Just returned from a 5 night stay. Overall a good value for the money. Just remember this is not a 5 or even 4 star resort. This is truly a family place. Kids galore. I saw a few couples and few singles.

Check-in. We arrived early and I think the standard response is "come back at 3". We were able to change into bathing suits in a hospitality suite. I think it was someone'e room who checked out. Dirty towels all over, beds unmade, toilet not flushed. Pretty gross. Everyone just got changed and didn't touch anything. At 4pm we went to get our keys. First problem: we are traveling with 4 children and requested connecting rooms. They said we can have rooms on the same floor. Sorry, that won't work for us. After 20 minutes of typing on the computer and talking to a supervisor, they found 2 rooms next to each other, not connecting. Garden view. We could come back in 2 days and get connecting rooms. We would have to bring our luggage down to the lobby at 12noon, check out, then return at 3pm for the new room keys. Two days later, we packed up and moved to connecting rooms. This time we got a partial ocean view. Very nice. Never got acousted by timeshare people.

Location: Walking distance to the marine. Safe. Bus to downtown is literally across the street. 55 cents each way, but must use pesos. Safe, fast, friendly. There is an ATM just outside of the hotel to the left. Safe and easy.

Rooms: Clean but dated. Think old Holiday Inn or HoJo. First set of rooms: one smelled terribly of mold, one shower didn't work, one tv's buttons were broken, one remote didn't work even with a change of batteries. We didn't bother to complain as we were changing rooms in 2 days and didn't want to waste more vacation time at the front desk. Second set of rooms were better, but still dated. One odd thing: NO CLOCKS in the rooms. That's right,, no clock radios. Bring your own. 3 stars for the rooms.

Food: We knew we were not going to be getting 5 star cuisine and its not. Breakfast is a large buffet. Something for everyone. For picky eaters, be advised that the dry cereals are not "American" brand names and don't taste exactly the same. Think "fake" fruit loops. Waffles, pancakes, omelets were all good. Lunch is a buffet. We didn't eat there, but it looked good. Our family loved the outdoor snack bar. Hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, good fries, fresh chips, salsa, fresh fruit, cut up veggies. Fries and nuggets went fast and took awhile to replenish. Chips and salsa were excellent. Some days it was extra hot. Dinner buffet was ok. You could always find something. They even had a couple of dry cereals out for the really picky eaters. It came in handy for us one night. I even saw bolony sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Dessert selection was very large. Cakes, cheese cake, rice pudding. One night there was a liquid chocolate fountain to dip fruit in. We went to the grill restaurant twice. Food ok. Desserts not so much. Bland. We went back to the buffet for dessert. Mexican restaurant was good. In both ala carte restaurants, there are a small number (less than 10) of entrees and a childrens menu. You can even order 2 kids meals for a bigger child. We didn't make it to the reservation only Italian restaurant. You won't starve here and you might enjoy all of your meals too. Still a 3 star on the food. For kids and my teenagers, its 5 stars.

Drinks - ok. Very weak. Frozen drinks were very sweet. Mass produced. Beer is Corona on tap. Several canned beers. Wine is Gallo. We are not big drinkers so this did not affect us too much. We usually like 1 good drink by the pool. Had to settle for the Corona. The kids loved loved loved the frozen virgin fancy drinks. 3 stars from us, 5 stars from them.

Staff and Service - This is where the hotel excels. Everyone is super friendly and polite. We were always greeted with a smile wherever we went. Tips were never expected buy always appreciated. 5 stars.

For the kids - We don't have little ones, so I can't comment on the kids club. Our boys range from 12-16 and there was always something for them to do. Beach volleyball was a big hit. Bingo was played almost everyday by adults and kids. No need to leave your pool chair. They come to you to give you a bingo card. There was a daily fun game like kick the soccer ball into the net in the pool. Daily list was posted by the towel hut. There are pool tables, foosball, ping pong, water basketball. You have to sign out the balls at the activity hut. There was supervised rifle shooting and archery. The batting cages were closed because the pitching machine was broken. This is a cart with ceramics that you can paint for an extra charge. Small bowl was $15. You paint it, they fire it up, and its ready the next day. The man will "fix" any mistakes if you want and it comes back really nice. Boys, girls, and adults were making things. Glad my son did paint one. There is a photographer who takes pictures daily at sunset. You sign up near the towel hut during the day. He takes several poses and if you don't like the pictures, you don't pay. $10 for a 6 x 8, $35 for the next size. I saw couples, families, kids. Pictures ready the next day. One afternoon they brought out a big skillet of seafood and rice. Served with sangria. Excellent. 5 stars for activities.

