# Room Assignments - Vidanta Nuevo Vallarta



## mikenk (Nov 13, 2017)

I am currently staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa in Nuevo. Usually we get good room assignments - sometimes in Tower 1 but mostly in Tower 2; this time we were assigned the worst possible villa location - floor 1, Tower 4, facing the river. 

While I know the general belief on this forum is that owners get better room assignments than exchangers, I have always questioned whether that was true and how much influence sales has on that process. I realize that as an owner, I have paid less than most starting with a resale and being here on my Senior Discount, so it is logical that I would get a low room assignment compared to other owners - but logically above exchangers.

Here's my question to Tuggers. Are there exchangers here now or during the week of Nov 11-17 that are staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa? If so, can you tell me your floor and tower number. This would be a good test to see if Vidanta owners really get better room assignments than exchangers. I suspect they do not.

On the good side, once you get over the fact you don't have a view, everything else is still the same and you still have a great time. 

Mike


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 13, 2017)

Hi Mike ,
As you say - once you get over the view .../ and sometimes you decide you like it .

As an MP owner in 2016 - at PV-Marina - we had first floor above lobby Marina view . As it turned out we had more privacy on the balcony because of the palms and the driveway roof
and the "backstairs" were an easy walk to the lobby ( instead of an elevator wait ) We would take that suite again . We also like the morning sunrise .

IMO - I think your check in day ( Fri/ Sat /Sun) can be a random factor as well . An exchanger checking in the day after you might get something "better " based on available rooms that day .

Enjoy the week & weather .
If you have time ,I like reading your NV updates.


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## rpennisi (Nov 13, 2017)

As an exchanger into the GL in RM in August, we got the first floor.  But I liked it because the buildings were only 3 stories and the surrounding jungle probably went up that high.  Also, we enjoyed watching the foraging troupe of coatimundi go by every morning.  No elevator to take and coffee right down the hall.


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## pittle (Nov 13, 2017)

Are you going to be there next week too?  We will be at the GM then.

The WIVC in Conchas Chinas is a totally different experience than Mayan World, but we like it.  It only has 14 units and is older, but spotlessly clean and well stocked with supplies.  There are several Canadian families here that always meet up here.  They have welcomed us with open arms and we are invited to dinner tomorrow night in one of the units.  I guess one Italian guy is quite the cook and we have been invited for Carbonara.  I asked what I could bring and he told us just a plate and fork for each of us because he only has 8 in his unit and there will be 15 people!  This little group is all 63-75, so we fit right in.


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## rpennisi (Nov 13, 2017)

A pinot grigio would go well with the carbonara


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## Eric B (Nov 13, 2017)

We lived in Italy for 4 years, so I make a mean carbonara myself.  Started raising Berkshire hogs 4 or 5 years ago and curing my own pancetta, which is key to a good one; it’s just about impossible to get really good pancetta where we live now (MD).


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## mikenk (Nov 13, 2017)

pittle said:


> Are you going to be there next week too?  We will be at the GM then.
> 
> The WIVC in Conchas Chinas is a totally different experience than Mayan World, but we like it.  It only has 14 units and is older, but spotlessly clean and well stocked with supplies.  There are several Canadian families here that always meet up here.  They have welcomed us with open arms and we are invited to dinner tomorrow night in one of the units.  I guess one Italian guy is quite the cook and we have been invited for Carbonara.  I asked what I could bring and he told us just a plate and fork for each of us because he only has 8 in his unit and there will be 15 people!  This little group is all 63-75, so we fit right in.


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## mikenk (Nov 13, 2017)

Hi Phyllis,

No, we go back Saturday, the 18th. Sorry we will miss you and Mike; it would be nice to catch up and compare notes on all our travels.

Mike


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## RussellSun (Nov 15, 2017)

rpennisi said:


> As an exchanger into the GL in RM in August, we got the first floor.  But I liked it because the buildings were only 3 stories and the surrounding jungle probably went up that high.  Also, we enjoyed watching the foraging troupe of coatimundi go by every morning.  No elevator to take and coffee right down the hall.



Since there are no views in Riviera Maya, the floor you are put on does not matter. In Nuevo Vallarta, it matters a lot because there are ocean views and river views so you need to be at least above the 4th floor, 6th floor and above is even better.


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## RussellSun (Nov 15, 2017)

mikenk said:


> I am currently staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa in Nuevo. Usually we get good room assignments - sometimes in Tower 1 but mostly in Tower 2; this time we were assigned the worst possible villa location - floor 1, Tower 4, facing the river.
> 
> While I know the general belief on this forum is that owners get better room assignments than exchangers, I have always questioned whether that was true and how much influence sales has on that process. I realize that as an owner, I have paid less than most starting with a resale and being here on my Senior Discount, so it is logical that I would get a low room assignment compared to other owners - but logically above exchangers.
> 
> ...



I think it is terrible that they put you, as an owner, on the first floor at the GL NV. You should be at least 6th floor or higher. Not fair at all!


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## mikenk (Nov 15, 2017)

RussellSun said:


> I think it is terrible that they put you, as an owner, on the first floor at the GL NV. You should be at least 6th floor or higher. Not fair at all!



I have always expected that Sales has a strong say in room assignments; fairness is not in their vocabulary.  
Having a exchanger in a better location is better for sales - end of story.

In contract matters, Member Services are great and all of my addenda have been honored. It would be great for owners and I think for the company long term if they stopped any involvement of Sales in the operational part of the business.

In reality, the room assignment is not really that big of a deal. The golf, beach, margaritas, etc are the same; however, it still irks me that they don't value ownership more. I have been coming here since 2005; the thought of a first timer having priority over a long term owner is aggravating. I usually attend the upgrade meetings and am open to changes, I refused any update meeting this time or probably ever again.

