# The Westin Mission Hills is crowded!



## Pedro (Apr 15, 2006)

We arrived today at the WMH and I've never seen it as crowded.  There were no chairs available on the pool area, and people had placed towels everywhere on the deck.  Parking was almost impossible to find, and ended up parking several buildings away from the one we are staying at.  I thought that spring break would have been over in California by now (at least in Florida, most schools have already had their spring break).  Although we didn't make it to the hotel pool, we were told it was a zoo over there.   Maybe a lot of people are here for Easter.

Still, it is a beautiful property and I'm glad we are here for the week!:whoopie:


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## ZCar (Apr 15, 2006)

Our school district starts the vacation this week ... we're 100 miles away from Palm Desert.


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## TheUnitrep (Apr 15, 2006)

Pedro --

I hope the crowds thin out after Easter Sunday and you get to enjoy a relaxing vacation at WMH!

Our children return to school in two days, but other California school districts don't start classes until March 24th.

Jerry


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## DeniseM (Apr 16, 2006)

I think most CA school have spring break the week before, or after Easter!  (We are on spring break now.)


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## glenn1000 (Apr 16, 2006)

We were at the Westin Mission Hills from April 2-9, 2006 and it was not really crowded at all. Your experience must be due to spring break. Our break was a week earlier than most So Cal schools so that must have helped. 

We had tons of available parking and no "crowd" at the pool (there were plenty of people but more than enough lounges), though we were told that the resort was fully booked. During our week, the Davis Cup quarterfinals was played right next door at the Mission Hills Country Club (US vs. Chile) and we were able to walk over and watch Andy Roddick, the Bryan brothers and James Blake.

I agree that WMH is a great property. We had a wonderful vacation and would love to go back!


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## Denise L (Apr 16, 2006)

Pedro,

Sounds like the 4th of July week at WKORV, but without the beach !

Most CA kids had break last week, or this week. Since my kids are in different school districts, one was off last week and one this week.  This is a BIG week for travel, and what with the rain everywhere else, Rancho Mirage seems like the perfect place to be (I almost rented a villa there for this week). How is the weather?

I hope that you and your family have a great time!  I wonder if everyone there is an owner....?!


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## Pedro (Apr 16, 2006)

We went for a walk/jog/run this morning (a little after 8 am) and there were towels on probably half of the lounge chairs on both the villas and the main hotel pool.  Although very few people were at the pool at that time, I think it is the common practice of reserving a lounge chair for the day and not using it but for an hour.  I wish there was a way for enforcing the rule of not reserving chairs.

The kids were up at 4 this morning as they are still in east coast time.  By the time we leave California they will be on west coast time just as they need to get back to school the day after. 

Denise L - the weather is great!  Not a cloud in the sky (OK, maybe one or two clouds), nice temperature at night, not too hot in the day.

We went to Las Cazuelas Nuevas for dinner last night - great food and very good sangria!

I guess I wasn't expecting a spring break crowd this late in the season.  Back at home the spring break in most schools districts is already over.  I guess it is because most schools back home end the school year by late May, so it makes sense to have the break earlier.


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## Pedro (Apr 16, 2006)

TheUnitrep said:
			
		

> Pedro --
> 
> I hope the crowds thin out after Easter Sunday and you get to enjoy a relaxing vacation at WMH!
> 
> ...


 
We'll enjoy it either way.  Between tennis, hiking, and more tennis and more hiking we'll have a full week.  This is one of the most beautiful resorts!  

The only time I thought it was too hot and somewhat hard to enjoy was late last May, when although only here for a weekend, the temperature was unbearable - 115 degrees.  It was hot just walking to the pool!  Today the temperature is just perfect!


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## NJDave (Apr 16, 2006)

We were there this past week and yes it was crowded at the main pools. However, there was a much quieter pool by building 46 (near our unit) that was not on our resort map.  We had no problem getting 4 lounges (and an umbrella) at anytime this past week at that pool. 

The weather was great.  No clouds all week except for Friday; temperatures from high 70's to 80's. Enjoy your stay!


