Mazatlan Mexico:  Feb, 06  Winter Recess

By Tab Hauser

This year’s annual family and friends February winter break trip was picked at a last minute. (That meant making a reservation anything less than 6 months for this busy time as last minute)  One of the members in our group using Expedia.com found a package deal at the Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay in Mazatlan Mexico that we found affordable.

It was 5:35AM that our sleepy group of 10 boarded a Continental 737 flight to Houston. There we had a 30 minute delay added to our  40 minute layover and it was off to Mazatlan on a 50 passenger jet.  Our bus transfer company Playasol was waiting there promptly and it was off to the hotel with a quick stop for Tequila and snacks at a drive through store.(In Mazatlan “drive through” has a different meaning. Here the entire bus  literally drives into the store)

Due to early arrival we had to wait for our room so we settled for a pool side lunch under the  sunny warm skies before we  settled in and headed to the pool for a few hours.  Pueblo Bonita Emerald Bay has 1 pool on an upper area near the buildings with a swim up bar that appeared to be for adults only. The main pool with the beach view was actually 2 pools directly next to each other with one slightly higher then other.  The upper pool had a hot tub area. The lower pool had the swim up bar as well as daily activities like water polo and pool volley board.  Around the pools were landscaped grounds including an area near the lobby with flamingos and manicured lawns with Greek statues.  Overall we found the place very pleasing to the eyes.

Maureen & Nancy at pools edge

The rooms here are either junior suites or master suites.  The juniors have twin beds. (why this hotel can not splurge a few extra dollars and use queen beds is  beyond me especially since there was plenty of room for them in these spacious suites.) All  suites had a small kitchen area with  a 2 burner stove, large refrigerator, sink, blender and microwave as well as small balcony. On check in they gave me a master suite upon asking for anything with a king bed. This suite had one bedroom with a master bath, a  kitchen – living area and a second full bath.  The living area had a comfortable slide out couch that our son slept in. We did not have a balcony because the design of the building had this unit protrude with windows looking out to the ocean in three directions having a dining  table in the middle. Both the junior and master suites had plenty of room. The master suite could have been furnished a little nicer.  Large families can combine junior and master suites for what they called the penthouse suite.

View from grounds to beach

If you go you should know that after check in the front desk points you to a table near the door to get free drink vouchers.  Here you are given the option to listen to their timesharing presentation in exchange for breakfast the morning of your appointment along with $200 in food and beverage credit. If you do not mind taking up 60 to 90 minutes and getting a hard sell towards the end, it is a good deal to do.

The first night after traveling all day we decided to dine at the hotel which was having its prime rib special. The cost was $29 minus a 10% hotel guest discount and was good. It included a glass of house wine, salad bar, soup and desert.  This was our most expensive meal of the week.  The next day we all opted to meet at the restaurant at 10:30 for their Sunday Champaign brunch. This was $19 minus our 10% discount and was well worth it. The spread included Mexican specialties, fish, chicken, paella, omelets cooked to order, smoothies, sushi rolls, shrimp, quesadillas to order, different soups and desert. This was more than enough good food to hold us until dinner that night. 

  Unusual Massive Candle Display at Restaurant

Our first full day was spent lounging in and around the pool. It was a tough 5 hours swimming in their heated pool and up making our way up to the swim up bar but someone had to do it!  This was broken up by the ladies doing palates on the lawn near the pool and another member paying $10 to use the gym.  All in all it was a great day to be away from cold New York.

Pottery at the Pool                                   Guacamole and Plum-tinis at the pool

To complete our first day we took the free shuttle to the other Pueblo Bonito that is closer to the city of Mazatlanwhere the hotel zone start. From there we walked 5 blocks to a place called Fat Fish.  If you want good food very cheap this is your place. We arrived on the advice of another guest just before 6PM because you avoid lines and waiting.  At Fat Fish we were seated under a tin roof near the wood grill that would take boiled ribs and finish them off over the fire in barbeque sauce.  Fat Fish seems to have constant special of 2 orders of ribs for $15. We also ordered their 2 shrimp dinners for $15. We ordered the shrimp breaded and fried as well as grilled in garlic.  My wife ordered the “kilo” special of sliced meat tacos for $12 but the very friendly waiter had her change it to a half kilo order. (a kilo is 2.2 pounds of meat and in all fairness to Maureen, she ordered it because it was cheap enough and she was not aware she can order a half portion.  Drinks here were 2 for one.  I recommend avoiding their version of a margarita. They simply took Fresca soda and Tequila. I switched over to Dos X beer and returned the margarita.  Dinner with tip for 10 of including soda and drinks was $120 or less than half the hotels dinner from the night before. 