Mike


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## pittle (Nov 18, 2017)

Well, we arrived at the Grand Mayan Nuevo today.  Check-in is now at the new Conference Center and was not crowded at 3:30 when we arrived.  The gal at the computer station gave us our wrist bands and handed us off to another person who did her best to get us to go to the Friday owners update.  She said we would just have breakfast and a quick update on what is happening and could leave whenever we wanted.  We said no thank you, we had done that a few years ago and wasted several hours of our vacation.  She kept trying to get us to go - said they would waive the $75 fee, give us discounted massages or golf and 10% off whatever we charge to our room, but we still said no.  Then she said that since we exchanged in she would not be able to get us a higher floor or ocean view and I said that I preferred shade in the late afternoon - seemed to shock her.  So, when we got over here to the GM, we got a room on 1st floor facing palm trees.  She must have had them put this room in the system as soon as we left the area because she said it would be 30 minutes or so before they would have a room for us.     It is not a problem for us, but there is a huge A/C unit not far away, so it is noisy.  I can tune that out too - we live 2 miles from the runway at Luke AFB and the F-35's are really loud! (But not continuous).  

You know, for the price we paid for the Getaway and the $75 fee, we have a 2-bedroom Grand Mayan for $63.43 per night - we can live with the A/C running outside. Once it is dark, we are in and can barely hear it.    The unit is nice, it is clean, and there is even a coffeemaker and small fridge in the lock-out unit now.  We did not have that last year in the GM unit on the 6th floor.


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 18, 2017)

Hi Phyllis - RE : small fridge & coffeemaker in the lockoff ( ie hotel room ) .  Interested in finding out if this is a update to all Grand Mayan Nuevo lock-offs .

Enjoy the sunshine , pools & beach


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## pittle (Nov 19, 2017)

Not sure - we are in the same building as last year - Coban.  This unit has a king bed in each bedroom and last year one bedroom had 2 beds and the other had a king.  I do not know if that makes a difference. 

I found it when putting away our clothes - one side of the dresser had 2 drawers and the other side doors.  There have always been 4 drawers.  When I opened the doors there was a fridge.  It was larger than the one we saw in the Grand Bliss unit lock-off in 2013. This one is about 2' wide and 26" tall.  The coffeemaker is exactly like the one in the kitchen and there are 2 large cups on the tray with it on one of the end tables. It was a pleasant surprise and nice upgrade to the unit.


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## pittle (Nov 19, 2017)

The saga continues ...................

This morning my husband who never complains about anything went down to the front desk and told them that all the noise from the A/C below and whatever other equipment just past the driveway woke him up numerous times during the night and that we needed to move from this location.  i was shocked as he is much more easy going than me.  they told him they would wait until all the Sunday people arrived and let us know tomorrow. We have noticed that check-in was extremely fast yesterday and there was hardly anyone on the beach between 9-noon today.  The lazy river did have some activity but there were a lot of empty chairs everywhere.

Then around noon when we came up from the beach, the phone rang and someone from the group that begs you to come to updates called.  Mike pointed to me to pick up the other phone and listen in.  He explained the situation with the noise and how because of it, we could not use our deck.  He told her that we had been owners for 18 years.  She kept on trying to get us to come to the update and he told her that I was pretty update on all Vidanta goings on from blogs.  She asked him one question that he did not answer correctly, and I chimed in, so then she wanted to talk to Miss Phyllis.  She said she would do her best to get us moved to a different location and I thanked her and told her that it did not need to be ocean view because last year we loved watching the employees as they came to and from work on the street below. She said that if we had our photo Grand Luxxe cards, we would not have had a problem and if we came to the update, we could get them then.  I told her I would wait until we qualified for Senior Certificates. Her next tactic was that we needed to learn about the cruise ship and I told her that we had no interest in cruises, nor the amusement park - we came for the pools and beach.  She said if we would attend, she would change our bracelet to GL, but I told her the "kids" loved the lazy river and that was one reason we chose GM.  She kept on, but I kept saying no thanks.

Later, we did try sitting on the deck to read.  One lounge chair looked saggy & when Mike sat on it, it immediately gave way.  He is not a fat guy!  We called and it was replaced.  I remembered that I had a decibel meter on my phone (won't go into why), and it registers an average of 83 - same as an alarm clock or city traffic.  Normal conversation at 3' is 60-65. (That is what we hear when neither of us are saying a word - just reading - in the living room).   A telephone dial tone is 80.  Jackhammer or subway train is 95.  So that gives you an idea of the noise level.  90-95 is the level at which sustained exposure may result in hearing loss. 

Will let you know if we get moved tomorrow.


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## rpennisi (Nov 19, 2017)

Good luck.  With all your Mayan World ownership history and upgrade to GL, and still no preference for a decent placement.
This shows that it is not the hotel side (as T-Dot puts it), but the sales side that calls the shots for room placement.
We will be at the GM in January, and if I get your suite, I will give into the presentation, but will walk out at the earliest I can.


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 19, 2017)

pittle said:


> The saga continues ...................
> 
> This morning my husband who never complains about anything went down to the front desk and told them that all the noise from the A/C  ...woke him up numerous times during the night and .....Then around noon when we came up from the beach, the phone rang and someone from the group that begs you to come to updates called.  Mike pointed to me to pick up the other phone and listen in.  He explained the situation with the noise and how because of it, we could not use our deck.  He told her that we had been owners for 18 years.  She kept on trying ....... we needed to learn about the cruise ship >>>>>
> 
> Will let you know if we get moved tomorrow.



