controller1

I agree. Over on the TUGBBS site I haven't seen any posts indicating AA miles were being given for timeshare presentations.

ILuvParis

Just to be clear, it was a targeted invitation. It wasn't something I volunteered to do and then asked about miles.

margarita girl

So that wasn't a typo? It really was AA miles, and not Marriott points? In that case, 10K miles is a heck of a lot better than 10K Marriott pts. ^

exploreaswego

Hey guys, I received a targeted mailer from Westin vacation club on this 5D/4N offer for $269.
They are also throwing in 15k points to sweeten the deal. We do have plans to travel to South America during May.
But I had no experience with these vaca club deals before, the fine lines states that Vistana travel is the agent for this package.
I've read a few on blogs saying that there definitely will be a few hours of sales pitch and presentations to attend.

I guess my questions are:
- Is this deal worth it?
- Would my stay be eligible for elite nights/points and receive elite benefits? We are Plat Premier with Marriott, so those free bfast are very valuable for us.

margarita girl

exploreaswego

Wow, thanks for catching this. I wasn't aware that there were 2 Westin properties in Cancun with different names.

gimpo111

First time poster here.

I'm going to this resort soon via the $269 offer.

As someone who has never sat through a timeshare presentation, can anyone shed some light on how intense/not intense it gets? What should we expect? I'm an experienced sayer of 'no' but will the hotel staff turn hostile on us if we refuse to buy the timeshare?

margarita girl

ILuvParis

Having sat through the presentation at this particular hotel, I can tell you that you will probably meet with three people. The person who does the initial presentation was very nice - just going through the "benefits" of the program and answering questions. Very matter of fact, friendly and low key.

Then they brought a woman for the hard sell. She was very high pressure, and tried to sell us on several lesser options - anything for some kind of sale, I guess. The more we made it clear that we were not interested, the colder she got. Finally, she said in a snide tone, "So, you can do it, you just don't want to." I told her she had it about right.

Then, they'll bring in the "quality control" guy, who is supposedly there to get your impressions of the first two. I praised the first guy and complained about the high pressure technique of the woman and stated it was ironic in light of the fact that it had repeatedly been impressed on us that there was absolutely no obligation. And more attempts to sell us. He was somewhat unpleasant after that. We kidded later that everyone would probably ignore us the rest of the stay.

That said, it was worth it for the 10K miles and the inexpensive vacation and the rest of the staff were all very pleasant throughout the stay.

gooseman13

Stayed here a couple of weekends ago...very last minute 1 night stay (booked morning of), $96. Chose between this and the Marriott, going with the Westin because the room was $20 cheaper and it wasn't clear that the Marriott had a lounge. Reviews here didn't make me particularly optimistic but I was pleasantly surprised. I assume they must be going through some sort of renovation, as we were upgraded to a "studio" (platinum status) which seemed very modern and also had a mini kitchen. Climate control in the room was excellent.

Hotel itself had multiple pools, a louder one ocean side with a pool bar, and a quieter one in the back. Narrow beach area with very nice ocean. Back pool also had a flowrider next to it - they did classes for $35 for one hour (which I can tell you after is far too much time, 30 minutes would be plenty).

Not a lot of conveniences nearby, but a couple of OXXOs and a few restaurants within 10 minutes walk of the front door. Would not hesitate to stay there again.

RafKa

Did you get lounge access at the Royal Beach Club?

gooseman13

Yes, upon asking at the front desk if platinum status comes with lounge access the front desk agent asked his supervisor who granted us status.

honzeek_cz

Hi. What is the offering in the club currently? I could not find any recent pictures.

gooseman13

They definitely had beer, wine, and prosecco. I forget exactly the food offerings, fairly basic, with a couple of deserts. Not bad but certainly not great.

ILuvParis

Has anyone else noticed that at the club, they do something strange with the "bill?" They "charge" you for things you didn't drink, but it is comped. For example, we might have two glasses of prosecco, but they put four on the bill and then tell you not to worry about it - it's not charged to your room anyway. It's as though someone is making at look as though more liquor is being consumed than is the case and then doing who knows what with the unconsumed liquor (in my suspicious mind, taking it and reselling it outside the hotel).