Costa Sur Resort & Spa Puerto Vallarta — Hotel in Jalisco

The staff: 5 stars. They were truly excellent. Ivette, Erik, and another gentleman whose name I couldn't remember were attentive, kind, and welcoming. Jose and Henry on the activities were fun, bringing strangers together for volleyball, bingo (lotteria), cooking classes, and the kayak/paddle boards. (FYI, no kids allowed on those.) Jose even helped me practice my Spanish, which I really appreciated as I do my best to speak Spanish while we are in Mexico and like to practice, but people often speak English back to me. ||The location: 4 stars. It's a bit remote on a windy road, which was slightly scary with little kids when we would ride into town. But to many, that remoteness probably makes it 5 stars. The ocean was gorgeous. The sunsets were incredible. The hillside was beautiful. It was easy to get into town and try restaurants and walk the Malecon. The store on site is well stocked and doesn't have Americanized prices like some of the resorts we've stayed at in Nuevo Vallarta.||The food: I was prepared to give 5 stars, but now 1. I thought it was delicious and varied (we were not on the all-inclusive plan), even though half the time they put cheese on my meal when I said no cheese. But then, 3/4 of us got sick. I don't know if it was a virus, the food, or the ice, but our 5-year-old was sick on day 3, and my husband and I were sick on day 5, the last full day of our vacation. Thankfully, the worst only lasted about 1/2 a day for everyone, leaving only fatigue and lack of appetite for another 24-48 hours. Extra-thankfully, our 2-year-old was spared. But still a major bummer. When it came up poolside, everyone sitting near us said they'd also been sick that week. I am sure to only use bottled water to brush our teeth and keep our mouths closed showering, so I know it wasn't the tap water unless they make their own ice. There isn't a door between the dining area and where the servers come with the food and birds routinely flew in and hopped around. I hope there's a door to the kitchen to keep them out of the food preparation but I couldn't see that far. ||The room: Goodness gracious... Maybe 2 stars. The kitchen was remodeled and really pretty. The bed was fine. The room itself (2 bedroom) was very spacious and fit us and grandparents perfectly. The patio was fantastic. We didn't see any bugs of any kind like some other reviews. The housekeeper was lovely. However, the rest of the room was outdated and in dire need of a full remodel. There was literally mold growing on the faucet handles of the sink and shower, and the shower drain. We weren't given any soap or shampoo until the very last day. We bought some on our own, obviously. If you're coming here, bring your own. I wondered if a lack of providing soap hinted at their sanitary standards, or contributed to the spread of illness...||The Amenities: The pool was fun. It was a perfect shape and size for lounging and volleyball. It was easy to manage our two little ones. There was also mold growing on the side of it. But I could look past that in a humid place when the rest of the pool was very clean. The gym was nice. I didn't get a chance to use it but it was spacious with multiple pieces of equipment, weights, and mats. We could see inside from our room and lots of people made use of it throughout the day. The spa had ample appointments available, a variety of services with reasonable prices and a couples-massage special. Watching the fish, crab, and even once a baby crocodile (from a safe distance on our patio) in the ocean was a highlight.||I understand they have new owners and are doing construction. I think this place used to be a gem and has a lot of potential, but the current way they are running it is risking its reputation. My recommendation would be to shut it down for a week, cover every inch in bleach, and reopen only the rooms that have been remodeled. I am sad to leave a poor review with such a wonderful group of staff. Despite the 2 stars, we did have a lovely family vacation that I am extremely grateful for. But I'd be remiss to recommend anyone stay here in the near future without warning...

Plainly put, stay away. This is what happened to us.

My wife and I booked our last-minute stay on a website that advertised Costa Sur as a romantic getaway. We upgraded to the honeymoon suite, we saw that the hotel offered breakfast, and at the price point given, felt that we were paying neither too much nor too little for a stay. This was our third trip to Mexico, with former trips to visit Cancún and Mérida in the Yucatan, Pátzcuaro in Michoacán and Mexico City.

Upon arrival after thirty-six hours of traveling and layovers that the hotel had nothing to do with, we were directed to sit with a team of concierges and map out our vacation. We were told that we might want to attend a timeshare presentation to get some resort credit, and we did, no harm there.We were told that in exchange, we would also get a free city tour and some other offers that I really didn't care much about. After enough talking, I mentioned how tired I was but was told that we really needed to wait a bit more and discuss the finer points of our stay. Having numbers and times shot at us from multiple directions by three people after 36 hours awake finally got to me. I asked the main concierge on duty if she had any idea how exhausted I was.

She replied that she was also tired, and what's more, she had a child.

I should have realized right there, as our life as a childless couple, the American Barren and Barrenness, was flung in our face as indicative of our inferior humanity, that I was in the company of people I would never voluntarily associate with. We were meat for their grinder, nothing else.

