Grand Palladium Vallarta Resort & Spa - All Inclusive
Grand Palladium Vallarta is a 416-room five-star family all-inclusive on the Riviera Nayarit, and the first thing to get right is where it actually is. The address is Carretera Punta de Mita Km 11.5 in Bahia de Banderas, with direct access to a semi-private golden sand beach at Punta de Mita, roughly 45 minutes from Puerto Vallarta's airport, 20 minutes from Punta Mita village and closer to an hour from downtown Puerto Vallarta. That is a different corridor entirely from the Nuevo Vallarta hotel strip, and it changes the trip: you are on a quiet stretch of coast with a couple of neighboring hotels and little else, not a short hop from restaurants and nightlife. The payoff is that the bay faces west, so sunsets land straight on the beach, and whales cross between December and March in plain view of the ocean-view terraces.
Traveler Insights
Pros
- +Direct access to a semi-private golden sand beach at Punta de Mita, and because Bahia de Banderas faces west you get the sunset straight off the beach and off ocean-view terraces
- +Three kids clubs split by age rather than one catch-all room: Baby Club for 1 to 3 with cribs and safe play areas, Mini Club for 4 to 12 with crafts and nature outings, and a Junior Club for 13 to 18 with video games, computers and a pool table. Free, open daily 09:00 to 17:00 all year
- +Four a la carte restaurants plus two show-cooking venues for 416 rooms: Portofino for Italian, Bamboo for Asian, La Adelita for Mexican and Las Terrazas for international, with the Xtra Time sports bar open late for light bites
- +None of the a la carte restaurants require a reservation, and the three family-friendly ones take walk-ins, so you are not setting an alarm to book dinner
- +Pools for every age including a saltwater pool with a swim-up bar, plus a children's water park with slides and splash features
- +Unusually broad sports for an all-inclusive at this price: tennis, padel and pickleball courts, soccer and volleyball on land, and snorkeling, kayaking, catamaran sailing, surfing and water aerobics off the beach, with yoga and oceanfront wellness classes included
- +Gray and humpback whales cross the bay from December to March and can be watched from the ocean-view terraces without booking a tour
Cons
- −Genuinely remote. The resort sits at Carretera Punta de Mita Km 11.5 in Bahia de Banderas, about 45 minutes from Puerto Vallarta's airport and closer to an hour from the Malecon, with only a couple of other hotels nearby and nothing walkable. Guests through 2026 raise the distance from town more than any other complaint
- −Loud by design. Live music, DJs and nightly theater shows run in the main areas, and 2026 guests repeatedly report the music carrying across the pool deck. If you want a quiet pool day this is the wrong resort
- −This is Pacific water, not the Caribbean. Palladium markets it as a family surf destination, which is the polite way of saying there is swell and shore break on plenty of days rather than the flat turquoise of Cancun or Punta Cana
- −It is one hotel, not a multi-resort complex. Palladium's Riviera Maya and Punta Cana sites let you roam between several hotels; here the only neighbor is the Family Selection premium section, whose guests use the Grand Palladium facilities rather than the other way around
- −No adults-only refuge. The adults-only Royal Suites Punta de Mita stopped existing on December 1, 2017 and was folded into this resort, and its adults-only pool became a merely adult-friendly quiet pool area. The premium tier here is Family Selection, aimed at families
- −Bamboo, the Asian fine-dining room, does not accept children, so parents travelling with kids are really choosing between three a la carte rooms in the evening
- −Several things you might assume are included are not: Zentropia spa treatments carry a charge, imported-brand spirits sit outside the all-inclusive, room service runs 24 hours but can add a fee at some hours, and the airport shuttle costs extra unless you hold Palladium Rewards status
Dining runs to four a la carte rooms, Portofino for Italian, Bamboo for Asian, La Adelita for Mexican and Las Terrazas for international, alongside two show-cooking venues, the late-opening Xtra Time sports bar and bars scattered from the swim-up to the lobby to the beach. None of the a la cartes demand a reservation, which is a real quality-of-life difference from resorts that make you queue at a desk each morning, though Bamboo does not take children. Pools cover every age, including a saltwater pool with a swim-up bar and a children's water park with slides, and the activity program is broader than the price suggests: tennis, padel and pickleball, soccer and volleyball, snorkeling, kayaking, catamaran sailing and surfing, with yoga and oceanfront wellness included and the Zentropia spa charged separately. Kids are handled properly, with Baby Club from 1 to 3, Mini Club from 4 to 12 and a Junior Club for teenagers up to 18, free and open 09:00 to 17:00 year round. Guests in mid-2026 are warm about the staff and the range of food, including solid handling of celiac and other dietary requests, while the recurring criticisms are the volume of the entertainment, the distance from town and patchy maintenance.
