Rating:
We selected Villa Encantada for many reasons, including its size for our large party of nine, the fact that it was newer and well appointed, and we could take advantage of the on-site staff. We also appreciated the promptness of Paul’s responses to our initial inquiries (and his patience with our many questions!). As soon as we arrived, we knew we made an excellent choice – we were greeted by Rene and the house looked exactly as it does in the pictures. Rene quickly made us comfortable with margaritas, guacamole and chips… and our vacation started as soon as we arrived. I didn’t unpack my bags until 3 days in because I was immediately in vacation mode. We arrived on Saturday and had dinner prepared by Walter — a delicious spread of chicken enchiladas. We had pre-selected our menu for remainder of the week and after dinner on our own on Sunday, we couldn’t wait for the next one. We ventured out on Sunday night to Barcelona Tapas & Bar, which has panoramic views of the bay and some of the best food in town. It was back to Walter’s cooking for the rest of the week, along with Rene’s attentive service and we couldn’t have been happier we chose to eat in every night. (We only left the house one other night – after dinner – all week to venture out and explore some of the nightlife in town.) The food was healthy, delicious, gourmet and surprisingly inexpensive for a week of 6 breakfasts and 6 dinners, including two shrimp dinners, mahi-mahi, steak fajitas and chicken tacos. We bought our own alcohol and lunches for the week at Costco on our way into town; however, Rene and Walter will graciously pick up anything for you or do all of your shopping if you want. Isabel was also great. We were so busy enjoying ourselves that we barely knew she was there until we walked into our rooms which were cleaned every day. She also did laundry for some in our group. Walter deserves his nickname “Diablo” for many reasons, one of which being the scare he gave us as we were all on the edge of our seats glued to the TV watching an intense scene of American Horror Story on Netflix. This was a great vacation and we only went to the beach 3 times during the week because the house was so comfortable, the pool was so inviting and relaxing, and the service so great. It’s also a short walk to a convenience store. We will definitely rent Villa Encantada again for our next big group celebration in Puerto Vallarta. Thanks to Paul, Rene, Walter and Isabel for a memorable 40th birthday!!!!