Description: Best Things Nearby:
Archaeological sites
Best Things About the Resort:
Clean, cool, spacious rooms. Good jumping off point to the archaeological sites.
Resort Experience:
Imperial Fiesta at the Casa Maya at Cancun is a good accommodation, but watch the sales pitch. It has:
Two-bedroom with ocean and pool views
Tile floors kept the unit cool even in the heat of the day – electric ceiling fans rather than air conditioning
Two bathrooms and a partial kitchen, but given the fact that it was the off season and it was hard to find reasonable groceries in walking distance for the few days we were there, we lived on pasta and take-out. Cancun is basically set up for people to eat out and party, rather than for families who are more comfortable making their own meals to ensure no ingredients they were allergic to were included in their food.
The hotel restaurants were closed, except for one, and resort facilities had limited availability due to it obviously being their maintenance time. The menu was in English, and, due to our limited Spanish, we actually pointed to the meals we wanted, but they somehow never seemed to come out as the ones that were ordered. Yet, the waiter always said they were the right ones.
It was coming up to hurricane season and most grounds staff were busy wrapping the palm tree in anticipation of a big blow, which luckily didn’t happen while we were there. Those like us from Australia or the other side of the world need to keep this in mind when organising to go such places. They also cleaned the pool and public areas in the middle of the day when most people would want to use them, so it was not very relaxing. We went for a walk along the beach front, and those areas not immediately in front of the large complexes were extremely dirty and covered in garbage, so we only went once.
The staff was pleasant enough, but the Cancun timeshare experience is not like in Australia. They are very pushy regarding sales. For example, welcome nights weren’t really about the local area, but more to tank people up into booking a showing of the resort as they allocated each person their own customer service staff member. The welcome night was also tacky in the fact that they played party games, calling people up on stage. Many of these games had sexual connotations, despite the fact that children had also been invited, and our teenage daughters thought the whole thing was gross and actually asked if they could be taken back to the apartment.
Originally we thought the staff member had been identified as an English speaker to make inquiries and be helpful in setting up sightseeing, but we soon learned to avoid Hector, as there was a constant push to let him give you a free lunch so he could see how your holiday was going . We were a little suspicious after a conversation we had overheard from another couple in the lift, but after three days of notes left on the answering machine and under the door and constant requests when he did happen to spy us around the resort, we conceded. Our worst fears were recognised as we were taken to lunch and then shown the most current wing of the establishment. Then we were in the danger zone - a large, high-pressure sales area filled with at least a dozen tables and numerous Hectors all trying to flog a six-month share in their resort. It was complete with the over-the-top peer pressure of a convention meeting, as the whole room would be called to attention when anyone actually signed on the dotted line and everyone else was asked to cheer for them to congratulate them on their purchase, obviously to get you to do the same so you wouldn’t feel outdone. It was so plastic, pushy, and revolting that even if we had been considering the resort given that the rooms were lovely, it would have turned us off straight away. They even had the gall to, when we said we were not interested, hand us on to Hector’s supervisor to explain why we wouldn’t buy off Hector. What a way to ruin a good vacation!!
- Unit Type: 2 Bedroom
- Activities: Fair
- Amenities: Good
- Unit Satisfaction: Very Good
- Family Friendliness: Fair
- Service: Good
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