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## chemteach (Apr 17, 2006)

We were there April 7 - 14.  The resort had signs at all pool entrances stating that seats cannot be reserved.  Most people ignored the signs.  It was crazy busy all week.  The pool was really crowded.  My 5 and 6 year olds had a great time.  (and really loved getting into the jacuzzi in the bedroom after a long day's swim!)

Enjoy your stay.

Edye


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## Negma (Apr 17, 2006)

We just came back from Disney and the Beach Club, same thing with pool chairs, same thing in Atlantis (Harborside pool not as much a problem), and at times Maui. I think the properties just need to come up with a system to where if you or a member of your party are not at the pool with your chairs, you lose the chairs.

It will probably never happen.


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## Pedro (Apr 17, 2006)

The pool was not as crowded today as it was during the last couple days. I guess it might have been because of the really strong winds! According to the weather reports, winds were gusting to 40 mph (not as strong as the hurricanes we've had lately in Florida, but strong anyway). We played tennis this morning and my wife used the wind as an excuse for her defeat  !

The wind calmed down somewhat later in the afternoon so we went hiking to Indian Canyon. The kids really enjoyed the hike, although we had to cut it short because the reservation closes at 5pm. 

It is so nice to be able to grill on the balcony. The sky was so clear last night that we managed to see four satellites in the sky - two russian and two american at the exact time predicted by www.heavens-above.com. We'll try again tonight to see what we can observe.

We are having a great time! We'll go to Joshua tree in a couple days. My oldest daughter (11 y.o) wants to try the rock climbing, but I told them we don't have the right equipment to do it. We'll go watch people do it though.

We are attending the "owners update" tomorrow. We were offered 3000 starpoints to attend a 60-minute presentation. I don't know what property they will try to sell since WMH is completely sold out. I guess it will be Cancun, but we'll find out tomorrow.

In the meantime we are really enjoying this vacation, crowds or not!:whoopie:


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## DeniseM (Apr 17, 2006)

Hi Pedro - If it's Cancun or Princeville, can you get the current sales info. for us?
THANKS!


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## vic714 (Apr 18, 2006)

Pedro said:
			
		

> We'll go to Joshua tree in a couple days. My oldest daughter (11 y.o) wants to try the rock climbing, but I told them we don't have the right equipment to do it. We'll go watch people do it though.



Pedro,
If you have a 4 wheel drive rental take the back road out of Joshua Tree National Park. We did it and the kids had a BLAST. My wife was scared to death and swears that the round trip around Maui was much safer. Last year we took a CCW trip around the north part of Maui and all she could see was the HUGE drop offs 

Glad to hear that the crowds have thinned abit for you. Hope the rest of your trip is the same.

Victor


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## Pedro (Apr 18, 2006)

*Owners update*



			
				DeniseM said:
			
		

> Hi Pedro - If it's Cancun or Princeville, can you get the current sales info. for us?
> THANKS!


Denise,

The only property being sold from the WMH sales office is Cancun. We were told that next year they should start selling Princeville as well. The WMH is completely sold out, and they don't know if the development on the adjacent property at the Pete Dye golf course will go through or not.

The prices for Cancun are as follows:
2 bedroom lockoff platinum season: $37,950 including 170,000 starpoint incentive
2 bedroom lockoff gold season: $ 27,950 including 100,000 starpoints incentive
1-bedroom platinum season: $ 25,495

The "owners update" was interesting as they told us about the new hotel brand that Starwood is developing, as well as all the new Le Meridien properties. We had a very professional and low pressure sales pitch. We didn't feel at all that we had to defend our decision not to buy another unit at this time. We were in and out in about 35 minutes, and we got 3000 starpoints for attending.


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## Pedro (Apr 18, 2006)

vic714 said:
			
		

> Pedro,
> If you have a 4 wheel drive rental take the back road out of Joshua Tree National Park. We did it and the kids had a BLAST. My wife was scared to death and swears that the round trip around Maui was much safer. Last year we took a CCW trip around the north part of Maui and all she could see was the HUGE drop offs
> 
> Glad to hear that the crowds have thinned abit for you. Hope the rest of your trip is the same.
> ...


