It was a difficult cruise ship choice for our 1st inaugural Mexican Riviera Rally. Several of the ship and itinerary choices were leaving mid week (Tues. or Wed.)or odd days 8 to 11 day cruises. We felt it important for popularity sake to stay with a 7 day cruise departing and returning on Saturday or Sunday.to conserve your vacation days and give us the highest attendance!  As we do with all our rallies, of course we cruised on the ship our exact itinerary just to make sure it meets our standards. We are happy to report the food is good, service is good, entertainment is good, friendly staff with good itinerary. Always a deciding factor is vendor space. This usually eliminates 70% of the cruise ships. They scored very high. Very nearly as large as our Caribbean mega-ship and with an outside view and lounge/bar just next door, maybe even better. At the current signing of our contract there were no mega-ships servicing the Mexican Riviera itinerary? Once again we have chosen Royal Caribbean as our cruse line.

The ship is the Vision of The Seas. This ship will be 1/3 smaller than our Western Caribbean mega ship,(Mariner). The Vision was built in 1998. With a total length of 915 feet, a weight of 78,491 tons and a capacity to hold 2,000 passengers, 11 passenger decks. The only downfall is the ships lack of a large amount of balcony cabins that our passengers are accustomed to. We have contracted half the ship (1,000 rally passengers) with the option to add passengers after 80% of our cabins are sold. So let’s fill er fast and maybe we can up that number a couple hundred!  We feel that by the time our rally returns in 2011 and new larger mega ships will arrive on the west coast, this rally has the potential to rival our BIG ONE in the Caribbean in every category.

Mexican Riviera Rally GAMES and EVENTS are in developement on the ENTERTAINMENT page of this website. They will be similar to the Caribbean but with a Mexican flavor. We like to change them slightly but keep them biker themed of course. Most of our specific games and events will be scheduled on days the ship stays at sea.

April 11 to April 12 Los Angeles :
For those arriving early, we have chosen a host hotel, the Crowne Plaza, less than 1 mile from the port, with indoor secure parking for bikes, cars and SUV’s..no trailers. It’s a very nice hotel. Good food, clean rooms, nice pool party area, very friendly staff, bar and nightclub, FREE transfers to and from the port on sail day and on par with our other host hotels. Also Enterprise car rental at the hotel. Right from the Crowne Plaza  front desk you can also schedule shuttle and bus trips to all the glitz of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Marina Del Ray, Catalina Island, etc. only minutes away. There are also many highly recommended restaurants of every food imaginable only blocks away in either direction in San Pedro and on the waterfront. We highly recommend staying at the Crowne Plaza Hotel only 5 minutes from the port. FREE shuttle service to and from the port and Enterprise car rental at he hotel. See our TRANSPORTATION/HOTELpage for more info.

As a 2nd choice hotel we recommend the Double Tree Marina hotel. It is also a very nice hotel located less than 1 mile from the Crowne Plaza but in an entirely different setting. Very quiet, directly at the marina away from downtown but also out of walking distance to many activities and restaurants but with easy taxi and shuttle service. If you’re a boat or yacht enthusiast, or prefer sunsets on the water directly outside your window it’s hard to beat. The hotel itself does have a fine restaurant. No long term indoor parking, but plenty of outdoor parking space if you are trailering your bike, and it's free for the week with your hotel stay. See our Transportation/HOTEL page for more info.

Both Friday & Saturday prior to the cruise we expect hundreds of anxious HOHS rally participants to gather and get re-acquainted and make new friends before the cruise. The Crowne Plaza will be our rally host hotel. You might say this is where the party starts! If you are arriving early and want to join them on Friday, April 11 or Saturday, April 12, past history shows, you better book your room now! Our past 2 rallies host hotels sold out 6 months and 11 months in advance and we expect the same at our first Mexican Riviera rally. When you call, make sure you tell them you're with the HOHS Rally, cause we have reserved all the rooms!  

Day 1. Sunday April 13. Departure port: LA Harbor!!
The WorldCruiseCenter at San Pedro (LA Harbor) is a very active ocean merchant seaport located in the newly renovated, downtown San Pedro. Located only 18 miles from the Los Angeles airport and 10 miles from Long Beach airport. The port itself is less than 1 mile off Interstate 110 and very easily found for LA driving standards. Parking at the port is fenced in and guarded but all outdoors. Motorhome and trailer parking, no problem. Currently $12 per day for parking.

