The Palladium is a very nice hotel. It is not five-star as some places will claim. It is very clean and great for a vacation with girlfriends. Lots of young people there to have fun with.

Food:
The main buffet is great. Unlike many resorts, they have a HUGE selection of salad fixings. Green lettuce, lots of veggies and dressings. Every day there is something new for main courses. Also a great nacho bar every day.

Viva was good the first night and not the next. The pumpkin soup was amazing. The stuffed crab was good and the Mexican platter was very good. Service and food were great the first time we ate there. The second our waiter was cold as was our food.

Portafino was amazing. The ceaser and stuffed mushroom salads were out of this world. The soups were OK. We had the vegetable lasagna and beef dish. Both were great. Service there is amazing. Must get Spanish coffee here. Delicous and un presentation.

The beach BBQ was good. The meat was very tender, but if you don't like meat, there is not much to choose from. Also, bring bug replant of the sand fleas will eat you alive.

Bars:
Lobby bar: rude staff, watered down drinks.
Secret bar: fast service, cold beer.
Beach bar: OK, nothing special.
Hemmingways: The place to be. Adults only, amazing mojitos and Marcelino, the funnest bartender in Mexico.

Pools:
Main: overrun with kids. Loud.
Adult: amazing! So great to get away from the kids and awesome views.

Zoo:
Very fun for all ages. I work at a Zoo in the US and can say that the animals look very well cared for.

Entertainment:
The shows were actually very good. Much better than I have seen many places. Great dancing. make sure to catch at least one.

Gym:
Much better than most. Lots of equipment. Only downside was it was not air-conditioned.

Things to bring:
Bubba keg cup (available at Wal-Mart) to keep your drinks cold.
Portable alarm clock as your room does not have one and we did not receive the wake-up calls we asked for.
Bug spray.

Overall this was a really nice hotel.

I stayed here from April 26-May3, 2008. I must say that the grounds of this resort are exceptional. It is full of many plants and trees, some of which have the names of the species. So if you want to know what a banana tree looks like or the agave plant from which tequila is made from you can do so by reading the name plates. The zoo is alot of fun, different varieties of animals, the peacocks would walk around the grounds, soif you have a bird phobia be on guard. I am in my early 20s so walking in this resort was welcomed. I must say there is alot of ground to cover and alot of stairs to climb, so if there is any reason why walking alot may debulitate you I would not suggest this resort. The food was decent. Large buffet so you could pick and choose what you wanted to try each day. Snack bars were good too. Nobody got sick in my group, the food was well prepared. Portofino I think was the best restaurant. The pools were really nice. The main pool is basically rued by children and families. The adult pool is really nice to get away from the kids, and is super relaxing with a beautiful view. Oh, the views are outstanding. Staff was super friendly and would really try their best to give you a good service. Bars were plenty and drinks were delicious. OK, so the shows at night....I thought they were not up to par, and yes I know it is a resort show but the concepts were confusing and choreograpy not so good, BUT.....for some reason we kept going back to see the shows. The enthusiasm was there at least. Oh, and before the shows they usually have a mariachi band or singing band that will perform wonderful spansh music by the lobby bar....that was a nice touch. Overall, I would be more than willing to coem back here!!

I'll keep this short and sweet, since some reviews tend to go on and on, without getting to the nitty-gritty:

ROOMS: Clean, but pretty ugly furnishings (Think Holiday Inn, not Shangri La). Our room (2301, building 2) had hairline cracks in the bathroom sink, chips on the white sink tap, and the shower diverter's pull top had been unscrewed. We did have a very nice view, though--lawns, palm trees, and the Pacific Ocean.

HOUSEKEEPING: Very good. I saw that the stone floors in our room had been mopped several times during our stay--very clean. We tipped a few bucks a day.

HOTEL GROUNDS: Beautiful! There's a zoo in the middle of the property, with monkeys, ostriches, deer, peacocks, parrots, and a kind of mexican raccoon. There was also a botanical garden, and covered pathways between different parts of the hotel. Once in awhile, it smelled a bit bad near the family pool....I don't know if it was an irrigation problem, or it was coming from the zoo.....

POOLS: There are two pools, the family pool in the middle of the resort, and the adult-only pool on the south side. We spent all of our time in the adults only area (where the "Relax Bar" is). The kids side was TEAMING with families, and it was so loud (due to kids and onsite entertainment) that we stayed well enough away. The adult pool was smaller, but inviting. My biggest complaint was the music--depressing Michael Bolton ballads, and 80's sob songs. Ironically, the kiddie pool had much better music. We tried to request something a little lighter, but we were told by bartending staff that the music was pre-determined. The Beatles were as close as we came to fun, uplifting music.

