I have ownership of 25 timeshares, 13 of which are Starwood properties, three of those at Westin Lagunamar – I am also a 5-star elite...
Read more »
I have ownership of 25 timeshares, 13 of which are Starwood properties, three of those at Westin Lagunamar – I am also a 5-star elite member with lifetime Platinum SPG membership. I also own at Royal Sands and Royal Haciendas and will compare these with the Lagunamar.
I just returned from a week-52 stay at Westin Lagunamar where my family and I had 4 rooms reserved. The facilities at Lagunamar are very good-to-excellent, just a small step down in quality from Hyatt properties. The management at Lagunamar however is fair at best, largely as a result of poor front-desk management. Almost every encounter with the front desk resulted in a rude remark and/or treatment during the entire stay, which I will describe in greater detail toward the end of this review.
The management fee at the Royal properties are only 60% of what it is at the Westin Lagunamar, and yet they have excellent personnel throughout the facility AND they have daily maid service (the Westin Lagunamar does not). The facilities at Royal Sands are nearly as good, except that there is not a Jacuzzi tub in the rooms and the beds/linens are not nearly as good as they are at the Westin properties. Royal Sands is more densely populated than Lagunamar; even during full-occupancy during week 52 Lagunamar almost seemed deserted. The Royal Haciendas in Playa del Carmen is a newer property, is less densely populated, and has as good or better facilities than Lagunamar, there are even Jacuzzis on the balconies of the Royal Haciendas. The Royal Haciendas also have excellent Wi-Fi internet service, the Westin Lagunamar’s Wi-Fi internet was so slow that it did not function most of the time (only worked after midnight). The Royal properties also don’t come anywhere near as flexible as Starwood properties when it comes to being able to trade one week for another or staying partial weeks.
As an example of the rudeness, when I asked for early check-in and check-out (one of the few perks that comes with elite membership), I was told that I could not because “everyone is an elite member” during week 52. This was just an outrageous lie – in fact, when I made the reservations I was not yet an elite member AND elite membership does not confer a preference for making reservations. When I asked to speak to the general manager of the property, I was denied and instead given to the front desk manager who made the statement, “Imagine if everyone here this week were an elite member.” I could imagine decent front-desk service, unicorns and leprechauns, each apparently equally likely at the Westin Lagunamar.
In another instance there was a 5-mm by 4-mm tear at the corner of a $100 bill that we were exchanging, made as we pulled it out of the wallet. We were informed by the front desk person that if her “boss” decided that they could not accept the bill in that condition they would contact us. My wife offered her the tiny torn piece of the bill and the front desk person rudely laughed and flicked it back at her telling her that she should hold on to it. When I asked who her boss was, she refused to tell me and instead stated that it was the accountant that would contact us (of course no one contacted us because it was such a tiny tear).
To be fair, week 52 was fully booked at this resort that on average is probably with less than 40-percent occupancy at other times of the year at this relatively new resort. I suspect the staff was probably burdened with more than twice the usual occupancy. The facilities themselves did not look over-crowded at all and in fact still appeared under-utilized: pools, facilities and restaurants were never busy. The concierge staff was excellent and more-than adequately staffed. In fact, I never experienced a line anywhere –including the front desk during check-in or check-out.
The location can’t be beat, directly across the street from the shopping plaza where there is also an aquarium (including a dolphin swim place) and a movie theater.
Given the flexibility of the reservation system, location and excellent facilities, I’ll surely return - despite the rude front-desk personnel, lack of daily maid service and the lousy internet service. (The fact that I own so any weeks here and throughout Starwood also makes it likely.)
BTW, If you ever thought about becoming an Elite member, think twice - it isn't worth it. You don’t get preference in reservations. The ability to be on a waiting list for reservations sounds nice, but in reality it is not an automated service. It is supposedly done by some “department” somewhere that doesn’t seem to be staffed by anyone – the reservation folks clearly tell you that if you really want to get a reservation, keep calling several times a day, day-after-day, otherwise you’ll get nothing. Being a 5-star Elite member DOES confer the Platinum SPG status, and if you stay in a lot of hotels, it might be worth something. I plan a 3-week trip to Europe this Summer - we'll see if the free available upgrade really happens... Given Starwood’s track record – I doubt it.
