Bucerias or PV

[justsayin]

Planning to go on one of the Thanksgiving beach trips and I am interested in hearing from anyone who has gone to  Bucerias and PV and stayed at Hotel Royal Decameron  in Bucerias and Friendly in PV.  Which do you prefer and why? TIA!

[Yo1]

Neither

[camillenparadise]

You'd like San Pancho lots more! Quiet, good restaurants, not too big.

[justsayin]

15 minutes ago, camillenparadise said:

You'd like San Pancho lots more! Quiet, good restaurants, not too big.

Where is San Pancho? Any hotel suggestions?

[cedros]

1 hour ago, camillenparadise said:

You'd like San Pancho lots more! Quiet, good restaurants, not too big.

Bad undertow there-quite a few people have drown at San Pancho. But it is quieter and doesn't have all the sting rays that Bucerias does.

[camillenparadise]

San Pancho is an hour north of PV. I really don't recall the names of any hotels as I only drive through there on the way back from my favorite vivero, but Sr. Google can help you there.

[pappysmarket]

Pancho is the nickname for Francisco so..........San Francisco, Nayarit. No all inclusive hotels there so that won't be a choice for a Thanksgiving bus trip fro lakeside.  All all-inclusives in this neck of the woods serve up the same pluses and minuses. Pluses include all you can eat and drink, a large hotel atmosphere for meeting strangers and one price includes everything with a bus ride, whopee!

The minuses are many. Way too many people trying to get "their money's worth". They bring huge insulated cups, lug them to the bar, and tell the bartender "fill 'er up!!" They usually don't tip, hog up all the seating, get drunk and loud because after all, they paid in advance so the more they drink the cheaper it gets.  More of the same at the restaurant part, food is often mediocre, best stuff is gone quickly, especially turkey on T-Day, but there's plenty of it if you like quantity over quality.

They designate one person to get up around 5:00 and take all 20 towels to the pool to save their spaces for later, around noon or so.  For some reason, I don't know why, most of these places featured at lakeside also attract a huge Mexican family crowd at the same time.  Check the Mexican tour offers if your Spanish is good, you could save a bunch. The bus will be a little more run down but with all the children along you will get more of the true Mexican ambiance. Once checked in, Mexicans are much more adept at getting "their money's worth" than us gringos, so watch and learn. We and most of our friends all took in a couple of these trips at first and we don't know a soul who still does.

If you just have to give it a try, as many do, there are some tips that may help you return with your sanity. If you drink, which you probably do or you wouldn't waste your money on this scheme, get a seat at the bar the first day and meet the bartender. Order a normal cocktail, in their glass, and when you finish your first one give the bartender a $200 peso tip and let him know you tip for good service. Chances are you will be waited on before other people in line, which will cause a stir, but just smile. Give the same tip every day when you first sit down. It won't be too long before you are being served top shelf liquor, as long as the manager is not in the bar. Try to take your meals when they first open for each of the 3 daily meals. If you don't want to have to do that, just go off campus and dine more peacefully and on better food.  Unless you belong to the Dawn Patrol, forget the pool. It will be crowded, full of kids, don't believe what they say about Adults Only, it's only a suggestion and the kids will be peeing in it. Guaranteed. Take a cab and see some sights and be glad you have a designated room to return to and try to ignore the noise from the drunks still getting their money's worth.

You really must experience it at least once.  Happy Thanksgiving!  Oh, one more thing.  If you want to one up those 5:00 AM beach chair bums, go to the disco at night and when they close go get your own towels and laugh as you reserve your chairs 3 hours ahead of them. 

[RickS]

San Pancho is the ‘local’ name... on the maps it is San Francisco, first village north of Sayulita. 

TripAdvisor has several hotels listed in San Pancho. My fav is Boutique Hotel Cielo Rojo. 

 

[Bisbee Gal]

Have stayed in Sayulita a few times.  15 minutes from San Pancho.  Sayulita has a lot of vacation rentals.  Have never stayed in San Pancho.

https://www.sayulitalife.com/

http://sanpancholife.com/

 

[cedros]

2 hours ago, justsayin said:

Where is San Pancho? Any hotel suggestions?

The real name of the place is San Francisco.

The real name of the place is San Francisco. All there used to be there were private homes and a trailer park. Now there are quite a few hotels;

https://www.booking.com/city/mx/san-francisco.en.html?aid=383259;label=san-francisco-zHFh4lQ9lnwcTz_nT0J1GwS260994275447:pl:ta:p115:p2:ac:ap1t4:neg:fi:tiaud-462398066762:kwd-96684539:lp1010080:li:dec:dm;ws=&gclid=Cj0KCQjwnNvaBRCmARIsAOfZq-3cg5wRYpb1nvqqkOAJMa4GhBB79Wep1O5FnTlzam7-Jtgub5N02ccaAtJPEALw_wcB

 

I prefer it to Sayulita. One of the ex president's of Mexico daughter had a home there years ago so it has fairly good infrastructure. 

