Complaint Review: Mayan Resorts - Luis Martinez

 In August of 2013 a friend and I spent a wonderful vacation week at the Grand Luxxe in Playa del Carmen, Cancun.  This resort is affliated with VIDA Vacations.  There are four resorts on the premises; Grand Luxxe, Grand Bliss, Grand Mayan and Mayan Palace.

Our vacation started out great, until I was convinced to attend a 90 minute presentation with the lure of a free breakfast and $300 credit on our bill.  The credit was taken off the bill, and the breakfast was provided as promised, but, the 90 minute presentation turned into a 7 hour high pressure sales marathon.  The breakfast meeting appointment was at 9am... I returned to my room, exhausted and overwhelmed, at 4pm.  I own several timeshare and have never experienced such a high pressure sales meeting.

Much of what I was told was not true, and once I returned home and started reading social media about the Grand Mayan and associated properties, I felt sick.  What started out as a wonderful vacation, ended up to be a financial rip-off for me, and still continues.

I believed that I was buying a timeshare that I could use for the rest of my life, and that I could pass on to my niece. I was "given" a "bonus week" which I thought was the same as the week I bought... WRONG.   I was also "given" as a "bonus" for my purchase, 20 "VIDA weeks" that were to be used over a 20 year period, available through SFX, a resort exchange company.  I was promised a "cash exchange" of my annual maintenance by Advantage Services,ensuring that if I couldn't use my week, they would pay my maintenance for me.  They showed my how I would have access to "the world" through RCI, a timeshare exchange company. 

Also, there was an "equity exchange" of two weeks of my existing timeshare, that was to off-set some of the purchase price, as well as the annual cost (since they said they had no maintenance fee).  This sounded "too good to be true".... It was!  

First... the sales contract is for 10 years... NOT.. perpetuity! And must be renewed every 10 years at a cost of $1000.  And the "bonus week" they "gave" will cost me at least $10,000 every 10 years (renewal fee) to actually get to use it.

Promises were made for access to hundreds of different resorts through SFX, a resort exchange company, using my 20 "free VIDA weeks.  The VIDA weeks are NOT FREE... you must pay up to $999 to use these weeks, and they are not guaranteed.  The resorts in the SFX program (which is the only way you can use your "free" weeks) are fabulous, but trying to get a reservation at them is another story.

My salesman, Luis Martinez, was cordial and very good with numbers.  So good, that he made it look like a "no brainer" that I should buy from them.  Unfortunately, now I feel like the "no brainer", because much of what he told me was a lie.

The calculations used to justify the exchange of my existing timeshare for theirs was based on maintenance fees that I would no longer have to pay.  Those calulcations were shown "in perpetuity", and based on Advantage Services reimbursing me for the Grand Mayan maintenance fee. LIE!  The Grand Mayan contract is for only 10 years, NOT "forever", and the Advantage Services program is a fraud! 

There are so many conditions on the acceptance of your week into the Advantage Services program, that it's a sure thing they will NOT reimburse your annual maintenance fee as promised.  That is why the contract administrator has you sign a form that says you do not need this reimbursement to afford the resort payments.  That should have been a red flag to me!  When Advantage Services call you they make it very clear that there is no guaranteed access to their resorts.  Of course, by this time.. you are already home and it's too late!

I was told that the parent company was American, so if there were any problems, I would be dealing with an American company. LIE!  He said that as part of the sale, they would cover the Closing Costs and IVA Tax, which amounted to almost $6500 of the closing cost.  LIE!  I signed the cash-out amount because I was told they would cover those costs at the time of the closing.  I now find out that is not true!

Part of the sales calculations was an exchange of my existing timeshare for a credit against the sales price of what I was buying.  It all looked great at the time, but I was never given any of those calculations, and now I am left wondering what sort of "shell game" they played with me. Equity Acquisition Services, the company that supposedly was taking my existing timeshare (Simpson Bay Resorts in St. Maarten) called me to ask if I wanted to buy it back for $3550.  Since Mayan Resorts calculated these weeks to be worth $35,000, it's amazing to me that EAS is willing to sell them for 10% of that.  RED FLAG!  And they wanted a decision and credit card immediately.

I was told that if I had any questions, that I should contact Lance Dobbs in Member Services.  I have attempted to do that with no success.  It would seem that there are no "member services" after the sale!

I own several other timeshare, and have purchased them for gifts for my family.  I have never felt "scammed" as I do with my Grand Mayan purchase. I have contacted my credit card company to contest the deposit charge, and  I will contact a lawyer to proceed with cancelling my contrac.  Also, I will contribute to whatever social media possible to ensure that others don't experience the same situation.  Vacations are supposed to be "stress free"... and buying your vacation residence should be, too.