*******
RE ; Cruise ship

FYI - Ship is (now) called Vidanta Alegria

Registered owner :Hotels Dinamicos SA Mexico
Operator : Grupo Vidanta

entered service 1990
built in Valencia Spain-Union Naval de Levante
formerly operated by - All Leisure Holidays /  name - Voyager


152 m (500 ft ) x 20 m (65 ft ) gross tonnage 15,396
listed passenger cap -508
listed 7 decks


status -  upgrade / under repair 
estimated finish date May 2018 as a luxury cruise ship ( from Nedcruise.info)
current position (reported) Southern Spain -El Puerto Santa Maria

when I first came across this in April : the ship was moored in Singapore ,
and appeared to have changed registration to Vidanta Alegria in March 2017

*******
Phyllis -
If you need more " Vidanta cruise ship information " you will have to sign up for the presentation . LOL

Every place has a:  "can't stay in this room " / I guess you won the (TS sales ) lottery


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## mikenk (Nov 20, 2017)

We arrived back home Saturday. Pittle's saga is certainly reminiscent of ours regarding room assignment. A day or so after we checked in, some lady called and urged us to come to the update so I could learn how to get better room assignments in the future. I less than politely told her what to do with her offer.
A couple of days after that, Member Services did call with a better room. Yeah, right, 6 people pack up and move mid week. No Way.

Earlier at check-in, we were clearly singled out; I am clueless as to why. Our luggage was all loaded into the zippered carts. A lady comes up to the bellhop and they remove all of the luggage and load it piece by piece on a electric cart which accompanied us to Tower 4. Who knows where it went from there as I fought my way through the checkin process; finding the luggage later was also a pain. To me, it is clear some sort of targeting of individuals is going on - for whatever reason.

My conjecture is (and I hope I am wrong) is that Sales is being allowed to take an increasingly active role in room assignments. Furthermore, they appear to have a strategy of giving some owners poorer rooms in hope they will pay more money to upgrade with the promise of better room assignments in the future - which is of course pure BS.

If that is the strategy, it is fundamentally stupid as owners like myself will simply refuse to ever attend any upgrade presentation. On this forum, I have frequently stated that I always attend the presentations - both to learn and willing to trade cash for new addenda - which I have done several times. However, it doesn't take much disrespect from Vidanta to totally change that attitude.

So far, Vidanta Member Services has been great in honoring the wording and intent of the contract; if so, we will still be fine regardless what room assignments we get as it is really not that big of a deal - except for the disrespect to long term owners.

Mike


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 20, 2017)

Hi Mike ,
I read your post this morning , and have thought about it .

IMO - this is coming from the added power given to " wrist band / room key - presentation booking " staff and their management ;and probably a quota requirement change within their group
which is the booking arm of sales .

Sales wants " qualified " bodies that are likely to buy or upgrade . Increasing raw numbers may or may not achieve this . Pissing off long time owners is unlikely to help achieve this.

This may fall under - power corrupts & absolute power corrupts absolutely . The new "system" needs some tweaking as it seems to be driven by presentation booking quotas .

It is interesting that you came in on a member booking , and Phyllis came in on an exchange BUT both of you received the same "punishment " when you said no to a presentation . Given that the Nuevo resort is not near full capacity in mid Nov - to me  the room assignments were punishment driven by THE SPECIFIC INDIVIDUALS with whom you both declined to book a presentation . How far up their management chain AND TS sales management chain AND Vidanta upper management AND ownership this goes - is unknown at this time .

I think it is interesting that Member Services called you ( the timeline ( midweek) is unfortunate - but remember they are closed Sat & Sun . Your saga obviously went beyond "hotel side " front desk & staff .**

** ( added - "hotel side " front desk & staff obviously have no control over room  assignments as it has been assigned to the presentation booking work force  at Nuevo)


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## pittle (Nov 20, 2017)

Today's update! 

This morning we received a call from someone wanting us to take the update!  Surprise, Surprise!!!   Mike firmly said that this was the 3rd time we had been contacted and the answer was still no.  

About 9:30 we received a call and told to pack up and call the bellman at 10:00.  We were moving to a higher floor in another building and would have a view of the light show. But, our room would not be ready until 3:00!   So, we packed up, called the bellman and headed to a shady spot near the wave pools because we did not want to drag our rolling computer bag through the sand.  We read our Kindles a while and at noon ordered lunch (it took about 45 minutes to get a burger & fries) and a bucket of beer.  Once we finished that, we turned our towels in and headed towards the GM Lobby around 2:15 and our room was ready.  We are now on the 6th floor of the building with Brio.  We can see Santuario and the lake by La Cantina so we will see the light show.  I can see the new buildings that are going up closer to the highway and Grand Luxxe Building 5.

Also, I immediately noticed that this unit smells better - no fragrances!  I have fragrance allergies and the other one had some air freshener smell lingering in the living room area.  Mike called it musty, but it may have been and they tried to cover it.  

BTW - we did have one of the small fruit trays on the dining table when we got here. We will probably unplug the phones before we go to bed tonight so that we do not get anymore calls to come to the update.  

Hopefully we will sleep better tonight and when the "kids" arrive on Wednesday, they will not have to tolerate the noise.


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## mikenk (Nov 20, 2017)

T-Dot-Traveller said:


> Hi Mike ,
> I read your post this morning , and have thought about it .
> 
> IMO - this is coming from the added power given to " wrist band / room key - presentation booking " staff and their management ;and probably a quota requirement change within their group
> ...



I am really struggling to understand their underlying rationale. I do know that in any business, it is always good to take care of customers that have been with you through the growing years. Both Phyllis and I  (and many others) bought into the premise with real money when nothing existed above Grand Mayan. It is disappointing not to see any sense of acknowledgement; for sales, it appears to be all about cash flow not promoting long term relationships.

Hopefully, in time, it will all work out. Vidanta certainly has a history of change. Time will tell.

Mike


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## RussellSun (Nov 20, 2017)

I am a new Grand Luxxe member and I am already under the impression that they could care less about members. I will eventually post about my first stay at Grand Luxxe in the 2 level penthouse one bedroom Loft. It is not up to the standard of AAA 5 Diamond service or quality and the management does not care. It is beyond me how Grand Luxxe got this award. Nothing except the stairs is real wood. I have complained about a few things and no one has contacted me.


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## rpennisi (Nov 20, 2017)

They care about their members, but only those who have given them the most money.
The word is they don't borrow, so they need more and more money to keep building, etc., etc.
Anyone on TUG or is a Mayan World (credit to Phyllis) owner for some length of time has seen this for themselves.
However, they are great resorts.