[camillenparadise]

Sayulita is a pit of tattoos, sewage in the streets and water. Only reason I go there is for a great haircut by Marta. Years ago, my group and I went weekly for tacos al pastor, which were great, but now there is no place to park and absolutely no sanitation. A recent wedding party of 50 just had to go for an ocean dip the night before the wedding. 49 of 50 got sick, wedding postponed, party ruined. Avoid it like the plague it is....also a den of thieves.

[daisy2013]

Decameron in Bucerias is great

[John Shrall]

There are also several hotels in Rincón de Guayabitos if you're looking for a small town adventure. With the new roads it's under 4 hours by car and the beach is much nicer than Sayulita, San Pancho or PV IMHO.

[lakeside7]

2 hours ago, daisy2013 said:

Decameron in Bucerias is great

It must have had major remodeling since I was last there....

[gringal]

13 hours ago, pappysmarket said:

Pancho is the nickname for Francisco so..........San Francisco, Nayarit. No all inclusive hotels there so that won't be a choice for a Thanksgiving bus trip fro lakeside.  All all-inclusives in this neck of the woods serve up the same pluses and minuses. Pluses include all you can eat and drink, a large hotel atmosphere for meeting strangers and one price includes everything with a bus ride, whopee!

The minuses are many. Way too many people trying to get "their money's worth". They bring huge insulated cups, lug them to the bar, and tell the bartender "fill 'er up!!" They usually don't tip, hog up all the seating, get drunk and loud because after all, they paid in advance so the more they drink the cheaper it gets.  More of the same at the restaurant part, food is often mediocre, best stuff is gone quickly, especially turkey on T-Day, but there's plenty of it if you like quantity over quality.

They designate one person to get up around 5:00 and take all 20 towels to the pool to save their spaces for later, around noon or so.  For some reason, I don't know why, most of these places featured at lakeside also attract a huge Mexican family crowd at the same time.  Check the Mexican tour offers if your Spanish is good, you could save a bunch. The bus will be a little more run down but with all the children along you will get more of the true Mexican ambiance. Once checked in, Mexicans are much more adept at getting "their money's worth" than us gringos, so watch and learn. We and most of our friends all took in a couple of these trips at first and we don't know a soul who still does.

If you just have to give it a try, as many do, there are some tips that may help you return with your sanity. If you drink, which you probably do or you wouldn't waste your money on this scheme, get a seat at the bar the first day and meet the bartender. Order a normal cocktail, in their glass, and when you finish your first one give the bartender a $200 peso tip and let him know you tip for good service. Chances are you will be waited on before other people in line, which will cause a stir, but just smile. Give the same tip every day when you first sit down. It won't be too long before you are being served top shelf liquor, as long as the manager is not in the bar. Try to take your meals when they first open for each of the 3 daily meals. If you don't want to have to do that, just go off campus and dine more peacefully and on better food.  Unless you belong to the Dawn Patrol, forget the pool. It will be crowded, full of kids, don't believe what they say about Adults Only, it's only a suggestion and the kids will be peeing in it. Guaranteed. Take a cab and see some sights and be glad you have a designated room to return to and try to ignore the noise from the drunks still getting their money's worth.

You really must experience it at least once.  Happy Thanksgiving!  Oh, one more thing.  If you want to one up those 5:00 AM beach chair bums, go to the disco at night and when they close go get your own towels and laugh as you reserve your chairs 3 hours ahead of them. 

Which hotel did this happen at? 

Anyone had a more positive experience on one of the Thanksgiving excursions? 

[pappysmarket]

It's a compilation of every one we went to and every story related by friends, with the last report being in 2016. Nobody we know has gone since. The only difference in all the reports has been the degree that what I posted was happening. Cost of the hotel seemed to be of no consequence.

YMMV

[HarryB]

loved it, pm

 

[gringal]

6 minutes ago, pappysmarket said:

It's a compilation of every one we went to and every story related by friends, with the last report being in 2016. Nobody we know has gone since. The only difference in all the reports has been the degree that what I posted was happening. Cost of the hotel seemed to be of no consequence.

YMMV

So would you mind answering the question of which ones you went to yourself?  You apparently went back more than once. I went to one about 9 years ago in Nueva Vallarta and was disappointed in the Thanksgiving dinner itself as well as some of the restaurants. T-giving dinner in that case was served outdoors on a very hot day and the "traditional" fare was far from what was served. Am wondering if any are better or have improved over the years...for anyone.  Would like to get away for a while without having to drive.

We did go to Salulita once after hearing good things about it and had no desire to return, for the reasons named above.  San Pancho is presently in the midst of a development hassle and looks like it's going to be "Paradise Lost".

