Crown Paradise Club Puerto Vallarta — Hotel in Jalisco

DO NOT FALL FOR IT! This resort is not at all what is advertised. It’s the most dirty, unkept, dangerous, uncomfortable resort we have ever stayed at! And we travel a lot. July 27th-31st 2025 my family of 4 stayed here. What attracted us was the kids waterpark and all the TikTok’s we found saying it was a great place to stay! 1st night: we got there, no one was nice or welcoming in the lobby. We got there from a long flight with 2 small children and carrying 2 large suitcases. We saw two lines, no one told us where check in was, no one offered to help, everyone seemed SO busy so we didn’t want to walk up to anyone and distract them. Apparently we were in the wrong line so we had to wait in a whole other line with our tired and hot kids. The two girls at check in were literally beefing with each other right in front of us while checking us in. We finally got to our room. The room was dirty, the room was so small, we didn’t get the beds we asked for (1 king with a crib) instead we got 2 full beds. We decided to just enjoy the waterpark and forget that our room was a huge disappointment. We went to the waterpark and right away we noticed the water was so gross. Absolutely dark grey, dirty, and full of drunk adults. Of course our children saw the waterpark and they wanted to get in there was no going back from there. We went in, the water felt itchy and all the park equipment was either broken, outdated or plain dangerous. There was EXPOSED wire at arms reach from the children waterpark play area, there was broken or poorly patched up rock beds, there was sharp aluminum edges everywhere. We finally convinced our kids to get out and we went to the room to get ready for dinner. While in our room we called our travel agent right away, we told her everything and sent her the photos we collected. She immediately reaches out to the hotel for a refund and she reached out to her supervisor to get us moved to a different resort (even if it meant to pay more). We went to dinner and hoped to hear some news by the morning. The food was a 4/10, probably the only decent thing at that resort. The only place the staff was helpful and nice was at the buffet (don’t think you’ll come to this resort and get into a specialty restaurant because that’s impossible. And if you think I’m lying read the rest of the reviews. You’re stuck eating buffet food). 2nd day: we heard back and the hotel refused us a refund and refused to get us moved. Instead they offered us a “suite” right off the beach. The new room was TERRIBLE and DANGEROUS! We did get our king size bed and crib for our baby (we got the crib at 10pm that night). The room was flooded every night, there was water seeping in from the ceiling and from the shower. Every time we took a shower the bathroom would flood because the plumbing was bad I suppose. We didn’t bother to argue with the hotel manager because we knew that was useless. The only thing we wanted was to be out of there but that wasn’t possible. We simply placed towels on the floor to keep our children from falling and hurting themselves. The room had electrical issues also. We asked the lady that brought us the crib how we turn off a couple lights by our bed and she tried and concluded there was an electrical problem so she couldn’t help… the whole time we slept with two lights on over our heads. 3rd day: we were supposed to have a relaxing day at the resort this day but we immediately decided to book an other excursion and spent as little time as possible on that resort. There is no shampoo or conditioner available, only a bar of soup and shower gel. The last night was the worst night believe it or not… we were woken up at 1am by two drunken parties happening the beach. They had loud speakers (this is the first resort that did not care to implement loud noises by a certain time of the night). We were then woken up again at 3am by the people next to our room that were literally fighting each other and screaming. We felt so unsafe at this point. We were ready to leave this terrible resort....

It's Okay but not Amazing.

LOCATION: The location is convenient, Eight minutes from the airport, walking distance to an overpriced pharmacy and a large Chedraui department store. There is also a shopping mall nearby but as it is next to the cruise terminal I found the prices very high.

BEACH: The beach is nice, rocky in places, but public so "No Gracias" is the phrase of the day as people tried to sell me everything from sunglasses to hammocks. Get a spot on the beach early or you won't get one until sunset.

ROOMS: The rooms were basic, nothing special. No alarm clock. Only two electricals sockets, one in the bathroom and the other across the room from the bed which is very inconvenient. The beds are incredibly small, especially for two teenage brothers sharing and if your over 5'9" expect your feet to hang off the end unless you sleep in the fetal position. The blackout curtain looked like it was full of bullet holes and light was streaming through in multiple places. The backing was falling off the bathroom mirror meaning in places it was just glass. One of the chairs on the balcony was broken. The balcony door was broken and would not lock, we waited two hours to get someone to fix it and nobody came until we got mad about the two hour wait. The air conditioner was barely adequate to heat and cool the room. The cavernous corridors amplified and transmitted every sound from footsteps and voices to carts and suitcases rolling by 24 hours a day. The in-room refrigerator kept drinks cool but not cold.