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 20, 2017)

rpennisi said:


> However, they are great resorts.



The "hotel side" cares about each visitor . The staff member we interact with the most is the always hardworking  person assigned to clean our room each day & bring fresh towels etc .
That care (and hard work) has made for enjoyable vacations & as a result we try to tip that person well . The same with the waiters & servers around the pools and restaurants bell- staff etc.

******

IMO - this is quota driven, and the presentation booking staff is  "punishing " those who do not help them meet what is likely a new higher quota .

-The punishment may or may not be management sanctioned . BUT management gave the presentation booking work force the tool to punish ,by letting them
(now) fully control room assignments. IMO - in the prior format they had the tool to reward via a room move or upgrade , but that was after "hotel side " front desk had distributed rooms based on availability .

Agree - Sales revenue drives Vidanta growth .
Some level of management  thinks this "change" will create sales revenue growth .
Existing owners on this forum seem to think otherwise , perhaps because "punishment " is rarely an effective reward .

*****
Expected and unexpected consequences of management pressure to - " meet  high quota  numbers "

Think - Wells Fargo Bank

That news story was a PR disaster and brand image killer.


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## RussellSun (Nov 20, 2017)

T-Dot-Traveller said:


> The "hotel side" cares about each visitor . The staff member we interact with the most is the person assigned to clean our room each day & bring fresh towels
> That care has made for enjoyable vacations & as a result we try to tip that person well . The same with the waiters & servers around the pools etc.
> 
> ******
> ...



The staff does not look as happy as they did when we were here in the summer. They all look like they are under a lot of pressure. The resort looked busier in low season than now so this is rather perplexing to me. I think they should put members in the best rooms within their category so we will want to upgrade and return. It is easy for me to go elsewhere and not utilize my membership and Vidanta will lose revenue and goodwill. We are all quite active on review boards and they should be courting their high value members for good reviews. Frankly, they should value every member equally. I guess they could care less if we never come back because all they want is to get the upfront fee. They do not seem to care about earning usage fees. I will not pay usage fees if they are going to put me in bad rooms in Nuevo Vallarta. I will stop coming here. I get the impression all they care about is money. They told me members are prioritized based on their investment and their is a sales person on the room assignment team. When I bought the membership, sales told me Grand Luxxe owners get priority when we stay at Grand Bliss or Grand Mayan. More lies!


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## RussellSun (Nov 21, 2017)

On the elevator getting off on the 8th floor (penthouse level) of Building 5, one of the long time Members summarized Vidanta perfectly: “It is what it is.” As long as I have this philosophy and don’t care what room or view I get and don’t talk to the front desk or sales, then everything is fine. The cleaning ladies, shuttle staff, restaurants servers, and all the other employees work their hardest for little pay and the resort facilities are great.


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## pittle (Nov 21, 2017)

We are at the Grand Mayan and have commented that there are fewer people here this week than there usually is for Thanksgiving week. The beach does not have as many people.  I see more people near the kids pool area and lazy river than anywhere. We had no problem finding a shady spot near the wave pools at 10:30 while we waited for our new unit.  We did notice quite a few multi-generational family units here - grandparents, grown kids, and smaller kids.

Last night, when I was looking at the GL units from the GM deck, there were not many lights on at 9:00.  Therefore, there should be a lot of prime units available at all levels of ownership and if they would fill those first, there would be a lot of happy people with more pleasant experiences.  If someone who never had an ocean view or stayed in a Grand Mayan or Grand Bliss were upgraded, they would be more willing to attend a presentation. That could help their sales more than the harassment from the sales staff.

Our new unit is significantly better than the one we were assigned on Saturday.  Our son and daughter-in-law arrive tomorrow and they will enjoy being here.  We are meeting some friends for Thanksgiving and hanging out at an all-inclusive place on a day pass for something different to do.

We will move to the Buganvilias Sky Suites on Saturday for our final week in PV.  There, because we bought their top tier unit, they greet us with champagne, special check-in, and the MF cost 1/2 as much as a GL 2-bedroom unit!  We have 2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 kitchens, 2 balconies - one is large with an ocean & city view.  They even take us back to the airport in one of their Suburbans. (Something that was included in pre-construction contract.) AND - when we use a RCI exchange or extra vacation, they assign us to one of the 2-bedroom oceanfront units.  It is not a Sky Suite, but is nice and so close to the ocean.


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## RussellSun (Nov 21, 2017)

pittle said:


> We are at the Grand Mayan and have commented that there are fewer people here this week than there usually is for Thanksgiving week. The beach does not have as many people.  I see more people near the kids pool area and lazy river than anywhere. We had no problem finding a shady spot near the wave pools at 10:30 while we waited for our new unit.  We did notice quite a few multi-generational family units here - grandparents, grown kids, and smaller kids.
> 
> Last night, when I was looking at the GL units from the GM deck, there were not many lights on at 9:00.  Therefore, there should be a lot of prime units available at all levels of ownership and if they would fill those first, there would be a lot of happy people with more pleasant experiences.  If someone who never had an ocean view or stayed in a Grand Mayan or Grand Bliss were upgraded, they would be more willing to attend a presentation. That could help their sales more than the harassment from the sales staff.
> 
> Our new unit is significantly better than the one we were assigned on Saturday.  Our son and daughter-in-law arrive tomorrow and they will enjoy being here.  We will move to the Buganvilias Sky Suites on Saturday for our final week in PV.  There, because we bought their top tier unit, they greet us with champagne, special check-in, and the MF cost 1/2 as much as a GL 2-bedroom unit!  We have 2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 kitchens, 2 balconies - one is large with an ocean & city view.  They even take us back to the airport in one of their Suburbans. (Something that was included in pre-construction contracts)



I agree. It seems empty this week compared to August. The weather is beautiful this week. They should be putting you in the best units as a long time member and as a Grand Luxxe member staying at the Grand Mayan. The service here is terrible. This is not a way to get new members or a way to get people to upgrade. We could pay cash today to upgrade to the next level if we were treated better but we will never upgrade at Nuevo Vallarta. We are not even sure we will ever return to this location. Let’s see how we like Riviera Maya in January. That may become our home resort. Excellent, courteous service and ethics (no lies and keeping promises) mean everything to me. Nuevo Vallarta’s shady tactics of putting members in bad rooms and then making them go to presentations to get an upragde is very unethical in my opinion. I can sort of understand putting non-members in lesser rooms but they should not get an upgrade since they need to save the best rooms for members.


