Riviera Maya Update - Boots on the Ground #1
February 15, 2014
Boots was very active in February. From Riviera Maya, he sent us news of the tragic Tower 5 accident that occurred in Nuevo Vallarta on February 14, 2014. As a consequence, we overlooked his update from Riviera Maya.Following are his comments:
February 15, 2014
Bob,
We tried the Fairmont Mayakoba last night for Valentine's Day dinner - it is one of the fancy resorts between the GL property and Playa and they don't often allow outside guests in but we had the GL concierge make the arrangement and it worked out fine. It's a great choice and not quite all the way into Playa - a very interesting property and the tour of the resort is worth the effort. We went to their Las Brisas restaurant on the beach (they have several restaurants at the resort) and it was great. Prices weren't too bad (you can look on the Fairmont website) and the service, presentation and location on the water was terrific. I think you can also book this restaurant through opentable.com.
We did a side trip to Cancun one evening to check out their "malls" and it was only so-so but we did have dinner at Harry's Prime Steak House and it was terrific - lively place with lots of tourists and large portions (kind of like Morton's but much more fun). On the water and excellent service - also can book through opentable.com
We will try to get more info on those cranes that collapsed today at GL5 - I think that building is jinxed!!
We are very busy ferrying back and forth into Playa to watch the Team Canada hockey games at the Olympics since, as usual, the TV coverage at the resort is non-existent - so we are getting our fill of sports bars!
That's it for now - will keep you posted on any further news
February 13, 2014
Bob
I think there is a real rivalry between Vallarta and Maya sales offices - the folks in Maya are of the view that they raise lots of sales dollars at their resort but the money gets spent in Vallarta and they find that as unfair. They say that that is starting to change since Vallarta is now getting built out and Maya is starting to get the Owner's attention. They are also hungrier to do deals in Maya and especially if they can scoop a deal from a Vallarta customer like me.
So I think they managed to sign me up with a very good deal in Maya (that would really benefit me in NV) and then when it hit the Vallarta head office for approval, they just thought that the Maya folks had gone too far - I am just guessing but that's what I think happened. I don't think that I will get a better deal in Vallarta than I was supposed to get in Maya - I think they want to keep Vallarta prices higher than elsewhere and so they control what Maya wants to do - the problem is that the customer gets caught in the middle!
BTW, with the opening of the third GL tower in RM for the spa units, it now is overloading their single GL pool. By my calculation, if all three GL buildings are 100% occupied with two people per bedroom, that is a total of about 450 people which is way more than that pool can handle. To put it in perspective, NV normally has about 1800 people in the GL buildings on the same basis and about 2500-3000 people at Christmas and Easter. But NV has a lot more pool capacity and more in the pipeline.
Grand Luxxe Pool Riviera Maya Mexico May 2011
There are no plans that I am aware of to add another GL pool in RM though the fourth building (all GL villas) is under construction and add even more pressure.
They are building a large Grand Bliss pool clear across the other side of the property on the new beach (much like in NV) but it is a long way for GL people to go and would be very inconvenient.
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Rendering Beach Club and Pool Area - February 18, 2014
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Beach Pool Near Grand Bliss - February 15, 2014
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#1 - Beach Club Pools under construction
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#5 - Beach Club Pools under construction
(Thanks to MJ and Boots #1 for their photos.)
So get ready for "pool capacity" complaints coming from RM GL owners. The GB pool area will be part of the new beach area and beach club they are also building on the south end of the property (in front of the sales and model suites building)
The new reception building for GL in RM is scheduled to open in a couple of months (just east of GL tower one in its own bit of jungle) and they plan to build a GL gym and spa right next to that new reception building.
Reception Building A08
Reception Building A07
(Thanks to Jim and Gerry for these photos.)
As I said yesterday, there is a longer range plan to build lofts and four bedrooms on a space just back from the beach on the north end of the property (next to the Valentino resort next door) but I think that is also a long way off. We will see more activity across the highway once the performance centre opens with Cirque but that will be more of a landscaping job with a Celebrate kind of shopping area.
Cirque du Soleil in Riviera Maya - Architect's Rendering - February 11, 2014
Riviera Maya Map - Cirque du Soleil Side of Highway 307 March 26, 2014
I think we will see the company make use of the draw of the circus to entice new prospects to come to presentations and will couple "deals" to see the circus (with or without dinner) together with a sales pitch. Cancun is a much larger catchment area for prospects than Vallarta and Chavez knows that - that's why the circus is coming to RM first and with no fixed plan for a second circus venue in NV.
That's the update for now.
Feb 12, 2014
Thanks for that update on the sales process that you are hearing about. My salesman today told me that all unusual addenda are reviewed first by Customer Service and then by International Sales, which department also reviews the pricing and it was this department that nixed my deal even though it had been agreed to yesterday by "corporate" (yes we have all heard about that great approval person called "corporate").
They have added an interesting rescission right in the contract with the usual five day rescission for the buyer but also a two day rescission right for the company so maybe you will never know that you have a deal for sure until their 48 hours period is over! Next time I make a good deal, I will ask them to waive their rescission right at the time of signing!!
I must say that they were quick to refund my credit card payment of yesterday - I guess they really wanted to kill my deal in a hurry!
I don't know if my particular deal will come back to haunt me when I am next in Nuevo and if it was shared with our sales people there, but we are back there on March 8 and I guess I'll find out then and will keep you posted.
Thank you, Boots. Terrific update. Transaction review by corporate introduces an interesting dynamic. We all must be prepared to understand the full extent of what we buy in the future. A two day rescission option by the developer effectively takes away the five day individual rescission/cooling off period afforded by the Mexican Department of Consumer Affairs (PROFECO) unless we all have our sales update the day we arrive in Mexico (assuming a one week stay.). That said, we do not believe the company is trying to be devious. Rather, there appears to be a review process in place, which makes sense from a management point of view.
So on we go....the properties are changing, and now we see processes changing as well.