“Our honeymoon was so special and so sweet. Looking back on the pictures a year and a half later fills me with such joy. We keep getting questions about our favorite hotels and resorts, so we are starting a new process of reviewing the places that we stay as hotel or resort reviews.
(Check out our adventure honeymoon in New Zealand!)
Vegan-Friendly All-Inclusive Resorts
We needed to make sure that we would be able to eat. So that began our search for a vegan-friendly and health-friendly resort or hotel. We had just spent 8 months planning our incredible wedding and we were exhausted, so we were ready to spend our honeymoon relaxing and enjoying each other. So we were specifically looking for an all inclusive spot.
Secrets Vallarta Bay: Resort review
We ended up honeymooning at Secrets Vallarta Bay because it was one of the few luxury resorts that boasted vegan options. Based on recommendations we found online we decided to splurge a bit and upgrade to the Preferred Club room and honeymoon package. It was heavenly. The preferred rooms have their own premium bar on the ground floor.
I am happiest when I get exercise every day, so we were sure to hit the gym. For how lovely the resort is, the gym was not particularly luxury. But with the beach out front, yoga classes offered (and lovely), kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, and all of the partying available, I doubt many people worry about the gym. It was sufficient for all of our needs. There were towels our for us to use and even someone in the gym who was available to give workout ideas and advice.
The rooms had beautiful enormous bathtubs that were big enough to be hot tubs – inside the room and on the balcony! We watched a movie from the bubble bath one day. It was so lovely.
Party Vibes at Secrets
Now one of the things that websites said might be “cons” for this resort is that it can be too rowdy. That, for Brian and I, was actually a “pro”. There were events and times to be social and party all day, every day. It was really easy to make friends and to get active.
Me in a human-sized hamster ball before they rolled me into the pool and other guests spun me right round baby right round.
My husband wearing a bright pink wig and shooting the foam cannon at the pool party.
A large coordinated dance party.
My hubby and I participating in a drink mixing competition!
My best friend from middle school, Matthew, happened to be on the same flight after our wedding down to Puerto Vallarta. We partied on the plane down together and then he and his husband, Mark, got day passes to join us at Secrets one day! We went to the pool, went to dinner, and went out on the water paddle boarding and kayaking.
We received some special honeymoon treatment at the restaurants.
The views from the resort were mesmerizingly beautiful.
We had private dinner served on the beach. It started raining, but it didn’t bother us at all.
You can get the white dress I’m wearing above for your beachy adventure on Amazon here!
And we had room service, too!
Resort Review
Pros
+ Attempting to be vegan friendly. They gave us cards that said “VEGANA” and “VEGANO” for us to present to restaurants as we went in so they would know how to serve and advise us. They attempted to have vegan options at all of their many restaurants.
+ Vegan-friendly foam pillows available (non-down pillows).
+ Gluten free options at all restaurants.
+ Gorgeous, luxury resort.
+ Adults only. (This may be a con for some people)
+ Beautiful modern rooms. Some have balcony hot tubs and some have swim-up rooms with private mini pools.
+ Sandy beach with pool chairs and lounges. Free towels and drink service on the beach.
+ Ocean and beach toys free for use.
+ Unlimited premium alcohol.
+ High-end restaurants. You can go over to Now Amber and use their restaurants as well.
+ Swim up bar.
+ Beautiful spa with pools, saunas, steam rooms, and incredible masseurs.
+ Free Wi-Fi and a great selection of movies and games.
+ Sufficient gym.
+ Thoughtful about sustainability: Secrets Social Responsibility Page
Cons
+ I was not able to find information on the toiletries regarding their vegan or cruelty-free status. They do provide many free toiletries.
+ They advertise daily minibar refills and daily room cleaning for preferred club stays, however our room and the rooms of some other people we met in the Preferred Club didn’t have either happen for multiple days in a row – even after calling down to have it happen.
+ We are vegan. We got these awesome little cards that read “VEGANA” and “VEGANO” that we were supposed to give to our host each time we arrived for a meal. We gave them to our host, however we were regularly mis-informed about what foods had dairy in them. Because of this I ate dairy and was sick because of it. I understand this is a learning curve for them, but they need to step it up. People have serious lactose allergies that can ruin a vacation (especially a romantic one)! ++ We asked clear questions and extra questions. We didn’t expect for them to know or serve food correct the first time.
+ Brian and I are adventurers. We knew going into the trip that a week of staying in one place wasn’t really our style. Next time we do a trip like this we will either do a couple less days or be ready to take a few outings away from the resort so that we don’t go stir crazy. After months of exhausting wedding planning, however, it was a great way to relax and take a break.
Thanks for reading through! Please check back for more hotel and resort reviews. The next ones will have an even better consumer guide from a vegan and sustainability perspective. It was tough to do that for this one because I’m writing it a year and a half later.
More goodness coming your way soon.
Xo,
Seyka
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