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## pittle (Nov 21, 2017)

Riviera Maya is great.  We have been there several times, but not for a while. We are going there in late April and will be staying in a 2-bedroom Grand Bliss for 2 weeks. The employees there are super nice!


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## RussellSun (Nov 21, 2017)

pittle said:


> Riviera Maya is great.  We have been there several times, but not for a while. We are going there in late April and will be staying in a 2-bedroom Grand Bliss for 2 weeks. The employees there are super nice!



That is good to hear. Is the service there better than Nuevo Vallarta? I have read they have better service since they do not have ocean views. I hope so because I think I will be happier with better service.


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## pittle (Nov 21, 2017)

We have not been there for several years, but have been there 4 times since they opened around 2002 and everyone was pleasant and even though we did not do an update, back in 2007, one of the Sales people told us to be sure to go over to the office and sign up for our Senior Certificates.  We did that and were there about 15 minutes!  We may try to get our photo ID card when we are there in April.

We were there in November 2005 just weeks after the hurricane and the employees were so grateful that we came.  To them it meant that they would have jobs and people would return!

Once we moved to the Phoenix area, it is so much easier to come to PV - 2 hour 15 minute non-stop flight.     It is a longer and more expensive trip to Cancun and Acapulco now.

Our extended family likes PV the best, so we come here for Thanksgiving and except for a few times, our week 47 is Thanksgiving week at Buganvilias.  This is one of those years so we snagged a $359 II Getaway for this trip.  Last year we used an SFX Bonus week to come here.  We love Grand Luxxe, but the MF are really high and I will continue to use Bonus weeks or Getaways until our Senior Certificates kick in.  For the cost of one GL week, we can stay 2 weeks at Buganvilias and our "kids" like the location better because they like the places along the Malecon.

As I have said before - what they told the preschoolers when my grandson was 4 - "You get what you get and don't have a fit", and we sort of went by that.  This time however, we did feel that we were being singled out and given an awful location because we would not go to the update.  If the resort was full, that is one thing - someone has to have that unit.  But, this place may have 50% occupancy this week, so there had to be a better unit. We did not ask for a top floor ocean view, just a unit that was not right over the a/c units and across from the laundry vents.


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## travs2 (Nov 21, 2017)

Pure and simple.....they do not care about any owner at any level.  Their corporate line is " your opinion is important to us".......clearly it is not by reading these comments.  We have been asking for small straight backed chairs down on the beach for over ten years and as our last trip.....only uncomfortable green lounge chairs are down there.  We love being at the beach but I do not like sitting in those lounge chairs.  If they really cared about owners they would consider this simple request and put some down there.  Every year they ask us to do a survey and every year we say the same thing.  Does anyone in management ever read those things?  They say they do but so many people are asking and giving constructive comments that are never  addressed!  Sad that such a beautiful place sends people away with negative and agitated feelings .  They are only interested in creating a culture of greed......so that people will upgrade with a best and better mentality .......very sad....They do not care about their owners as I said....pure and simple no matter what they say!!!


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## pittle (Nov 22, 2017)

Here in NV, there are some wood straight back chairs down on the beach.  Many Palapas have 4 lounge chairs, a wood chair, and a wood table.  In Acapulco where the Palapas are rectangular and they have had 4 lounge chairs and 2 Adirondack style chairs for yers!


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## hurnik (Nov 22, 2017)

RussellSun said:


> That is good to hear. Is the service there better than Nuevo Vallarta? I have read they have better service since they do not have ocean views. I hope so because I think I will be happier with better service.



Been to Nuevo Vallarta twice (Grand Luxxe and Grand Bliss).  Been to Riviera Maya (Grand Luxxe) 4-5 times.
Personally I think the service is much better at RM.

NV seemed so large, nobody cared, or the disorganization was so bad that you'd get wrong things (ie, ask for a crib and get 3 of them delivered to the room over the course of 3 days after having to call multiple times).  Maintenance guy shows up with a frying pan (?) that someobody ordered (not us).  But hey, we'll take the extra frying pan.

Now, we don't own at either (always exchanges).  I heard many complaints from owners at NV about how they never get an ocean view (personally I don't think there's many "ocean" views based upon the layout.  River view or Resort view, yes--for GL).  Anyway, one lady in particular was very vocal about owning for 14 years and never getting an ocean view.  I could see/understand if I forked out $250,000 for GL to not get something.

I've only gone to ONE sales.  We knew full well what we were getting into though.  NV.  90-minute presentation was 4.5 hours.  They were a bit rude towards the end and were actually ticked off that we didn't buy anything.  The program was *very* confusing, IMO as to how it worked.  I would never suggest to anyone to attend a presentation of any sort.  If they kept to the 90 minutes, then that's one thing.  I'll even give an extra 15 minutes "grace period".  But 4.5 hours?  Nope.  (again, we knew it would be 4 hours before doing it, but we had like 7 rooms and got 10% off all the room charges, etc. as it was a family reunion).

RM is smaller resort vs. NV.  RM has no lazy river (I know, supposedly going to open, but I'll believe it when I see it).  On the other hand, RM has Cirque du Soleil theater/show.  Beach (in terms of sand) is about the same at both, IMO.  Now, "walking" into the ocean is a diff. story.  NV is better, RM has lots of coral (just like Puerto Morelos, etc.)

