We have been to Mexico about 15 times and have stayed in many locations...Cancun, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Ixtapa, Zijatanejo, Guadalajara, Mexico City, Cabo. We chose the Bel Air because we could use it in our timeshare trade and because it seemed more like a small, boutique-type hotel. We found the rooms to be somewhat average and tired....like they got some new bedspreads and art to spruce things up but it really needed more work. It did not compare to the week timeshare we gave up where we live. The air conditioning didn't always work well either and our patio doors were either jammed or did not lock. In most of the places we have stayed in around Mexcio, we have fallen in love with their beautiful breakfast buffets where you have a choice of many great mexican meals as well as all of the wonderful fresh squeezed juices. Here, you had to order off the menu and even if you wanted more juice, you had to pay for another glass. This was upsetting because it did not feel very Mexican. About half way through our trip, our entire building lost power. We understand these things...they happen. We were asked to move. We packed up all of or stuff and carried to our new room what we could. We did actually get an upgrade room, which was nice. It took them 4 hours to bring our luggage to our room though....and we have young children that were in wet suits and wanted to get in jammies for bed. Our struggle here was that we called 4 times for our bags and then, there was no apology. No, "We are sorry for this inconvenience....here is a complimentary meal or drink or something." It was just a matter-of-fact move. Then, towards the end of our trip, they had two bus loads of teenagers come in for their senior trip from Guadalajara. Now, we were teens once. They want to play and have fun...we get that. But making this business choice, when they are known for weddings, couples and families, was not wise. There are so many larger hotels that cater more to the party scene. We were woken up at 3:00 a.m. by the kids playing a loud drinking game around the pool. We had to call three times before anything was done. Again, no, "We are sorry....here is something for the inconvenience." We run our own company and we know what it takes to care for our clients. The Bel Air did not go the extra mile that you would expect of this level of hotel for the inconveniences that we experienced. The wait staff were GREAT though as well as the cleaning staff.....and we fell in love with them and their excellent care for us. The managerial staff could take a lesson from them. Because we love Mexico so much, we will be back. But we will choose a different hotel next time.

Full disclosure... I am a Timeshare member at the Belair Vallarta, formerly known as Playa Del Sol Grand. The last 3 times I had visited PDSG, I was so stressed out that I actually couldn't wait to go home. Members were treated like second class citizens because the emphasis was on getting NEW members, not taking care of the people who already owned timeshares there & paid their yearly maintenance fees. Members should certainly receive AT LEAST the same considerations and service as the folks who reserve rooms off the internet. The place was becoming run down.
I had heard that the new Belair Management were making some incredible changes so my family skeptically made plans for a week visit in early May. To our PLEASANT surprise, we were treated like VIP's from the moment we stepped out of the taxi. Edgar, one of the Bellmen, was awesome.... very friendly, always addressed us by name the entire week, and was always helpful with restaurant suggestions, etc. We were greeted with drinks and check in (for the first time ever here) went smoothly. We got the location we asked for and had an amazing 2 bedroom suite, poolside, with a beautiful view of the ocean. There was a huge fruit basket in our room ( I'm sure this is dependent on the type of reservation you have ) and there was a welcome letter offering us discounts for the spa and meals. The condo was similarly decorated as before, although the bedrooms have been updated with colorful paint and the beds are no longer hard as rocks.... New mattresses and your choice of pillow types. The kitchens had new stainless steel appliances - still had the old cabinets and tile countertops but I'm sure the suite we were in will be upgraded to the granite countertops as some other suites already are. The bathrooms are still beautiful with all the tile work. The 2 bedroom suite is actually a 1 bdrm with a studio "lock-off", so there are 2 kitchens and 2 3/4 bathrooms. I see that some people complained of low water pressure but our showers were perfect.
The infinity pool by the beach is the centerpiece of the property. There is a pool bar with a Happy Hour every day between 5-6pm. There is no skimping on the alcohol & Vincente the bartender will take good care of you. The poolside chairs are all updated and include some poolside beds and pods for napping and reading. May is very slow, so we never had problems getting chairs. Rafael is "the man" when it comes to taking care of you as you lay and sun yourself. Anything you need, he is there for you... he really runs his tail off - GOOD man!
Food-wise, there is Kelly's Shipwreck at the pool that serves an excellent burger, club sandwich, wings, etc.... until about 6pm. The Palm Terrace offers 2 menus - one is continental & the other is a Mex-Italian fusion. The food is on the fancier side and was good. The Azteca Cake was an amazing Mexican-type lasagna, using tortillas rather than pasta. The breakfast buffet there was great with omlettes made-to-order. The "hidden gem" at the resort is the Martini-Sushi bar at the other side of the property. I had some picky sushi people with me and they raved about the sushi served here. I am not a sushi eater, but they offered a tempura shrimp "to die for" and an excellent fried rice dish. The martini's were very good as well. The resort NEEDS TO PUT A SIGN BY THE POOL advertising this place. Most people we talked to at the pool didn't even know it was there.
The spa at the Belair is amazing. It is so serene and calming and all of us had excellent massages. There is a small gym there as well.
A nice new addition is the Kids Club. We had a 3 year old with us and he enjoyed the new kiddie pool with slide, the ball pit and the new playground equipment... the bathroom is even sized down to the little ones. The older kids have access to video equipment, bikes, etc.
Off the property, we get our groceries at the Mega Store that is about a 5 min taxi ride. There is a very small mini mart at the Belair but it is really expensive. One of the bellmen will graciously take your groceries from the Mega up to your room and even put them away. The prices there are great on booze and food. If you are a Bank of America customer, they have a Santander ATM so you can get your pesos WITHOUT all the added international fees.
Bucerias is a little town north of Nuevo Vallarta that has some excellent restaurants and a great flea market. Fat Boys has tables right on the beach to enjoy a beer, chips and guacamole in the afternoon and listen to some music. Our favorite dinner place in Bucerias is Claudio’s Meson Bay. Sand floors, sunset views and AMAZING shrimp dishes... oh, and the margaritas are huge… full of tequila!
We took a side trip one day to Sayulita - about a 30-40 min taxi ride to the north. Cute little surfing village, shops and many places to eat right on the beach.
I now can highly recommend the Belair Vallarta. If you are looking for wild & crazy.... this is not the place for you. It is a ways out of Puerto Vallarta but easily accessible by bus or taxi to go party. There is the Riu Palace right next door if you like a place with a cruise ship-feel (dress codes and all) but it was pretty dead. The Villa Del Palmar is on the other side. Its a bigger resort as well, much quieter than the Riu, and has an amazing Breakfast Buffet & restaurant.
Be aware that many people have their weddings at the Belair on the weekends, so the music can go late into the night….. this would be my only complaint - I think management should cut the weddings off at midnight. I filed a complaint about it and was told that changes are currently being made to the wedding contracts, and guest concerns about the noise are being discussed by Board Members.
Our family is already planning our next trip to Belair Vallarta. The staff is so friendly and the resort is such an improvement over the old Playa Del Sol.

