Skiman--I've stayed at Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta (Grand Mayan is on the same property) a few times and did not rent a car. If you don't rent a car, you will have to take the Mayan Palace free shuttle to the Sea Garden store. Then you walk around the corner and take the bus to Puerto Vallarta and get off at Walmart. THEN, you catch yet another bus to get to town. To be truthful, it got old fast. However, I personally don't like renting vehicles. I'm always paranoid something bad will happen to the rental. For example, two summers ago I rented a car for a week in Vegas. The first evening I had the car, I went to the grocery store. After getting groceries, I went back out to the car only to find a huge, wide mark all across the top of the hood. I don't know if it was there when I picked up the rental car or not; I didn't examine it. I worried all week about what the rental company would say. When I did return the car, the company did note the mark on the condition slip but did not charge me. If you don't think you'll worry about the rental car or driving in Mexico, it might well be worth renting a car. Personally, I'd rather the hassle of taking numerous busses than dealing with a rental car in Mexico. Perhaps you could bus it this vacation and decide if you want a rental car the NEXT time you vacation in Nuevo Vallarta. BTW, the Grand Mayan looks like a fantastic resort. You should have a wonderful time there.