Confused: Mayan Palace vs. Grand Mayan

I have been going through old posts and am soooo confused on the difference between these two. It seems at every location the Mayan Group has both a GM and MP but I don't understand the difference. In most of the posts people tend to use them interchangeably but there are hints here and there that there ARE differences (even read one post where the poster was horrified to have been switched to the MP after confirming a GM unit, but no explanation why). The only thing I've been able to pin down is that the GM units at Riviera Maya have plunge pools (and I don't really care about having a plunge pool). I'm trying to decide if I should take a MP unit or hold out for a GM to become available. So, what are the differences? I'm also curious about their other locations? (Nuevo Vallarta, Acapulco) Pool access? Amenities?

Thanks!
C.

In the Rivera Maya

there isn't a real big difference in the MP and GM units. IN Nuevo, the GM is very new, while the MP is older, quite a diff in the units, lobbys, etc. And the big one in Nuevo is the GM pool complex, only for GM users, MP's can'r access the pool area.
Would I hold out for a GM in Rivera Maya, no I wouldn't. In Nuevo, Yes I would.

fwiw, Greg

You can see the difference in the units in the ph0to gallery by resort area here http://www.mayanresorts.com/ Don't worry about things like Mayan Island (ownership condos), IQ hotel (not timeshare and not sure if they'rev actually built any). If you are trying to figure out the real difference think "class system".

The way the marketing scheme goes is, the Grand Mayan units and their amenites (including pools and common areas) are more upscale than the Mayan Palace units and their amenities (including pools and common areas) which are more upscale then the Sea Garden units and amenities. Grand Mayan owners are the (present) top of the heap in that Grand Mayan owners can trade/use into Grand Mayan units and facilties, Mayan Palace units and facilities and Sea Gardens unit and facilities. Mayan Palace owners can trade/use into Mayan Palace units/facilities and Sea Garden units and facilities, but NOT trade up to Grand Mayan units or use Grand Mayan facilities at the resorts and the poor old Sea Garden owners get to trade/use just Sea Garden units facilities- unless there is some extraordinary deal on....and they seem to be systematically reducing the number of Sea Garden resorts in the chain I suppose in an effort to up-sell to the Mayan Palace and Grand Mayan units...gotta keep that cash rolling in....and their marketing scheme is always directed to the next up-sell

As for the hard sell that owners are subjected to from time to time (also known as "owner updates" ) they try to sell Grand Mayan owners more Grand Mayan weeks, Mayan Palace owners will be upsold to Grand Mayan or failing that Mayan "Regency" ownership and Sea Garden owners will be shamed (upsold) to Mayan Palace or maybe even Grand Mayan if possible.- because how can you NOT give your kids this opportunity- guilt guilt guilt....

As far as the in-unit specifics, the Grand Mayans have a minimalistic decor, nicer shampoes etc, the cold plunge pool on the balcony and a kitchen that had a 3/4 fridge and 4 burner cooktop, but no oven and a good amount of granite counter space (useable), Mayan Palace units have an undercounter bar fridge, a 2 burner stove and not a lot of counter space (useable only to a point) and no useable balcony (but that can vary by resort and building) and I'm not sure about the Sea Garden kitchen as we've not stayed in the units. And they check to make sure that the classes (oops, I really mean resort guests) don't up-mix (down mixing is okay assuming you're a GM owner or exchnger) by colour of braclet on your wrist. All resorts have their own colour and style of bracelet and owners have a different colour than exchangers..

Having said all this, the resorts, regardless of where you stay, are really nice and well cared for. We bought a Mayan Palace unit on Ebay and we like the decor just fine and our children look back on the one Christmas we spent as exchngers at the Riviera Maya mayan Palalce as one of the best family holiday's they've ever had.

Oh yes and if you exchange through RCI into one of the family of Grupo Mayan resorts and are not an owner, there is a 1 in 5 rule for all Grand Mayan, Mayan Palaces, and Sea Garden resorts in the chain. If you trade in through SFX there is no restriction like that...yet.. But as I said before, great resorts - we like them, but they have somewhat capricious rules and really hard ball marketing to try and sell you.

Just my $.02 worth

We have stayed 1 week at the Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya and 2 weeks at the Grand Mayan - Nuevo Vallarta. We have a confirmed exchange for 2 weeks back to back at the Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya again for this April. All exchanges are with SFX.

