Resort size shapes a wedding more than couples expect, and medium is the sweet spot for most of them. Big enough that the property has several proper wedding venues, a dedicated coordinator, and enough restaurants that a week there doesn’t get repetitive. Small enough that you’re not one of four weddings that Saturday and your guests aren’t queuing for a lounger.
It’s also where the inventory is. Of the 53 wedding resorts across Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Nayarit, 43 are medium-sized, which means almost every serious contender for your destination wedding sits in this category.
Here are eight of the strongest, chosen to span the region geographically and to cover a range of price points and guest experiences. Our Certified Destination Wedding Specialists can narrow it to two or three based on your guest list.
Top Medium Destination Wedding Venues at Top Puerto Vallarta Resorts
These span the city, Marina Vallarta, Nuevo Vallarta, and the Punta de Mita peninsula, and range from accessible to genuinely luxurious.
1. Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta
Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta is the most complete mid-range resort in the region. Its own private cove, a beach for 500, the Sky Penthouse Terrace for 80, the Palmas Terrace for 68, and a 40-guest gazebo, plus support for every ceremony format available here.
Family-friendly and Sapphire-level, at the southern edge of the city. The privacy of the cove is the thing guests comment on most.
Learn more about Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta and get a free quote today >>
2. Garza Blanca Preserve Resort & Spa
Garza Blanca Preserve Resort & Spa proves how much venue variety a medium property can hold: eight distinct spaces including Sierra for 300, the Main Pool for 300, the Red Room Ballroom for 250, and the clifftop Tierra Luna Forum for 200.
Five-star and family-friendly, in the jungle-backed hills south of the city. A property of this size with this many venues is unusual anywhere.
Learn more about Garza Blanca Preserve Resort & Spa and get a free quote today >>
3. Melia Puerto Vallarta
Melia Puerto Vallarta sits in Marina Vallarta, ten minutes from the airport, with a beach for 300, the Vallarta Garden for 100, the Kiosk for 100, and the Terraza Fish House restaurant for a 200-guest reception.
Family-friendly and Sapphire-level. The location is the easiest in the region for guests flying in, and the marina restaurants give them somewhere to go in the evenings.
Learn more about Melia Puerto Vallarta and get a free quote today >>
4. Armony Marival Resort & Spa Punta de Mita
Armony Marival Resort & Spa Punta de Mita has eight venues on a medium footprint, from the clifftop Vent for 140 down to Divum for 60, plus a ballroom, a garden, and a beach.
Family-friendly, out on the Punta de Mita peninsula, and set up for Jewish and South Asian ceremonies alongside civil and symbolic ceremonies. Ideal for a multi-day wedding weekend that needs a different room each night.
Learn more about Armony Marival Resort & Spa Punta de Mita and get a free quote today >>
5. Marival Emotions Resort & Suites Riviera Nayarit
Marival Emotions Resort & Suites Riviera Nayarit carries the largest ceremony-licensed ballroom in the region at 600 guests, plus a 250-guest garden, a 220-guest patio, Capriccio Beach, and the Mai Tai beach club.
Family-friendly and mid-market in Nuevo Vallarta. Proof that a medium resort can still host a very large wedding if the event space is right.
Learn more about Marival Emotions Resort & Suites Riviera Nayarit and get a free quote today >>
6. Hilton Vallarta Riviera All-Inclusive Resort
Hilton Vallarta Riviera All-Inclusive Resort offers the Gran Siqueiros Ballroom for 150, and a Beach Club for 100, both cleared for ceremony and reception.
Family-friendly and beachfront, south of the marina. The brand consistency genuinely helps when guests are booking their own rooms and want to know what they’re getting.
Learn more about Hilton Vallarta Riviera All-Inclusive Resort and get a free quote today >>
7. Riu Palace Pacifico
Riu Palace Pacifico is the adults-only value pick, a Sapphire-level partner in Nuevo Vallarta with a beach venue for 100 handling ceremonies, receptions, and cocktail hours.
One venue rather than six, which suits a straightforward destination wedding where the beach is the point and the budget is doing work elsewhere.
Learn more about Riu Palace Pacifico and get a free quote today >>
8. Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta All Inclusive & Spa
Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta All Inclusive & Spa runs Chula Vista Beach for 120, the Veranda Garden for 120, and Sonne for 30, covering everything from an elopement to a mid-sized celebration.