After dinner the kids headed back on the complimentary shuttle while the adults hopped on a local bus with some attempt of trying to get to the Zona Dorada or Golden Zone where many hotels, shops and restaurants are located.  We did not plan on hoping on a bus, but one just stopped in front of us and for 50 cents each we just jumped on.  The driver and I were not communicating as best as I would have liked. I pointed to the map the hotel gave me and for some reason he did not understand it.  We managed to come to a mutual understanding that Zona Dorada is where he would leave us off and so he did.  Here we strolled up and down the 2 main streets getting handed discount cards for places to eat as well as taking in the atmosphere. From here we flagged down one of those open pick up trucks with benches and paid $15 to be taken back to our hotel.  We took the truck because we were 5 adults in our party. If you are 4 you can take one of the many open air taxis.

On Monday we took our obligatory timeshare tour. We were able to cut 20 minutes off it because we told our salesman we were guests and saw all of the grounds during our day and a half being here.  He showed us a couple of suites and it was off to the meeting room where a buffet breakfast was served and the wonders of RCI timesharing were discussed. If you are interested the cost started at  $13000  with $500 per week flat fee and $199 if you want to switch or add on another week (or they claim this). We found that we were not buying a fixed week and was told us we can switch vacations anywhere in the world including cruises and river trips. He tried to make it clear one can buy a place at Pueblo Bonito and then trade for a place in Hawaii where someone may have spent $30,000. We did not understand this and asked for the contract where this is written. He showed us the back of a magazine with small print that did not quite match what was spoken and immediately lowered the price to $10,000 good only that morning. We told him we wanted to thank about the deal at the pool and get back to him as well as look at the paper work. He was only interested in getting a credit card deposit then and when he was not getting it advised us the deal is now or good bye. He then walked away with out really saying good bye and we were off to the pool. It was an interesting experience for $200 food credit. One member of our party’s husband could not make the trip so they gave her $100. (For you married ladies traveling alone it is important you tell them you are single for the  $200.)

Some Pretty Flowers  on the Pueblo Bonita Emerald Bay Grounds    

After lounging at the pool a few hours we arranged to take the free city tour at 3:45PM.  The condition for this free tour was that we would be taken to jewelry store for 20 minutes and then to a place for dinner at the end of our tour that we would have to pay for.  The tour company obviously makes their money from kick backs from both places.  The tour guide was very nice and seemed passionate about his city. They drove us through out the city in what looked like an old cable car explaining different things with a stop at the Church and then another one at the cliff divers. We learned that the diving here is more difficult than the famous cliff divers of Acapulco. Here, while the height is several feet lower than Acapulco, the divers only have 6 – 7 feet during high tide. This means they have to wait for the right wave to come in and take the dive. People have been killed here and our tour guide was injured doing this when he was younger.  After the dive, men who are also divers them selves hold signs out for tips explaining that this is how they make their money.  The sunset dive we saw was spectacular.  

   From the inside and outside of City Church

                     A Matzlan Diver (Take with New D200)

          Taken From Promenade At Dusk From Free Tour Bus

From the cliff diving area it was off to the an area with a view of the harbor and city and then to the old city where we went into a  small museum that had a well made 20 minute film about Mazatlan.  From we drove down the promenade to a restaurant called Sheik at the end of it.  Sheik is a very pretty place. They give you the complimentary watered down frozen margarita and a full menu to choose from.  While the service was very good, we found the food on the bland side.  After dinner it was back to the hotel for a night cap.

                                                                                               Picture of Michael Ehrlich Bragging

From The City Tour

The next day we headed off to Playa Bruja because we learned the kids can go surfing there.  After breakfast we all squeezed into the open pick up truck taxi for $8 for the 5 minute ride over.  At the beach there is a nice place for lunch or dinner as well as surf rental tent that does is not always opened.  This morning the surf rental did not open so the kids were out of luck.  We did manage to stop a patrolling life guard in an ATV and in our badly spoken Spanish we managed to ask about the surfboard rentals.  He then  called over someone who made  a call to arrange to have the boards there the next day.  With no boards the kid’s body surfed the cool pacific water until lunch.  The restaurant here served us the freshest lobster, shrimp and other non seafood Mexican foods. In fact the lobsters were just carried in when we sat down.  This place made the best coconut shrimp I have ever had.. I think they rolled the shrimp in the coconuts that morning!   Another highlight of  Playa Bruja Beach Restaurant was having a giant coconut cut open and asking for their coconut drink mixed with 1800 Tequila. (almost 2- 3 shots of it). Alcohol and virgin coconut drinks along with 10 meals was about $120. This was well worth it considering there were 3 lobster shrimp lunches that cost $16 each.

