nodge
TUG Member
Hi Tuggers,
We just returned from an awesome Spring Break at the Westin Mission Hills Villas ("WMH") in Rancho Mirage, California. The pools and other common areas were fantastic, and even though the place was sold-out, we had no trouble getting pool chairs.
If possible, I suggest avoiding being placed in building 38, where we stayed (so much for the theory that SVN Elite Members get special privileges.) It is adjacent to the parking lot that houses a main garbage dumpster area. These dumpsters are a continuous center of noisy activity from early morning to late evening. Outrageously noisy garbage trucks empty them in the wee-hours of the morning. When they’re not being emptied, employees in car-sized electric carts are racing to and from them using the walking paths around this building. Trees and buildings block your and these employees’ views in this area, so be prepared to routinely dive off the walking paths at the last second as these carts wizz by at top speed. If you’ve got small children, like I do, you may want to encourage them to walk on the grass rather than take a chance on the electric cart highway (a/k/a “walking paths”) in the area.
Despite the garbage dumpster area being right in front of building 38, guests also tended to routinely put their garbage in front of our villa, where it stayed all day. Our ground-floor unit’s patio furniture also regularly walked away, which we figured other guests “borrowed” as they walked from their cars parked by the dumpster area, past our building, to their villas.
I don’t consider myself a maintenance prude by any means. I’ve got no problem turning over a sofa cushion or two to hide stains. That said, the interior maintenance of our villa in building 38 was, hands down, the worst of any SVN property where I have ever stayed. Rather than just explain the condition of our villa, I’ve provided a few links to pictures.
Our sofa was worn thread bare and even had an 8 inch tear in one cushion. When we turned the cushion over, we were greeted with a 10 inch tear on the other side. The bathroom fan/vent, which was inoperative, had obviously been broken for quite some time. The long term mold and mildew had built up for so long it was actually eating away at the bathroom trim, which I think would be really tough to do in the desert. Upon arrival, the bathroom window shade was also missing.
There was a mysterious wall stain in our bedroom, and our kitchen featured a garbage disposal switch but no garbage disposal. On the plus side, the original dishwasher had been replaced with a newer model. However, the newer model was about 2 inches narrower than the cabinet it fit in, thereby exposing its insulation for all to see. Classy.
I’m sure that WMH’s has some very nicely updated and appointed units. For example, the model unit on the golf course, far far away from dumpsterville was very nice. Unfortunately, our unit was extremely run-down and it appears to have been that way for a long time.
Given Vistana Resort’s older sections' well known lack of maintenance and updating, our assigned villa at WMH’s (which I assume was in one of the oldest sections of this massive development) left me wondering if it is really just a matter of time before all non-public areas of SVN properties look like this. (They've got to keep the common areas looking sharp so it won't hurt sales.)
In the short term, however, I strongly recommend that anyone staying at WMH’s avoid building 38 (or at least bring a checkered flag to wave on the winner of the lastest employee dumpster run race.)
-nodge
We just returned from an awesome Spring Break at the Westin Mission Hills Villas ("WMH") in Rancho Mirage, California. The pools and other common areas were fantastic, and even though the place was sold-out, we had no trouble getting pool chairs.
If possible, I suggest avoiding being placed in building 38, where we stayed (so much for the theory that SVN Elite Members get special privileges.) It is adjacent to the parking lot that houses a main garbage dumpster area. These dumpsters are a continuous center of noisy activity from early morning to late evening. Outrageously noisy garbage trucks empty them in the wee-hours of the morning. When they’re not being emptied, employees in car-sized electric carts are racing to and from them using the walking paths around this building. Trees and buildings block your and these employees’ views in this area, so be prepared to routinely dive off the walking paths at the last second as these carts wizz by at top speed. If you’ve got small children, like I do, you may want to encourage them to walk on the grass rather than take a chance on the electric cart highway (a/k/a “walking paths”) in the area.
Despite the garbage dumpster area being right in front of building 38, guests also tended to routinely put their garbage in front of our villa, where it stayed all day. Our ground-floor unit’s patio furniture also regularly walked away, which we figured other guests “borrowed” as they walked from their cars parked by the dumpster area, past our building, to their villas.
I don’t consider myself a maintenance prude by any means. I’ve got no problem turning over a sofa cushion or two to hide stains. That said, the interior maintenance of our villa in building 38 was, hands down, the worst of any SVN property where I have ever stayed. Rather than just explain the condition of our villa, I’ve provided a few links to pictures.
Our sofa was worn thread bare and even had an 8 inch tear in one cushion. When we turned the cushion over, we were greeted with a 10 inch tear on the other side. The bathroom fan/vent, which was inoperative, had obviously been broken for quite some time. The long term mold and mildew had built up for so long it was actually eating away at the bathroom trim, which I think would be really tough to do in the desert. Upon arrival, the bathroom window shade was also missing.
There was a mysterious wall stain in our bedroom, and our kitchen featured a garbage disposal switch but no garbage disposal. On the plus side, the original dishwasher had been replaced with a newer model. However, the newer model was about 2 inches narrower than the cabinet it fit in, thereby exposing its insulation for all to see. Classy.
I’m sure that WMH’s has some very nicely updated and appointed units. For example, the model unit on the golf course, far far away from dumpsterville was very nice. Unfortunately, our unit was extremely run-down and it appears to have been that way for a long time.
Given Vistana Resort’s older sections' well known lack of maintenance and updating, our assigned villa at WMH’s (which I assume was in one of the oldest sections of this massive development) left me wondering if it is really just a matter of time before all non-public areas of SVN properties look like this. (They've got to keep the common areas looking sharp so it won't hurt sales.)
In the short term, however, I strongly recommend that anyone staying at WMH’s avoid building 38 (or at least bring a checkered flag to wave on the winner of the lastest employee dumpster run race.)
-nodge
