Vidanta East Cape

[Linda74]

Does any have a progress report on the Vidanta East Cape project? Are they currently building on this property east of San Jose and if they are what is being built? The last I heard it was Grand Luxxe. Is there an estimate for an opening date?

Thanks.

We toured it last March. We were told this was not a Vidanta Resort, only to find it was. The units we saw were amazing. Lots of technology in each. I believe a restaurant was already open and operating. There was a fair amount of construction going on. I would say it will be a spectacular resort.

 

[Toes_in_the_sand]

There will 100% (at least as close to 100% as you can be with Vidanta) Estates in East Cape. First near the beach and then possibly along the mountainside.
The cruise ship was not a carnival ship it was from another company. It was COMPLETELY retrofitted and refurbished. It is undergoing additional modifications to add Grand Luxxe style suites. Yes. It is certainly a smaller ship, but I doubt one will be able to complain about the finishes and appointments. I think the plan is to buy three cruise ships.
The saltwater pool is in East Cape. The renderings look gorgeous and have many buildings over the water or lagoon. No idea what will eventually come to fruition or if in fact it will still be the largest in the world.

Yes, that is not a Carnival ship. Two years ago when we were at our meeting in NV they told us about the cruise ship and showed us a picture of the ship. It WAS a Carnival fantasy class ship. Clearly they did not show us the actual ship. Had they shown us the ship you just posted above we would have laughed even harder. My wife and I cruise 2 - 3 times a year and have done so for over 15 years now. We know our ships and there is no way Vidanta is going to get us on that ship. It doesn't matter how much they dress it up.

 

[Eric B]

Preferences and experiences vary. I'll probably try it out sometime with an open mind to see what it's like. Last time I was down in Nuevo Vallarta they were saying that Vidanta will have a 2 to 1 staff to passenger ration on the ship to pamper you fully; I got a big laugh when I asked if one of the two staff would be from sales. Anyway, my take on it is that you can't really judge how nice a cruise ship would be from the pictures of the outside (I was the one that posted the link to the picture, not jssquared); you really have to see the interior and how it is operated to make any kind of valid judgement. Different size ships can get into different size ports and there are some fabulously luxurious yachts that are quite different than a standard cruise ship. I'm not saying that everything Vidanta does is fabulous, but they do a fairly decent job overall and if they proposed yurts or treehouses I would look at how they came out before dismissing the idea out of hand. I wouldn't invest in something like that without further information, of course, but the rumor is that the cruise ship will be available as an exchange for GL owners, so it might be worth considering.

 

[dmurray007]

Great info. East Cape sounds like it would fit us perfectly. Only time will tell if our level of GL would get us in. I have never been on a cruise ship, from what I’ve heard and read, I don’t think we’d be good cruisers.
Just as a side note, I dug out our contract. I thought we had four weeks, two regular, and two bonus. We actually have one regular and two bonus. Our contract has a letter attached that says we have access to a 1 BR GL, but we still actually still own a GL loft. Trying to remember back I was so worn down by the buying process, and missing vacation time, we just wanted out. Amazing how different what I bought is, from what I thought I was buying.

 

[dmurray007]

I am in the same boat, not actually sure what I bought. Will be at GM Mayan Riveria in mid march (last minute deal through SFX) so plan on arranging a meeting with the membership services to get a better idea of what I have and how to best use it.

 

[MoPops]

I am in the same boat, not actually sure what I bought. Will be at GM Mayan Riveria in mid march (last minute deal through SFX) so plan on arranging a meeting with the membership services to get a better idea of what I have and how to best use it.

I’m embarrassed at how little I know about what I bought! We are headed down Saturday to RM. I’d like to find out more about what I own, but I know I’m not sitting through another sales presentation. It takes too long to escape. I also joined a vidanta forum, maybe someone from that forum will be down there while I’m there. We will take our contract with us. Going for 2 weeks to RM next Jan. Maybe I’ll take a half day to get an update, but not this year..

 

[Eric B]

You could just make an appointment with Members Services to go over the contract instead of doing an update. They are not part of sales and can be helpful.