This is a resort for families who specifically want Pacific Mexico and are content to stay put, treating downtown Puerto Vallarta as one big day out rather than an evening option. As of October 2026 a mid-season week for two adults all-inclusive averages in the high $200s a night, which is good value against Los Cabos and competitive with Iberostar Selection Playa Mita a short way along the same coast. Couples looking for an intimate adults-only stay should look elsewhere, because the adults-only wing here was converted into family rooms back in 2017 and the premium Family Selection tier is built for families. Worth knowing in both directions: the resort sells day and night passes, so people staying nearby can buy in, and the Palladium Travel Club membership program operates on site if you would rather not field a sales invitation.
Common Questions
Is this resort in Nuevo Vallarta or Puerto Vallarta?
Is the beach swimmable?
Do I need to book the a la carte restaurants in advance?
What is there for kids and teenagers?
Is there an adults-only section?
Can I visit for the day without staying there?
Restaurants (6)
| Type | Restaurants |
|---|---|
| Buffet | El Bosque, Las Terrazas |
| Mexican | La Adelita |
| Italian | Portofino |
| Asian | Bamboo |
| International & fusion | El Dorado |
From the resort's own dining pages. Only restaurants the resort lists are shown. All are covered by the all-inclusive rate, per the resort.
What's nearby
Sayulita Beach30 min drive · 13 mi
San Pancho Beach35 min drive · 20 mi
Marina Vallarta40 min drive · 20 mi
Puerto Vallarta Malecón45 min drive · 25 mi
Punta de Mita11 min drive · 5.1 mi
13 min drive · 5.6 mi
More things to do (24)
- Whale watching (December to March) · excursion40 min drive · 20 mi
- Playa de los Muertos (Sayulita) · beach30 min drive · 13 mi
- Sunset sail from Marina Vallarta · excursion40 min drive · 20 mi
- Playa Monterrey · beach55 min drive · 30 mi
- Splash Water Park · water park30 min drive · 15 mi
- San Francisco (San Pancho) · town35 min drive · 20 mi
- Las Caletas beach day trip · excursion40 min drive · 20 mi
- Destiladeras Beach · beach8 min drive · 2.9 mi
- Playa Litibú · beach15 min drive · 6.6 mi
- Camarones Beach · beach45 min drive · 24 mi
- Playa La Lancha · beach9 min drive · 3.9 mi
- La Cruz de Huanacaxtle · town11 min drive · 5.2 mi
- La Manzanilla Beach (La Cruz) · beach11 min drive · 5.4 mi
- Marina Riviera Nayarit (La Cruz) · marina13 min drive · 5.6 mi
- Playa Careyeros · beach15 min drive · 6.2 mi
- Bucerías · town20 min drive · 8.9 mi
- Flamingos Golf Club · golf25 min drive · 12 mi
- Playa Patzcuarito · beach30 min drive · 13 mi
- Paradise Village Marina · marina30 min drive · 15 mi
- Aquaventuras Park · water park35 min drive · 16 mi
- Las Huertas Golf Club · golf35 min drive · 20 mi
- Playa Malpaso · beach35 min drive · 18 mi
- Evening show and dinner at Las Caletas · excursion40 min drive · 20 mi
- Sport fishing charter · excursion40 min drive · 20 mi
Amenities
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Google Reviews★ 4.5 · 13,991 reviews
“We just spent two nights here celebrating our anniversary, and 'perfect' doesn't even begin to describe it. What truly made our stay unforgettable was the incredible staff who went above and beyond at every turn. A huge thank you to our Mayordomo Mo...”
“The first thing you should know about the location of this hotel - it’s on a small private beach 45 minutes or so from Puerto Vallarta, and you’ll absolutely need water shoes to swim or to cross over the coral and rocks to the much longer “public” be...”
“I highly recommend this resort for the following reasons: 1. The rooms are dated but the location and beach more than make up for it. 2. The staff and Palladium team/performers are amazing. They treat you like family. We appreciate and highly respect...”