However, RM being on the Caribbean side, the water is clearer, warmer, IMO.  Especially in January-Feb.  In NV, the water temps are much colder (IMO) and the water is very cloudy that time of year.  If you like to snorkel, either visit NV in the summer, or go elsewhere.  70-72 F water temps are too cold for me, especially with maybe a 3' visibility.  I'll take RM/Cozumel that time of year with 76-78 F water temps and much better visibility.

But it all depends on what you want to do.  I'd still go back to either one, but prefer RM over NV.  I actually would prefer Puerto Vallarta over NV only because I think there's more culture to experience.  But some people don't like to do that, they just want to stay on the resort and be pampered, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Try them both.  See what *you* like the best.  Just don't do sales presentations!  haha


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## travs2 (Nov 22, 2017)

Thanks Phyllis for checking out the chairs down on the beach.  Nice to finally see that there are smaller straight backed chairs down there.....probably the ones they use for weddings and special occasions.....not the most comfortable but ok if one doesn't want to sit on the green loungers.....  Hope you have a wonderful vacation with your family!


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## MuranoJo (Nov 23, 2017)

It's really disappointing, to say the least, that they pull those slimy tactics on long-time members (who really are their investment base).  And it was so obvious because you were both moved or offered to move mid-week after you stood your ground and refused an update. 
I have to think this is all going to come back to bite them, but who knows.  Seems these days some bad guys get pretty good mileage.


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

While Vidanta is 30 years old, for all intensive purposes, it is less than 10 years old. It has only started to grow since about 2010 or so. Grand Luxxe is a new brand. No one in the USA has heard of the Grand Luxxe. Vidanta is overbuilding like a housing boom. In the next recession, which should come soon (since technically the world has had continual growth since 2009) Vidanta will probably have cash flow problems. Luxury goods are the usually the first to suffers in recessions. Vidanta’s biggest problem is that it offers luxury goods to a middle and upper middle class market. In general, the truly wealthy who are insulated from recessions do not buy timeshares from companies like Vidanta.

We have used Grand Luxxe one time after purchase and already thinking we may not continue to use for 10 years. I have contacted several rental companies to rent out my weeks and everyone had said no because there is an oversupply of members wanting to rent and not enough demand, and that is why the rental price is so low. They said they can’t afford to take on new clients. One rental company said they get emails like mine everyday.

There is no way out with Vidanta like with other good timeshares. The only thing we can do is warn other potential buyers to not buy. It is better to rent a few times before they are absolutely certain they love the product. I wish I would have followed through with rescinding and came back on an exchange. With more time to decide and less pressure, maybe I would be a happy member.


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## mikenk (Nov 23, 2017)

RussellSun said:


> There is no way out with Vidanta like with other good timeshares. The only thing we can do is warn other potential buyers to not buy. It is better to rent a few times before they are absolutely certain they love the product. I wish I would have followed through with rescinding and came back on an exchange. With more time to decide and less pressure, maybe I would be a happy member.



Actually, I don't really agree that there is really no way out for Vidanta like other timeshares. In my observation, the timeshare industry unless attached to a major hotel chain is a dying industry. If you are not growing, you are dying in the resort business.

While I am questioning the sales ethics and how they treat their long term owners, their business plan and acumen appear pretty sound. They sell strongly and use that cash to build. Being basically cash flow based should allow them to easily weather a recession - they just slow or stop building & expanding. They have existing owners, exchangers, and anyone off the street they can rent to at whatever it takes to keep the buildings full. They are not restricted as are traditional timeshares.

I perceive the company will continue to grow and expand regardless how they choose to treat their existing owners; Personally. I believe in the long run they would do better if they respected long term owners regardless whether the owners were staying put with what they own or expanding.

Mike


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

mikenk said:


> Actually, I don't really agree that there is really no way out for Vidanta like other timeshares. In my observation, the timeshare industry unless attached to a major hotel chain is a dying industry. If you are not growing, you are dying in the resort business.
> 
> While I am questioning the sales ethics and how they treat their long term owners, their business plan and acumen appears pretty sound. They sell strongly and use that cash to build. Being basically cash flow based should allow them to easily weather a recession - they just slow or stop building & expanding. They have existing owners, exchangers, and anyone off the street they can rent to at whatever it takes to keep the buildings full. They are not restricted as are traditional timeshares.
> 
> ...



So if we decide we no longer want to use our membership, what could we do with it? We can’t sell it because there is no resale market. The rental agencies aren’t taking new customers. I will not waste my time renting it myself because the profit margin is tiny, if any. So what are the options besides losing our upfront fee, paying the remaining 5 mandatory maintenance fees and letting the contract expire in 10 years? Of course, we will probably use it occasionally but not enough to make it pay off. There is no way we will come to Grand Luxxe 3 weeks a year every year for the next 10 years. That is too much when we have so many other vacation options.

P.S. For me, the major turn off is the sales ethics. Customer service and ethics mean everything to me. I can’t refer people here if the ethics are bad. I can’t keep coming back to a resort with bad ethics. I would rather lose my money than return some place that is slimy and unethical.


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## Eric B (Nov 23, 2017)

Haven’t been there enough times yet to have a fully developed opinion on the trend in customer experience, but it sounds like the issues are predominantly related to room assignments and sales.  My take on things is that once I upgrade to the penthouse, I won’t have an issue with room assignments because I can manage that by making strategic choices of rooms.  As far as sales experience goes, it also sounds manageable.

Not sure another recession would matter that much.  Isn’t that when they started GL?


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## Ballooner (Nov 23, 2017)

mikenk said:


> I am currently staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa in Nuevo. Usually we get good room assignments - sometimes in Tower 1 but mostly in Tower 2; this time we were assigned the worst possible villa location - floor 1, Tower 4, facing the river.
> 
> While I know the general belief on this forum is that owners get better room assignments than exchangers, I have always questioned whether that was true and how much influence sales has on that process. I realize that as an owner, I have paid less than most starting with a resale and being here on my Senior Discount, so it is logical that I would get a low room assignment compared to other owners - but logically above exchangers.
> 
> ...