Victor,
I have to remember to get a 4 wheel drive next time.  We got an intermediate car (Ford Taurus) so I don't think we'll try any back roads this time.  I will definitely try it next time - sounds exciting.  I'm sure my wife will be scared while the kids will love it!


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## grgs (Apr 18, 2006)

*Re: Owners update*



			
				Pedro said:
			
		

> The prices for Cancun are as follows:
> 2 bedroom lockoff platinum season: $37,950 including 170,000 starpoint incentive
> 2 bedroom lockoff gold season: $ 27,950 including 100,000 starpoints incentive
> 1-bedroom platinum season: $ 25,495



Interesting--based on DeniseM's website (http://www.freewebs.com/denisetravels/starwoodnews.htm),
it doesn't look like the prices for Cancun have changed since they started selling.  I wonder how sales are going for them.  I imagine it would be hard to sell a place long distance--especially with all the hurricane news about Cancun.  My husband and I thought about getting a studio EOY, but the fact that Cancun is not mandatory is a big negative for us.

Pedro, I'm glad to hear that you and the family are having a great time!

Glorian


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## Pedro (Apr 18, 2006)

*Re: Owners update*



			
				grgs said:
			
		

> Interesting--based on DeniseM's website (http://www.freewebs.com/denisetravels/starwoodnews.htm),
> it doesn't look like the prices for Cancun have changed since they started selling. I wonder how sales are going for them. I imagine it would be hard to sell a place long distance--especially with all the hurricane news about Cancun. My husband and I thought about getting a studio EOY, but the fact that Cancun is not mandatory is a big negative for us.
> 
> Pedro, I'm glad to hear that you and the family are having a great time!


 Glorian,
Yes, they said the prices have not gone up since they started selling, however they are expecting a price increase on Monday!!  (we've heard that one a thousand times) - so today is the time to buy!

Some other piece of trivia:

There are about:
3,500 3-star elites
2,200 4-star elites
550 5-star elites


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## taffy19 (Apr 18, 2006)

Pedro said:
			
		

> It is so nice to be able to grill on the balcony. The sky was so clear last night that we managed to see four satellites in the sky - two russian and two american at the exact time predicted by www.heavens-above.com. We'll try again tonight to see what we can observe.
> 
> We are having a great time! We'll go to Joshua tree in a couple days. My oldest daughter (11 y.o) wants to try the rock climbing, but I told them we don't have the right equipment to do it. We'll go watch people do it though.


 
Thank you so much for this link.  

You will enjoy Joshua tree very much. It has some spectacular boulders and the desert is beautiful. This will give you an idea:

http://www.terragalleria.com/parks/np.joshua-tree.html


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## duke (Apr 18, 2006)

*Re: Owners update*



			
				Pedro said:
			
		

> Denise,
> 
> We were told that next year they should start selling Princeville as well.




You can buy Princeville by calling the sales office in Princeville directly.  The price is $47,500 with 100,000 starpoints.  They started selling about 8 weeks ago.  

PM me if you would like the name of a salesperson to speak with.

Duke


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## need2go (Apr 19, 2006)

Hi Pedro,

just got back from our easter weekend there.  Yes, it was a zoo.  We were in the hotel, while listening to pitch on Sunday.  We walked out with papers for Cancun, $27,000 appr. for 2 bed. LO, gold season, with 80K points.  I asked about hurricane season...they said insurance would cover any problems.  ??hum?

We have 4 days left to cancel...considering it.  I would want to make sure I could use a week in AZ or Palm Springs because I'm not trecking down to mexico every year.   Not sure if Mission Hills is so crowded that we would never get a room.   This is our biggest concern, even over the $$.


