Royal Decameron Hotel Review

[raisinblur]

Royal Decameron Hotel & Resort

 

DH and I stayed at the Decameron from May 21 – May 28 for our wedding at Las Caletas on May 24. All of our 50 guests also stayed here. It located in Nuevo Vallarta, close to the town of Bucerias. It's about 20 minutes north of the airport, 40 minutes north of downtown PV.

 

Overall, we were very satisfied with the hotel. At about $55/person/night for an all-inclusive, it was about the best deal we could get. The hotel is definitely on the “budget” or “value” side, but it totally met the needs of all our guests. DH and I had to pay for 9 family members, as well as the 2 of us, so cost was definitely the biggest consideration for us. And we knew some of our friends were on a tight budget too, so we wanted things to be affordable for everyone. The beach by the resort was nice and sandy, perfect for sunbathing, swimming, kayaking and boogie boarding. (The resort provides kayaks and boogie boards for guests to use.) There are also plenty of beach chairs under palapas for lounging. No one ever had any issues with getting a beach chair any time of day. There were also plenty of lounge chairs by the pools. We liked the adult pool the best. There were lots of families with young kids vacationing there; also, a lot of locals. The resort was pretty big, so it was great for my dad who likes to just walk around. The grounds are kept very clean, with nice green grass and pretty flowers. The buildings are also vibrantly colored. We always saw hotel workers cleaning or painting. The rooms were pretty basic, but clean and comfortable. No one spent that much time in their rooms anyway, except to shower and sleep. To that end, there was plenty of hot water whenever I showered and the beds were very comfortable. There’s an AC in every room. But if you want to use the room safe, you have to pay $2 per day.

 

Now for the things we did not like about the hotel:

 

The food – the food was just ok. We all got tired of the food at the buffets after a day or two. It all kind of tasted the same after a while. The food wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t great. However, the two a-la-carte places we tried, Rodizio Grill and Piccolo, were pretty good. It was just annoying that we had to wake up really early (8am) in order to make reservations at those restaurants. And at night, the restaurants would sit half empty because people don’t show up for their reservations. If you had a party of more than 6, they would make you sit in different tables, instead of pushing tables together for you, which was annoying. One more thing, don’t order the steak from Piccolo. We went with 2 friends who both ordered their steaks “medium rare” and they both came completely well done. They weren’t even pink in the middle. But I had risotto and DH had a pasta dish, both of which were good.

 

The red wristbands – ugh, the horror of the red wristbands. We had to wear our red plastic wristbands the whole time. Of course, I made our bridal party cut off the wristbands for the wedding, but a lot of the other guests kept their wristbands on during the wedding. I didn’t want to make everyone cut it off, because then I would risk having some people lose theirs, and then have to deal with the hotel to get them another one, and convince them not to charge us for it. (The hotel said they charge $45 for each lost wristband.) So I just let people keep them on. So in our wedding photos, we see a lot of red wristbands. I was so so annoyed. But what can you do. It’ll just be another thing to remember our trip and wedding by.

 

No night swimming and no hot tubs – A friend of ours actually jumped into the pool at night after a few too many tequila shots. It was hilarious. But security quickly came and told him to get out. It would have been fun to do some swimming at night and relax in a hot tub.

 

Hotel taxis ripped us off – Not sure if this is normal for all hotels, but our hotel taxis totally overcharged us. One afternoon, we had a big group and we took 2 taxi vans to downtown. We agreed to a charge of $42 for each van. But when we arrived, our driver insisted on a charge of $48. We had no choice but to pay him, and we paid him tip on top of that too. Then we learned that the other taxi driver charged $60. wth? And on the way back, we found a taxi van that only charged us $35 to get back to the hotel. We were so mad. I would recommend just taking the bus to downtown. It’s only $2 per person. Not the most comfortable ride, but an adventure all by itself.

 

Another thing about the taxis. We had an unfortunate incident with the taxi drivers that made me even more mad. We arranged for airport transfers to/from the hotel when we booked our travel through our TA. On Tuesday, we had a smallish group leaving for the airport, and a big tour bus came to pick them up from the hotel. As the bus was trying to leave the hotel, the hotel taxi drivers blocked the drive-way and prevented the bus from leaving the hotel. We had no idea what was going on. Apparently, the taxi drivers have a deal with the hotel or the travel agencies which says that for groups less than 15 people (even though we had exactly 15 people), they must ride in their taxis, not on an outside tour bus. The guests wouldn’t have to pay the taxis for the trip, since they already paid the travel agency, but then the travel agency is suppose to pay the taxis what the guests paid them, and they would get the tip for doing the actual driving as well. So basically, the taxi drivers wanted everyone to get off the bus and ride in their taxis, so they could get paid. Our group absolutely refused to do this. (They had already loaded all their luggage on the bus, and honestly, the bus would be a much more comfortable ride.) Then a 30-minute stand-off ensued, with us yelling at the taxi drivers to let the bus through, and they were just standing there blocking the way. Long story short, there was a guy there (who doesn’t even work for the hotel or our travel agency), who was able broker a deal between all parties. I’m not even sure exactly what happened, but after another 15 minutes, the taxi drivers walked aside and the bus was able to leave. We were so mad at the taxi drivers, because first of all, they had ripped us off (see above) before. And also, we had the required 15 people on the bus. And we had a group of 52 people stay at the hotel and people took taxis into downtown every single day. I know it may not be entirely their fault, especially if they did have a deal with the hotel or travel agency, and it wasn’t being upheld. But still, it just was not pleasant having to deal with them and feeling cheated the whole time. In the end, everyone made it to the airport safely and on time, so I’m thankful for that at least.

