied, and defrauded my husband and I out of thousands of dollars - and we never even got to see this resort. I encourage and ask everyone to AVOID PLAYA DEL SOL GRAND and its sister resorts and only contribute your hard earned dollars to businesses in Mexico that value the tourist and deal with your honestly and fairly.

We were there as a Trading Spaces exchange for a week. The Grand is a beautiful resort and is well-maintained. The pool and beach are top-notch and the staff was better than expected. There is no escaping the construction next door, but the resorts both to the north & south have the same problem. Unfortunately, I need to record my voice during the day and being close to the noise was a problem, but I waited for the lunch whistle and got as much quiet as I needed. The hotel did move us after a couple of days to a far superior room. It was at that time we found out how much we missed a real ocean view.

We never ate at the resort's restaurants but ordered food at the pool which was very good. We brought our own drinks & snacks to the pool. To us, Nuevo Vallarta is a little too far from the action. We felt fortunate that the new Mega store was within walking distance (everybody else we spoke with went to Wal-Mart which was far and very expensive), but the walk gets chancy where the sidewalk runs out. We take the Taxi back with the groceries and pay about double what you would pay for a taxi in PV.

We always take the bus around PV, but it is a long trip from Nuevo to Central PV. It was great being within walking distance to Bucerias, but catching the bus to Sayalita or north from the resort is either a pain or requires a taxi connection. We NEVER take the condo tours, and there were many of them trapsing through the resort, and none of the visitors looked happy.

We were there for Spring Break (Mom & the kid's schedule rule) which meant competition for lounge chairs by 8am, however, Security was happy to watch the towels and if they aren't moved off the chairs after an hour, they'll yank it off for you. Even though the Nuevo resorts are in the Mountain Time Zone, they ignore it in Nuevo and use the same time as PV...very handy.

The wi-fi did not work for about half of the guests I spoke with including me, but they have 2 Cat-5 plugs at the desk which saved the day. That and a signal from an unknown source that I used in the 1st room.

We would love to stay at the PDSG again, however, we would prefer to either be closer to PV, or stay in one of the more authentic towns in the north. Do what you can to get an ocean view. Oddly, the whales and dolphins do a much more impressive display closer to town, and this part of the bay will not give you the Green Flash at sunset, except in December.

Oh, BTW, my wife loved being whistled at by the hard-hats.

We were there for Spring Break (our 4th trip). It had been a long journey and then quite a wait to clear Mexican customs. Then we were hit with the 'timeshare' people waiting like vultures outside of the exit doors of the airport. That takes you atleast another 20 minutes to get past there. So now we are very tired and a bit anxious to get to our hotel. When we arrived at the hotel they immediately hit you with 'timeshare' and try to line you up for a breakfast get together - "no thanks". We were given a room that had no view and seemed extremely dark. We asked to change but apparently there was nothing else available. They would try next morning to find something. As it turned out the top floor room with an ocean view was offered to us - the trick is they didn't sell the bottom floor room very well. We ended up staying there as we had sun on the deck until 2:30pm, shade when it was very hot, our view was the beautiful coy pond and water fountains. It was very private say for a few people that had dinner at the Italian restaurant (as it was across from the coy pond) and we didn't have to take the elevator that seemed to have more problems than not. The front desk definitely needs training in people skills especially the supervisor. We also found that many of the staff avoided looking at you or speaking to you. The gardener however was terrific always friendly. The room we were in needed some repairs - bedlight and alarm clock didn't work, sofa bed needed a new mattress several years ago, wooden shutters would barely close, the fridge was missing door shelves, a bowl to mix in would be nice and the dishes/mugs could use upgrading (cracked). It would also be nice if they put plastic glasses, a corkscrew/opener and wine glasses in the room (we bought our own). The drinks at the Shipwreck were outrageously expensive thank goodness we had our own blender. The hotel grounds were very beautiful and well looked after. The beach was great and you had very little hassle from vendors. You could walk for miles - all the way to Boucerias and beyond if you wanted. If you're a walker you'll love it. The infinity pool is great and has an area for younger children. There really is nothing for those between the ages of 18 and 30 to do unless you're there to sun and relax. The hotel locks up about 9:30pm so younger people have to take a taxi into PV to have some night life. It would have been fun at the hotel to have a dance night or two even for us older folk. The Italian restaurant was very good and the staff their were very friendly and helpful. You must try one of their special coffees. The performance to put it together is worth it. The Mega store has everything you could want. It is much like a Walmart - Walmart has a better wine selection if that's your beverage of choice. We ate dinner at many different places, Boucerias (Miguels), PV, Sayulita and Lo Des Marcos. It's 20 minutes to PV or 20 minutes to Sayulita from the hotel. If you like adventure rent a car so you can visit all the nearby areas. We went as far as Lo Des Marcos (40 minutes). It is what PV used to be - small fishing village with boats on the beach. It's quiet and has an incredible beach that is wonderful to walk. We had a wonderful holiday but I probably would try a different hotel next time. Have a fun holiday - Mexico is a great place to have an adventure.