Ask my kids what they do to relax on vacation, and they’ll say swimming in the pool, making complicated sandcastles close enough to the waves to guarantee an exciting disaster, and throwing back non-alcoholic pina coladas. Ask my in-laws the same question and they’ll opt for sitting in the shade by the pool reading, beachcombing, napping, and … pina coladas.
That’s a long way to say kids and elders have some pretty different ideas when it comes to vacation. But also: there’s something almost sacred about sharing travel moments across generations. It’s a time when everyone puts their daily life—whether that means school or work or a busy retirement—on hold and comes together to explore, to play, and to just hang out together.
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It’s precisely that sort of life-on-pause moment I was hoping for when three generations of family—my 11- and 12-year-olds, my husband and I, and my in-laws—booked a long weekend at the Hilton Vallarta Riviera All-Inclusive Resort in Puerto Vallarta. The resort choice was not random. This all-inclusive resort was built with multiple generations in mind, and has separate side-by-side towers for adults and families.
Two towers, one family
The south tower, made up of 143 rooms, is the family area, topped on the 12th floor by Rincon, a big hang-out space and game room where we all—kids, parents, and grandparents—gathered most evenings for ping pong, air hockey, ice cream, and made-to-order crepes.
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With its 301 rooms, the larger north tower is reserved for guests 18 and up, and has a quieter vibe. Room types are the same across the property, so the big difference really is location. Maybe most importantly, especially during whale watching season when the Bay of Banderas is teeming with humpback whales, all rooms have fantastic balconies that look out over the water.
Smoothing the tricky moments
If you’ve traveled with a large group before, you know mealtimes can be tricky. That was another part of the appeal of an all-inclusive; we could just decide on a restaurant (in a few cases, we needed reservations, but there’s a desk in the lobby dedicated just to that so it was easy) and meet there at an agreed-upon time. It was the most seamless dining experience I can remember having on a vacation, and it was fun to try out the different spots around the resort.
On our first night, we had pasta and pizza at La Luce; the next night we sampled our way through Mexican regional specialties at Maxal; and on the third night we went classic steak-and-seafood at Auma. Peppered in were trips to the “food hall” at Vela (the breakfast-lunch-dinner buffet close to the pools) and, my personal favorite, the two little food trucks that offered burgers and remarkably healthy and delicious vegan options.
Blending experiences
There were enough chairs around the pools that we could go as a group and all find exactly the experience we wanted. For the grandparents, that meant some time in the family pool with the kids, then relaxing in the neighboring adult pool (with a swim-up bar) and time reading and napping on a chaise lounge. For kids, it was nonstop pool time and playing group games like a paddle board challenge and water volleyball.
And for me, I was happiest on one of the loungers in the shallowest part of the pool, with a drink, a book, and a view of the ocean.
Beyond the resort
The Hilton is a 15-ish minute taxi ride from downtown Puerto Vallarta, and even with our group of six people (larger than a standard taxi), it was easy to get a “minivan” (it was actually a van) to fit our group. A few times, we also got Ubers back from the Zona Romantica; those experiences were easy too.
Knowing that our group included an 11-year-old who complains about the heat and an 80-year-old who uses a cane, it was extra important to find activities that worked for everyone. On our first full day, we booked a three-hour walking tour that included stops at taco stands, murals, a tile factory, and markets. About two hours in, we passed a shady bench in a plaza and our youngest and oldest members decided to hang out and relax while the rest of us checked out the cathedral and the Malecon. It was a good reminder that everyone was happiest when they could participate at their own speed. The next day, as we got ready to head back into town, the grandparents decided to hang at the hotel, so we took the kids and went on a street taco walk, stopping for birria, carnitas, and fish tacos, plus some hot tortillas to bring back to the grandparents.
Good to know
- Not all resort restaurants are open all the time. You can get a print-out of the open hours and days in the lobby. You can book a week in advance or just book in person at the reservations desk right next to the check-in desk.
- Kid-specific offerings include a kids club for younger kids (it says it’s for up to 12-year-olds, but my 11- and 12-year olds were much more interested in the 12th floor Rincon game room in the family tower).
- The Hilton Vallarta Riviera is in Zone 3 for taxi set pricing. Note that the price to get back to the airport is more than the cost to get from the airport to the hotel.
With its separate-but-connected towers, abundant and varied food offerings, and many ways to gather as a group, the Hilton Vallarta Riviera created the perfect scaffolding for those together moments, and also allowed everyone in our multi-generational group to relax in the way that felt right, whether that meant swimming for four hours straight, dozing off in the sun, or clinking festive glasses full of pina coladas, both with and without the kick.