POOLS: There are three pools, one adults only and a fabulous kids water park with a sailing ship, castle and water breathing dragon. The water park was really cool, made me wish the kids were younger but, extremely noisy with children shrieking about 10-11 hours a day. As our balcony overlooked the water park the noise made the balcony unbearable. As for the other pools there was extremely loud music thumping away at all of them and like the beach, grab a chair early or forget it for the day. Even the adult pool felt like a disco.

DRINK: The bars offer a selection of about 12-15 mostly rum based cocktails which are quite good. They also have a drink menu for the kids of fancy non-alcoholic cocktails. Wine is very bad, one type red or white. Beer is Modelo Clara or Obscura. Clearly they signed a bulk contract with the cheapest supplier. They have one size plastic glasses for all drinks.

FOOD: The food in the buffet was quite good with a wide selection, not so much at the beachfront snack bar with mostly hot dogs, hamburgers and French fries. We went to the Japanese restaurant and while the food was beautifully presented my entree was served cold and it all taster rather bland. To get into a specialty restaurant you need to scan a QR code at reception and make your reservation online starting at 9 AM. The restaurants are usually full by 9:20 AM so be quick about it. Also you can't make a reservation for more than the number of people in your room so if you want to have dinner together with friends or family in another room you're out of luck unless you can get the Concierge to fix it.

ACCESSIBILITY: I was surprised to find ramps throughout the resort for people with mobility issues however be warned that they are very steep with an incline of about one foot for every three feet. Pushing my Mother-in-law in her wheelchair got to be a challenge, safer to back down the ramps.

SERVICE: The staff was mostly friendly and the majority could speak English.

This is a resort that caters mostly to the Mexican market which is fine, Mexicans need a holiday too. But some Americans and Canadians may find it overwhelming. Overall it provides an adequate vacation but not an amazing one.

PROS: Location, kids water park CONS: Noise, limited selection of beer/wine,...

Family Vacation with child

As a disclaimer, avid travelers know that most resorts have some minor issue or another. There are always plenty of pros and cons, depending on what you are looking for and personal preferences. Some basic pros at the Crown Paradise: Beach was beautiful, no seaweed Showers - hot and worked well Food was amazing, especially since we enjoyed the a la carte restaurants each night. Breakfast was the best!!! Snacks were always available. Service - very responsive and thorough Pools were great fun, especially the kids pool. Entertainment was amazing - don't miss the the MJ show and Broadway show. People - everyone was so lovely, from guests to staff. Professionalism - staff provided superb treatment

What made the Crown Paradise stand out as a recommended resort destination, especially for families, is the phenomenal staff, such dedicated people who catered to your every need. The word "anticipate" embodies the demeanor with which all staff treated us every day.

We felt safe, cared for and most of all, appreciated. The staff ensured that our needs were taken care of (for example, assisting us with dinner reservations, arranging for medical care, ensuring our room was well refreshed each day and met our expectations, and even more impressive, was following up and ensuring that we were content).

The mark of commendable client services is characterized by humanity, compassion and empathy, all while doing it with a smile. These traits were exemplified by our lifesaver, and now friend, Mario Zamudio, the Chief Concierge. We want to extend a heartfelt MUCHAS GRACIAS to our all-time favorite King of all concierges, Mario Zamudio, as without you, our vacation would not have been so special and memorable.

You showed us true humanity and went above and beyond so many times during our two-week stay at the Crown, willingly assisting us with any issues and making us as comfortable as possible. One such example of Mario doing his best to help us occurred on the last day, when we expected to check our early and head to the airport. However, the airline delayed our flight by 3 hours and instead of waiting at the airport with my child for six hours total (which would have been very exhausting for any child), Mario graciously arranged a delayed transfer to the airport and allowed my child to enjoy the resort and beach for an extra 3 hours. The pure joy on my child's face was priceless and made me realize that we had made the best choice by having a vacation spot at the Crown Paradise. We would gladly return here, to experience amazing food, beautiful scenery, professionalism, courtesy and the best relaxation spot right on the beach.

The five-star treatment we received made me realize that you can truly be at any resort, but what sets one property apart and makes you want to return, is how the staff connects with you in a personalized manner and invests their hearts in your best interest to ensure that you have the best vacation possible. A lot of things can happen during travel, but how the staff reacts to your needs plays a fundamental role in how willingly you would return to the resort.

A special THANK YOU and MUCHAS GRACIAS also to our favorite restaurant staff at La Piazza (our favorite a la carte restaurant): Pablo, Alejandro, Daniel, and Antonio. These gentlemen deserve recognition for excellence in restaurant service. The food was amazing and the service was top notch! All done with a smile, even when the restaurant was super busy. Also, thank you for the beautiful departure surprise- we were presented with a lovely farewell cake to wish us a safe trip home!!! It was really so sweet! My child still asks to return to La Piazza and stay at the Crown!!! Until next time Crown, enjoy the sunsets for us. They were definitely...