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Friendly Vallarta Resort: Traveler Reviews

3.0 of 5
Km 2.5 Blvd. Francisco Medina Ascencio, Puerto Vallarta 48300, Mexico (Formerly Friendly Hola Vallarta Resort and Spa)
Hotel amenities
Friendly Vallarta Resort
Ranked #21 of 117 hotels in Puerto Vallarta
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1,104 reviews from our community

Traveler rating
    407
    396
    158
    83
    60
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Families
241
 
Couples
386
 
Solo
38
 
Business
7
 
Rating summary
  • Location
    4.5 of 5 stars
  • Sleep Quality
    3.5 of 5 stars
  • Rooms
    3.5 of 5 stars
  • Service
    4.5 of 5 stars
  • Value
    4 of 5 stars
  • Cleanliness
    4.5 of 5 stars
Date Rating
Saskatoon, Canada
Contributor
12 reviews 12 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
“Amazing Staff”
4 of 5 stars Reviewed December 1, 2012

Just returned from a week long stay here.What a wonderful holiday.The staff are amazing,they are the heart of this hotel and make you feel so welcome.The hotel is in an excellent location.You can either walk or take a short taxi ride anywhere,and your right on the beach.Perfect for moonlight walks on the beach.
The food was good.Plenty of variety.I have Celiac and found there was plenty to eat for me.
The hotel room is very basic.But,the maid kept it clean.The pool is lovely and clean,and we loved the infinity pool.Check in and out is easy.
There is entertainment every evening.Mainly done by the wonderful activities staff.
Just a couple of negative things.Take ear plugs to sleep.Its very noisy at night.Also,i did request a wake up call for our excursion and didnt get one.So,a travel alarm would be a good idea to take there.
Overall i loved this hotel and would return there again and would recomend it to anyone.

  • Stayed November 2012, traveled as a couple
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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Ask June R about Friendly Vallarta Resort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Friendly V, Gerente at Friendly Vallarta Resort, responded to this review
December 6, 2012
Hi June R!

Thank you for choosing our hotel to enjoy of your holiday. We loved to read about your experience with us. We regret the inconvenience during the shows in the evening, but we try to finish at 10:00 pm, this way all our guests can sleep well. Please feel free to come back anytime! See you soon :)
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Lake Country, British Columbia Canada
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
6 hotel reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
13 helpful votes 13 helpful votes
“The waiters make the place.”
2 of 5 stars Reviewed November 29, 2012

I have travelled extensively in Mexico and have been to PV many times.. first time to this hotel .. party of 4 .. 2 sharing a room on 5 th floor.. I was disappointed when i arrived to this resort... the rooms are extremely outdated... both bathrooms did not have ventillation .. no fan.. mold in bathroom and floor and under sink was gross.. towels were very old and scratchy on the skin. had to ask for extra towels.. not very impressive.

the food was okay but again not a 4 star.. spoke to many people who feel the same way... not many choices of food...

the waiters.. especially Vicente.. Jose.. and Johnny and Carlos was excellent.. we tipped all the time and got great service from these wonderful guys....

we would not stay at this resort again.. there are too many other choices in PV to stay.. this is not a 4 star .. only a 3 star...

if you have stayed at 4 stars before you will know what i mean by this resort being a 3 star..

very noisey had to close patio doors and put ac on to drown out the noise from below... i stayed at the golden crown last time and am sorry i did not pic that hotel again.. also a 4 star.. but much much better than this one... many restaurants to choose at the golden crown than this one.. the floors in the hotel were not clean... like they should be...

This hotel needs a big overhaul... its a great location.. but needs lots of work... some people saw roaches in their room..... we did not experience that.. had we.... i would insist to be moved to another resort..

I will not stay here again...

  • Stayed November 2012, traveled with friends
    • 2 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 2 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 2 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 2 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
Was this review helpful? Yes 1
Ask catlady051 about Friendly Vallarta Resort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Friendly V, Gerente at Friendly Vallarta Resort, responded to this review
December 3, 2012
Hi catlady051!

Thank you very much for choosing our hotel, we regret this unpleasant experience, we are happy to know that you enjoyed your holiday with all our staff. We know it will always be a challenge to satisfy all our guests, but we'll keep trying!. We want you to know that in Friendly Vallarta we have a contract with a company dedicated to the fumigation of all our areas. We value your opinion and we will not contradict you, and also appreciate all your suggestions, but this has been a unique case, because we had never received such complaints like this. The name of the company we are working with is "Control Integrado de Plagas del Pacífico" and they use different chemicals in the rooms: Protegonal, Cipermix, Killer 200 among others. Anyone reading this information can verify this with the company. We have remodeled our rooms, we build new bathrooms at the beach, we remodeled the lobby area, restaurants among other things. All this to satisfy our guests. We hope you come back soon, and you can see that what happened will never happen again in our hotel, we guarantee :)
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Port Alberni, Canada
1 review
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
“True to it's name.."Friendly"”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed November 26, 2012

This is my 5th. trip to Puerta Vallarta each at different hotels. Having only a week to stay this time I once again turned to the reviews and chose "Friendly Vallarta" due to the great comments. My travel partner and I (2 gals in early 60's) weren't disappointed by our choice. The staff was amazing - reviews mentioned Carlos and Abraham at the beach, Sergio at Sunrise Grill, Manuel at the front desk - easy to find out why everyone loves them, but the list goes on and on...the entire staff needs commendation!!! My friend had 2 massages at the Spa and would have loved to have had more. We looked forward to each meal, so many choices and something for everyone of all ages...really enjoyed the Gourmet Restaurant. The food at the beach barbecue was something not to miss, including turkey with all the trimmings for US Remembrance Day and entertainment fabulous. For snack treat one afternoon a very large red snapper was barbecued at the beach - lots of cameras came out for that. Many Mexican families during our stay as there was a large youth soccer tournament on and it was the Commemoration of the Revolution - they all added to the enjoyment of our stay - also adding extra Mexican food choices. The ocean water was warmer than the pool - the dolphins were leaping - the sunsets were amazing - the fancy drinks and cervezas were non stop - we were fortunate to be given one of the penthouse rooms with outstanding views - what more can one ask for on a fantastic beach vacation. I will definately be coming back, this time bringing my husband!!

