Grand Luxxe Riviera Maya pool for owners only

[mike53]

That is what I assumed. I'll be there the 10th - 17th.

 

[Eric B]

We’re down starting the 9th, I believe. See you there!

 

[mike53]

Great. I have a lot to learn about Vidanta and hopefully you can provide a lot of insight...and a bit more accurate than from the sales folks

 

[hurnik]

We are new GL owners and have a reservation for our GL unit for next June. Also I will be going there in February using an II trade. Being an owner but staying in February as a trade will I be allowed to use the GL pool and beach area?

Not sure. Phyllis is an owner and they stayed on an SFX exchange and I don't think they got full access unless they attended the timeshare update/presentation.

 

[Eric B]

Not sure. Phyllis is an owner and they stayed on an SFX exchange and I don't think they got full access unless they attended the timeshare update/presentation.

My recollection is that on that trip she was staying at Grand Bliss and they wouldn’t let her use the Beach Club without attending an update, which she didn’t do. Same idea as the Grand Luxxe exchangers in RM not getting to use the GL pool; when I was there in April they were making the same offer to non-owners to get them to go to a sales presentation by the way.

 

[richontug]

We will be there is February on a SFX trade. We can meet up and share experiences.

 

[pittle]

Sorry that i am late to the party - it was a travel day for us today. We have rented an oceanfront condo in Rosarito for 4 weeks to escape the heat in the Phoenix area. It is currently 72 here and 102 at home. Well worth he 6 hour drive!

Eric & Hurnik are correct, we were not allowed to use the Beach Club that was originally built as the Grand Bliss pool because only owners using their week could use the Beach Club and Grand Luxxe pools. (GB folks could not use the GL pool.) Had we been there 6 weeks earlier, we would have been able to. We are GL owners using SFX exchange in April 20 - May 4 and were not allowed to use the Beach Club unless we took the update. We declined. When we were in NV at the GM the past two Novembers on one II and one RCI exchange, we got owner bands instead of exchanger bands. Of course it does not make a difference with GM.

 

[melissy123]

Anyone stayed at the GL in Riviera Maya recently? Are they still blocking people who exchange in from using the GL pool/Custom Burger and the Spatium?

 

[NYFLTRAVELER]

Similar question as we will be visiting there in the next few weeks.

 

[PamMo]

I'm trying to figure it out, too. We really love Grand Luxxe in Nuevo Vallarta, so have to manage our expectations for this trip.

TripAdvisor reviews by exchangers into GL have stated they still couldn't use the GL pool, but they were using and really liked the Beach Club.

I keep reading that the Joy Squad is fantastic at the Grand Luxxe pool. We'll have six kids with us, so am wondering if there's another Joy Squad on the property?

 

[bizaro86]

Joy Squad is what they call the entertainment staff. While we found them great at the Grand Luxxe pool with our kids (2 and 4) they were also great at all the other locations in Riviera Maya (Mayan Palace, Grand Mayan, and the Beach Club all have a Joy Squad). We had access to all at the time we went, and they all had pros and cons.

Mayan Palace (on beach by biggest pool) was the largest and had the most activities, but was also the busiest. Beach Club was always empty, and had few amenities for kids, but the most enthusiastic staff (I think they were bored). We often ended up at the Grand Mayan pool even though the Grand Luxxe was available to us, as we liked the shallow entry, and the giant connect 4 game in the shade there.

 

[PamMo]

Thanks, bizaro86. This will be the first time travelling down there with our kids and the grands (2, 3, 3, 5, 6, and 12), so I really appreciate the info. We did Disneyworld and felt like I needed a battle plan to survive the week. I'm hoping this trip will be more relaxed, but still filled with fun activities for everyone!

 

[bizaro86]

You're welcome. For a group like that, I'd try to do at least breakfast and one other meal in the unit(s), but YMMV. We got groceries at the Mega store in town, sort of like a Walmart super Centre. They have a shopping shuttle for a few dollars each way, but we took a taxi on the way back as we stocked right up, would not have been able to fit the groceries on the shuttle.

Our kids really enjoyed going to look at the flamingos which are on a little island in a lake by the Grand Mayan units. They also liked walking on the raised wooden boardwalk between the GL area and the rest of the complex and looking for animals (iguanas, birds, little furry guys).

