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Destinos

Lori

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Destinos
anyone have experience with Destinos Unlimited yet?
 

dioxide45

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Nope, are we being setup for a shill?
 

Lori

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Nope, are we being setup for a shill?
No, went to Puerto Vallarta last year and bought into this resort for a very low fee based out of Mexico. Right now they are advertising on their site 7 nights in Nuevo Vallarta Mexico at Grand Bliss Suite for $780 and 7 nights at Los Cabo's Grand Mayan Master Suite for $1290 and they offer world wide travel benefits. I'm traveling to Orlando, Fl first of June and called about hotel partners. And they somehow had already used what they had blocked out. The ones that were not blocked out I found cheaper on a hotel website. This part is so frustrating. The other timeshare we own is Club Melia, in which I think you have heard it is horrible
 

T-Dot-Traveller

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Dear Lori ,
Can you clarify .
Destinos is not a TS resort .

I believe it is a travel club / site and was probably sold to you as a " exit package " last year when you went to Vidanta / Mayan in Nuevo Vallarta .

I have no direct personal experience using Destinos .( I have seen posts on TUG by new posters who visited Mexico & bought )
Their web site shows various Vidanta locations in Mexico & other travel options. I believe their " affiliation" tends to get you into Vidanta resort locations at times of the year other than
peak snowbird season & Mexican Holiday Weeks ( Jan - March & Christmas, New Years & the 2 weeks either side of Easter Sunday .)

Vidanta builds in pesos and collects MF in dollars . This allows the properties have enough units for owner/members who reserve when their booking window opens and some exchangers (who plan 9-18 months out) to fill the peak winter season .
This means they have "extra" space May - December - (excluding some summer weeks that they are trying to fill with Mexican National Contracts - IMO )

They fill these other times through all the various channels and business relationships.

by giving owners pay on use only"bonus weeks " in their contracts - that are generally only usable in non peak snowbird season
because the booking window is 45 days or less in Feb & March / but 6 months the rest of the year.

Then there is :
SFX
RCI
Intervals International
Destinos
ICE
Hotel Travel websites
Golf deals
etc, etc,

If you bought Destinos thinking you would get Grand Bliss NV or RM - for Presidents Week or a resort in Orlando at Christmas - this won't likely happen .
( No matter what the salesperson told you when you gave them your money )

I believe Destinos can get you " shoulder season " vacations . Planning well ahead and working with them on a flexible basis
may be required AND the price may be no better than other options including " last minute " ones .

If you want to go back to Vidanta properties in peak season - ask about availability at Grand Mayan Acapulco or Mayan Palace Mazatlan . These locations currently have some inventory in RCI for Feb. & March 2017 .
.

.
 
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rpennisi

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Vidanta builds in pesos and collects MF in dollars .
T-Dot, I like this line! And would add, buys food and alcohol in pesos and charges for them in dollars.
 

dioxide45

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Vidanta builds in pesos and collects MF in dollars .
I have seen this statement made before and have wondered what was meant by it. How exactly does the fact that they build in Peso and charge MF in dollars impact availability? Isn't the MFs a direct relation to the cost to run and maintain the resort. So if the dollar goes up against the Peso, shouldn't the MFs billed in USD go down? Do they bill Mexican Nationals the MFs in USD too?

I could see how building in Peso and selling in the dollar could really help them to make more money if the USD goes up against the Peso. Of course the opposite is true if the Peso recovers. Also, with the now weak Peso against the dollar, when they sell to Mexican Nationals, have they had to increase the Peso price to compensate for the strength of the dollar? I really would have expected that the USD price should drop accordingly, but that is far fetched thinking.

Any time we have visited properties in Cancun, they always have food prices in Peso. Though our experience is limited to the Westin Lagunamar and JW Marriott. Does Vidanta have all their food and beverage priced in USD?
 

rpennisi

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The MF's have never in my experience gone down. Even as the exchange rate has gone from 10 to over 20 to the dollar.

