Land Vacation: Acapulco, Cabo or PV?

[txn_crzn]

I put this same post on Independent Traveler (CC's sister site), but there's not that much activity, so I decided to try my luck here. :)

 

I'm working on planning a mid-October vacation (3 to 4 days) to either Acapulco, Cabo or Puerto Vallarta. Looking for a nice beachy, relaxing vacation and have never been to any of these spots and want to know people's opinions on:Where would you go and why?

 

I'll be about 5.5 months pregnant so we won't be looking for any thing too adventerous, but spending a day or two exploring would be nice.

 

Please let me know your thoughts.

[weLuv2cruz2MUCH]

I cannot speak for other places for ocean front - but PV is harsh for even trying to swim - waves are way to rough for someone in their fifth month. However, the city is nice and hotels are good.

 

To get away from it all - I would give my vote to Cabo - smaller, more intimate place. Not a big city atmosphere at all.

[Batch007]

You will get the best beaches in Cabo and really nice. Also, it is probably a shorter flight?? So for a shorter trip, that may be better. If you stay in Cabo, there are many beaches that aren't good for swimming (undertow/waves), so watch that when you book - the resort will list if they have a good swimming beach.

 

Good luck and enjoy!

[SDPadreFan]

I would also choose Cabo of the 3. It will still be pretty hot in Cabo in October but there are ways to mitigate that. Puerto Vallarta will be hot and you can add in humidity on top of that. October in PV tends to be their quiet time with the tourist season picking up in November. Acapulco is nice, but for me, it is just too far south.

 

If you choose Cabo, I can make these suggestions. For anytime from June-October, I would look for a resort on the Pacific Ocean side. These would include the resorts on Solmar Beach and also Sunset Beach. The reason for this is to benefit from the cooling offshore breeze. Resorts on Medano Beach, while close to town, will not have this breeze. Considering your situation (5.5 months), you might enjoy Pueblo Bonito Holistic Spa & Retreat. It is an adults only hotel next door to Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach (a timeshare property). Important to note: as a hotel property, it will not have a kitchen like the timeshares do. You could also consider PB Sunset Beach as will have a kitchen in the room. A quick trip by cab to the grocery store and you can get everything you need for breakfast & lunch. Then have dinner at one of the resorts restaurants or head into town. One benefit of the Pueblo Bonito properties (there are 4 in Cabo) is that as a guest at one, you can use all the others as well. This means you could stay at Sunset Beach and take the free shuttle over to PB Holistic Spa or PB Rose, or PB Cabo (aka PB Blanco). PB Sunset Beach is built on a hillside and you will have an incredible view of the Pacific Ocean from your private balcony (you will also get to watch the cruise ships sail by). The property extends all the way down to the beach. PB Holistic Spa is built right on the beach. Same as PB Rose and PB Blanco.

 

Another resort worth considering is the Playa Grande over on Solmar Beach. The advantage to the Playa Grande property is that you can walk into town. With the Sunset Beach properties, you have 3 options to get into town. $10 cab ride (each way), free shuttle from PB Sunset Beach to PB Rose and then a 10-15 min walk into town, or a rental car.

 

Here are some great links to help you plan your vacation from TripAdvisor (parent company of CruiseCritic)

 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g152515-i84-Cabo_San_Lucas_Los_Cabos_Baja_California.html

 

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g152515-Cabo_San_Lucas_Los_Cabos_Baja_California-Hotels.html

 

You can also find these same resources for Puerto Valarta and Acapulco (lists/ratings/reviews and forum pages) on TripAdvisor.

 

I would not recommend a resort out on "the corridor" unless you definitely plan on getting a rental car because these are too far away from anything.

 

Have a great time.

[hc00010]

I would by far pick Cabo. You can take some wonderful day trips to Todos Santos or Santiago. Santiago has a small zoo and a great place for lunch, the Hotel Palomar.

[gomexico]

You'll be traveling along the Pacific Coast during the latter portion of the hurricane season - and you could encounter tropical storms and/or other rain.

 

Each of the three possible destinations have positive things that can be said about them. Acapulco might offer the widest-range of accommodations and activity/day-trip possibilities.

 

Maybe choose the destination easiest to reach from your home town - and cost effective.

[txn_crzn]

Thanks for all the great information. Looks like Cabo it is!!! :)