 

Ok, I know I’ve gone off on all the things I don’t like about the hotel, but honestly, it’s a nice place. Considering all of our circumstances and budget constraints, if I had to do it all over again, I would still choose to stay here. It’s a great value for your money. The beach is beautiful. There’s a small spa with cheap massages. There are tennis courts and bikes for guests to use. And a nightly show that my parents really enjoyed. However, if we were to go back to PV with just DH and I, we would probably spend a little more money and stay at a nicer resort.

 

Hope that helps!

 

Also, the first half of this photo album has lots of pictures of the resort. All the iguana pictures and after are not of the hotel.

 

Kodakgallery.com*Join now and receive beautiful photographic prints from your camera

[Cole5worm]

Thanks for the review.. i am getting married there in about a week and a half.. we booked it for the same reasons as you! I hope i don't regret it.. I wanted the RIU Vallarta so we will see!!

[MelanieS]

I was hoping to see some wedding pics! But, I did enjoy the resort pictures. We were in PV 2 years ago and stayed at the Paradise Village condos up the beach from where you were. That whole beach area is gorgeous; you can walk for miles. Also, the sunsets are beautiful.

 

We had issues with the taxi drivers when we were there also. First of all, at the airport we were told it would be a certain amount to take us to the condo, then when we had gone a short way, he told us it would be more. We argued, but got nowhere with them. The taxi drivers are like vultures, waiting and harrassing the tourists. We started taking the bus everywhere we went - it was cheap, fun, and just about as quick.

 

On a side note, we did an AWESOME trip with Vallarta Adventures. It included ziplines and rappelling down some waterfalls. Really, really fun tour!

[raisinblur]

We got married at Las Caletas and not at the hotel. But you can see wedding pics here (link at bottom of first post):

 

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t23542

 

Coleworm, don't worry, you won't regret booking at the Decameron. We still had a ton of fun, despite the little things here and there.

[starchild]

Thanks for the review. It's great to get a variety of PV hotel info circulating, a lot of us seem to go to the same ones!

 

I am cracking up at the taxi stories because PV taxi drivers are their own breed. Some of my best PV stories revolve around taxi drivers, some were the nicest people ever and some were kind of savage but it's all part of the experience

 

Sounds like you had a great stay overall

[raisinblur]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that the hotel uses small little plastic cups for the drinks, so definitely bring your own travel mug. And also bring some floaties for the pool. You can inflate them in the gift shop for a dollar each (which is a rip-off, quite honestly, but I guess it's just a dollar). We brought a bunch for our guests and we all put them to good use at the pools.

[JaimeLynne]

Quote:

Originally Posted by starchild I am cracking up at the taxi stories because PV taxi drivers are their own breed. Some of my best PV stories revolve around taxi drivers, some were the nicest people ever and some were kind of savage but it's all part of the experience

LOL me too! We've been twice in the last year - once in December (the week before Xmas) and once in May. They were soooo much nicer right before Christmas! We had a cabbie drive us from the Westin to Le Kliff and he was so awesome we almost named our puppy after him! LOL He drove us out there but made us stop at Los Arcos and somewhere else so that he could take our pics and made sure we didn't miss beautiful sunset photo ops. Then on the way back he drove us all over town showing us the city. And, the best yet - apparently he had won some singing competition so we told him to sing for us. He totally belted it out on the way home, and he was good too! Add margaritas into that story and it was a riot. Definitely one of our fav PV moments

Ok Sounds like overall your stay at the RDC was good. Glad to hear that, and like Jamy said it is always good to hear different hotel reviews!!!

[*New* Mrs. G]

I know this thread is a bit old, but I didn't want to start a new one... Or should I??

 

So far I have been pestering them with questions, thanks in part to this forum. With every one they answer, I have a new one to ask!

 

First I was dealing with Cesar Navarro with Guest Services, although there was a bit of a communication challenge; nothing too bad.

 

HOWEVER...

 

Jennifer Parel Coordinadora de Bodas/Wedding Planner emailed me a beautiful picture of where the reception will take place. Its going to be on the grass overlooking the ocean! I am over the MOON! It's so beautiful!!

 

(Mod's - if I should start a new thread, please let me know. I will be adding to this for a while as I go along)

[*New* Mrs. G]

Here is the legal requirements for a civil marriage at this resort in PV. It is quite reasonable. I was expecting the blood test ($700 pesos), and it only costs $17.50 USD per person to translate the birth certificate. We only have to bring the BC to Mexico with us.

 

Now I'm not sure WHY the civil requirements are so different, perhaps it varies within the different (Mexican equivalent of) provinces or states.

 

AND, if it doesn't work out, FI and I already decided to go to a JP if needed.

 

I'm so happy I could....

 

 

Decameron LEGAL REQUIREMENTS-1.doc

[JKL_WeddingMexico]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MelanieS I was hoping to see some wedding pics! But, I did enjoy the resort pictures. We were in PV 2 years ago and stayed at the Paradise Village condos up the beach from where you were. That whole beach area is gorgeous; you can walk for miles. Also, the sunsets are beautiful. We had issues with the taxi drivers when we were there also. First of all, at the airport we were told it would be a certain amount to take us to the condo, then when we had gone a short way, he told us it would be more. We argued, but got nowhere with them. The taxi drivers are like vultures, waiting and harrassing the tourists. We started taking the bus everywhere we went - it was cheap, fun, and just about as quick. On a side note, we did an AWESOME trip with Vallarta Adventures. It included ziplines and rappelling down some waterfalls. Really, really fun tour!

Wow I realize this is a old post but do you remember what that excursion was called that you went on. Sounds like a lot of fun!