Downtown Puerto Vallarta, at least the section the bus dropped us off at, is one gigantic tourist trap and is populated by 99% tourists during the winter months. Not that I mind it that much, but it pays to know your prices.
I know a fair amount about Australian opal and was looking at picking up a Mexican fire opal but was ignorant about price and grading. Depending on where you stopped, a one carat, what I would consider medium grade opal with decent fire would cost anywhere from $100 - $500. More, if you were wearing the little green tour sticker or if you were truthful when asked by vendors if you were on the ship or not. There were two or three very nice pieces but these shops were asking a fortune. They wanted more for these opals than what you would pay for an Australian Black Opal graded N1. If I ever come down this way again, I am going to have to get educated on fire opals.
Side walks are up high and the streets are cobble stoned. Do not wear high heels or really hard soled shoes. Best to wear soft soled tennis shoes.
The side streets were quite narrow and hilly. Sort of reminded one of San Francisco.
Very Christmassy here.
Along the beach there were artists who sculpted in sand. They were quite talented. I wish we would have been around long enough
to see what this one turned out to be.
A lot of statuary down here too.
Out of downtown, the scenery improved.
Nice vacation villas a bit further south and they all have their own private access to the beach.
Coconut fruit / seeds are quite interesting.
This is outside the port. Nice landscaping and the walks are not potential ankle breakers.
You know how owners and their dogs sometimes seem to take on similar characteristics?
Underway and headed back home.
The trip back took two days.
Lots of cheap entertainment, including the fabrication of towel creatures.
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Getting back home was a breeze. We managed to miss all the major storms.
Dan took the final leg of driving and we got back safely.
Thanks, Dan
So, how would I rate this cuise on a scale of 1 to 5?
Accommodations 5
- Remember you get what you pay for.
Food
a. Formal Dining 4
- A bit of bias here. The style of food served was not really my style.
b. Buffet 5
Hospitality 4.8
- Some of it bordered on pandering.
Tours 4.5
Environment 4.5
- Hey all you parents with uncontrollable obnoxious kids.
If you can afford to bring your obnoxious kids on a cruise, you can also afford to send them somewhere else.
Send them somewhere else next time and give yourselves and your fellow guests some real relaxation.
Would I do it again?
I don't think I would do this type of cruise again now that I've got my feet wet. I would go for cruises that dock for a day or more in
each port where you can spend a bit more time at each location.
It was a nice trip and a good way to get out of the holiday rat race.
Enough of this. Time to go and bail out the dogs. This is going to be a joint effort. I can't have all the fun.
I insist.
