All-Inclusive Mexican Getaway...With Kids!
All-inclusive Mexican Resort…with kids!
When I think of an all-inclusive resort, I don’t necessarily jump to the thought of bringing my kids along, but it was such an easy trip and ended up being the best quality family time we have ever spent while vacationing. Usually, on our trips, I spend a great deal of time stressing about food for the littles. Having to plan for snacks and meals around sleep. It was so nice NOT to have to consider it. When my kids decided to eat 3 bites at their meal, I didn’t stress about it (except for the whole wasting food part, I really do hate that), because I knew they would have easy access to snacks and food whenever they were hungry. In addition to not being concerned about food, I also did not need to consider what activities were going to be fun for the kids and us. Initially, I was hesitant to spend 4 days doing nothing but the beach and pool on rotation, but everyone had a blast! My daughter, who is a few months shy of 4, taught herself to swim on this trip. She was incredibly motivated and fearless. My son, who is 15 months old absolutely loved the warmth of the water. My husband and I enjoyed being able to order drinks and food whenever we wanted and watching the sunsets at night.
Where we stayed: Velas Vallarta in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
We booked a 1-bedroom suite, that consisted of a living and dining room with a large balcony that included an eating area and lounging chairs. This was the perfect place to retreat and admire the views once we put the kids down.
The resort included two pools that were connected by a swimmable canal and a kid’s pool that was about two feet deep. One of the pools had built in lounging chairs, a swim-up bar, and a volleyball net. The other large pool included a small waterfall and the resort offered pool toys for the kids. All food, alcohol, snacks, dessert, and room service were included.
Transportation was provided by the resort and was only about a 7-minute drive from the airport. We used a larger shuttle and felt comfortable holding our children on our laps during that drive. They do not have car seat laws in Mexico and we decided to travel without car seats.
At one point we decided to leave the resort to check out the downtown Malecon area. It was very underwhelming and mainly consisted of bars. There were some interesting statues on the walk, that we enjoyed, but overall, the downtown was not impressive, and we decided to leave before finishing the walk. Once we returned, we learned there was a swap-meet for souvenirs called Mercado Municipal, but unfortunately did not walk far enough, as it was located at the end of the boardwalk. The drive was about 10-12 minutes from our resort.
We did not need pesos on the resort but was able to easily draw money out from an ATM machine while we were downtown in case we needed it. We ended up not using it and exchanged it back to dollars once we were in the airport.
All in all, we greatly enjoyed our time as a family and will certainly consider future all-inclusive resorts. With kids, it is just about the easiest trip you can possibly take.
Where we booked: Costco
This was our first time booking through Costco, but we saved a considerable amount of money and found a great deal.
Looking for more travel advice with kids? Check out Family Camping & Chicago with Kids!
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