The All Inclusive

Since this was our first ever all-inclusive package, we really didn't know what to expect. We knew that all meals, snacks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages (except bottled water, strangely enough) were included. Airfare, hotel and airport shuttles were also included. So were gratuities, although we did tip our housekeeper and the waitstaff at the buffet restaurant because they worked so hard and were the friendliest, warmest staff we'd ever known. Despite having to work hard and for long hours, they were always cheerful. From returning guests, we learned that most of the staff had been with the hotel for many years.

In addition to the buffet restaurant, there is an Italian and a Mexican restaurant in the hotel. They are included, as well, but you have to make advanced reservations for them. We didn't try either of the two additional restaurants. The menu at the buffet restaurant was always changing, the food was delicious and the staff were excellent. There was no need to dine at another restaurant.

The resort also provides snacks when the restaurants are closed so one can pretty much eat all day and night!

The Fun Club at the Occidental Allegro is made up of about 12-15 talented young men and women. These guys work extremely hard. They're dressed in their yellow shirts and blue shorts from 9 - 5 and then, they entertain the guests between 8-10 with a different show every night!
They fill the day with activities which include Spanish lessons, Bingo, dance classes, exercise classes, aqua exercises, beach volleyball, water volleyball, etc. Earl and I only learned about the Spanish classes ten days into our stay but we joined, nevertheless. In the photo above, Earl sets up the chess pieces for a CHECKMATE! We played chess a couple of times. I lost every time!

Video: Members of THE FUN CLUB performing "Grease." Imagine this: they're busy keeping guests occupied all day with Spanish lessons, dance classes, aqua fitness, exercise classes, volleyball, table tennis, Bingo, children's disco, and quizzes and they're entertaining us at night with performances like this!

The Occidental Allegro may be a tad run-down but the staff more than make up for it. They put on a terrific show and do everything to make your stay an enjoyable one. If we chose to visit NV again, we would not hesitate to stay at this hotel.

Close encounter with snowy egrets

I've always been under the impression that snowy egrets are shy, furtive birds that take off when approached because of my experience with the ones in Winnipeg.

So it came as a pleasant surprise to us to meet the approachable snowy egrets of Nuevo Vallarta. Here, they're so used to being around people they walk closely around you, almost ignoring you, while stalking for food in the shallows. It's a beautiful experience to be able to get up so close to such an elegant and normally wary bird and to be able to watch with your naked eye their feeding activities. We often saw them fishing for minnows along the shore but they were also often seen standing on rocks preening. These snowy egrets are also year-round residents.

Video: Close encounter with a snowy egret.

Pelicans and Magnificent frigatebirds

Hola!

When we chose to spend two weeks in Nuevo Vallarta, the wildlife was the last thing on our minds. Our only plan was to get the heck out of this frigid arctic climate, to get a short break from the intense cold and ice we'd suffered since early November.

We didn't expect to see any Canada geese in Nuevo Vallarta and we didn't see any though we did spot two flocks heading north during our daylong tour to Mismaloya, north of Nuevo Vallarta.

I've always enjoyed swimming outdoors but doing so at a beach front resort in Nuevo Vallarta is especially awesome because of the grand spectacle of squadrons of brown pelicans (photo on left; some flocks numbered more than 60 pelicans) flying overhead. For obvious reasons, I preferred the backstroke because I could enjoy the awesome sight of my beautiful feathered friends flapping across the pool on their way to the sea. These pelicans are year-round residents and indeed, what a lovely place to call home! The weather is lovely and there`s plenty of food. This is paradise!

I didn`t bring my SLR so I was unable to capture the photos of the great numbers (I`ve learned that there are over 400 species of tropical birds in this area) of vivid, colorful song birds we saw on the grounds of the resort but another bird that got our attention was appropriately named the Magnificent Frigatebird (photo of female on right; male is fully black). Hundreds of them soared above the tops of resorts and we never saw one on the ground or resting anywhere. They were always in motion and were a spectacular sight as they swooped and sailed on the breeze. Like the pelicans, they`re year-round residents.

Video: A squadron of pelicans winging toward the sea.

Nuevo Vallarta is a paradise not only for its lovely beaches and gorgeous weather. It's an animal lover's paradise.

Hasta Manana!

Breathtaking beaches and awesome climate

Buenos Noches!

The stunning coastline of Banderas Bay is shaped like a gigantic horseshoe and our resort is located along this coastline. The sands of the beach aren't white but we were told that if we walked a long ways up the beach, we'd see some sparkling white sandy beaches but we were satisfied with our beach and the fantastic weather and could not ask for more.

It didn't rain a drop during our entire two-week stay. We saw the groundskeepers busy at work every morning watering the extensive lawns and lush tropical flowers and plants. It was a balmy 80-85F everyday with comfortable humidity and sunny. Definitely, a getaway paradise for winter weary Canadians.

Talking about Canadians, it seemed that almost every Caucasian we met was Canadian. There were plane loads of Canadians from Comox and Vancouver, a real surprise to us because those two cities are supposed to be in the "banana" belt of Canada! Action speaks louder than words!

The guest list at our resort was probably 65% Canadian, 10% American and 25% Mexican. Most of the Mexicans were from central Mexico and we enjoyed meeting them and learning about their country and their culture. Most of the Mexicans converse quite fluently in English even though English is taught very sparingly in public Mexican schools.