 

[mikenk]

I agree with Eric. Go to the member services area and ask for an appointment. However, the appointment should not be open ended just to go over the contract; it should be to discuss specific questions and issues with your contract. That gives you some work to do before you go. Read every sentence in your contract and understand it, or if you don't understand it or if different from what you thought, flag it for discussion. The contracts really are fairly straightforward. It never hurts to ask for a change or clarification.

Mike

 

[MoPops]

Thanks Mike and Eric. We will be there Saturday. We should be able to set up the appointment once we get there, correct? I’ve been reviewing the contract. One of the weird things about my contract is that we had a GL Loft. I wanted a 1BR GL unit. So they said that was what we were buying. Once we started going through the contract I noticed it still said GL Loft. I questioned it at the time, but was given an explanation. Now I’m told what we bought was a letter saying we could get a 1BR GL. The letter also stipulates we can get a 2BR GB. We obviously have to pay more for the units above the GL Loft. There’s confusion though every time I call in to to reserve. They see GL Loft. I explain and then they say they see the letter allowing me to reserve a GL 1BR. It’s frustrating because I was told I was buying a GL 1BR. I’ve asked for a copy of the letter, but they won’t send it to me. They say it’s just a note on the computer in my file. I’ll see if I can’t get it squared away. I’ll review the contract again. I just reviewed it the other day. Still confused about this 10 year renewal also. I can’t find anything in the contract about that either.
Thx

 

[Eric B]

It's likely that what you have is a GL Loft registered week with an addendum allowing you to reserve a 1 BR in the Jan-Mar high season. Could be they aren't selling the 1 BR contracts now for some reason or other, but this sound like it's set up to get you the equivalent access.

As for the renewal, you should have gotten two booklets for your purchase. The first one is good for ten years and is the actual contract for the registered week, probably set up as every other year with alternate year weeks in the off years. I'm pretty sure they are limited by the number of registered weeks they can sell and this is how they get around it. The other booklet is set up as a certificate allowing you to reserve two weeks in the same accommodations as the registered week, but with a shorter reservation window. The certificate is good for 10 years and is renewable 9 times to make 100, with a cost of something like 1 usage fee per week. If you read the clause on renewal, you'll likely see that it's up to you to remember to renew without them billing you or risk losing the certificate rights. Or you can upgrade in your ninth year and start the time over; could work out if you want a 2 BR then.

 

[MoPops]

Asked member services today about East Cape. I was told a decision hadn’t been made on wether it would be available to all GL members, or just GL estates.

Also had my contract explained clearly. I think I now have a pretty clear picture of what I have, and what I can do. I do have two amendments that allow me to go with GL 1BR, or GB 2BR. I was given tracking #s to help make the reservation process easier. Works out for me. Other addendums included passed to the NV Park, no MF unless I go, golf, 10 yr renewals etc..
I guess when I reserve two weeks I’m using one registered week and one residence week. Paying a year in advance on the residence week.
It complicated things a little as I have a contract written in NV, but I’m in RM.
Thanks all for all your help and advice. The person I met with today told me not to renew there agreement, as they were not offering some of these addendums any longer as throw ins.
Of course, that could all be bs, but it made me feel better. Ha!
One actual bit of good news is I renew at 10 yrs at the GL loft rate. Saved me a few $$ anyway.


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[jssquared]

The first units at East Cape are supposedly Grand Luxxe units. Not the Estates. I was told that only higher level grand Luxxe (meaning perhaps not studios or master suites or some other cut off) will be part of that inventory. Eventually, there are supposed to be Estates in East Cape.

 

[MoPops]

Ha! Every person I talk with has a different take on it. I guess when they are actually taking reservations I’ll know.


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[pittle]

Latest info on the cruise ship is at https://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/20226-vidanta-elegant-emerges-from-refit.html. It's in Mazatlan now.

I received a snazzy brochure from Vidanta today about the Vidanta Elegant Cruise Ship. It will have only 298 passengers and you can split a week between Nuevo Vallarta and Vidanta Elegant.

 

[Eric B]

I received a snazzy brochure from Vidanta today about the Vidanta Elegant Cruise Ship. It will have only 298 passengers and you can split a week between Nuevo Vallarta and Vidanta Elegant.

Just got the same pamphlet. Looks nice; split week between GL NV and a cruise on the ship.

 

[Ckhawaii]

Does anyone know if this property is opening soon? Has it been delayed by the pandemic?