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Sheraton Mountain Vista disappointment

Catazog

Catazog

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2007
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We're preparing to go to SMV on June 30 for a week, so we tried to email our favorite concierge there, Candace, to let her know we'd be arriving. Candace is a FANTASTIC concierge who was not only extremely helpful during our visits over the last two summers, but she is also a great person whom we were looking forward to seeing again. The email to her bounced, so I called SMV this morning to find out if she might still be there.

Well, not only is she gone, but they've eliminated the entire concierge position from SMV! When I asked why, the front desk person told me that the facility was now sold out and the sales offices are closed until they reopen for sales at the new Westin timeshares in Avon. They eliminated the concierge position at the same time. I told her that I felt that the concierge was a great benefit to owners that had nothing to do with sales (Candace would recommend restaurants and events, make reservations for us, steer us away from cheesy tours, etc). The front desk person just said that they would be taking on those duties now (I find it hard to believe that they would have the time -- or the expertise -- since I was placed on hold for almost 5 minutes when I called). I said I was disappointed, but I don't think it made much of an impact on her.

I'm quite upset about this and plan to email the VP of Owner Relations (Suzanne) whose email was posted in the Elite benefits change thread. I understand why the sales staff is going to focus on the new Westin, but I'm starting to feel like a second class citizen at SMV as far as the amenities for owners goes -- first, they cancel the air conditioning project that they promised us two years ago, and now they eliminate the concierge. It doesn't bode well, especially with the opening of the Westin timeshares at least two years away.

Has anyone stayed at the SMV recently and noticed a difference without the concierge? I really hate to be disappointed by Starwood when my experiences started out so well three years ago. :mad:
 
I stayed there in November, but the concierge was of limited value to me. Her hours didn't fit my schedule - not the resort's fault, just circumstance.

I will say though that what I really didn't appreciate was being harassed upon check-in by the "concierge". After traveling all day, and with an arm full of suitcases, I don't need somebody trying to sign me up for a sales tour before even seeing my room. I just wanted to get some food and go to bed.

I found it frustrating that they could bother me at 9:00 at night, but in the morning when I could actually use assistance, the concierge wasn't on duty. From the conversation we did have, though, she did seem to know her way around.

I share your opinion that it seems unwise to turn those duties over to the front desk. I found the front desk staff to be very unknowledgeable in terms of providing guidance for the surrounding area. It was almost as if it was their first day in town.

I'm staying there again this November, though; the resort itself was excellent.

Mark
 
I agree, Mark, that being accosted by the concierge to schedule an "owner update" (i.e. sales pitch) is very annoying. It happened to us at Vistana Village about three years ago and we had a very BAD experience. Fortunately for us, that hasn't happened during our two stays at Avon. In fact, the first time we stayed there it was for 3 nights (using up extra StarOptions) and we told Candice (the concierge we like) that we wanted nothing to do with owner updates due to Vistana Village. She said she could arrange a one-on-one meeting with the head of sales in his office just to go over the basics -- prices and incentives, so sales spiels or endless videos. That's when we ended up buying our EOY summer week.

I wonder if they changed the concierge's duties and hours since our visit last summer (and before, of course, they eliminated the position altogether). When we were there the concierge was on duty from about 10 am to 7 pm. It would make sense if they wanted to use the concierge to mostly schedule the owner updates. Oh well, what a way to ruin a good thing.

I did email the VP of Owner Relations and she replied right away saying she was out of town on business but would get back in touch with me directly when she is back in her office and has checked out the situation at the resort. I'll keep you all posted. Oh, and we do love Avon so we'll continue going back there regardless.
 
Catazog,

The concierge hours you mentioned of 10 am to 7 pm are probably what they were during my stay. Now that I think about it, I probably arrived at the resort at 6:00 or 6:30. I'm sure it just seemed later than that.

10 am is just so late, though. By that time, I'm out and about for the day. I reckon I should have planned my activities the evening before while the concierge was on duty. :doh:

It's odd that I can arrange a vacation a year in advance, but I apparently don't have the planning skills to schedule a day's activities a few hours in advance...

Mark
 
We check in on Saturday for our first visit to SMV. I'll ask about the service and let you know what I find out.
 
SMV is going through some pain at the moment. Don't really know what it is all about but that is why the sales department has been disbanded. Candace was part of the sales department so that is probably why she is no longer there. That's too bad. Concierge is an important part of the facility and the position should not have been eliminated. I do believe the homeowner liaison is still there in his position so you might want to speak with him and find out what you can.
 
Thanks for the suggestion, Zoobiedo. After I talk to the Starwood person tomorrow (the VP Member Relation's office called me Friday and left a message saying she'd call me again on Tuesday) I think I'll email the owner relations guy at SMV that we've talked to in the past (if he still works there, that is) and see what he says about the concierge.

One nice thing -- we're going to be in Avon over 4th of July and the city has a big celebration in the park just behind the SMV, complete with fireworks. It's supposed to be the biggest display in the area!
 
any more info on thte sales dept/concierge issue? Or info from a recent stay concerning anything else? We will be there in August and I hate to hear about any instability as we own multiple weeks there.
 
Call back from Starwood

I got a call back from Starwood last week and Brenda, who works with the VP of Owner Relations, talked to me for quite some time. She said she contacted the SMV and they confirmed that Candace, the concierge who helped us the past couple of years, was indeed no longer there. Her job title was marketing assistant, which tied her to the sales team, although she spent a lot of time helping owners as a concierge. Since the property is now sold out, the sales team was disbanded, including Candace. However, they have hired a person part time to be a concierge. They will be there two days a week. She said they are currently interviewing to hire another part time concierge. In the meantime, the activities department (not the front desk staff) will help out with concierge duties.

I told her I was glad they are continuing the concierge service there because I thought is was a valuable amenity for owners. She also assured me that the concierge will continue at WKORV since the tourist activities there demand it.

I also asked her about the air conditioning that was promised two years ago but now appears to be canceled. She said she researched that and was told that the project has been postponed because it was more complicated than they had expected. She assured me it hasn't been canceled. I'm not so sure about that, but I imagine that retrofitting a building for A/C would be an expensive and complicated project. I still suspect it has been put "on hold" indefinitely due to the new Westin being built nearby.

So, I am pleased to hear that they are hiring for the concierge position. My husband and I arrive at Avon on June 30, so we'll see if there's actually someone there two days a week. I'm disappointed about the A/C, but there's nothing much I can do about it. I'll try and talk to the owner relations person while we're there.

Oh, and at the end of our conversation Brenda mentioned that Starwood is working on updating the online reservation system so that we can make real-time villa reservations. So, there's another report that Starwood is working on that. She didn't have a time frame for when it might happen.

I'll report back after our trip to SMV. We'll be there for the 4th of July and I've heard that they have a great fireworks display in Avon.
 
Do the other sold out resorts still have sales offices.....wmh, old vistana, sdo. I thought that they just sold other properties from there.
 
Oh, so that is why we did'nt get hounded with any timeshare presentation offers. :cheer: We just got back on June 21st and didn't miss the concierge at all! The front desk was very helpful when we asked about bike trails, etc.
 
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