'ON THE ROCKS' WEDDING CHAPEL
CAUTION: THIS PATH LEADS TO HAPPINESS OR MISERY.
ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Hasta Manana!

DESAYUNO

BUENOS DIAS!

This hotel is quite old and run-down. The rooms are quite large but the air conditioner is noisy and there's a slight odor. The windows need scrubbing and the window sills need to be cleaned. We are not impressed.

We arrived at the lobby and were making our way to breakfast when we were accosted by a sweet looking lady dressed in a white Occidental Allegro uniform. We told her that we were in a hurry to get to breakfast because we were scheduled to attend an orientation with Andreas, a Sunquest representative. We were hungry, as well. She assured us that Andreas would wait for us and ushered us to a large desk.

At first, she told us about the resort and answered our questions. Then, she deftly maneuvered the conversation to try and get us to sign up to attend a vacation club presentation. We had attended time share presentations in Las Vegas in the past, always leaving unimpressed and we were not about to be sucked into another one so we turned her down many times, despite the enticements she dangled before us.

As soon as we arrived at the buffet restaurant, we were greeted by very warm, friendly waiters. "BUENOS DIAS!" they all called out and we were quickly shown to a table beside flowering tropical plants. The waiter was attentive and very pleasant and made us feel right at home, more than making up for the condition of the hotel.

There was a pretty good spread for breakfast, from the usual American cereals to hot American and Mexican dishes. There was also a large table of fruits, cheeses and cold meats. It's hard to find papayas in Canada and if they're available, they're very expensive so I quickly loaded my plate with it.

While we were having breakfast, we noticed a handful of very daring grackles making off with meat and bread that they swiftly and deftly picked off of plates left by diners when they left their tables. Being a bird lover, I cheered for them and enjoyed their antics. I videoclipped them in action as Earl was having lunch. You can see them busily feeding off a plate to the left of Earl.

Video: Grackles enjoying breakfast behind Earl.

Occidental Allegro (Grand) Nuevo Vallarta

Hola!

It was 4 AM when we checked in. The check in process was done with speed and very little fuss. Unlike hotels in Canada and the US, we were not asked to produce a credit card. Our room "key" was a large white plastic card hanging on a blue ribbon which quickly found its way around our necks. Very convenient and very handy. We were also given a key that was attached to a strange heavy metal block. That, too, came on a chain for wearing around your neck. That was the key and padlock to our safe. When you insert both key and padlock into the safe and lock it, you leave the padlock (thank goodness because it's hefty!) in the safe and you just go about with the key around your neck. And they attached dark blue bracelets on our wrists, which we had to have on the whole time we were at the resort.

After unpacking, we went back down in search of drinking water. Tap water in Mexico is non-potable, unsuitable for drinking. The front desk directed us to two large dispensers, one containing purified drinking water and the other, some kind of tasty fruit juice.

Zzzzzzzzzz .........................

We woke up to this beautiful view from our window on the 6th floor.

Sure beats ice and tons of snow! You can see part of the kiddie splash pool near the coconut trees.

ARRIVAL IN NUEVO VALLARTA

ARRIVAL IN NUEVO VALLARTA
JANUARY 4, 2009

Earl and I traveled with about 110 passengers on a chartered WestJet flight direct to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It was a 4 1/2 hour flight, departing 10:40 PM and arriving at 3 AM Nuevo Vallarta time which was the same as Central Standard Time. WestJet was on time in every way. They even provided a delicious snack without additional charge, which was a pleasant surprise. If you've travelled on flights within Canada or between Canada and the US, you'll have experienced the pay-for-everything-and-get-next-to-nothing treatment on most airlines.

On the flight, we had to fill out an extremely long, laborious custom form but when we got to customs, they barely glanced at the form and waved us through.

Our package included a shuttle to our hotel in Nuevo Vallarta. The airport is about halfway between Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta. After a 20 minute wait which seemed longer because we were tired, we were seated in the shuttle van and joined by four college students from Calgary. One of them was visiting Nuevo Vallarta for the second time.

We noticed that most of the passengers were young, between the ages of 20 - 50. Perhaps retirees aren't interested in spending only two weeks away from the frigid cold of Canada. They're gone for the entire winter! If you know how brutal our winters are in Canada (for example, this morning, January 25 the thermometer registered -17F (-27C) in our fair Winnipeg), you`ll have great sympathy for us. Of course, all inclusive resort stays in Mexico include free booze and that is probably one reason why so many young people sign up for these vacations. We live in Manitoba, a province with oppressive liquor control laws and a government run monopoly on the sale of hard liquor so liquor costs are sky high (it`s mostly taxes upon taxes upon more taxes). If you like to drink a lot, you may spend less on a one-week all-inclusive trip to Mexico than if you drank the same amount in frigid Winnipeg!

Even in the dark, we enjoyed the warmth of the morning as the driver drove us through the quiet, palm-tree lined streets toward our resort, the Occidental Allegro Nuevo Vallarta.

BUENOS DIAS!

Hola from Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico!

JANUARY 25, 2008

Earl and I returned from a fabulous two week vacation in warm, sunny Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico last Sunday, January 18. We're just poring over our trip photos and videoclips now since we came down with a bad cold after we returned to bitterly cold, frigid Winnipeg (oh, what a startling difference the two places are!). So these blog postings are really supposed to be from January 3 through January 18 but we did not have internet access during our trip so could not post while there.

While in Mexico, we learned some Spanish, of course, even though most of the locals could speak English.

Hasta Luego!