Here's the I Review Submitted
Ok, here a copy of the review I submitted yesterday. Since we'll be here for a few more days, I can try to answer any specific question about the facilities and amenities. Just ask...
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The Westin Lagunamar Resort is a brand new facility that’s not yet fully completed. My family was the very first group of guests received at the resort! We arrived on its opening day, August 15th, at about 3:30 PM. According to the Westin Vacation Ownership (WVO) representative I spoke to on site, there were only about 47 units ready on the opening weekend, and not all were occupied yet.
When we first drove up the resort driveway in our rental car, we were a bit concerned. From the main road, the front landscape and buildings looked a bit desolate and in disrepair to passerbys. Although we knew some of that were from the landscapes being newly planted, so they haven't grown in yet, and from buildings that are still in various stages of construction completion, we were still worried that not all recreational facilities were ready. Thank goodness that worry was unfounded, as the recreational facilities, such as the gym, the kids club, the miniture golf course, the swimming pools, water slides, and jacuzzis were all ready and available!
As we reached the main entrance, the valet and porter quickly came out to take care of our car and luggages. Unfortunately and surprisingly, our room wasn't ready yet!? After some probing, I was told that's because they were still working on the unit until that same morning and housekeeping was still cleaning it. When we finally walked into our unit 30 minutes later, the mopped tile floor was still moist!
Our 1 bedroom unit looked almost exactly as advertised and pictured in the WVO website and brochure. The furnitures and cabinets were all in rich dark wood finish. The floors were covered with qualty textured tiles and nicely patterned rugs. The unit was decorated with mirrors and paintings on the walls and local potteries on tables and shelves. There were ceiling fans in both living room and bedroom. All rooms were very well lit with lamps and many built-in lighting. The Westin Heavenly bed in the bedroom was extremely comfortable, albeit it maybe too soft for some people. Our young kids claimed the sleeper sofa in the living room was very comfortable as well, but I didn’t test it myself.
The kitchen was equiped with Whirlpool appliances - a full size refrigerator with ice maker, a built-in flat top stove, a “microven” that worked both as an oven and a microwave, and a coffee maker. The cabinets and drawers were filled with cups, mugs, plates, bowls, and table settings, all enough for 6 people. The max occupancy of our unit was only 4 people, but there was a lockout door to a studio unit, hence the furnishing for 6. Other items provided in the kichen were colander, salad bowl, steak knives, serving sets, 9 pc pots & pans, coffee pot, electric can opener, blender, and toaster. There may be some items I missed.
The kitchen and the dining area was divided by a foot-wide serving counter. The dining area is furnished with a dark wood rectangular dining table and matching seats for 6 people. The living room next to it had a queen sofa bed with 2 side tables, a rattan sofa chair, and a large coffee table. The floor to ceiling window framed an incredible view of the pools and beach. There was a side door that opened to the balcony located outside of the bedroom. The entertainment center was built into the wall with a LCD TV, a Bose Wave music system, a DVD player, and several storage drawers at the bottom. We didn’t spend much time with the TV, but I did check and found only analog stations available. The door leading to the bedroom was double sliding with a lock.
The bedroom had a king-sized Heavenly bed, 2 bedstands each with a lamp, a Sony alarm radio, and a rattan chair and stool. There was also a built-in entertainment center, except without the Bose Wave. The large sliding glass door led to a balcony, which was large enough to be furnished with a square table and 4 rattan chairs. The view from the balcony was beautiful, incredible, manificient, you pick the words… From the design and layout of the resort, it would appear every unit had similarly incredible views, but of course, the higher up you are (we’re on the 8th & top floor), the less chance of trees or other structures blocking your views. A frosted glass wall and a hinged door divided the bedroom and bathroom.
The bathroom had a huge jetted tub under the frosted glass wall and a double sink counter. One wall had the built-in closet and drawers, including a safe. In the closet, there were additional beddings and pillows, hangers, and an upright vaccum cleaner. The shower and toilet were each in a separate stall with frosted glass door for privacy. There was another door that led to the kitchen & living areas. The vertically stacked washer & dryer were located in a closet by the entryway and the lockout door. They’re limited in size, obviously, but were quieter than expected.
In the public area of the resort, there were 2 restaurants and bars onsite for guests. There is also a swim-up bar by the pool. The 2 pools were tiered and both with an infinity edge. The upper pool had a water slide that our kids loved. The lower pool’s infinity edge ended to the barrier wall next to the beach. At nights, under a full moon, the infinity edge blended the 2 pools into each other and into the Caribbean, so they looked truly connected to the sea!! We sat mesmerized at the view each night. The resort also offered a full exercise room with many types of equipment, and a kids club with air hocky and other games. Because this is a timeshare property, there was no spa service/facility at this resort.
Since we were the first guests at the resort and the first real occupants in the unit, there were some problems and issues, as typical of all new constructions. The problems we reported include: Weak to no wifi signals in the unit (not fixed), no signal on the ethernet cable (fixed within an hour), no hot water (fixed within a few hours, but it recurred), tile floor very dusty, and no pool towels on the first day (got extra bath towels instead). Other issues were employees not very experienced, so everything required 2-3 calls or transfers to get to the right person, and response times were slow because I suspect everyone was busy with other guests or with new constructions. On the plus side, everyone we met and spoke to was very friendly and willing to help. Their English language skills varied, but in general, everyone was able to understand and respond well enough to common requests and questions. But, on some less common requests, it may take a few tries and speaking very slowly.
The Westin Lagunamar is very conveniently located in the Hotel Zone. It’s right across the street from the La Isla Plaza shopping mall with many upscale stores, restaurants, bars, and all the conveniences, like several rental car shops, an aquarium that offers swim with dolphins and even a Cinemark Theater!! The beach behind the resort was not very clean. I guess the resort hasn’t yet gotten to clean up all the coral debris from hurricane Wilma. There were also a lot of sea weeds washed up on shore. However, the seawater was calm and waves gentle when we were there. Unlike some other parts of Cancun, the beach had plenty of sands, but it was kind of narrow.
We had an awesome time at the Westin Lagunamar Resort. Our kids loved the pools, the water slide, and the beach. We enjoyed the upscale and fully equiped units, the excellent facilities and amenities, the nearby conveniences, and the beautiful views! In our opinion, this is an exceptional resort for couples and families. But, it’s probably not the right resort for singles. Although the La Isla Plaza has a Planet Hollywood and other bars that offer some entertainment, the Plaza Forum area a few miles further north probably offers much more excitement from we saw driving by.