Ship departure time is 4:30 P.M. Be on the ship by 3:00 P.M. Passenger loading generally begins approx. 11:00 A.M. If you want to avoid the lines you should board between 12:30 and 2:00. If you get anxious there will be plenty of motorcycle riders in line to talk to. We will personally greet you before you board the ship. Once aboard, find your room, look around and if your hungry go to the Windjammer Café to begin a week of all you can eat 24-7. Our introductory giveaway show is later that evening. We average giving away over $30,000 per show, That’s every night so don’t miss them!! Take a minute and check our HOHS TV channel for activity times. Watch the sunset and blue water as we leave the coast and scout the ship later that night and check out the casino, bars, restaurants and get lost a couple of times.

Monday: Day 2. April 14, At Sea

Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Sea takes a leisurely pace down the coast of California and the Mexican Baja Peninsula. Off to the left side of the ship, land and the Sierra Madre mountain range is visible most all the way. Vendor area is open. Check out the exciting new motorcycle products and bikes. Of course you will want to drool over the grand prize giveaway bike which could be yours. Buy your Poker Walk cards, Biker Bingo tickets, ask those hard to answer vendor questions and shake hands with some of the industry legends.

Tuesday: Day 3. April 15. Cabo San Lucas

Shore time 10:30 am to 6:00pm. On your left as we cruise in will be a sizeable mountain range and lots of rock formations on the waters edge. Get you cameras ready as we come in to the port, and take a picture of the Rock formations called the Arches, the popular snorkel and dive spot.  Keep your eyes open, this is whale birthing season and most likely you’ll see a few. We were glad we brought our binoculars. This is western Baja Mexico, so dry arid plants and no trees are seen but don’t be fooled to think there is anything boring about this stop. The ship will dock just off shore and you will be moved ashore by smaller tender boats that hold about 100 people each. Once at the marina, the Mexican colors begin to come alive. Shopping, shopping, shopping!  Anyway, shopping prices are good and along with old time friendly but not aggressive street selling there is a multi level super modern mall of gigantic and beautifully done proportions on the right hand side of the Marina Go straight through the Harley Shop and you will find the mall. Restaurants of every food you can imagine..everywhere and from what we sampled, was very good. There are 2 famous bars at the marina. Hard Rock Café and Cabo Wabo. Cabo Wabo is rock and roll fame, Sammy Haggar’s place. We are working with both for special deals for our passengers. There will also be special shopping deals at the jewelry shops announced closer to sail date. This port is adding stores and new buildings every week and no doubt there will be much more to see and do 1 year from now.

For the nature lovers in our group, it’s in and under the water. Snorkel, scuba, kayaking, fishing, parasailing. Large schools of fish, dolphin, whales, seals, manta rays are abundant. You can even swim with the dolphins onshore at the aquarium 100 yards from where we come ashore or go “James Bond” and ride an underwater sea scooter. That’s right, aquahogs. You’ll also get your first look at the Mexican airforce…lots of pelicans. A short ride in a cab will get you to a beautiful beach for just lying in the sun or horseback riding on the beach, this is Baja country, meaning 4 wheeling, ATV’s and sandrail guided tours for your power fix.
There is a Harley shop right at the Marina with a few rental bikes. We suggest an escort for the few lucky first call renters. If you're into deep sea bill fishing, this one of the top five spots in the world. The Gulf Stream is very close to shore, which means short boat time and very clear water. It is also good for snorkeling and scuba diving. Large schools of fish, seals, and the occasional whale are likely, We’ll have more info. soon with a link and phone # to their location.

Wednesday: Day 4. April 16. Mazatlan

Shore time 8:00am to 5:30pm. Coasting into port you’ll notice it’s much greener with palm trees and more  large rock formations at the shore. Don’t plan on sleeping in if you’re on the dockside of the ship. A mariachi band will greet you and they really belt it out. Not good for late night drinkers! It’s a fairly spread out town with lots of historical restoration and modernization in progress. Exiting through the port center is a very clean shopping area full of eager but not aggressive locals selling their hand crafted products and excursions. Bartering will get most items at half of asking price. Taxi’s are plenty and of every type, the Pulmonia’s are the most fun, it’s a hopped up golf cart with a VW engine. Traffic is steady with VW engines powering most of the transportation and you can see just about any small engine vehicle on the street. You can even rent license plated 4 wheel ATV’s to drive on the streets, scooters, etc. We really did not see any reckless or fast driving. Although we did not plan it..seems April is motorcycle month in Mazatlan! We were told thousands of Mexican bikers migrate here every year about the same time we are in town. Imagine that!