Room Tip: We were fortunate to be on the Penthouse floor, but speaking to other travellers they were happiest...
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  • Stayed November 2012, traveled with friends
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 4 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
Was this review helpful? Yes 2
Ask alberni1950 about Friendly Vallarta Resort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Friendly V, Gerente at Friendly Vallarta Resort, responded to this review
November 27, 2012
Hi alberni1950!

Thank you for choosing our hotel to enjoy of your holiday. We loved to read about your experience with us, please feel free to come back anytime! See you soon :)
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Reviewer
3 reviews 3 reviews
3 hotel reviews
Reviews in 3 cities Reviews in 3 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
“The people make the place awesome”
3 of 5 stars Reviewed November 24, 2012

Friendly was a nice resort to stay at, it was close to shopping and the marina (handy for many excursions) and only a short cab / bus ride to the downtown and the malacon. The staff here are AMAZING and friendly and is the only thing that would make us go there a second time. The food was good but the same every day. It was like a camp food style buffet and by the third day we were all tired of it (3 of our group started getting cramps, not severe but we started eating elsewhere for most meals, even Pizza Hut when we where staying in). If you are an early to bed early riser definitely stay in the tower, the higher the better because it can get loud. We unfortunately experienced a lot of that as the resort took in 600 young college kids who were drinking partying etc for a whole week. At one point they were screwing in the pool and basically took over. We took our young children with us and we just left for the week (just sleeping there) and as soon as the college kids were gone it returned to normal. Friendly is a great stay if you are trying to learn Spanish as a lot of locals stay there and everybody is really social and friendly. Our young children fell in love with the staff and the staff fell in love with them, do it is a kid friendly environment, there is a kids club most days and the kids have a chance to make friends and do activities. Friendly was a good safe spot for an all inclusive kid friendly resort .

  • Stayed November 2012
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 3 of 5 stars Location
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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Ask Jolleypop0312 about Friendly Vallarta Resort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Friendly V, Gerente at Friendly Vallarta Resort, responded to this review
November 27, 2012
Hi Jolleypop0312!

Thank you very much for sharing your experience with us and also for your suggestions, we are pleased that you enjoyed your stay and hope you come back soon. We will be happy to welcome you back the day you choose. See you soon! :)
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Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Senior Reviewer
10 reviews 10 reviews
7 hotel reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
24 helpful votes 24 helpful votes
“Hola”
3 of 5 stars Reviewed November 22, 2012

Went to Friendly as part of a vacation package. A smaller hotel but with all you really need. The staff are terrific and work very hard. The hotel has just a few dining options which is fine for me but might not suit those that go to an all inclusive to eat.

Room Tip: Corner suites in the lower buildings have soaker tubs.
See more room tips
  • Stayed November 2012, traveled with family
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
Was this review helpful? Yes 6
Ask dljames about Friendly Vallarta Resort
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Friendly V, Gerente at Friendly Vallarta Resort, responded to this review
November 23, 2012
Hi dljames!

Thanks for sharing your experience, has been a pleasure to read everything you've written. We have an All Inclusive service with food and drinks during 24 hrs with many options, but certainly always going to be a challenge to satisfy all our guests, we work harder every day to continue offering a quality service and the suggestions are helpful. We would love to see you soon! :)
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Additional Information about Friendly Vallarta Resort

Also Known As:
Hola Puerto Vallarta
Hola Puerto Vallarta Club & Spa
Hola Puerto Vallarta Club Spa
Hola Vallarta
Hola Puerta Vallarta
Hola Hotel Puerto Vallarta
Hola Puerto Vallarta Resort
Hola Club Puerto Vallarta
Hola Puerto Vallarta Club
Hotel Hola Vallarta
Address: Km 2.5 Blvd. Francisco Medina Ascencio, Puerto Vallarta 48300, Mexico (Formerly Friendly Hola Vallarta Resort and Spa)
Region: Mexico > Jalisco > Puerto Vallarta
Amenities:
Bar/Lounge Beach Business Center Fitness Center Free High-Speed Internet Free Parking Kids Activities Restaurant Room Service Suites Swimming Pool Wheelchair access
Hotel Style:
#8 Top resorts Hotels in Puerto Vallarta
#11 Family Hotels in Puerto Vallarta
#11 On the Beach Hotels in Puerto Vallarta
Price Range: $$
Hotel Class:3 star (3*)
Official Description (provided by the hotel):
An oceanfront hotel in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.100% Family. Renovated Rooms. Friendly Staff. Wide beach. Food Variety. 24-hour food and beverage program. Unlimited domestic alcoholic beverages, and non-alcoholic drinks. Main pool with children's wading area. Indoor and outdoor "Kid’s Club" with fully supervised children's activities. Gym and Spa. Entertainment room. Daily activity programs. Nightly entertainment and weekly live shows. ... more   less 
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