My boyfriend I just returned from a one weeks' stay @ the Bel Air Vallarta, we were there the week of May 11-18. I was a little concerned about a few of the comments I read, but for the most part, they were unfounded. First: the staff were wonderful. Our personal favorite was Andres at the front entry area, and we also loved Maribel from the housekeeping staff. They were both top notch. The staff couldn't have been more welcoming and accomodating -- especially considering the first thing that happened was an entire 12 pack of cold beers fell out of our refrigerator and broken glass was everywhere! (not our fault -- the refrigerator door broke). We stayed in a 2 room suite, so we had three bathrooms and they were all clean and were well appointed. I honestly never figured out, but I think we were in Building 3 (second floor). Our balconies were adjacent to the Riu Palace. We had a partial view of the beach and we had no complaints with that....we could see what was going on easily. The rooms were quiet and there was no noise to keep us up at night, which was awesome. What was completely annoying however, was the guy on the microphone droning on all day over at the Riu! Seriously, it got to be waaaay too much. It destroyed the tranquility of Bel Air, in my opinion. Hanging out by the pool all day was awesome -- beautiful cabanas and patio furniture and there was always plenty of space to hang out.
We never even went into Pto. Vallarta but one day and that was really unneccesary at that. There is plenty to do in Bucerias and Sayulita! I recommend both places highly! We had an amazing dinner @ Nicksan at the Marival Resort right down the way from Bel Air, and our favorite dinner was at Adauto's on the Beach in Bucerias. Food was excellent!
I wanted to point out two things: we stayed by way of a Groupon purchase and never at any time was there ever a timeshare pitch from anyone at the Resort. I was concerned that we would be hassled all week, but it never happened. Also, there was never any mention of an "all inclusive" option either, which was fine because we would not have taken it. We purchased food from WalMart and Mega Foods and other than that, ate out at various places around town. Also, try "Pie in the Sky" in Bucerias. Homemade desserts!
I went to the gym 4 days while I was there and it was fabulous -- had every piece of equipment you would need. The spa was gorgeous; but I never saw anyone in it. Sort of sad.
Anyway, you cannot go wrong with this place. The comments that there are no nightlife exactly at the hotel are true -- but trust me, walk down the beach to the other resorts like the five Riu Resorts they have and you will be so glad of this. There are plenty of places close by in Bucerias that are a blast at night -- the Drunken Duck has a great band at night and you can't go wrong at the Shamrock Bar. Lovely Irish women run the place -- karaoke on Wednesdays!

My parents have been owners at this resort for several years, but it seemed to always come with baggage... because of the timeshare pressure to pay for more and seemingly get the same or less in return. Playa Del Sol would treat their owners as second class citizens compared to folks casually staying there for a few days.

Bel Air changed everything, from the way they treat the owners, to the decor, overall quality... while still maintaining the same if not better service for the casual stayers as well.