FOOD: If people say that the buffet here is great, they must be eating at "Uncle Willy's" all the time (if you're from Vancouver, Canada, you know what I'm talking about). At least we lost weight! The only decent food was at the "reservation only" restaurants at the hotel (we went to Viva Mexico and Portofino), and then you only got 3 reservations for a 7 night stay. So three good meals out of 21 (breakfast, lunch, dinner). Do the math. My guy lost 10 lbs.

GYM: All the essentials. One woman was complaining there was no stair master---my God, lady! It's Mexico!!! (they have an elliptical, two treadmills and a few stationary bikes), as well as freeweights, etc.

That's all, folks!

Boyfriend and I did a lot of research and read the reviews on here extensively and found them quite helpful. We were looking for an affordable vacation away from the 'spring break' feeling of the east coast. Both of us are in our late 30's. Heres a recap of our experiences:

Getting there: Skyservice flight was on time and comfortable. Lots of time share sharks at the airport - beware. Just plow through them and get out. The Palladium has its own bus to take you to the resort - just ask the bus drivers which one.

Check In: We were dropped off at the main resort lobby. We had upgraded prior to leaving to the Royal Suites section so it was just a matter of walking over to that smaller lobby next door. A nice young man took our luggage to our room (great since there are no elevators). Check in was speedy and there was only one other couple ahead of us. Small bar in this Royal Suites side - very quiet section. Didn't find the bar tender here overally friendly but I guess they can't be 'on' all the time.

The Room: Fabulous. Can't say enough good things. Very clean. Furniture is a good quality. Spacious. Our room had the jacuzzi in the bathroom - which was huge. Some rooms had the jacuzzi right in the bed room which was also nice. Large sitting area and balcony. We were on the 3rd floor of the 4th building so we had a palapa roof which was very nice. Our room overlooked the mountains and part of the main resort section (the theatre area). It could get very noisy at night from the shows going on below but this just added to the festive atmosphere and once you shut the balcony doors the sounds were muffled. The bed, despite what we read about them being hard and uncomfortable, was MASSIVE king size and very comfortable. No problems here.

The Service: Well....this is where we felt a little let down. The MAID: We know the tipping routine and have no problems with this. But here it was a bit ridiculous. Every day we left the maid 2$ US and sometimes a note in Spanish requesting more water, towels etc. Usually when we got back to the room we'd find the money was gone, the room was cleaned, but we had NO towels (not even a face cloth), no water, beer etc. No turn down service in the evening. My boyfriend would have to go searching for the maid to request these things later and on one occassion she actually just went into someone else's room and took THEIR supplies and gave them too us - weird. She was always very friendly, a young girl who didn't speak a lot of English but thats ok - we're in Mexico afterall. But for 2 of the days that we were there we had a different maid who was fabulous. Always lots of towels, beer, water, and a turn down service in the evening. So it depended who was working.
The Bartenders: At the main bar near the theatre it was always crowded in the evenings but the service was quick. Not overally friendly but the guys really did look over worked and short staffed. Again, we'd tip (everyone else was, so we figured we'd better too to try and ensure good service I guess) but it never really made a difference in the service at all. They take your money like its expected. At the Royal Suites pool bar there was one particular tender who was rather rude. My boyfriend gave him a decent tip on our first night and on our third night he had asked for some Baileys but was told they were out and the guy was giving him some domestic brand. My boyfriend asked if there was any way to get the real stuff (they're suposed to have international on this section) and he just shrugged his shoulders and said "nope". So not very helpful or eager to please by any means. In the Punta Mita restaurant the service was usually good but slow. On one afternoon we went for lunch, sat there for almost 45minutes without getting served and ended up going to our room to order room service! In the main buffet at the main section you can almost forget ever seeing a bus boy let alone a waiter. Be prepared to bus your own table (if you can find one). The front desk people looked completely overrun at the main section but were always helpful - you just have to be patient. Theres a rather menacing fella with tattos sitting at the Guest Services desk who looks miserable and unfriendly, but we actually found him to be quite helpful - looks are deceiving! The Royal Suites section also has its own pool/beach guy who wanders around offering drinks and fruit kabobs. He's nice. But don't think that tipping will get you anywhere. His presence was sporatic - some days we never saw him at all. Finally, our patio light never worked so at night we sat in darkness. We'd asked for the first 3 days about having it fixed and were assured each time this would be done but after day 3 we gave up. Not a big deal really.

