I stayed at the Balboa Towers in March of 2005 for spring break. The only reason we stayed at this resort was because our travel agent gave us the lowest rate if we stayed at this hotel. The hotel looks as though it is straight out of the 60's and 70's all the way down to the bedding. The stove and sink in our room didn't work at all and the cupboards with all of the dishes in them were dirty. This hotel is probably THE cheapest resort to stay at which is right on the beach and I wouldn't recommend staying there if you are looking for a nice hotel to stay in. There are plenty of other resorts along the beach which had better pools, beaches, and properties. Also, they ran out of beer several times during happy hour which is a major inconvenience for college kids on their spring break ; )

We stayed at Balboa Tower for two weeks. Although we had pre-booked and paid through a booking agency, Balboa was not expecting us. They did however make every effort to recitify the situation - I will give them that. The room was large, with an ill equipped kitchenette. There was a two burner gas "range" which was too scary to try. There appeared to be a water purifier but it was not working. There were dishes and glasses and minimal cutlery but the dishes looked like they had been used as ashtrays. Everything was old and well worn. There was no dish soap or kitchen towels; however there was a notice that were were not supposed to use the bathroom towels or facecloths for dishes. Since we stayed for only two weeks, I did not feel that I should be equipping the kitchen. Housekeeping did not always leave the appropriate towel and/or facecloth supplies, nor did they change bed sheets regularly. The tub was old, chipped and rusted and there was a water leak behind the wall in the bathroom. The beds were extremely uncomfortable - hard as cement and there was not even a decent pillow. I am surprised that RCI allows them to display their name.

upon arrival, I found an old, extremely run-down building
with one person working. He could not find my reservation and
then put me in a temporary room. I should have known right
then and there something would be drastically wrong! Since,
I had been emailing for the past 2 months. The room was
scarey, dark, bugs, old furniture falling apart with a hard bed
but I had no place to go. In the morning they changed my room
to a larger one, also deteriorated, broken up walls, fixtures,
run down kitchen area, no drainage in tub or sink, etc. In fact, I
found a notice under the door, the place was being fumigated- But,
the worst part is that this 'hotel' whicfh is apparently somehow
an RCI timeshare has absolutely no security. Although a man
generally is around the so called lobby; when I returned from
dinner, I went into my room only to find a man on my balcony!!!!
It was dark and I saw his shadow, then he coming towards me!
It turned out he was the apparent security and was ready to
attack but luckily for me I dialed for help and quickly left but I
am still unable to sleep and had the worst vacation of my life.
PS avoid Mazatlan at all costs - it is old, dirty,deteriorate and
ugly!

Balboa Towers has impressively huge rooms, all facing the ocean. The suite and the balcony take up one half of the entire floor. The sunsets are spectacular. That is the best that can be said about the place. The lobby is presentable. The place appeared clean. The 1 bedroom suite we occupied was lacking maintenance. The curtains were off their hooks, the bathtub had been painted and was peeling. It did not drain, so we stood ankle-deep in our shower water. The TV and the phone did not work. There was no drinking water in the room. These small items were corrected when we made a list of deficiencies. The kitchen had a bare minimum of cutlery and dishes. The salt and peppershakers did not have a grain of salt or pepper, no filterpaper for the coffe maker. There was no dish soap, even when we asked. The stove was some replacement 2- burner gas contraption, we were afraid to use. So much for having a kitchen. We were not willing to purchase these very basic supplies for a 1 week stay. I pity the owners of these units, they get no maintenance for their fees. Some of the owners have told me that the hotel has gone down a bit more year after year. The elevators were very pokey and I wonder when they were last inspected. I'd say stay away.