Acapulco hotels

[Lvs2Cruise2]

Hello all... DH and I are going on Coral Princess April 24th departing from Acapulco. We decided to fly in a day before and stay overnight so we don't miss our cruise. I have no idea where to stay.. how far are the hotels from the airport.. and how far are these hotels from the pier? Is getting in a cab from the airport our best bet? I've also read on here that Mexico is no longer accepting US dollars.. I'm so confused! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

[gomexico]

Hello all... DH and I are going on Coral Princess April 24th departing from Acapulco. We decided to fly in a day before and stay overnight so we don't miss our cruise. I have no idea where to stay.. how far are the hotels from the airport.. and how far are these hotels from the pier? Is getting in a cab from the airport our best bet? I've also read on here that Mexico is no longer accepting US dollars.. I'm so confused! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

You will be in Acapulco during "Semana Santa," Holy Week and Easter Sunday. That's probably the busiest, craziest time of year in Mexico (especially Acapulco) for tourism. The most congested time of the year. Maye your room - and airline - reservations NOW.

 

Your best option for getting from Acapulco's airport to a conveniently-located hotel - the easiest and most comfortable way - is to take one of the taxi's at the airport. There's no competition amongst taxi drivers, though - you'll pay about the same fare no matter which you take. I haven't taken a taxi on that route in more than a year, but then it was about the peso equivalent of US$25 for a car-load.

 

Hotels are spread-about the Acapulco area. An area I think you might want to focus on when looking at possibilities are ones that promote themselves (their location) as being "Zona Dorada" or "Playa Condesa" (both descriptions have essentially the same meaning). These hotels put you in an area popular with foreign tourists and middle-class Mexican tourists. There are restaurants and other tourist-services, a nice beach, etc. Some popular hotels in that area you might want to check on are: Fiesta Inn, Fiesta Americana, Hotel Tortuga, Hotel El Cano, Hotel Emporio.

 

The Zona Dorada/Playa Condesa area is mid-way between the airport and the cruise ship passenger terminal. It's probably closer to the terminal than that. Taxi's are plentiful in Acapulco and the trip from your hotel to the terminal would probably take 15-minutes and cost you the peso-equivalent (MX$50) of US$5 - if it weren't Semana Santa. For this weekend, though, allow yourself an hour and a half for the trip and expect to pay about MX$100 (all prices rise during Semana Santa). There are no meters in Acapulco taxi's - you're left to negotiate/pay what's agreed with the driver. I'd just confirm the rate with a hotel doorman before getting into a taxi.

 

There is at least one ATM machine in the airport at Acapulco, and probably a couple of currency exchanges. Get pesos from either before approaching the clammoring taxi drivers. But, considering the Semana Santa week - when ATM machines in the city often run out of money, bringing some pesos from home, obtained from your bank, is what I recommend you do. Bring enough to get your through at least a couple of days until the holiday passes and you can get pesos from ATM machines in other ports of call. A few taxi drivers may taxi US$ but revisions to national currency laws has made doing that far more difficult than ever before.

 

I want to emphasize how jam-packed Acapulco will be at time of year. It's likely you may have never before been in that situation.

[dforeigner]

I want to emphasize how jam-packed Acapulco will be at time of year. It's likely you may have never before been in that situation.

 

I second that. It could take hours to travel from the hotel to the port and from the airport to the hotel.

[Lvs2Cruise2]

You will be in Acapulco during "Semana Santa," Holy Week and Easter Sunday. That's probably the busiest, craziest time of year in Mexico (especially Acapulco) for tourism. The most congested time of the year. Maye your room - and airline - reservations NOW.

 

Your best option for getting from Acapulco's airport to a conveniently-located hotel - the easiest and most comfortable way - is to take one of the taxi's at the airport. There's no competition amongst taxi drivers, though - you'll pay about the same fare no matter which you take. I haven't taken a taxi on that route in more than a year, but then it was about the peso equivalent of US$25 for a car-load.

 

Hotels are spread-about the Acapulco area. An area I think you might want to focus on when looking at possibilities are ones that promote themselves (their location) as being "Zona Dorada" or "Playa Condesa" (both descriptions have essentially the same meaning). These hotels put you in an area popular with foreign tourists and middle-class Mexican tourists. There are restaurants and other tourist-services, a nice beach, etc. Some popular hotels in that area you might want to check on are: Fiesta Inn, Fiesta Americana, Hotel Tortuga, Hotel El Cano, Hotel Emporio.

 

The Zona Dorada/Playa Condesa area is mid-way between the airport and the cruise ship passenger terminal. It's probably closer to the terminal than that. Taxi's are plentiful in Acapulco and the trip from your hotel to the terminal would probably take 15-minutes and cost you the peso-equivalent (MX$50) of US$5 - if it weren't Semana Santa. For this weekend, though, allow yourself an hour and a half for the trip and expect to pay about MX$100 (all prices rise during Semana Santa). There are no meters in Acapulco taxi's - you're left to negotiate/pay what's agreed with the driver. I'd just confirm the rate with a hotel doorman before getting into a taxi.

 

There is at least one ATM machine in the airport at Acapulco, and probably a couple of currency exchanges. Get pesos from either before approaching the clammoring taxi drivers. But, considering the Semana Santa week - when ATM machines in the city often run out of money, bringing some pesos from home, obtained from your bank, is what I recommend you do. Bring enough to get your through at least a couple of days until the holiday passes and you can get pesos from ATM machines in other ports of call. A few taxi drivers may taxi US$ but revisions to national currency laws has made doing that far more difficult than ever before.

 

I want to emphasize how jam-packed Acapulco will be at time of year. It's likely you may have never before been in that situation.

 

 

Thankyou so much for your advice. I had no idea that this time of year was so busy in Acapulco. That could explain the more expensive airfare. I am intested in this particular cruise because it's 10 days and is a Full Transit of the Panama Canal. The end of April is the only time of the year I can go. Thankyou for the info... on another thread I read about Fiest Americana and I think we'll book that.