If you remember from a previous post, our departure for sunny Mexico was delayed by the terrible deicing debacle in Traverse City. We were able to book a flight the next day from Detroit to Puerto Vallarta. We boarded the complementary shuttle to the airport and off we went to the Delta lounge for breakfast. Having access to the lounge is nice. If you have a card that gives you access, I highly recommend it.
Now, because we booked this flight the day before, our seats were terrible. We were in the last row. This didn't make my heart feel super happy because after arriving in Mexico, we would need to go through customs, and that is a line you don't want to be last in. Last row = not good.
More bad news. I scanned my ticket and went into the jetway. As I waited for the family to join me, I heard they would need to check their bags because there was no more room on the plane. This was terrible news because on our last trip to Mexico, in Cancun two years ago, we waited over and hour for our bags to appear on the luggage carousel. Our poor travel luck continued. I had the gate staff check my bag as well. Might as well have them all together. And when we got on the plane, there was plenty of overhead space, so my annoyance turned to anger. But that's how it goes.
The flight itself was no problem. It was smooth, the flight attendants were nice, and I got to see John Wick: Chapter 4. As we landed, some wonderful news came to us. An announcement said that the flight would be deplaning from both ends of the plane. Instead of the last ones off, we were the first ones off. Joy! We walked down the stairs to the tarmac and boarded the shuttle bus to the airport. Our good luck continued as the line at customs wasn't long. And the good fortune kept on coming as our luggage was already sitting beside the carousel.
We used Vallarta Transfers to get from the airport to the resort. Our driver was very informative and friendly. We had arranged a stop to get sunscreen (since we had carry-on luggage, we couldn't pack any ourselves - thanks shoe bomber and 20+ year old security rules). Our driver took us to Chedraui so we could stock up. And then it was just a short drive to the resort, Dreams Vallarta Bay.