After enough talk and a bit of a boondoggle on pricing, we went to our room. It was a nice, clear, comfortable room that had recently been renovated. I had no issues with the condition or cleanliness of our room or our view during our stay.

Our "breakfast," on the other hand, got to me. We woke up the next morning, went downstairs, and discovered that breakfast, yes, was included in the price of our stay, but it was something the hotel called "American breakfast." This included coffee, one small glass of juice (no refills allowed) OR some fruit, two eggs done any way or in an omelet, and four slices of toast with four pats of butter and three individually packaged tablespoons of Heinz Strawberry Jam.

But if we wanted to pay a second time, to the tune of eighty pesos per person per day, we could be upgraded to the real breakfast buffet on offer all around us at the resort. It was a caricature of a bait-and-switch scam and I felt both insulted and deeply cheated. I do not like eggs for breakfast, and the smug little smiles of our servers as they invited us to pay, pay, pay every day for a breakfast I had already paid for really got to me.

The breakfast scam continued for all three mornings of our stay except the last one, where the price for Sunday brunch, the day we checked out, increased to 120 pesos each. At that point, we had done our timeshare presentation and paid for it in our resort credit.

If you still decide to book a stay here, realize that Costa Sur operates under the firm certainty that they have never made and will never made a mistake on a guest's bill at checkout. Therefore, you will not be presented with an itemized receipt of expenses at checkout. If you ask the concierges how much you paid for tours after you pay for them, expect a handwritten slip with wildly divergent numbers on it. At the end of your stay, expect a figure to be thrust in your direction, a shrug, and a handful of receipt carbons of what you charged to the hotel to be presented to you that will not include your latest charges.

If you book a couple's stay here, you will be in the minority. This resort largely caters to senior citizens. In my opinion, you can't really advertise that you offer a "honeymoon suite" yet transform all your outdoor resort seating area into a giant bingo game announced over amplified loudspeakers every single day sharp at 2 pm. That's stretching the definition of a romantic couples resort, what we were...

We stayed for 11 nights in late February 2025. Overall we enjoyed our stay but here are some specifics that might be helpful if you are considering this hotel. We chose it based on price and its location which we were hoping would be away from the action of downtown PV for some quiet but close enough to make easy trips for dinners, supplies and shopping. I think its location was a good balance in that regard. But be aware, it is a good 10 min drive to PV (80 -100 pesos with Uber) with bus service from a stop right across the road from the lobby (10 pesos cash to the drive whom will give change). There are no restaurants or off hotel shops nearby so your options for meals are heading to PV or being stuck with the hotel restaurant (more on that later). Costa Sur is on the ocean with sweeping views even for the lower floors (we had room 410). The layout of the hotel is somewhat dictated by the topography such that the lobby is actually on the 6th floor (there is a short walkway bridging the lobby to the adjacent road). From our room it was an elevator ride up to the lobby or down for the beach/pool/restaurant. Once settled into the room we found it spacious and functional. The king sized bed was OK, the kitchenette was somewhat supplied with the basics (I always bring along my chef’s knife). The coffee maker was welcome and worked well. I suggest you throw a few basket filters into your bag just in case there’s no supply. There is a two gas burner stovetop, a microwave and a toaster; all worked well. We ate at the restaurant a few times for both breakfast and dinner. The food was just OK but high priced for the quality. The menu was limited and you will want to venture into town for most meals where there is much better value and selection. We made a few light dinners in the room after getting supplies from PV; it was nice to have that option. There is a small store off the lobby which provides many basics. The prices are not outrageous from what I saw which was a pleasant surprise. Cold Pacifico beer was 30 pesos each. Getting a poolside lounger is a bit of a trick and even when one is early you will find people have plopped their towels down to make claim. It’s a bit frustrating given the hoarders might not ever actually use them. This is despite a notice asking people not to leave them vacant for more than an hour. Nobody paid any attention to that ask as far as I saw. It’s a silly game but prepare to be down there well before 9 AM for a spot in the sun. There are two pools; one in the sun and one tucked away behind the restaurant in the shade. Both were unbelievably warm, almost a hot tub experience. Forget being refreshed by a dip after laying in the sun, you will have to go down to the ocean for that. Next to Barefoot Bar there are two sets of stairs down to the small beach area (depending on the tide and surf the beach area may remain closed). We ditched the pool and opted for the lagoon area made by a breakwater installed some years ago. It leaves a calmer area to swim and even without snorkel gear you can see lots of fish swimming near the rocks. Space was always available on the beach and the staff were quick to set up loungers and umbrellas if needed. One bonus is the complete lack of roaming trinket hawkers which are everywhere in PV and can be a nuisance. The housekeeping services were top notch, a shoutout to Juanita whom was efficient, pleasant and accommodating. All of the front desk, bar and restaurant staff were focused on creating a great guest experience. Would we go back? Perhaps but unlikely, the building is tired the food was just meh and its proximity away from PV became a bit of chore. I think there are better options nearby or perhaps north of PV on the other...