CHECK IN:
I felt from the moment we stepped out of the cab it was like night and day from our previous stays. They treated us like royalty. Brought us drinks while we checked in (very quickly instead of waiting around forever) Edgar was the first to greet us and continued to give us great service for the rest of our stay.

THE ROOM:
Our room was spectacular! Top floor overseeing the pool and huge ocean view. Never had that great of a view at Play Del Sol as an owner. The beds have all been changed out and were incredibly comfortable. They used to be like a sheet on top of a piece of ply wood... and are now super soft. They give you two different pillow types to choose from (clearly labeled) when you walk in with a nice ribbon wrapped around them. There are now accent walls with a splash of red. And ipod/iphone docks to charge or listen to your music.

THE POOL:
The pool is now heated!!! It is still cool enough to get out of the heat, but no longer ice cold like it used to be. Around the pool are better lounger chairs, VERY relaxing beds scattered throughout as well. Before we used to have to take my son upstairs for his nap and one of us would have to stay up their for the duration of the nap... now he could just crash on the beds around the pool while we continue to soak up the sun and sip on cervesas! One thing we did notice is that they re-did the concrete around the pool to a really nice looking wood... however walk around the pool - do not run! The wood can get very slippery.
As usual the bartenders and waiters were incredibly helpful, nice and fun. Vicente and Rafael were a couple of our favorites. Always went out of their way to make sure we were enjoying ourselves and fun personalities. Don't forget happy hour from 5-6 at the pool!
And the fun, as usual, is always there with lots of activities from volleyball, pool volleyball, water polo, bingo, ping pong, etc, etc. Go activities director!

RESTAURANTS:
Tucked away in the corner on the south side of the pool... behind the 3 new hot tubs is a hidden gem... Sushi/Martini bar! It seemed like people didn't really know about it until they just happened upon it. I'd say they need to advertise more and maybe offer some sushi specials or martini specials. But there were a few nights where it was hoppin!!! The martinis were really good. My wife likes appletinis and I hate them, but I tried hers and it was actually really good.
You HAVE to try the shrimp tempura!!! Incredible. Huge prawn sized shimp with a really good spicy sauce. The fried rice is also very good. I didn't care for the salmon roll as much, but the tuna roll was good.
The new mexican dolce restaurant was pretty decent too. Better than going to mexico and getting italian (that never made sense to me)... So its nice that they're slowly moving from Italian and to mexican food with this italian/mexican fusion. The aztec cake (i think it was called) was really good. Was like a mexican lasagna. Hopefully someday they'll serve real mexican food... like shrimp empanadas, chimichangas, burritos, etc. But this is a good start. For now we'll continue to enjoy going to Bucerias and Sayulitas for real Mexican food. Our favorite is Mason Bay in Bucerias. Best coconut shrimp you've ever had... they also have a shrimp wrapped in bacon and a gravy-ish sauce that is killer as well.

KIDS CLUB:
Another HUGE improvement was the kids club. My son is 3 and a half and absolutely LOVED it! A water slide just his size that dumps into a pool that is belly deep. Climb out of that into fountains and sprinklers with tall plastic mushrooms showering down the little feet. A ball pit, a covered outdoor area to draw and color in, a brand new playground with slides and swings and things to climb on, an indoor area with xbox kinect games, dvd's etc... Fun, fun, fun! The best comment he had was the second day when we woke up he said, "I want today to be just like yesterday."

THE SPA:
The spa is also fantastic. Myself, my wife and both of my parents all got massages there, and all really enjoyed them. The ambiance in there is so nice and relaxing. They've added a couples massage down at the beach for night time surrounded by tiki torches, etc. We'll have to try that next time. Its just hard to choose from such a nice spa or the beach. If you can do both I highly recommend it! My wife won a 15 minute massage from bingo for me early on and was glad I did it. Get rid of the tension from work and just melt into vacation right away.

OTHER AMENITIES:
They have 6 nice new bicycles to take a nice stroll. A new set of washer and dryers that we couldn't use yet as they were just being installed. So that will be nice to have next year.

THE GROCERY STORE:
This is the only 1 of 2 negatives I can think of. The grocery store is way over priced. Just walk next door to the flamingo and you'll find prices cut by a third, if not by half. Plus they have a cappacino/esspresso bar inside which is nice to take in at least once. If you're major grocery shopping, like when you first arrive... it's worth the 60 peso cab ride each way to just shop at the Mega. Don Julio for 280 pesos for example. Thats less than half the price of the flamingo! But the flamigo store, The Palmita, is worth it for getting more water and things like that. The other negative is that no one has change. The front desk, the grocery store, no one. So try and get change when you go out, at the airport, before you come... something. I think next time I'll bring about 20 US ones, a few 5's etc. Just to start out.
Anyway, those are very minor negatives... and almost not worth noting because they were trumped by a million times over from all the positives.

CONCLUSION:
This was such a great time, it was hard to come back home. Bel Air really did an outstanding job improving this place. It seems like they just keep improving. Can't wait to see whats in store for us next year! We are definitely coming back!!!!