Crown Paradise Golden Resort Puerto Vallarta — Hotel in Jalisco

We stayed at Crown Paradise Golden in Puerto Vallarta and had a mix of breathtaking moments and frustrating disappointments. While the beachfront setting and certain amenities delivered a wonderful tropical experience, other issues — particularly with room maintenance, dining logistics, and service reliability — made this a difficult place to fully recommend. It’s a resort I would rate as barely holding onto a 3-star status.||HIGHLIGHTS|The resort sits directly on the beach, with plenty of loungers and scenic views. Waking up to the sound of the waves and the sight of palm trees and ocean was a major highlight.||The sunsets were stunning. Whether from the beach or the room’s balcony, each evening offered a vibrant, unforgettable view across the bay.||Well-organized and peaceful. There were plenty of loungers, some shaded spots, and an easygoing atmosphere that was great for unwinding.||Although the main courses were disappointing, many of the appetizers and desserts were fresh, flavorful, and beautifully presented.||Most of the staff, including cleaning teams, maintenance personnel, and restaurant staff, were courteous, welcoming, and genuinely helpful. You could tell they took pride in their work.||ISSUES AND AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT|Room Cleanliness and Maintenance!|The room was a major disappointment. We found mold in the bathroom, filthy AC filters, and a generally worn-out appearance. The tile shower had cracks and discoloration, and the room ventilation was poor. Towels did not dry properly and the air felt heavy and damp.||Aged and Outdated Feel|The entire property feels overdue for renovation. Fixtures, furniture, and finishes have seen better days. The hotel simply does not match modern expectations for comfort or style.||Air Conditioning Failure on Our Last Night|The AC went out in our room and several others on our final night. When we called the front desk, the response was dismissive and uninterested, possibly because they were receiving a large volume of complaints. Although we were told the issue had been resolved, our AC never started working again. The room remained hot and humid, making sleep extremely uncomfortable.||No Response from Room Service or Front Desk|The next morning we tried to order breakfast from room service starting at 9:00 a.m. and called repeatedly for 30 minutes. No one answered at room service, the concierge, or even the front desk. This lack of response was frustrating and unprofessional, especially for a resort that markets itself as full-service.||Difficult Restaurant Reservations|Reservations for the in-house restaurants open around 9:00 a.m. and fill up within minutes. If you're not online the moment they go live, you miss your chance. The system was unnecessarily stressful and rigid.||Poor Quality Main Courses|The steak labeled as "ribeye" was not a ribeye. It was thin, full of untrimmed fat, and very tough. The chicken breast was dry and overcooked. Both entrées were disappointing and did not reflect the resort’s claims of fine dining.||Bird Problems at the Buffet|The buffet is open-air and suffers from a recurring issue with birds flying in and stealing food off the serving line. This is not only annoying but unsanitary. A proper deterrent system should be put in place. The buffet food was average, and variety was lacking by the third day.||FINAL THOUGHTS|Crown Paradise Golden has a few standout strengths, especially its location and some of its staff. The sunsets and ocean views are phenomenal. However, the resort is being held back by outdated infrastructure, inconsistent service, and avoidable customer service failures.||In its current state, this resort just barely qualifies as a 3-star experience. It has the potential to be much better, but without renovations, updated systems, and better service reliability, it's hard to fully recommend.||Would we return? Possibly, but only if the rooms were updated, the AC problems addressed, and the dining system improved. The potential is there, but the execution is...

I am going to write this review in different sections to accurately capture the different aspects of the hotel to give the most honest review.

The Rooms: 7/10 The rooms were less than desirable, the rooms themselves were nice, but there were items that added up to our discomfort. Not to say we wouldn't book this resort again, overall it was fantastic, but just to give an accurate depiction for those looking to book this resort. The bathroom door does not lock, or really even shut all the way, so for any couples like my husband and I that do not share the desire to use the restroom in front of each other, its a bit of a let down. We also rarely had hot water, the first night after sweating a gallon in the humidity, I had to take a lukewarm bath. My husband said he only really got HOT water in the middle of the night. The television only had spanish channels, which my husband and I do not speak, and even though the remote had options for things like Netflix and such, they didn't actually work. Normally I travel with a laptop, but as this was a somewhat short vacation, i regretfully did not and had no real option for television besides watching on our phones. They have the AC preset in which you cannot go below a certain temperature, which was NOT cold enough to combat the humidity and heat. My husband and I basically slept naked every night with 0 covers and would still be sweating. The curtains were somewhat hanging off their clips (about half of them) and seemed disheveled. Again, if you are reading this, I want to preface that these are just minor things in the grand scheme, but just providing information. The bed was HUGE, even for my husband of 6'5 and myself, so that was a plus. They stock the mini fridge and provide restocks daily, and room service comes every day without asking (unlike American hotels, insert eyeroll). Also, your tub will be in the main room with your bed, so prepare to stare at your significant other hanging out on the bed while you take a bath lol.

The Food: 10/10 They provide breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack bars, and snack "times". There is a HUGE selection to choose from ranging from American to European to Mexican. It was all FANTASTIC. The only cavate was you are eating outdoors, so be prepared to defend your food against flies and a TON of bees surrounding the sweeter options. The bar drinks were all fantastic and the staff was always happy to get you whatever you asked for, super amazing. The restaurants at night require a reservation in which you can only book during a short window starting at 9am, which is a tad inconvenient and offered select options for each course of the meal. Per our preferences, some were great and others were just okay, but to each their own.

The Service: 10/10 Everyone was more then happy to help you in any possible manner. They were all super helpful, super nice and accommodating. There were some employees whose English wasn't as great as most, but in those cases we would just use Google Translate.

The Amenities: 8/10 We heard things from other guests that we cannot personally speak on, such as pool tables being kind of ripped up and tacky/not well taken care of, or replaced, but we personally did not use them, so we cannot speak on them ourselves. But the beds by the beach could have been taken care of a little better, but obviously we understand they are running a 24/7 resort and can only do so much.

Overall, we both highly recommend this resort if you are looking for an all inclusive adult resort thats right on the beach with fantastic food and great service. This does seem to be an "older" resort, so just beware if you are a person looking for the biggest, bestest, most top of the line, newest resort, this one might not be for you. But for the average family, like my husband and I, it...

Spring Break 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:|1. Beach was beautiful, no seaweed|2. Showers - hot and worked well|3. Food was amazing, especially since we enjoyed the a la carte restaurants each night. Breakfast was the best!!! Snacks were always available.|4. Service - very responsive and thorough|5. Pools were great fun, especially the kids pool.|6. Entertainment was amazing - don't miss the the MJ show and Broadway show.|7. People - everyone was so lovely, from guests to staff.||What made the Crown Paradise stand out as a recommended resort destination though, especially for families, is the phenomenonal 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...