We will only stay at the Grand Mayans as the units and amenities are what make the resorts outstanding. I agree that the advantages of the Grand Mayan - Nuevo Vallarta are much greater than at Riviera Maya though they have added additional amenities for the Grand Mayans there. We have also stayed at the Royal Mayan in Cancun. We far preferred the Grand Mayan to the Royal Mayan but would choose the Royal Mayan over the Mayan Palace.

The Mayan Palace in Riviera Maya is definitely not bad but the Grand Mayan is outstanding and well worth trying to get.

This is just our personal opinion.

Barb: Thank you for an indepth description of the differences; I was wondering that myself. We stayed at Los Cabos Grand Mayan in December and was pleasantly amazed at the upscale insides like those bowls in the bathroom that sit on top of the counter and the fancy faucets.

Thanks everyone for all the comments...I think I have a better handle on it now!

C.

John Cummings said:

We have stayed 1 week at the Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya and 2 weeks at the Grand Mayan - Nuevo Vallarta. We have a confirmed exchange for 2 weeks back to back at the Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya again for this April. All exchanges are with SFX.

We will only stay at the Grand Mayans as the units and amenities are what make the resorts outstanding. I agree that the advantages of the Grand Mayan - Nuevo Vallarta are much greater than at Riviera Maya though they have added additional amenities for the Grand Mayans there. We have also stayed at the Royal Mayan in Cancun. We far preferred the Grand Mayan to the Royal Mayan but would choose the Royal Mayan over the Mayan Palace.

The Mayan Palace in Riviera Maya is definitely not bad but the Grand Mayan is outstanding and well worth trying to get.

This is just our personal opinion.

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What did you think of the Grand Mayan in Cancun? We are thinking of going to cancun. The only thing is that we might want to splurge and have AI.

suekap said:

What did you think of the Grand Mayan in Cancun? We are thinking of going to cancun. The only thing is that we might want to splurge and have AI.

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The Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya is not right in Cancun but is about 25-30 miles south.

We visited the Grand Mayan - Riviera Maya again for 2 weeks this past April and and are going back again for another 2 weeks next April. We love the resort and it is the only resort that we keep going back to. We are going back to the Manhattan Club again but that is because of New York City and not the resort.

I don't know why you would want AI. The Grand Mayan resort has many different dining choices and they are quite reasonable.

Response to suekap

Sue - AI is pretty expensive in Mexico. We did it once, but cannot eat and drink enough to off-set the cost. If I were going to do one, it would be the Palace Resorts, because you can spend a day at different ones. There are several in Cancun - Beach Palace, Sun Palace, Cancun Palace, Moon Palace, and then in the Mayan Riviera area - Playa del Carmen Palace, Xhu-Ha Palace, Spa/Adventuras Palace, and Cozumel Palace. The Beach Palace is the least expensive. The Sun Palace and Spa/Adventura Palace are adults only. The Palace resorts also include several tours in the AI price.

Since we like to explore local restaurants, AI really does not work well for us.

The MP and GM in the Playa del Carmen area is really nice and you can go to Playa, Puerto Moreles, and Cozumel for reasonable prices.

I have been researching moon palace. Do you know if you can eat or use pool area at sun palace with a 17 year old?

suekap said:

I have been researching moon palace. Do you know if you can eat or use pool area at sun palace with a 17 year old?

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Probably not now that it is one of the Adults Only resorts. Check the Palace Resorts website for more specific ingo. When we stayed at the Sun Palace several years ago, it was not adults only then - only the Adventura/Spa Palace were.

One other big differance is that the second bedroom only has one bed on the GM not a huge deal to some but to others can make a trip not so fun.

So, does that mean that the mp has 2 beds in the second bedroom?

yes - 2 queen size beds in the second bedroom

We are thinking about trading into (RCI) the GM for a 2 bedroom.

Questions ...

Is the beach really THAT bad? From what I read you cant swim in it? Is that true?

Should we rent a car? Is it easy to drive around?

Is the food there VERY expensive?

We are thinking about trading into (RCI) the GM for a 2 bedroom. Which one?

Questions ...

Is the beach really THAT bad? From what I read you cant swim in it? Is that true? Again, which GM? Acapulco is great, NV is so-so, Cabo is not a swimming beach and Riviera Maya is an ok beach.

Should we rent a car? Is it easy to drive around?If you want to drive, it is possible to rent at the resort itself, so no need to rent at the airport.

Is the food there VERY expensive? Not particularly, though you can spend a lot of money for food if you so choose.

Guy

We would be trading into the GM at Rivera Maya. It looks beautiful!

