My family stayed at the Plaza Pelicanos from July 26-July 31st, in Section 2, the Grand Section. We all greatly enjoyed our stay. I tend to write detailed reviews, so here is our trip, from beginning to end:

The airport-Upon clearing customs at Puerto Vallarta, you end up in a room filled with timeshare sales people. Do not talk to any of these people; we did, and we were hassled for it. Your transportation rep will not be in this room. Instead, go through the sliding doors into another room. This is where all the transportation companies are located. We found ours, and we were on our way. Be careful; arriving at this airport can be a harrowing experience.

Upon arrival-A bellboy immediately unloaded our bags from the van. The front desk staff was VERY friendly. Only one of the 2 rooms we had booked was available, so the manager gave us the key to that one room, and we entered it. The other room was available in about an hour.

Rooms-Rooms were simply amazing. Simple, yet always clean and comfortable. Beds were very comfortable. TV was good, bathroom was very nice. We even had a balcony. All rooms have individual temperature controls. Simply put, the rooms were amazing.

All inclusive-Celli, who was extremely helpful throughout our entire visit, explained everything to us in great detail. We were allowed to visit any restaurant we wanted; however, the specialty restaurants required a reservation. All drinks were included. Make sure you get the black bracelets; they give you everything! No timeshare presentation is required to get access to all restaurants. However, my parents did it so they could get special discounts on activities. However, it is not required.

Restaurants-This is the most important part of an all-inclusive resort for many people, so I will try to give many details about it. There are two buffet restaurants on the resort, which are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner: El Huerto, which is accessible to everyone, and Pergolas, which is only accessible to guests staying in the Grand section. In addition, there are three specialty restaurants: Carusso, Temaki, and Tamayo. Tamayo is only accessible to guests staying in the Grand Section. Carusso is Italian, Tamayo is a variety, and Temaki is Sushi. Reservations are required for the specialty restaurants. Also, same day reservations are usually impossible. For the buffets, we enjoyed Pergolas, but only ate at El Huerto once. We did not enjoy it. I would encourage anyone to eat at the specialty restaurants. Tamayo is excellent. Carusso is also very good. Temaki is average; it is not air conditioned, and the food is good, but not amazing.

Best part-the service. Everyone at the hotel went out of their way to make us feel welcome. Please keep in mind, many of the resort workers are getting paid 60 pesos a day, which is about $6 US a day. Tipping is not optional. Please keep this in mind.

My wife and I had an awesome time at the Pelicanos Beach Resort. We loved every minute of our stay there.
The entire staff, from the Front Desk Clerks to the Maids were all friendly, kind and nice to us. The food was good, although I would of preferred more of a variety. It seemed like the menu was the same each day (mostly mexican menu).
The snack bars were always stacked with plenty of food such as chicken wings, chicken nuggets, hamburgers, hot dogs and fries.
The bartenders were all fun to be around with and they were not shy in adding alcohol in your drinks. If you do go to the 'El Huerto' Restaurant (Club Section) after 3pm, make sure you ask for Luiz as your waiter. He gave my wife and I exceptional service without even asking for it.
They have terrific - a la carte restaurants. Try Caruso's (Italian restaurant). The food, wine and service is all good.
As for the guards standing at the entrance, they to were very friendly an it didn't bother me that they were there. Actually, it felt quite safe that they were there.
I was disappointed with the beach layout as I like to walk the beach and I couldn't do so at the resort. It is hard to take a walk as each resort/hotel seems to have their own beach area seperated by huge rocks and bolders. Also, I expected the beach water to be more clear and crystaline like - instead it was murky.
Visit the downtown core as it is filled with plenty of shops (silver jewelery is the main seller), history and great restaurants.
The only negative thing that I can say was a bother were those individuals stopping and harrasing you to go to a Timesharing presentation. They were simply a pain in the ****.
Careful if booking tours or excursions, make sure you book from the hotel or from the Main Marina itself as many of these individuals will offer you rebates only to find out later that it was a scam to get you to the timesharing presentations.
As a summary, we had a great time and would back to the resort. The weather was just awesome !

I have been to over 47 countries and needless to say have stayed at a lot of resorts. Don't believe what you read about the resort not being clean or safe. This is a very safe/clean establishment. For the price, it was a great value. I highly recommend the all-inclusive. The restaurants Tamayo and The Italian restaurant have 5 star cuisine. The buffets and snack bars were quite good. The AC in the room was great and the service was amazing. For people who are not getting any tips they are the most attentive waiters/waitresses I have seen anywhere in the world. The activities director Sergio was fantastic. I will say that the first drink of the day is a little light on the alcohol but if you keep going back they get stronger and if you ask nicely for a little more rum or vodka they add it. They have 2 beers, coronoa and modelo negro. But they have a plethora of mixed drinks. The desserts at the buffet were a little lacking but at the other restaurants they were incredible. There are several pools and the beach. Don't expect crystal clear water. You have to drive about 1/2 hour in Puerto Vallarta to find crystal clear beaches and then the resort rates are really high. I don't think this place has received the ratings it deserves. Please contact me with any questions you may have. I was torn by the reviews when I went to book this resort but I thought I would give it a chance.

When I initially read reviews about Plaza Pelicanos, I was thrilled. But the moment I got to the hotel, I knew that it was going to be much different than I expected. The place didn't seem ery safe as there were like 10-15 men holding assualt rifles and just standing around at the front of the hotel. They were there during the duration of the trip. Our room was alright but it was nothing special. As long as you just sleep in your room you'll be fine. The night life around the area was great. Hit up Senor frogs or Carlos O'briens they are places to have fun. And if clubbing is your scene, hit up Ztai or Christines. As a tourist you go to a different country to get away from your problems not add on to them. One night one of the "police men" actually forced this dude i knew of some money. If I go back to Puerto Vallarta I will be staying at a different hotel such as NH Krystal.