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## DeniseM (Apr 19, 2006)

need2go said:
			
		

> Hi Pedro,
> 
> just got back from our easter weekend there.  Yes, it was a zoo.  We were in the hotel, while listening to pitch on Sunday.  We walked out with papers for Cancun, $27,000 appr. for 2 bed. LO, gold season, with 80K points.  I asked about hurricane season...they said insurance would cover any problems.  ??hum?
> 
> We have 4 days left to cancel...considering it.  I would want to make sure I could use a week in AZ or Palm Springs because I'm not trecking down to mexico every year.   Not sure if Mission Hills is so crowded that we would never get a room.   This is our biggest concern, even over the $$.



Welcome to TUG - almost any timeshare anywhere is going  to be crowded during holiday weeks.  If you must travel during holiday weeks, you should book your home resort at 12 mos. as a backup, and then try for the exchange at 8 mos out.  That way, if you can't get the exchange, you at least have the week you want at your home resort to use or rent.  

If you want to exchange into a CA timeshare most of the time and just visit Mexico occasionally, you should rescind and buy in CA instead.  You can probably get more Staroptions for your money by buying a resale at Kierland anyway.  

Be sure you read this TUG article about Starwood.
http://www.tug2.net/advice/Starwood_Vacation_Network.htm

Good luck!


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## grgs (Apr 19, 2006)

DeniseM said:
			
		

> If you want to exchange into a CA timeshare most of the time and just visit Mexico occasionally, you should rescind and buy in CA instead.  You can probably get more Staroptions for your money by buying a resale at Kierland anyway.



I'll second what Denise said.  If you're mainly interested in Mission Hills you can get a resale there much less expensively since it is not a mandatory resort.  If being in the Starwood Vacation Network (SVN) is important to you, then you could probably pick up a Kierland Platinum resale for a few thousand less than what you paid for Cancun.  That would give you 148,100 StarOptions to use.  I expect the Cancun property will be wonderful, but it's good to know what the choices are before buying

Good luck!

Glorian


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## chemteach (Apr 20, 2006)

need2go said:
			
		

> Hi Pedro,
> 
> just got back from our easter weekend there.  Yes, it was a zoo.  We were in the hotel, while listening to pitch on Sunday.  We walked out with papers for Cancun, $27,000 appr. for 2 bed. LO, gold season, with 80K points.  I asked about hurricane season...they said insurance would cover any problems.  ??hum?
> 
> We have 4 days left to cancel...considering it.  I would want to make sure I could use a week in AZ or Palm Springs because I'm not trecking down to mexico every year.   Not sure if Mission Hills is so crowded that we would never get a room.   This is our biggest concern, even over the $$.



The Staroptions are lower for Cancun - not sure why - but check to see what a gold season LO staroptions would be able to get you in AZ or Palm Springs.  You may be disappointed.

Edye


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## Pedro (Apr 20, 2006)

need2go said:
			
		

> Not sure if Mission Hills is so crowded that we would never get a room. This is our biggest concern, even over the $$.


 
I've never seen WMH this crowded, although it is my first time here while schools in CA are in spring break.  Even during Thanksgiving week (we've been here the last 4 years) it has never been this busy.  We haven't been going to the pool until later in the afternoon, so all the people "reserving" lounge chairs for the day haven't been much of a bother for us.

We've always been able to get the reservations we wanted, even when reserving in a season (Thanksgiving week) other than the one we own (Platinum). We have to wait until 8 months before the check in date to make a reservation.


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## Pedro (Apr 20, 2006)

iconnections said:
			
		

> Thank you so much for this link.
> 
> You will enjoy Joshua tree very much. It has some spectacular boulders and the desert is beautiful. This will give you an idea:
> 
> http://www.terragalleria.com/parks/np.joshua-tree.html


 
We had a blast at Joshua tree today.  We did a lot of climbing and hiking, and ended up spending several hours there.  The kids enjoyed it very much and they still had some energy left at the end.  we got back to the villas, went to the hot tub, and they played 3 sets of tennis.  Now I'm literally wiped out!