The Resort itself: Beautiful and well kept. The grounds were manicured, lucious, and tasteful. There are nice little pathways to go for walks, a small zoo that doesnt look out of place at all, and LOTS OF SHADE if you need it. The main seating areas including the terraced area in front of the theatre, the main bar area etc, all have beautiful wrought iron furniture and comfortable chairs/sofas. The beaches are ok. Nice to look at but too rough for swimming. We knew not to expect the blue blue sea of the other coast or the white sand. The Pacific side has its own kind of beauty with the big rocks, pounding waves etc. Lots of chairs for lounging on the beach - never a shortage. The pools were great too. Theres the Royal Suites section pool was SUPURB! Its two tierd, almost looks like the Infinity pool. The temperature is great,always lots of chairs and shade too. Its adults only. Don't even worry a bit about having to 'reserve' a chair. Often we'd wander down around 9 or 10 am and there were always LOTS of chairs available. No towel games here. It seemed that the same could be said of the Infinit pool and main family pool in the main section too. On the last day we were there there was a group in who did in fact play the towel game - must have come down early and spread their towels over 8 of the best chairs and then disappeard for the better part of the day! Very frustrating but this was the only day we encountered this.

The FOOD: Wow. I don't even know where to begin. We had 24hr room service and were very thankful for that at times! The staff who deliver are fantastic and you def don't mind tipping these guys - they work really hard and are always polite. If you stay on the Royal Suites side you have access to the Punta Mita restaurant beside the Royal Suites pool. Its like an ala cart for breakfast, lunch and supper but you never have to reserve it. The menu changes, which is nice and the food is very good. Theres also a small buffet there if you prefer not to order from the menu. No complaints here at all. The view is fantastic too. I felt so bad for those who had to eat in the buffet in the main resort section though. We did a few times, just for change. AWFUL! So crowded - just CHAOTIC is the best word. The food was ice cold and really, it looked like unrecognizable slop for the most part. I read reviews about the food before we left and just thought those people writing them were just too picky. But they weren't!!!! Its just awful. And NO CHANGES! I mean it. They serve the same stuff for supper that they served for lunch and every single day its the same stuff. Gross. Thats all I can say. Add to that the fact that you can never get a table at peak times. Its loud and noisy - like a high school cafeteria. Lots of Mexican's seem to go to this resort and they tend to travel in groups of at least 15. Not that this is a bad thing, but it just adds to the chaotic feeling and you definately dont feel like you're at a relaxing resort when you're in this buffet! From what we could tell, there was only the one main buffet. So choices were limited. There is a sports bar near the theatre that serves popcorn, tacos, hot dogs and that sort of thing. Theres also a beach kiosk but we never ate there so I can't comment. Ok now re the ala cartes: Don't worry when they tell you to be in the main lobby by 9am on Sunday to book your ala carts. We slept in. We got down there about 1pm and thought, ah well..we'll ask anyway (thinking we'd missed our opportunity). Ask the tattooed guy at the guest services desk. We had no problems at all! Got our choice of seatings in any of the three restaurants and the beach bbq. On our night of arrival as well we were able to book the Mexican one. As it turns out, we were in PV and missed our Mexican one which I hear is very good. We did do the Italian one - a bit of a disappointment. I had the prawns - 3 big ones but they tasted mushy and kind of gross. Bit still, it was a nice change although I would have preferred to eat in the Punta Mita restaurant. The beach bbq was ok. Kind of sloppy looking - the area where you sit. Try and get a sitting after 730 pm to catch the sun set. The food at the beach bbq was the usual fair - corn on the cob, chicken, ribs. They don't give you a whole lot but its tastey.

Excursions: We did the PV city tour. Hmm...I think honestly you'd be better off to save your money and just go into town on the city bus (which we also did later). But then again, it was a great intro to the city, the bus is air conditioned and picks you right up at the resort and the guide was fantastic. Plus we did a lot of the coastline outside the city limits so that was nice. We also took the bus once at the top of the street near the resort (comes every 20min) into town. What an experience! It cost 20p for the both of us. You go with the locals - usually workers going home. Ask the driver if he's going to Walmart and get off there. You'll see the cruise ships across the street. From Walmart you can take the bus right into town, or do what we did and jump in a taxi for 5$US and they take you right to the boardwalk in the center of town. Can't beat that! We spent the evening in PV and it was very nice. Took a cab home around 11pm and it only cost 40$US right to the hotel. Considering its almost an hour drive I think thats excellent.
We also did the Vallarta Adventures Sierre Madre tour. Wow. Can't say enough about Vallarta Adventures. Their guides are well trained, educated and FUN! This was well worth the money. The beach bbq at the end of this tour is OUTSTANDING and on a BEAUTIFUL secluded beach thats great for swimming in. Be prepared to drink lots of tequila and beer with your guide on the ride home! Lots of fun. Small group of about 10. Can't say enough good things. I hear also the other excursions offered by Vallarta Adventures are great too - especially the Outdoor Adventurer one. I'm a little shy of heights so zipping over canopys and repelling down waterfalls was a bit scary for me. The Sierre Madre tour is a good alternative for the faint at heart!

Summary: I think, for the money the Palladium is great. We saw some rooms in the main section and they seemed very nice too. If you can though, I highly recommend the Royal Suites section. Have fun! And I hope this review helped.