Family-friendly, Mexican-owned, and one of the longest-established wedding properties in the city. Guests consistently mention the hospitality here.
Learn more about Fiesta Americana Puerto Vallarta All Inclusive & Spa and get a free quote today >>
More Information for Planning Your Destination Wedding at a Medium Resort in Puerto Vallarta
Here’s what our Certified Destination Wedding Specialists tell couples thinking about resort size.
Medium Destination Wedding Venues Appeal
You get venue choice without losing attention. A large resort might have more event space, but it’s also running several weddings a weekend, and your coordinator is dividing their time. A medium property with six or eight venues gives you the options and the focus at once.
Guests find them easier. Walking distances are sensible, the restaurants aren’t a fifteen-minute hike, and people actually run into each other across the week, which is half the point of bringing everyone to the same place.
And a medium resort can still absorb a big destination wedding. The largest ceremony-licensed ballroom in the region, at 600 guests, is at a medium property, as is the region’s most varied venue collection. Size of resort and size of wedding aren’t the same question.
Puerto Vallarta Destination Wedding Cost
The average cost of a destination wedding in Puerto Vallarta is $10,215 all-in for the couple, covering the wedding package, accommodations, airfare, and add-ons. Hotel costs average about $299 per person per night over a typical five-night stay, and airfare runs $200 to $800 per couple. Our Puerto Vallarta couples average 23 guests.
These averages reflect real spend data from couples who booked their destination wedding with our Certified Destination Wedding Specialists.
Because medium wedding resorts make up most of the region’s inventory, that average is essentially the medium-resort average. It’s a fair number to plan against.
Puerto Vallarta Destination Wedding Packages
Complimentary and deposit-only wedding packages are widely available with a qualifying room block, running roughly $1,350 to $5,000 at entry tier, $5,500 to $7,000 mid-tier, and $7,500 to $14,000 and beyond for full productions.
Medium resorts are where room blocks work best. Ten to fifteen rooms is a meaningful share of a medium property’s inventory, which gives you a real negotiating position, whereas the same block at a very large resort barely registers.
Puerto Vallarta Destination Wedding Travel Information
Licenciado Gustavo Diaz Ordaz International Airport has direct flights from most major US and Canadian cities. Transfers run 10 to 15 minutes to the hotel zone and Marina Vallarta, 25 to 40 minutes to Nuevo Vallarta, and around an hour to Punta de Mita.
Location within the region is worth as much thought as the resort itself. City properties give guests independence, Nuevo Vallarta gives wider beaches, and Punta de Mita gives seclusion at the cost of an hour in a van. The November to April dry season books out first at the popular medium resorts.
Puerto Vallarta Medium Resort Destination Wedding Venue FAQs
What counts as a medium-sized resort?
A property in the middle band by room count, typically a few hundred rooms rather than a few dozen or well over a thousand. Across Puerto Vallarta and Riviera Nayarit, 43 of the 53 wedding resorts fall into this category, with 6 small and 4 large.
Can a medium resort host a large wedding?
Yes. Marival Emotions Resort & Suites Riviera Nayarit has a 600-guest ballroom, Garza Blanca Preserve seats 300 at two separate venues, and Hyatt Ziva Puerto Vallarta takes 500 on the beach. What limits a large destination wedding is usually room block availability rather than event space, so raise your guest count at the first conversation.
Will we be the only wedding that weekend?
Often, though not guaranteed. Medium resorts usually run one or two weddings a day at most, and many will confirm exclusivity for your date if you ask early. It’s a fair question to put to the coordinator before you sign, and the answer tends to be more reassuring here than at a large property.
Get Ready to Plan Your Destination Wedding in Puerto Vallarta
Enough venues to give the weekend real variety, enough attention that your coordinator knows your name, and a room block big enough to give you leverage. Medium resorts are where most destination weddings on this coast happen, and it isn’t an accident.
Fill out our online wedding planning form, and one of our Certified Destination Wedding Specialists will help you compare properties, venues, and room block pricing.
About the Author
Maggie Sabin
Maggie started as the SEO Manager at DestinationWeddings.com in 2024, where she works to drive organic traffic and conversions while creating meaningful, SEO-optimized content for the website. Previously, Maggie's career spanned from Human Resources & Recruitment to teaching at international schools for almost 10 years. Maggie spends her free time traveling, learning new languages, reading non-fiction books, working out, going to the beach and spending time cuddling her dog, Lola!