We have also chosen a local party spot, Senor Frog’s. Those that have cruised with us in the Caribbean probably noticed or stopped in at their location directly above our Carlos N Charlie’s party location. They are in the midst of building a new location but are very willing to court our group. We’ll announce their new location and party times later.

Thursday, Day 5: April 17. Puerto Vallarta

Shore time 8:00am to 8:00pm. Ship docks very early, so most of you will wake up surrounded by a completely different port area and we are the only ship at port. Our first stop was desert-like, second stop some greenery and this stop has a large mountain chain that comes down to the coast with tropical forest jungle. Remember Arnold Swartzenaggar’s movie The Predator? It was filmed here. The shores are lined with beautiful Mexican architecture design hotels, restaurants and shopping areas.  Right near the front of the ship docks a Pirate ship and “holy crap”, Wal Mart is in sight. As you head south from the ship (turn right) you’ll see Hooter’s, Chili’s, Outback, Sheraton Hotel…you get the idea but as you reach the old downtown area it is one of the prettiest ocean front area’s we have ever seen. Local shops, local food and the shopping is great and our party location (Carlos O’Brian’s) is right in the middle and it has the potential to be our best party stop ever! Those that have been to our other parties know that is a BIG statement. This is the home of Tequila and very well may take the last 2 days at sea to sober up. Take a tour just outside the town on the coastal highway and you’ll see why so many movie stars live and build their vacation homes overlooking this beautiful bay. It rivals Hawaii at 1/3 the cost with much more beach access. As a matter of fact all beaches are public access and they are gorgeous. It’s also one of the safest ocean front cities. We’re told practically no crime and very little hard sell tactics. Once you say no, they stop immediately. Guys, be ware of some jewelry stores..FREE alcohol drinks while the ladies shop.
    

Say you’re more of a nature person. How about dolphin encounters, 200 feet high jungle canopy zip line excitement, mountain range hiking, off road jeep safari’s and of course water related adventures like whale watching, dolphin swims, sea lion encounters, parasailing, scuba and snorkeling. Feeling really wild. Bungee jump off a shore side mountain cliff over the ocean. We have been told, if you do it naked it’s FREE.  You’re going to need all 12 hours on shore. Truthfully, you could easily spend a few weeks here and I’m confident a few from our group will actually re-locate to Puerto Vallarta just as they did when we did the Alaska Rally cruise.  Fireworks from the sunset pirate ship tour I mentioned earlier over the bay will begin 6:30pm-7:00pm just to let you know you are nearing your 8:00 departure.  Of course hopefully, we’ll have that whole pirate ship I mentioned earlier also when we arrive.

Friday, Day 6: April 18. Day at Sea

We do recommend bringing binoculars for whale, dolphin, seal and shoreline watching as we follow the coastline and several small islands on the way back.

Of course our vendor area will be open and we’ll have rally games scheduled and announced later.

 Saturday, Day 7: April 19. Day at Sea

Our last day onboard, so don't miss out. This ship also offers a great main pool area for sunbathing with 6 hot tubs and cold drinks delivered as you soak up the sun and many good group gathering locations with lots of glassed in viewing areas. If you were savvy enough to schedule a massage on your 1st day, this would be a good day for that.

Of course our vendor area will be open again and we’ll have rally games scheduled and announced later. Our Grand Prize Giveaways will be on this day, So you won't want to miss the show.

Don’t forget to get the names and phone #’s of your new friends. Bring business cards if you have them..saves writing.

Sunday, April 20: Disembark

The Ship arrives in port early about daylight, sorry our HOHS fun has ended. Eat breakfast, say your last good-byes till next year. Unloading starts early morning. Only six months to wait until our next Caribbean rally.

See our Shore Excursion page on this website for a sample of the on-shore adventures.