The hotel is a rustic one reflecting the stone/rock ruins nearby...its not what you think of typically but the people are charming, everything is within walking distance, acapulco is 6 hrs away by bus and..we loved the staff. Juan in particular is in charge of the trips in the local area. I highly recommend asking for the delfiniti trip if you love dolphins! if u need more info, id say to drop me a line

Puerta del Mar is a quiet, 6 floor hotel located about 10 minutes walking distance from the beach. It has a definite Mexican feel to it, so if you are looking more for an American-type luxury hotel, move on to the Barcelo or Presidente. These hotels are nicer and beachfront but very busy. For those that want to feel the Mexican culture, you may enjoy this place. The reception area is an outdoor palapa where the staff is nice and speak fairly decent English. There is a tour excursion desk which offers all the basic tours but they do not accept credit cards. There is a restaurant on premises that serves all meals and will do room service but we did not eat there.

The room that we stayed in was a timeshare 1 bedroom suite, with small kitchen, eating area and living room (converts to 2nd sleeping area) and 2 full bathrooms with a balcony overlooking the nice pool area. It does have A.C. and fans which can be loud...so bring earplugs if this bothers you. The master has a (hard) king size bed but there is an eggcrate on it, which helps a little. Pillows are flat and the towels are oversized, but not fluffy. There is 1 small TV in the living area with mostly Spanish channels, so do not expect CBS/NBC/HBO, etc. After all, we are in Mexico. If you are travelling with more than 2 people, the extra full bathroom and the "couch"-bed conversions were perfect for 4 people. The kitchen has a fridge, 2 electric burners, microwave, coffee pot, blender, etc. along with pots, plates, utensils, etc. On arrival, they did provide us with a 19L jug of bottled water which was very convenient and we were only charged $3 for it. There is a grocery store about a block away where you can buy eggs, fruits, milk, juices & other drinks, cereal, Mexican pastries, snacks, etc. for a decent price. There is a mini-mart on the premises, but it is MINI.

There are 3 nice, clean pools with a slide & hot tub with shaded palapas and beach chairs to lay out. The reception area provides beach towels. There is a playground for kids, volleyball net and 2 ping-pong tables.

Overall, this place was clean and staff was nice. Housekeepers come in everyday to clean but only change the sheets 2x/week. It is an adequate place to stay if you are not looking for luxury and not picky. I emphasize the Mexican feel again, so fair warning. The worse thing for me was the 10 min. walk to the beach, only because I spent much time there. All the restaurants and shopping are walking distance on the "main drag" so taxis are not necessary. Hope all this helped if you are planning a stay @ Puerta del Mar!

We had a very nice stay at Puerta Del Mar. I have to say the place was clean, but the beds are to hard(had to get an air matress). The bar and resturant were excellent both service and quality. Thank you to Gabrella and staff. We spent more time there then in the room. See Juan to hook you up for things to do. Nice guy. Looking forward to coming back.

Do not go here if you want to be housed in a sterile fancy schmancy hotel environment. Definitely go here if you want to feel like you are actually in Mexico. The help is warm and friendly but their English is limited. My wife and I speak limited Spanish but we always ended up figuring out a way to communicate. The rooms are clean but clearly constructed in the "Mexican" style, a little rough around the edges but solid and functional. We loved it, but, at the risk of sounding catty, might not have if some of the people who panned this place had decided to stay there. They should defintintely go to the Barcelo. We sat through a sales pitch there and decided NOT to stay. It would have been like Cancun, Palm Beach, Alcapulco etc. By the way, if you go to Puerta del Mar, say hi to Gabriella at the bar. She's great!