We are owners with "gold" status.  We are on the 6th floor of tower 4 looking at golf. I begged for the other side but to no avail. I'm flabbergasted that yoy are on the first floor.  Wer are also using senior cert this week which I think hurt us checking in.


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

Eric B said:


> Haven’t been there enough times yet to have a fully developed opinion on the trend in customer experience, but it sounds like the issues are predominantly related to room assignments and sales.  My take on things is that once I upgrade to the penthouse, I won’t have an issue with room assignments because I can manage that by making strategic choices of rooms.  As far as sales experience goes, it also sounds manageable.
> 
> Not sure another recession would matter that much.  Isn’t that when they started GL?



During the recession, it was cheap to buy land and build. So it makes sense they started building Grand Luxxe then and expanding if they had cash. Remember that income inequality increased during the Great Recession because anyone with cash bought up real estate from the folks who were defaulting. However, now they are overbuilding and may not be prepared for the next recession. Let’s hope they are prepared. My main concern is they may be overdoing it now because the overbuilding is driving down the rental prices for Grand Luxxe. You can rent Grand Luxxe for very little and rental agencies are not taking new customers due to lack of demand.


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

Eric B said:


> Haven’t been there enough times yet to have a fully developed opinion on the trend in customer experience, but it sounds like the issues are predominantly related to room assignments and sales.  My take on things is that once I upgrade to the penthouse, I won’t have an issue with room assignments because I can manage that by making strategic choices of rooms.  As far as sales experience goes, it also sounds manageable.
> 
> Not sure another recession would matter that much.  Isn’t that when they started GL?



From where we come from, there are already signs of a recession coming. We live in the most expensive real estate market in the United States. We are seeing commercial real estate vacancies start and significant price drops. I’ve been tracking it because I am looking for a new office. While already the highest in the nation, Real estate price doubled in our area since 2012. We live in a geographic area that declines before the rest of the USA and recovers more quickly. We have short recessions but they predict what will happen in the rest of the country and the world. We do not personally care what happens since we have no skin in the game. We feel bad for all the people where these things do matter or who never recovered from the last recession. We feel really bad for the folks buying Vidanta products with the hope of growth and who may or may not get that.


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## Eric B (Nov 23, 2017)

They already own East Cape and other lands elsewhere.  If room assignments mean that much, I would draft my own addendum to negotiate on the subject rather than count on them.  Something like:

Room assignment requests made by member to member services 3 weeks prior to the check in date will be honored for reservations made through Vidanta or the San Francisco Exchange using the privilege week program.  In the event member’s room assignment request cannot be fulfilled due to extenuating circumstances, member will be credited 25% of usage fee towards charges to the stay.

He who writes the contract has the upper hand in negotiating.


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

Eric B said:


> They already own East Cape and other lands elsewhere.  If room assignments mean that much, I would draft my own addendum to negotiate on the subject rather than count on them.  Something like:
> 
> Room assignment requests made by member to member services 3 weeks prior to the check in date will be honored for reservations made through Vidanta or the San Francisco Exchange using the privilege week program.  In the event member’s room assignment request cannot be fulfilled due to extenuating circumstances, member will be credited 25% of usage fee towards charges to the stay.
> 
> He who writes the contract has the upper hand in negotiating.



They will absolutely never agree to that. If you are able to negotiate that, please let us know. Whoever can negotiate that will be the best negotiator on earth. Maybe that will be you, Eric. Please, please let us know. If I could get that addendum, I would upgrade in a minute. I think you might get that if you invested $1 million and were a Platinum Plus level member.

P.S. I asked for that addendum and they said no.


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## mikenk (Nov 23, 2017)

Ballooner said:


> We are owners with "gold" status.  We are on the 6th floor of tower 4 looking at golf. I begged for the other side but to no avail. I'm flabbergasted that yoy are on the first floor.  Wer are also using senior cert this week which I think hurt us checking in.



Hello Ballooner, welcome to TUG.

If you are in Tower 4, floor 6, then I assume you are a Spa owner. Is that correct?


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

Ballooner said:


> We are owners with "gold" status.  We are on the 6th floor of tower 4 looking at golf. I begged for the other side but to no avail. I'm flabbergasted that yoy are on the first floor.  Wer are also using senior cert this week which I think hurt us checking in.



We noticed that the Penthouse level of Building 5 says “Platinum” on the River side. So we suspect that Gold members are placed on the Golf course side of the PH floor. We were placed on the Golf course side of the PH floor. Based on your comment, perhaps Platinum members get the River side and Gold members get the Golf course side in general. This may be another strategy to get Gold Members to upgrade to Platinum level.


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## mikenk (Nov 23, 2017)

BTW, Happy Thanksgiving to all - even you Canadiens.

The family is coming today for a Texas Thanksgiving; smoked baby backs and a rack of Pork cooked on my Big Green Egg; we will have a turkey and dressing for our few traditionalists.

Mike


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 23, 2017)

mikenk said:


> BTW, Happy Thanksgiving to all - even you Canadiens.
> 
> The family is coming today for a Texas Thanksgiving; smoked baby backs and a rack of Pork cooked on my Big Green Egg; we will have a turkey and dressing for our few traditionalists.
> 
> Mike



FYI - Vidanta emails  Canadians  - Happy Thanksgiving - EVERY OCTOBER . 

So someone there appreciates members backgrounds .

ENJOY the Family & food .


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## rpennisi (Nov 23, 2017)

Lol, I got one from Vidanta today in NY right on Thanksgiving!


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## RussellSun (Nov 23, 2017)

rpennisi said:


> Lol, I got one from Vidanta today in NY right on Thanksgiving!


 
LOL - me too. It’s an automated email.


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## T-Dot-Traveller (Nov 23, 2017)

rpennisi said:


> Lol, I got one from Vidanta today in NY right on Thanksgiving!



YUP - Mine came right on Thanksgiving too - Monday Oct 9 (2017)

Happy (American)Thanksgiving to All


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## nomadio (Nov 23, 2017)

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our American friends!

