47 reviews
Superb week
We went to the Vallarta Bay Secrets for a week in November. It is an adult only hotel situated right beside the Now Amber it's family oriented sister hotel.
It was our second stay at a Secrets hotel and we were not disappointed.
The Secrets is superb inside and outside, clean and very well maintained. Our room, on the 11th floor, was perfect for us; roomy and luxurious.
It was my wife's birthday and she was welcomed with a banner on our room door and a complimentary bottle of wine in the room. On 3 separate occasions at dinner, the staff went out of their way to celebrate her birthday.
The food was very good at the buffet (Market Café). We always ate there for lunch. It is not very big so your choices are a little limited but the menu varies from day to day and you can always find something new and tasty.
The a la carte restaurants do not take reservations. It's first come first serve but we never had to wait more than a few minutes to be seated.
Some of the restaurants are in the NOW but we could eat in all of them. We liked the Bordeaux (french) 2 times and the Capers (italian) best. The Himitsu (asian) was ok but the Tamarindo (mexican) was a bit disappointing. The only restaurant we were not allowed in was the one reserved for the preferred club (Oceana). We did not try all the restaurants/cafés/snack bars but all seemed to have interesting choices.
We saw a few evening shows in the theater which is also situated in the Now and they were very good. The performers were obviously pros, not the hotel staff. There is also daily entertainment by the main pool and of course all sorts of games if you like that sort of thing. In the lobby which is quite vast there is good live music or a show every night.
We always had a couple of drinks at the lobby bar before dinner. You can get all sorts of premium brands.
No problem getting a chair on the beach even if you come late. A little more crowded by the pools but certainly not impossible.
They have waiters going around the beach and the pools and they do not take forever to bring your order. A tip is of course in order there.
The staff is just great. They were all excellent. We particularly remember Carlos at the lobby bar, Alejandra, Humberto and Cesar at the Market Café and also Alberto with housekeeping.
The sand is the color of brown sugar. The water was warmer than we expected.
The beach is rocky in places. It is best to bring water shoes if you plan on taking long walks.
There are 3 pools. 2 of them are more lively (activities, games, shows, swim up bar). One is more of a quiet pool and there is also a heated whirlpool.
Sunsets are spectacular.
The gym, which we used often, is quite big and well equipped.
The Secrets Vallarta Bay is an hotel we would recommend to our friends and family without hesitation.