But so many say the beach isnt usable.

You will find

That each person has a concept of what they expect, and if you expect the broad white sand beach pictured in commercials, then you will be unhappy.
There is a reef, you can swim there, once you get out 15-20 feet the bottom is mostly sand.

Others complain about the high cost of food, it is higher than McDonalds, but anything that is edible is more than a fast food place.

An average meal in one of the restaurants will run $12-20 per person.
The buffets are more as are the special event nights.
You will be staying in a true 5 star hotel , try getting a meal at that price at any Marriott or Westin.



The resort is spread out and is low density to preserve the natural habitat, so it may take you 5 minutes to walk from your suite to the pool. Or if you need it, you can catch a shuttle, they run around every 15 minutes or so.


fwiw,

Greg

krmlaw said:

We would be trading into the GM at Rivera Maya. It looks beautiful!

But so many say the beach isnt usable.

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krmlaw said:

We are thinking about trading into (RCI) the GM for a 2 bedroom.

Questions ...

Is the beach really THAT bad? From what I read you cant swim in it? Is that true?

Should we rent a car? Is it easy to drive around?

Is the food there VERY expensive?

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I basically agree with the others. The beach right in front of the resort is definitely not suitable for swimming. However a short walk down the beach and you will be fine. Renting a car is up to you. personally, we never rent a car while visiting Mexico. The food is not expensive at all for a 5* resort or in fact any hotel. They have a decent breakfast buffet for $12 or you can eat right next to the beach in one of their restaurants for even cheaper than that. A deluxe 1/2 cheeseburger with fries is $8.00 poolside. They have many other options including room service that is pretty reasonable. They also have an upscale restaurant and more elaborate breakfast buffet, etc.

Use of pools at Grand Mayan and Mayan Palace

We are wanting to go to Grand Mayan Riviera with another couple who are able to get into the Mayan Palace Riviera. Are we able to use pools at both locations? Is the distance too far for us to be at different resorts on the same grounds? We can probably get into the Mayan Palace as well, but heard that the Grand Mayan Riviera was the better route.

Can you use pools and facilities at both Grand Mayan Rivier and Mayan Palace?

The largest pool is open for all guests and there is a newer pool that is for Grand Mayan only. I have not been there since it opened, but several folks have said they prefer the original one.

Both pools were open when we were there last April. We far prefer the Mayan Palace pools over the Grand Mayan Pool. Grand Mayan guests can use either one whereas Mayan Palace guests are restricted to the Mayan Palace pools only.

Mayan Palace

We are not 5* resort people, but I have stayed at both Mayan Riveria and Nuevo Vallarta. A couple things I have observed. The resorts are so big. We did not like having to walk so far to the pool and beach and we did not like having to be there at 6:30 am to get a chair. The food was rather expensive for us as we like the local places. We normally spend no more than $200 (most of the time less) a week on food. It is not that we are cheap, we just choose to hit local places and that proves to be very inexpensive. Both times we rented from tug members and found this to be a great deal. The Mayans are very expensive to own and if you rent from an owner that 1 in 5 rule goes out the window. If you try to trade in more than once in 5 years beware. We have friends who were confirmed through RCI for 2 weeks even though they had traded in about 2 years ago. About 5 weeks before their trip RCI contacted them and said they couldn't go. So, they were scrambling to find another place. RCI helped them and it worked out, but just an FYI.

wyobean said:

We are not 5* resort people, but I have stayed at both Mayan Riveria and Nuevo Vallarta. A couple things I have observed. The resorts are so big. We did not like having to walk so far to the pool and beach and we did not like having to be there at 6:30 am to get a chair. The food was rather expensive for us as we like the local places. We normally spend no more than $200 (most of the time less) a week on food. It is not that we are cheap, we just choose to hit local places and that proves to be very inexpensive. Both times we rented from tug members and found this to be a great deal. The Mayans are very expensive to own and if you rent from an owner that 1 in 5 rule goes out the window. If you try to trade in more than once in 5 years beware. We have friends who were confirmed through RCI for 2 weeks even though they had traded in about 2 years ago. About 5 weeks before their trip RCI contacted them and said they couldn't go. So, they were scrambling to find another place. RCI helped them and it worked out, but just an FYI.

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You don't have to exchange through RCI. We have exchanged 5 times in the past 5 years to the Grand Mayans at Riviera Maya and Nuevo Vallarta. All 5 exchanges were for 2 weeks each time.