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk


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## pianoetudes (Nov 26, 2017)

mikenk said:


> I have always expected that Sales has a strong say in room assignments; fairness is not in their vocabulary.
> Having a exchanger in a better location is better for sales - end of story.



I attended an owner update at RM last September but my GM (through RCI) unit assignment was ok, nothing extraordinary. It was at 3rd floor with view of trees. I do not believe attending a sales presentation will guarantee the best view.


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## RussellSun (Nov 26, 2017)

Vidanta add a tax to the bill for owners. It was over 700 pesos. I thought taxes is part of the usage fee like with maintenance fees. This is ridiculous. It really made me angry.

All in all, it is better to trade in and not be an owner. They really screw owners every way they can. They never disclosed this during the sales presentation.


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## Eric B (Nov 26, 2017)

Is it covered in your contract or addenda?  If not, it’s probably fair game.  I’ve been charged tourist taxes at other TS, most recently in Hawaii.  At least it was <$40 US, which shouldn’t ruin a vacation week.

Charges I have seen there that were actually in error and controllable, such as the in-room coffee we didn’t use, were on the same order, but happily removed by the hotel staff when we checked out.  They assume you’re using it and add it automatically is what they told me; I didn’t interpret it as trying to screw me since they took it off.

Interestingly enough, last time I exchanged in through RCI Platinum, they didn’t charge me a resort fee; not really sure why not and didn’t ask.  You win some and you lose some, I guess, but the house (govt) always wins on the tax.


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## RussellSun (Nov 26, 2017)

Eric B said:


> Is it covered in your contract or addenda?  If not, it’s probably fair game.  I’ve been charged tourist taxes at other TS, most recently in Hawaii.  At least it was <$40 US, which shouldn’t ruin a vacation week.
> 
> Charges I have seen there that were actually in error and controllable, such as the in-room coffee we didn’t use, were on the same order, but happily removed by the hotel staff when we checked out.  They assume you’re using it and add it automatically is what they told me; I didn’t interpret it as trying to screw me since they took it off.
> 
> Interestingly enough, last time I exchanged in through RCI Platinum, they didn’t charge me a resort fee; not really sure why not and didn’t ask.  You win some and you lose some, I guess, but the house (govt) always wins on the tax.



When we traded in, we were not charged the government tax but as an owner, we were.


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## rpennisi (Nov 26, 2017)

I have always been charged a daily tax for all Mexican resorts I have either traded into or own.  It is a small amount, not worth complaining about.

My most hilarious moment about this, was in an elevator where a women who must have just settled her account was raging about the 235 dollars she was charged in taxes.
I informed her that was in pesos not dollars and she sheepishly said, "Oh".


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## Eric B (Nov 26, 2017)

The symbols do look alike....


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## RussellSun (Nov 26, 2017)

Yes I guess so.


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## CynL (May 24, 2018)

mikenk said:


> I am currently staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa in Nuevo. Usually we get good room assignments - sometimes in Tower 1 but mostly in Tower 2; this time we were assigned the worst possible villa location - floor 1, Tower 4, facing the river.
> 
> While I know the general belief on this forum is that owners get better room assignments than exchangers, I have always questioned whether that was true and how much influence sales has on that process. I realize that as an owner, I have paid less than most starting with a resale and being here on my Senior Discount, so it is logical that I would get a low room assignment compared to other owners - but logically above exchangers.
> 
> ...



It sounds like you had the same room we got on our first visit, the year before you in October--before becoming an owner using an RCI "free" trip travel package. All we could see were construction equipment between us and the river!


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## TravelTime (May 25, 2018)

mikenk said:


> I am currently staying at the Grand Luxxe Villa in Nuevo. Usually we get good room assignments - sometimes in Tower 1 but mostly in Tower 2; this time we were assigned the worst possible villa location - floor 1, Tower 4, facing the river.
> 
> While I know the general belief on this forum is that owners get better room assignments than exchangers, I have always questioned whether that was true and how much influence sales has on that process. I realize that as an owner, I have paid less than most starting with a resale and being here on my Senior Discount, so it is logical that I would get a low room assignment compared to other owners - but logically above exchangers.
> 
> ...



I don't know what kind of contract you have, so that may affect your room assignments. However, I think 1st floor Tower 4 river side is actually a good room assignment. The landscaping is amazing on the river side on the lower floors, better than looking at the brown river run off.


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## TravelTime (May 25, 2018)

RussellSun said:


> The staff does not look as happy as they did when we were here in the summer. They all look like they are under a lot of pressure. The resort looked busier in low season than now so this is rather perplexing to me. I think they should put members in the best rooms within their category so we will want to upgrade and return. It is easy for me to go elsewhere and not utilize my membership and Vidanta will lose revenue and goodwill. We are all quite active on review boards and they should be courting their high value members for good reviews. Frankly, they should value every member equally. I guess they could care less if we never come back because all they want is to get the upfront fee. They do not seem to care about earning usage fees. I will not pay usage fees if they are going to put me in bad rooms in Nuevo Vallarta. I will stop coming here. I get the impression all they care about is money. They told me members are prioritized based on their investment and their is a sales person on the room assignment team. When I bought the membership, sales told me Grand Luxxe owners get priority when we stay at Grand Bliss or Grand Mayan. More lies!



I noticed that too. The staff looks unhappy. They used to seem happier.


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## mikenk (May 25, 2018)

TravelTime said:


> I don't know what kind of contract you have, so that may affect your room assignments. However, I think 1st floor Tower 4 river side is actually a good room assignment. The landscaping is amazing on the river side on the lower floors, better than looking at the brown river run off.



Realistically, room assignments can be initially annoying - but none are really that bad depending on perspective. In the end, it really makes little difference in our enjoyment - just maybe in our view of disrespect. As an avid golfer, resort views (floors 3 and above) are great; the lighted par 3 course is beautiful. Drinking wine on the patio and watching people chunk balls into the water is fun. 

Mike


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