We booked our honeymoon through a frontier airlines package and got a great deal that enabled us to stay in Puerto Vallarta for 11 days. The Presidente was a good honeymoon hotel ... it is fairly isolated south of town on a pretty and private beach. There are only 120 rooms. It was quiet and private and perfect for our honeymoon.

The staff at the hotel was great. They were all friendly and helpful. However, when things got busy, it could take a while to get your food.

The pool was nice. We wished the beach was a little longer so that we could have taken some walks. The ocean was nice and refreshing even if at times the current was fairly strong. Sunsets were amazing and all the rooms face the ocean and have balconies. The food was a bit expensive and there was a per person cover charge for the two restaurants, but not for the pool bar restaurant. The food was good, but not great. The $10 taxi ride or $1 bus ride to town was a better option for dinner (try El Arayan, Daquari Dick's, and Trio). We tended to go to town about 6 and do some shopping and then eat at about 8.

The rooms were clean and nice, nothing spectacular, But they were plenty big, as was the bathroom.

Carlos at the pool rents kayaks, snorkeling gear, and body boards. He can also arrange for a boat to go to Los Arcos (7 minute ride) and some of the private beaches like Yelapa (45+ minutes). It was cheaper for us to rent our own boat and captain and have him pick us up right at the hotel, than to go on one of the tours and pay the taxi and just come right back past the hotel. And that way we could go exactly where we wanted, when we wanted, and stay however long we wanted. We spent about $180 for 4 1/2 hours. There was only two of us, but the boat would have held a half dozen or more. And our captain was very friendly.

This hotel is closer to downtown Puerto Vallarta than the hotels in Nuevo Vallarta, but if you want to do things in Nuevo Vallarta you'll be talking about a 45 minute $30 taxi ride each way. We did this to do the royal dolphin swim at sea life park (about $150 each) and it was great. Also, the taxi fair to and from the airport was $18 each way.

Overall I would say this is a good honeymoon spot. The hotel would be okay for kids and families, but some of the bigger Nuevo Vallarta hotels would probably be better. And if you are going to do a lot of tours and activities, this also might not be the best place. But for sitting at the pool, having a romantic honeymoon, and going into town for dinner, this was a great choice and we were very happy with it and the staff.

I stayed at this hotel twenty five years ago, so I decided to try it again on my recent trip. The resort was newly renovated and very clean. The rooms were oversized and decorated very well. The hotel staff was very professional and catered to our every need. When we checked out, there were no unexpected charges on our bill. Because the resort is five miles south of town, we were able to enjoy the peace and quiet we so desperately needed without the hustle of the party crowd and the traffic of town. There was a seperate internet room, fully furnished with five guest computers and high speed internet. The hotel was installing this feature in each room while we were there. The hotel food was superb. The in-house Italian restaurant should be given five stars.
Overall, we enjoyed our stay in every way. We were very comfortable in this class establishment.

We read several of the reviews here prior to booking this hotel, so let me first say that we had an excellent experience. But let me also start by addressing some of the complaints we heard:

Hard Beds/Pillows: These may not be pillow top mattresses, but unless that is your standard, the beds & pillows are just fine and we wouldn't have even thought to notice them if we hadn't heard otherwise. I would describe them as comfortable, but firm. But that is what we prefer, so no complaints here!

Too far out of town: Yes, this is south of town, but in our minds this was a plus. We felt the quiet peace of this hotel's setting, and enjoyed being away from the commotion of downtown. It was so nice to be able to relax without any traffic/city noise. And it is easy to get to town if you need to. We went to town 3/5 nights, and it was about 60 cents each on the bus and ~$10 by taxi. Both were very convenient, just pick your price.

As far as things I recommend: The service is great! We were upgraded to a 9th floor suite with a jacuzzi in the room at no extra cost (we booked a 3rd or 4th floor standard room). They didn't give us a reason (such as overbooked, etc), we were just notified of this at checkin. All of the staff are very friendly and helpful. Next, the setting is beautiful! You can't beat the beach and we had a view of Los Arcos. Also, the pool was very clean, the only complaint is that it is closed at night. The setting is northwest facing, limiting morning sun which others have mentioned, but guess what - when you don't get morning sun you get excellent afternoon light!

Things to do: We rented their kayaks and went to Los Arcos, very fun and much more exciting than a tour boat. Also, if you take the bus South down to Boca La Tomatlan you can take water taxis to other beaches.

One other thing. Some people have mentioned suprise fees. We booked through the hotel website, and yes, there were quite a few fees, but they were all spelled out very clearly, so if you are aware of this ahead time you can factor it into your cost. We chose the breakfast included option, and their buffet was amazing! It was only available on the weekend, but this was a slow time and hardly anyone was there, so I imagine they would do the buffet all the time during the busy times. Either way, when the buffet wasn't available the ordered breakfasts were excellent.

Overall, the food was great - but outside of the inclusive breakfasts the price for the food/drinks was a bit pricey relative to town. If you plan on eating there a lot, maybe get the all-inclusive option... otherwise, just something to be aware of.

So maybe we prefer being out of town and firm mattresses, and if you don't, this isn't the place for you, but if you like those things - I would recommend this hotel to anyone.

The location of this hotel is excellent. Sierra Madre Mountains as a back drop, and all rooms have ocean views. The beach is small, but as good as beach gets in P.V.

The lobby area has great open space, nice decor, and wonderful ocean views. The rooms also have great views, especially the highter floors, but the decor is outdated, the towels are worn and rough, some of the tiles, dented or broken, the furniture stained. However the room was clean as well as bedding. Bed and pillow were very comfortable.

The staff, especially Abril, and Esmeralda, were rude. Some of the other staff were just a bit distant and cold. There are some staff, such as Douglas, and Julio who were very professional and friendly. Julio is a manager who was very recently transferred from another location and working on improving guests experience.

The breakfast buffet was good albeit a bit pricey, but during lower season, buffet no available, and the three times I ordered room service, the food was still expensive, but not tastey, and some just plain bad; old greasy hasbrown patties, tiny portion of fruit plate with browning bananna and old mango.

Was particularly dissapointed with the service. Although in the end Julio, new hotel manager, was helpful and flexible, and Douglas was just professional, friendly and with great customer service skills, but much of the other staff, especially Abril and Esmeralda, were just plain rude.

Most of all, BEWARE OF THE SURPRIZE EXTRA CHARGES THAT WILL BE ADDED TO YOU TAB AS A "SERVICE FEE" for every night of stay. A four star hotel should not charge gusts extra for using coffee in the room. They should not charge extra for providing towes, or access to a gym. They should not charge a service fee for a childrinds activity center that was closed the whole time I was there. I just felt like I had to be on the defensive at this hotel to avoid being taken advantage of (after a few bad expriences.)