Residences by Grand Miramar

Loved the VIEW! Dinner was like sitting in front of a painting every night. Beautiful luxurious rooms - we had a view of the sea and mountains from the shower looking out through the bedroom. Plenty of space and small kitchenette for those not doing all inclusive. Incredibly clean and well maintained, and the staff are terrific and work so hard - five star feel at a great price. Excellent gym. Exquisite presentation of food, though menus are limited - they do make special accommodations. Affordable services at the spa. We traveled in the off-season of July and it was at an incredibly low occupancy, so lots of room at pools. Relaxed dress code - can wear shorts or jeans to dinner. AMAZING SUNSETS!

Hard to get to town - the winding cobblestone road up the mountain makes for a bumpy cab ride. Not on the beach, but access to two 'beach clubs' with transportation from resort during daylight hours ($50 voucher for all-inclusive patrons to use at Blue Shrimp or Mantamar Beach Club). Some reviewers say they walk to town but there is no way I would make it back up the hill! Cabs are about 80 pesos each way. Nothing is nearby the hotel but the views and setting of the hotel are fantastic. If you are looking for nightlife, this isn't the place - this is a smaller, quieter, boutique style hotel. Only one restaurant is currently open - the other is under construction. (There is construction noise and they were even working at 11pm on a Sunday!) They rotate between two menus every other night, so the food did get old quickly. Very formal service at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. No buffets (which can be good, but we like a serve-yourself breakfast) due to low occupancy. Dinners take over an hour and a half and you must sign for EVERYTHING, even a bottle of water. The 'snack bar' at the pool is good and is open for lunch through about 7pm. If you are all-inclusive, there are several menu items that have a 'charge', and you will be charged a 15% service fee for room service. If it is raining, there isn't much to do and very few of the TV channels are in English.