Presently in Los Cabos, all the resort restaurants and local restaurants show the final bill in pesos and US dollars. Always better to pay in pesos, but the difference is not that great. I can see why they charge more using dollars, they do have their own exchange costs I would assume.

The resorts, however just seem to gouge the buyer with their prices.
The locals are making a profit, the resorts way more so, imo.
 

T-Dot-Traveller

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RE : Vidanta builds in pesos and collects MF in dollars .

Since I am probably the origin of this statement ( in this thread & others)- I will try to explain how ( IMO ) this influences their operation and business plan .

They builds in pesos - lower cost of construction including labour inputs . Daniel Chavez Moran who started the company has a engineering degree from Univ. of Guadalajara . He understands construction & resort design and cost of building . His vision has brought this TS system to where it is today from a single property in Mazatlan in 1974.

Vidanta is a float week RTU system . Snowbird season is the high occupancy / peak,time in Mexico .
Historically Vidanta has built enough units for owners and exchangers ( ie fresh prospects for their sales force ) to have vacations during peak snowbird season .

Vidanta sells & then uses that money to build ( instead of using bank loans- IMO ) .
They continue to build and add new upgrades to the properties. ( see Cirque de Soliel in RM and the Cirque / theme park slated to open in Nuevo Vallarta in 2018)
This increases availability for peak snowbird season & and obviously for all others times.

Vidanta is privately held .
International educated family members are part of the management team

Contrast this to many other TS systems .( generally those run by bean counters whose mantra is often
raise management fees and be " asset light " by controlling HOA boards of resorts not " fully owned " in the classic sense .
example DRI - Diamond - buy Gold Key & then raise MF fees and resort management fees
number of units built = zero .

Wyndham - for S. Florida / Pompano Beach Have they added any units ?
Their sales force will be happy to sell you CWA points and tell you how you will love Pompano in Feb . when it is cold in xx up north .They forget to tell you about all the legacy fixed week Feb. owners who will be there in Feb. - when you can' t figure out why there is no availability for you to book

*****
By building over 7000 units ( in pesos ) for peak snowbird season - Vidanta has lots of availability the other 9 months of the year . ( FYI - I think 7000 units is about what HICV / Orange Lake has after acquiring SilverLeaf . - & no building of any new units )

I have read on TUG - don' t buy in Mexico , it is " overbuilt " and easy to exchange into,.
This may be true in some respects - but is not accidental .
If you have lower building and staffing costs it changes your business model and Vidanta is a star example . You can keep growing and getting better each year by building - IMO

****
Vidanta Mexican National contract have MF in $ USD

Vidanta MF are based on the brand owned , unit size , the year bought ( ie starting MF cost ) and if there is a percentage cap on annual increases . So- contracts for the same size unit can vary in MF - depending on the purchase year / start point .

My contract has a annual cap of USA consumer price increase / plus or minus 5 %
for Mexican inflation . For 2017 the MF went up approx . $ 25 USD $ - this was less than
5 % . I also have the MF on use only addendum - so if we don' t go,we don't pay .

Peso to US dollar exchange rates have no impact on MF

All resort charges ( ie drinks at the pool , restaurant meals etc.) are billed when you check out and are in pesos . I always put them on a Canadian dollar credit card that has no foreign exchange fees . The charge shows up in $ C with the peso cost & conversion rate listed .

Wish it worked that way for MF - but that is not how it works . It is always in $ USD . I use the same credit card and at the current 75 cent loonie - the cost in C $ is plus 250 or so for me in 2017 - compared to the USD dollar MF number .

Note -In my opinions- I am using the name Vidanta as an umbrella to refer to all prior corporate names as well (ie ) Grupo Mayan , Vidafel etc .

Vida Vacation Club is their TS sales name .

.

.
 
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rpennisi

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T-Dot,
I can agree with much of what you have written with a couple of exceptions.

Sr. Chavez has built and then torn down numerous buildings and structures never used in Nuevo Vallarta alone.
After tearing down the yellow and red MP buildings by the beach ( I saw them painting trim, etc just before ripping them down), ok, he gets more bang from the GL pools built there.