   Port Washington Kids Watching Turtle Hatchlings

After leaving Playa Bruja we spent the afternoon at the pool. Our pool routine usually meant enjoying our mid day “plum-martinis” made in our suite and served pool side. This was vodka and a fancy Japanese plum wine we brought with us.  I traded the vodka for the Don Pedro Reposada Tequila we bought earlier for the week to give it a different taste.   Our routine at the pool during the week included ordering fresh guacamole and chips as well as using the exercise room exercise room, doing palates and of course the ½ price 5 – 6 PM happy hour that one can swim up to get or order through the waiters that walk around. Some days we did not leave the pool until dusk.  The kids during the week would go from pool to pool to hot tub to painting pottery to eating sandwiches at the deli to back to the pool.

 On my last night  in Mazatlan I hired a van using the connection we used to get us from the airport to the hotel to take us to the old section for dinner at Pedro and Lola’s.  We saw Pedro and Lola’s from our bus tour as being crowded and checked it with our guide book which gave it a positive write up. By hiring the van on my own the cost was $85 for the entire evening. If you go through the hotel the cost is nearly double.  At 7PM we were picked up in a new air conditioned van with a pleasant and friendly driver who had a enough English skills to get us around. The ladies requested the driver to stop at a florist to get Maureen flowers for her birthday which he did in the middle of the city in what looked like the flower district.  At Pedro and Lola’s we were seated at an outside table for the 10 of us. I quietly disappeared to the square across the restaurant  and handed 50 pesos ($5) to a guy with a mariachi band to sing happy birthday. He said OK but gave me a funny look on 50 pesos.  10 minutes later when the man came with 10 other guys I understood the “not thrilled” look at the 50 pesos.  They innocently sang a song in Spanish by our table and then broke into the English version of Happy Birthday to a startled Maureen. They were so good I gave them another 50 pesos to sing Eres Tu, the only love song I know in Spanish. This made Maureen tear. Mike in our group gave them another 50 pesos and they kept going.  All in all it was not a bad way to spend $15 and have a 10 or 11 piece band for 25 minutes. In fact they drowned out the flat American sax player inside so he quietly took a break while our table was the center of attention. Dinner was pretty good with regional specialties and some traditional Mexican food.  They had monster margaritas that were ordered with a premium Tequila that were the best we had in the 3 days we were in Matzlan.  Some of us also ordered shots of Don Julio Anejo and Reposada that we sipped during dinner.  After a few of these shots the waiter simply put the bottle on our table and joined us in a round.  After dinner, birthday cake and paying the bill we went inside to sing Margaritaville with a one man American band. Doing that had the waiter bring another complimentary shot of the good stuff.   For those less familiar with really good Tequila what I can say is you do not chug it down but sip it slowly.  Leave the salt and the lime to Jose Cuervo to cover their horrid taste.  One enjoys Don Julio, Patron or Tres Generations almost like a fine Scotch or well aged rum.

Below Taken At Pedro & Lola's In Old City Matzlan

A Tear To Her Eye With Eres Tu  With Marichi Band during Maureen Hauser's Birthday

Mike Ehrlich, Tab Hauser & amigo Don Julio                            The Gang Singing Margaritaville with Waiter

From Pedro and Lola’s our patient driver took us back to Pueblo Bonito Emerald Hotel with stops on the Matzlan 6 mile promenade to take night pictures of carnival statues and it was back the hotel close to midnight.

  Night Shots Of Carnival Statues Matzlan

Due to work, I had to leave the group on Wednesday morning. While I missed in the fun of the rest of the week  I was told some of the group did self  tour of parts of the city on their own via public bus. This included going to the mercado as well as view some of the buildings in the old section. One couple decided to take part in the Carnival festivities.  They said there were big crowds, food and fireworks and were happy the teens did not join them.  The group also went back to the Playa Brujas to try surfing.  I was told the cool water and not having wet suits made it a short outing.  The two dinners they mentioned they did were at  Las Arches and another dinner at the beach house at Playa Brujas. Here they ordered another coconut drink only to learn that they only serve 2 for ones. I can imagine there surprise when they each got two over sized drinks you can see below.

It is not easy have 2 of these!

                          At The Mercado                                                                   Street Near Mercado

 Different Hot Sauces At Local Taco Stand (Shot from Bus)

These Are Kept Near The Lobby

All in all, Mazatlan was nice place to get away from the frigid weather of Long Island and see a different area of Mexico. This place is not just a tourist destination but a real working city. You see different things in cities like these.

 Mazatlan Mexico From the Air. City, Harbor and Promenade

Photos by Tab Hauser   tabh@hascorelays.com       www.tabhauser.com