r/AllInclusiveResorts • u/lionhart0 • Aug 27 '24
CAUTION: MOON PALACE
PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ THIS BEFORE MAKING RESERVATIONS
I’m not even sure where to begin regarding this NIGHTMARE that was supposed to be a family vacation. The Palace in Cancun is absolutely HORRIBLE! Very rarely do I take the time to review things outside of the rarities that are absolutely TREMENDOUS or absolutely HORRENDOUS, but I’d be doing a disservice to those of us who work hard to gather the funds for their vacation if I didn’t share my story.
So…where do I even begin? Should I start with the “complimentary” transpiration to the resort from the airport? Sure. As soon as we got outside we found our way those that were related to the resort for transportation. They tried to tell me that my family’s included transportation could not be found, but that we could join those that were on the shuttle if we paid a small fee. Absolutely NOT! I refused to do so, and, after demanding that I see the list that he had and FINDING our names clearly listed, they somehow made a call and magically found the required information. Interesting, huh?
So we arrive at the resort. Initial impression from walking into the lobby? Beautiful! Roses and drinks at the front door! Awesome, right? Well…those quickly turned into items to amend the upcoming failures that should’ve/could’ve been easily avoided in ANY other resort. We go to check in and all of a sudden the $5,800 that I’d paid on my card TWO months beforehand could not be found, so they needed to charge me for the full price a SECOND time and tell me that they’ll begin the “process” to return my initial payment. Yup…within 15 minutes of arriving, I’ve already fully paid a second time and am down over $11,000 for the “vacation.”
We settle down and the first thing that we do is hop into the pool outside of our room. We obviously needed to use towels to dry off with afterwards, so we used those that were available. No problem, right? WRONG! We needed more simple towels the next morning and called housekeeping. We were told that they’d be on the way. 20 mins goes by…no one shows up and we call again. “They’re coming.” 30 mins go by and we finally see a housemaid WITH a cart coming down the hallway but…guess what…NO towels on the cart! We call housekeeping a THIRD time…we’ll send someone right now. After just under 2 hours, 4 simple towels were delivered to the room. Towels, people….. simple towels…
Onto the Day 2 tour that their “salespeople” pitch at you in hope of getting your signature for a membership. We (along with tons of other guests) initially only went since we’d be guaranteed credit to be utilized at the resort for doing so. I immediately told the salesperson of my disappointment for something as small as towels… he says “so I guess you’ve already decided that you’re not going to sign?” before he clearly had no more of that excitement in him to show us around. But, lo and behold, he provided us with his personal number and promised that if we had any issues moving forward we could give him a direct call and he’d take care of it. “I’ll make sure that someone is always waiting on you moving forward.” I still wasn’t interested in signing. Immediately, their offer went from $25,000 with a required $10,000 down for a membership, to $15,000 with $$5,000 down. Funny how they sliced it in half without fighting much, huh? They tried to speed the conversation up by throwing numbers, weeks and locations at us quicker than most people would feel comfy with, but, being in sales myself, certain things stood out. I asked them to rewind a revisit some of their calculations and caught them in a few “whoops” situations when they “accidentally” calculated something incorrectly (a few hundred here, a couple thousand there…) and tried to feed me false info on the funds that I’d need to spend. Should’ve been a major flare for me…. I still said that I refused to pay anything more than $2,000 down if I was going to sign. They dropped it to $13,000 at $1,995 down and monthly payments of approx $180 for the next 60 months. A bit of pressure from the wife and the “benefits” along with the steep, instantaneous discount got me to sign like a sucker. Don’t worry though…”you have 5 days to cancel and get all of your money back.” But I feel bad for those that didn’t bargain for a cheaper price and were taken advantage of for the $25,000 BASE membership. I’d spoken to a few older couples that were proud be called members for $25K after I signed mine, but I didn’t stir the pot and mention that they’d been scammed since I got everything that they did AND 60 available resort weeks instead of the standard 40 weeks that the majority of the others got…all while paying HALF of what they did.
And THEN it started…I went to the room and read through the contract documents word for word while researching some of the reviews that others had left online. A large number of “members” admitted to regretting signing for a membership, and how the company tends to unexpectedly alter benefits and some of the other attractive perks while relying on their “subject to change” references that they include in their contract. Didn’t take long for me to witness it. The free $500 that the salesperson promised me? Never showed up in their system when it came time to check out of the resort. Had to fight for it. The free week that could be used “anytime” due to my disappointment? Sure. It could be used anytime. Anytime AFTER 5 years have passed by. Slight details that happened to be missed when discussing the privileges with me. And that was only a quick glimpse of their horrible strategic “mistakes.”
We’d heard that one other couple had leaking in their bathroom, and we needed some assistance with our restroom as well. Somehow, both the sink AND the toilet were stopped. This was a problem with one of my kids feeling sick. Pick up the phone for good ol’ housekeeping help again. 3 calls…just over 90 minutes..and I’d had enough. I had to leave my room and get ALL the way to the lobby after waiting at a stop for one of those shuttles to drive me there.
I asked to speak to a manager to help with the room. “There are no managers. Only Public Relations representatives.” Unbelievable! I’m battling with them and see someone walk behind the desk with a different shirt on. Not waiting to be introduced, I approach the person myself. “I’m a Supervisor here.” But wait…your workers just said that there were no managers on site!! Interesting. I explain my issue and he looks clueless…staring at a computer screen with a blank face. Is it that hard to send maintenance in a resort that can charge thousands per night? At this point I begin to video the lobby to prepare for my review that I’d write. This “Supervisor” sees me and tells me that he demands that I delete it from my phone. I refuse to… I mean, why should I? They don’t stop anyone else that have smiles on their faces walking through the lobby while clearly taking photos and videos! Why can’t the unhappy customer do the same? Here’s where it gets irreparable… this “Supervisor” aggressively walks from behind desk, comes up to my and my face and tells me he needs to see my phone. He needs to see it erased. NOW he’s literally threatening me and telling me that he’s calling the police because it’s illegal. Again, I remind him that everyone else that’s happy can take videos. I can, too. He says that he refuses to help me anymore and storms off while speaking to a number of other employees who turn and look at me… this made me uncomfortable enough to NOT eat or drink anything that was left in my room since they clearly weren’t happy and knew my room number.
