If you read our newsletters, you’ll remember that I recently took a brief holiday in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, just outside the beach resort of Puerto Vallarta.
A Wine Lover’s vacation to Puerto Vallarta
This was a vacation with my husband, and I didn’t intend it to be about wine travel. But I was wrong! This Mexican town can be the perfect place for a Wine Lovers Travel group, and here’s why Mexico makes the perfect wine destination:
- You can enjoy international fine wines even in places where they are not grown.
- Mexican cuisine pairs beautifully with many wines that come from wine regions all over the world.
- Spending time in Mexico also inspires a desire for new tastes and experiences.
We stayed at a lovely family all-inclusive on one of the most beautiful stretches of beach. It wasn’t exactly the property I’d use for a Wine Lovers Travel trip, but I eyed another resort down the beach and decided to check it out to see if we could bring a group of WLT travelers there.
Grand Velas Resort in Nuevo Vallarta is a magnificent property on the same gorgeous beach. I think it is a perfect base for a Wine Lovers Travel trip for people who want to travel with us, but also want a shorter trip and something that doesn’t require a full day of air travel.
Here’s what I love about Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit and why it’s perfect for a wine lover:
- It’s sophisticated for adults, but is also family-friendly: The architecture, the grounds and the décor is what you’d expect from an adult resort. But they also cater to families, which means that if one of the reasons you haven’t joined us on a Wine Lovers Travel trip is that you have kids and didn’t want to leave them behind, you can bring them here. In addition to adult-only facilities, they have supervised activities for kids from babies to teens, from a kids club and babysitting through dinner to teen rooms with gaming and sports, all monitored to be age-appropriate.
- Every room is a suite with ocean views. There are only 267 suites, so this is not an over-touristed mega-resort. Even the entry-level suite is amazing, with 2 welcome bottles of wine (actually grown in Mexico, just not in Nuevo Vallarta) and of Mezcal.
- This is all-inclusive, with multiple choices for meals including specialty restaurants for Asian Fusion, Italian, French and, of course, Mexican, plus several all-day restaurants. All beverages are included at no additional charge, including fine wines and premium spirits. They even provide free sunblock—they have thought of everything.
Travel Ideas In Puerto Vallarta for a Wine Lover
What I envision for a Wine Lovers Travel group is that we stay at Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit as our base and include some private and very unique experiences, both on-site and day trips. Some ideas include cooking and cocktail-making classes, a wine-blending session and a tennis or pickleball tournament with prizes (yes, they do have pickleball courts).
Off-site, we could do a day trip to the town of Tequila, which is only an hour or so away, for an experience at a distillery. Also private tours of Puerto Vallarta, which is a beautiful town full of history and culture, not to mention all the artisans who produce colorful handicrafts. For example, we could arrange a private visit to the Huichol Museum in Puerto Vallarta. This is the artwork made from thousands of tiny beads that are indigenous to the area. Or the Vallarta ArtWalk, where many galleries are showcasing local artists.
Of course, we cannot bring a group to Grand Velas Riviera Nayarit without including ocean activities. Depending upon the time of year, we can charter a catamaran for a whale-watching trip, best between November and the start of March. Snorkeling (and diving) is also very popular because there are several natural reefs within a short boat ride. The Marietas Islands are a bird-watching sanctuary where we can have our private boat take us up close to the blue-footed Boobies, as well as frigate birds, many species of seagulls and some herons and egrets.
If all of this surprises you, then I’ve done my job well. While as of this writing, we do not yet have a winery host for a trip to Nuevo Vallarta, we are working on it and I will announce as soon as an opportunity is ready to book.
For now, imagine how much fun it would be to be part of a wine trip to Nuevo Vallarta! And if you want to be a host, I’d love to speak with you and start making the plans.