The sky was so clear last night that we got to see seven of the seven satellites/old rockets that we set out to see.  It's amazing that some rockets, even some launched 25 years ago, are still orbiting the earth and you can see them in a clear night!  To top it all, we had a really good view of the International Space Station this morning, as it passed almost above Rancho Mirage (although 200+ miles above).

I can't believe we'll have to leave in three days !


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## damorgan (Apr 20, 2006)

Pedro,

Good to see you're having a great time - even in amongst the crowds.  If you get the chance, could you confirm that Building 46 is a good spot to stay?  We're out there early June and I think that's the building we want to go for but I can't quite visualise it other than from what the resort map tells me.

I'll have to introduce you to Mrs Damorgan one day - she shares your passion for the stars and things astronomical!


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## chemteach (Apr 20, 2006)

Pedro said:
			
		

> We had a blast at Joshua tree today.  We did a lot of climbing and hiking, and ended up spending several hours there.  The kids enjoyed it very much and they still had some energy left at the end.  we got back to the villas, went to the hot tub, and they played 3 sets of tennis.  Now I'm literally wiped out!
> 
> 
> I can't believe we'll have to leave in three days !



Pedro,
How long did it take to get to Joshua Tree?  Was the desert in bloom?  I haven't been to Joshua Tree in over a decade.  We'll probably visit when we go to WMH next spring.
Edye


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## Pedro (Apr 20, 2006)

damorgan said:
			
		

> Pedro,
> 
> Good to see you're having a great time - even in amongst the crowds. If you get the chance, could you confirm that Building 46 is a good spot to stay? We're out there early June and I think that's the building we want to go for but I can't quite visualise it other than from what the resort map tells me.
> 
> I'll have to introduce you to Mrs Damorgan one day - she shares your passion for the stars and things astronomical!


 
The view from building 46 is very nice, as it faces the golf course.  That building is several buildings away from the main pool.  Buildings 32, 33, 42 and 44 have a similar view, but are closer to the main pool and the clubhouse.  We are staying in building 42, second floor and there is nothing to complain about - it is plain great!


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## Pedro (Apr 21, 2006)

chemteach said:
			
		

> Pedro,
> How long did it take to get to Joshua Tree? Was the desert in bloom? I haven't been to Joshua Tree in over a decade. We'll probably visit when we go to WMH next spring.
> Edye


Edye,
It took us about 45 minutes to get to the entrance to Joshua Tree. A really easy drive there without much traffic. The desert was not in bloom, other than a handful of cactus that had flowers on them. Maybe another rain shower and the plant will bloom. It is certainly worth the drive!


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## MON2REY (Apr 21, 2006)

*Re: Owners update*



			
				Pedro said:
			
		

> Denise,
> 
> The only property being sold from the WMH sales office is Cancun.]
> 
> We were at the WMH in mid March on one of the promo trips.  The property they were pushing at the time was WKORV-N, which we ended up purchasing.  Have they stopped selling it at WMH?  We were told by the saleslady (for whatever that is worth) that they had just started selling WKORV-N and we were her first sale.


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## damorgan (Apr 21, 2006)

Pedro said:
			
		

> The view from building 46 is very nice, as it faces the golf course.  That building is several buildings away from the main pool.  Buildings 32, 33, 42 and 44 have a similar view, but are closer to the main pool and the clubhouse.  We are staying in building 42, second floor and there is nothing to complain about - it is plain great!



Pedro,

Thanks for your help.  Enjoy the rest of your stay.


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## Pedro (Apr 21, 2006)

There is so much to do around here that I feel we could easily spend another week!  We went on a long bike ride yesterday (20+ miles) and had a great view of the salten sea along the way.  Today we went on the Palm Springs tram to the top of the mountain and did some really good hiking.  The kids spent more timing throwing snow balls at each another than hiking, and they had a very good time.  We did some geocaching (get a gps receiver and find things that other people have hidden: www.geocaching.com )while up there, and we found three of them.  It is our last day  at the WMH and tomorrow morning we are heading back to Florida.  Now, we'll star counting down to WKORV - 48 days to go!


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