We basically just hung out every day (rotated pools, did the beach) and had a blast.

We are going to GL Nuevo Vallarta in Oct.

 

[Eric B]

The little furry guys are coati (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coati). We saw some people feeding them out of their windows at the Mayan Palace. Lots of them on the resort grounds in RM.

 

[Eric B]

...

We are going to GL Nuevo Vallarta in Oct.

Costa Arena, Havana Moon, Si Snack and the Ameca Social House are closed now through October 17th. The Mayan Palace pool and Balche are closed through October 4th. So is the Sea Garden; if you walk out on the beach through there you’ll have to go a bit further to the rock jetty.

 

[bizaro86]

The little furry guys are coati (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coati). We saw some people feeding them out of their windows at the Mayan Palace. Lots of them on the resort grounds in RM.

Thanks! We had asked someone at the resort but I couldn't remember anymore. You can tell people are feeding them based on how brave they are!

 

[bizaro86]

Costa Arena, Havana Moon, Si Snack and the Ameca Social House are closed now through October 17th. The Mayan Palace pool and Balche are closed through October 4th. So is the Sea Garden; if you walk out on the beach through there you’ll have to go a bit further to the rock jetty.

Thanks, that's good to know! We don't arrive until after the 4th, although it's too bad to hear about the beach walk being a bit longer. I'm looking forward to getting off the resort a little more this year than we did at RM.

My kids are taking Spanish in pre-school, so I want to take them into the town, little bit of extra reinforcement that this is a real thing not just something the teachers are making up...

 

[Eric B]

It's really not much longer, maybe the equivalent of a city block. There are a few concrete benches on the sidewalk near a footwash; if you're thinking about going anywhere further than just there it might be worth bringing sneakers and socks in a backpack and changing shoes/sandals there. We borrowed a hand towel from the room as well to wipe off the sand we missed with the footwash.

The town right outside isn't much, though there are a few restaurants and an Oxxo. We took the bus down to PV and walked around quite a bit, then hit Sam's and Wal-Mart on the way back. Much less expensive than the resort store; the savings would pay for a cab back if you're stocking up for the week.

 

[Eric B]

Just walked by the lazy river in NV; it’s closed through November 15.

 

[jssquared]

Eric, thank you so much. I believe a few of the residential towers are closed too. It sounds as if Vidanta is doing this to control costs during the low season and not for maintenance. This is a bit annoying.
Do you see any progress at the theme park or the Estates?
Thanks again.

 

[Eric B]

Tower 5 is completely closed now, too. They just started on the foundation for a third building on that side; they’re nearing completion of the big building that appears to be the lobby and the bones of a second building seems complete. Here’s a link to some pictures from our deck; I’ll try to get better pictures from Quinto tonight; it’s only open after 5 and the rest of the building is being maintained. If I do, I’ll add them.

https://www.amazon.com/photos/share/aKA6MVtNMJ6aTLP7XdmBzGJhIaTUOxBnbFzBVTHesop

 

[jssquared]

Eric, thanks so much. I wonder what the big building across the river will be. The smaller structure in the background is a model for the Estates pods. They will be built on stilts. First two floors of the pods are 1 and 2 bedroom Estates units and the top two floors will be the 4 bedroom penthouse estates. Do not know if that first model will end up being the actual location of the development or is just a reasonably convenient (near to the bridge) location for a sales model.

 

[Eric B]

They told us the big building would be a lobby/reception building. Didn't do an update this time; they made us an appointment for one, but canceled since we did one last month.☺

There was another construction site in the clearing near the river in the last picture where they dropped off a load of beans and either a piece of conduit or cylindrical concrete mold; I couldn't tell what it was. They started digging there with a backhoe this morning, so I think they're putting in another foundation there. Might try to see if I can get a tour over there next trip.

 

[bizaro86]

Just walked by the lazy river in NV; it’s closed through November 15.

Thanks for sharing that! Our group will be pretty disappointed, but at least if I know in advance I can manage expectations....

 

[gleeful]

We are at Grand Luxxe RM now and spent the day at the GL pool. We are here on an exchange using HGVC points through SFX. When we checked in, they said we would have access to it and the Beach club. Didn’t question it. Just showed up. Grabbed a chair and ordered a drink! Maybe a total of ten people there all day.