[Bisbee Gal]

GG--You can fly non-stop to PV pretty cheap.  We flew and stayed in a B&B as we are not fans of resorts/hotels/motels, especially package deals that include meals.  Lots of nice restaurants to choose from.  Also many condos for vacation rental which would allow for cooking some of your own meals.  

[Bisbee Gal]

14 hours ago, camillenparadise said:

Sayulita is a pit of tattoos, sewage in the streets and water. Only reason I go there is for a great haircut by Marta. Years ago, my group and I went weekly for tacos al pastor, which were great, but now there is no place to park and absolutely no sanitation. A recent wedding party of 50 just had to go for an ocean dip the night before the wedding. 49 of 50 got sick, wedding postponed, party ruined. Avoid it like the plague it is....also a den of thieves.

Wow...things must have really gone downhill since our last visit in 2011.  

[pappysmarket]

44 minutes ago, gringal said:

So would you mind answering the question of which ones you went to yourself?  You apparently went back more than once. I went to one about 9 years ago in Nueva Vallarta and was disappointed in the Thanksgiving dinner itself as well as some of the restaurants. T-giving dinner in that case was served outdoors on a very hot day and the "traditional" fare was far from what was served. Am wondering if any are better or have improved over the years...for anyone.  Would like to get away for a while without having to drive.

We did go to Salulita once after hearing good things about it and had no desire to return, for the reasons named above.  San Pancho is presently in the midst of a development hassle and looks like it's going to be "Paradise Lost".

OK, I didn't really want to trash anyplace specifically but since you insist:  The 2 that were mentioned, Los Angeles Locos, Riu in Nuevo Vallarta, Decameron in Guayabitos and a couple more that were mentioned to us as being a big disappointment but I don't remember for sure which ones. Also we stayed at the Barcelo in Huatulco and the experience there was the same as I described. We have completely given up on all-inclusives in Mexico. It's not the hotels themselves, it's the attitude of the people that is the problem. As RV Gringo mentioned in his post about dogs in restaurants. The kind of people coming to Mexico now are very different than they used to be. But RV hit the nail on the head when he said the problem really lies with the Mexican cultural reluctance to say no to anything or anyone. I have had light hearted conversations with gerentes about why they allow pool chairs to be reserved for hours with nobody in them.  They all laughed and said it's not their job to tell guests how to behave. It's like my Mexican friend who says he doesn't use turn signals because it's nobody's business what he's going to do next.

Now one chain we used to go to but has since withered is Club Med and that type of behavior was very rare and not tolerated. If the inmates are running the asylum you can guess what it will be like and here in Mexico the inmates seem to have the upper hand.

Would LOVE to hear reports of places that are not like that.

[pappysmarket]

53 minutes ago, Bisbee Gal said:

GG--You can fly non-stop to PV pretty cheap.  We flew and stayed in a B&B as we are not fans of resorts/hotels/motels, especially package deals that include meals.  Lots of nice restaurants to choose from.  Also many condos for vacation rental which would allow for cooking some of your own meals.  

Agree!

[Ferret]

For some "all inclusive" is the same as "getting your moneys worth". Greed at its most indulgent. Not my cup of tea and it never will be. I like the planning stage of a trip (where to stay, where to eat, what to see) just as much as the trip itself.

[cedros]

17 hours ago, camillenparadise said:

Sayulita is a pit of tattoos, sewage in the streets and water. Only reason I go there is for a great haircut by Marta. Years ago, my group and I went weekly for tacos al pastor, which were great, but now there is no place to park and absolutely no sanitation. A recent wedding party of 50 just had to go for an ocean dip the night before the wedding. 49 of 50 got sick, wedding postponed, party ruined. Avoid it like the plague it is....also a den of thieves.

Yes it has been a pit since I started going there about 1990. Some things improve, others don't.

[Natasha]

22 hours ago, justsayin said:

Planning to go on one of the Thanksgiving beach trips and I am interested in hearing from anyone who has gone to  Bucerias and PV and stayed at Hotel Royal Decameron  in Bucerias and Friendly in PV.  Which do you prefer and why? TIA!

Well, we went on  the Bucerias trip many years ago and liked it just fine.  I have heard that maybe some of the food/ facilities are not quite as good any more (via friends who were the 5 years ago).  Then I went with friends to Friendly in PV at Valentine's this year (6 nights, 7 days).  I LOVED it!  No need to wonder "where will we eat today / tonight",  lots of variety in food (not necessary to make a pig of yourself), water activities (little kayaks, paddle boards, etc., ), plenty of programs each day (jazzercise, aquarobics, etc.  Rooms are fine and service was friendly and accommodating to the nth degree.

So it's all in the eye of the beholder.......... but I would have to vote for Friendly as I think they have a few more things on offer than Decameron.