Chair saving - Always easy to get a hut and pool chairs at 10am. Never had a problem. Maybe by 12 noon.

Entertainment - We went to the nightly show one night and it was too artsy for my boys. Other really liked it. Changes nightly. Lobby bar had a live band every night. We would go with the kids for a drink before going to bed. Large screen tv. Be warned that at night while lying in bed, you can hear the boom, boom, thump, thump from the music.
One night they brought in a few vendors to set up and sell their wares. I only stopped at a jewelry table. Good prices. Able to bargin with them. Another night they were making cotton candy (free) outside of the buffet .
Most days from 3 -5pm there is a mini bungee jump with a trampoline. $3 for 1 jump, $5 for two jumps. Each jump was about 5 minutes.

Grounds are beautiful and well kept. Pool tiles need some work, but overall very nice. Lobby is open air and huge. Elevators are tiny. Our family of six were smashed in there everytime. Forget having luggage with you.
There is a small hair salon on site. Boys haircut is $8, mens $10. They did a nice job. There is also a cyber cafe. $2 for 30 minutes of computer and internet use. There was usually someone working there as you need to pay $2 cash to them and they will give you a card with an access number on it. You can then log on to one of the computers.

We did the canopy tour. Pick up was by the marina. Bought our tickets at the hotel tour desk. Not for the faint of heart or those with fear of heights. Lots of fun. In case you freak out, the guides will clip on the zip line with you to take you over the really high parts. Read the forums for info on these types of tours. Well worth doing.

Beach is rocky and I mean baseball sized and larger rocks. Really not swimable. We were not expecting Cancun blue water, so no disappointment here. There are a few vendors. They are friendly and don't bother you.

Our family had a wonderful vacation at Melia and in Puerto Vallarta. For the money, it was a good deal. Just don't expect a 5 star. Even if we ate dinner out every night, it was still worth it for the breakfasts and lunches. Our boys can really eat. I can't imagine kids not having a blast here. If they are happy, then the parents can relax and enjoy themselves. It's a winner.

Stayed at the Melia April 5 to 12th. Would definitely go back. Enjoyed everything about our stay there. Great food and good selection at the buffets. Italian restaurant was very good and suprisingly not crowded. All the staff very friendly and helpful. Never a shortage of alcohol, bottled water, pop,etc. Rooms were very clean and I found the beds very comfortable. The grounds are beautiful and the staff are constantly keeping the hotel looking great. Marina is a short walk and the Malecon is about 10 minutes by taxi ($8.oo) Beach is small with very few vendors.

We spent our week long spring break vacation at Melia Puerto Vallarta and had an incredible experience there. We traveled with our 15 and 13 year olds who also thoroughly enjoyed it. I can't comment enough about the great and friendly service we had the whole trip. The pool was super and the swim up bar a lot of fun. The servers and bartenders work very hard to keep everyone happy and they do it with a smile. Never a problem getting a drink or soda refills. The food was not nearly as bad as some reviews indicated. I'm not saying it was gourmet food but even our picky child could always find something he liked, especially at breakfast, lunch and snack bar. The restaurants were not all top notch for dinner, but OK and the 2 shows that I saw were not bad either. There is plenty to do for young kids and active teens. Yes, there are some broken tiles here and there but they are constantly cleaning the grounds and it certainly would not prevent me from going back. Our room was clean, the view terrific, location good (near marina) and the overall experience very positive!

We have just returned from the Melia Puerto Vallarta. The weather was beautiful and the trip was amazing. The people are so friendly and the kids club is great. My husband and I were able to spend some time alone while the kids went off to play and participate in activities. Every night they had a mini disco for the kids before the show and after the disco, the kids stayed for the show. They had a mini-talent show and then the children put on costumes and provided the adults with an environmental show which was wonderful.

The hotel room was nice. I didn't see one bug however there are bats that fly around outside during sunset. The food was good but the atmosphere was just wonderful. They cater to families and children. I felt comfortable allowing my kids to go play ping pong or go to the theatre while at the pool. Many activities for the adults as well, dancing lessons, spanish lessons.

We went out on excursions, swimming with the dolphins and Rancho compano. Both were great experiences. The kids had a ball and the cowboys at the ranch took great care of my 6 year old and 8 year old on the horses.

I was approached once upon checking in by somone from the vacation club but told her that I wasn't interested. After that not one person approached me again. However by the 5th day, I searched them out to listen to what the club entails. That's how impressed I was with the Melia. I bought into the vacation club because the resort is family friendly but allows parents the opportunity to enjoy themselves as well. Even my husband was impressed and the kids were over the moon with this resort. We were sad to go home.