But he adds extensions to the remaining MP (formerly blue),and then tears down one of the new extensions unused and two of the remaining MP buildings. In addition, builds docks and a walled waterway around the MP and then rips it up unused. Why would an engineering major do this?

In May 2012, I watched them build an elevated roadway to the second GL for the purpose of shops that were to be built in the middle floors. Next time there, roadway gone, shops now in the middle building of the last MP. Confused as to why build it and tear it down, poor planning? Wouldn't it have been better financially to do it right the first time?

The walling off the the exit from the GM to the SG is another point. An HOA would have been a big voice for stopping that as well as the new entrance pointing away from NV. Haven't been too many who have agreed with those moves, even though you have several times mentioned how easy the beach walk to SG is. Having been to NV many times since 2003, I have to disagree. The security reasons are a ruse. Just getting to transportation and a cab is a hardship for many.

Pueblo Bonito resorts in Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas offer complimentary coach bus transportation between their resorts on the hour all day, something Vidanta should do for their guests.
Ron
 

T-Dot-Traveller

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Hi Ron ,
Thanks for reading & the feedback .
RE : walling off the exit road in NV . I agree with you that it is a mistake & has upset lots of long time owners . I had read about it on TUG first - and last year heard about it at the MP PV - Marina . Some were Grand Mayan owners who preferred to stay at the PV Marina as a result .

Last year was our first stay in Nuevo ( at the Sea Garden ) .

We bought at MP PV - Marina when " international" sales operated there & we had always stayed there when vacationing in PV .
( Mexican National TS sales still has a sales force there )

Our Sea Garden stay was using our 2015 VF week ( booked Dec 2015 ) & I probably lucked into a cancellation . (We were booked at MP PV Marina the prior week & decided to try stretching one airfare into two weeks of vacation )
Since we never experienced the road exit walk ( before the wall ) I probably have less of a " response " . It may also "feel" different to walk over to the big resort from the Sea Garden versus
having to walk the beach to "escape" .

I generally post about the beach walk so new visitors with questions are aware of the option .
Since the beach is public property - it will always be an option .

*****
I am aware of the teardown legacy . I guess I see it as part of Vidanta's strength that the owner is willing to spend extra to make the "reality" more like the vision .

.
 
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anyone have experience with Destinos Unlimited yet?
Lori and others.
Just back from Vadanta NV
So Destinos seems to be a newish way to keep you and me in the VIDA net when we refused to buy. They offered a super deal price-wise with the promise that we could get access to a number of weeks a year if we paid a modest annual fee that year. And we were given VIDA bucks for our use on our return.
Also access some non VIDA properties.
So when I went back this month, it became clear I was up for in the same deal. Another wasted day. Yep free b-fast and 10% off on site.
At b-fast when we asked for info on Vida Dollars we were informed that we couldn’t use them until we bought a real VIDA ownership plan and that we had committed to another tour and timeshare sales experience (“member update”). We bailed on as I wasn’t ready to waste another day. Another couple we met had gone to the presentation and made a very low offer which was rejected and they were released.

I believe that the money I paid (January) went towards the the weeks cost, I returned on (last week). I know there were, no as in Zero accommodation available to us under Destinos to extend out time there, or at any point up till April. (Not sure beyond that). So it aporears they are drawing on a limited pool of units. Not sure about the non-VIDA sites? There may be some availability there.
It may be interesting to see what they do to get us back now the week that was part of of the deal is done?
 

T_R_Oglodyte

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In Spanish, "destino" also means destiny or fate. What befalls you in your life, your fates, are your destinos.

In case you haven't figured it out, having paid to join Destinos, Destinos is probably much more like the fate that has how befallen you than the destinations that are available to you.
 

RJones

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Its weird, I remember a couple years back they had just finished the Grand Bliss pool in RM complete with 2 nice restaurants. They unceremoniously tore it up and built a new complex.
 
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