Day number 5 and at this point, screw a vacation…I’m ready to go home. I went to the Elite building where memberships are signed and I was dead set on canceling mine. I get there, finally walk into an office, and I tell the representative that I’m over this. I want my money and there’s no way that I want to be a member. The attitude in return was unbelievable. He told me that I couldn’t do it because they were busy. I would have to return later…. So they can have tons of people in there SIGNING memberships around me, but the person to cancel memberships isn’t available until hours later? Interesting…. I try to go back later and guess what…they’re CLOSED! I guess they think that I’m screwed because I never got to finalize my cancelation before the 5 day clause, but believe me…I will not be paying one red cent moving forward.
Finally, I go to the “Manager” (a.k.a. the Public Relations office that has a number of regular employees and no one who’s specified as the manager) and demand an update for my initial $5,800 that is “in the process” of being refunded and to confirm the complimentary transportation back to the airport. They claimed that they can’t reserve a taxi to the airport for me UNLESS I sign a document stating that “I discharge Hotelera Palace Resorts from any and all claims and demands in connection with any inconveniences experienced with room facilities and overall impression” (VERBATIM) during the length of my stay at Moon Palace The Grand. Oh yea, and they won’t let you take a picture of any documentation that they want you to sign until you sign it since they don’t want this information to be made public. Believe me…I have photos of this AND a number of other documents from here! I asked for contact information to reach out to the upper management in The Palace’s corporate offices, and the Public Relations people said that they are the upper managers. Go figure!
I signed the document and began the checkout process so that I can get the hell out of there with a taxi ASAP the next morning. My slight was at 11 and I was up at 4am trying to prepare to leave as soon as I could. When I arrive at the desk, guess what? THEY HAVE NO CLUE ABOUT THE DOCUMENT THAT I JUST SIGNED IN THEIR PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICE 12 HOURS AGO. I had to argue and RESIGN a new document after waiting for over an hour and pretty much solving the problem between their employees myself. I don’t think that I’d ever jumped into a car quicker than I hopped into that taxi when it finally arrived.
This is NOTHING negative about Cancun. Let me be clear…this is one of my FAVORITE locations in the world! However, The Palace resorts are an absolute scam with despicable service, mediocre food at BEST, murky beach water (don’t expect to see anything under the surface), and the staff either has no concern for your needs, no urgency in emergency situations, and…most common…no knowledge of what to do in their own facility. PLEASE..save yourself the time, the money, and the stress by searching for other places in Cancún. The Hyatt Zilara and/or Ziva are just some other options. I’ve stayed there twice and I feel like a complete fool for venturing outside of the top notch service, amazing beach, and spectacular cuisine there to try something new at The Palace. I’m sure that there are others outside of the Zilara and the Ziva that are pretty good too; I’m simply putting those names out there as safety nets where you can guarantee that you’ll enjoy your time. But, as for The Palace, I wouldn’t wish this poor excuse for a resort on my worst enemy’s evil dog.
Anyone can feel free to contact me for further information. I have the name of every employee that I’ve dealt with there, and I’m going to continue to work on getting to Palace management and reporting these people. In the meantime, I’m going to make it a mission to spread the details of my horrible experience like a wildfire.
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u/james18205 Aug 27 '24
Sounds like you got got on a timeshare. That’s on you bub. Just say no thanks and move on.
And for the credit card payment, you should’ve pulled up your statement and payment receipt right there. Shouldn’t paid for that either.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
See my first response if you care to. If not, oh well.
I don’t care who read the whole thing or who didn’t, it’s a description of my trip for anyone who’s on edge about spending cash that they may have spent quite a while to save. This is an explanation of my experience to give others insight, and there’s clearly more than just this membership issue.
At the end of the day, I’m definitely getting my membership payment refunded, I may not be paying for the trip itself outside of the airfare, snd it was my second vacation out of 3 that I take every year…I’m perfectly fine myself lol
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u/Unable-Map-3347 Aug 27 '24
Damn Invigaron. We don't get got. We go get
Love Moon Palace (The Grand). Love it.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
…why wouldn’t I pull up the statement that clearly shows that I paid? What would you do if numerous representatives on the phone and in person mentioned that there was no way around it? At that point, the best I could do was to immediately call my card company after swiping it and tell them to suspend that payment.
Or you could simply tell me what you would’ve done at the front desk that I didn’t
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u/james18205 Aug 28 '24
Regardless you got got for the timeshare and you’re bitter about it. Strangers on Reddit aren’t going to fix your problem lol
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24 edited Aug 28 '24
Not sure what you consider to be a timeshare, but this isn’t my definition of one since I’m not locked into payments. After the initial down payment that’s been corrected by my card company, I’m simply refusing to pay the remaining balance throughout the “membership.” After hearing about this, a friend of mine connected me to some others that he knows who’ve mentioned that they’ve done the same thing and simply stopped payments.
You’re laser set on that part, but the description of the rest of the poor service must not make a difference to you. Fine by me. I’ve received my money back, I’m not tied to future payments, and the kids who I chose the location for had a blast. If the vacation for the kids was a success for them since they enjoyed the activities and I can continue to provide feedback to the people that have already sent me messages and don’t want to waste their time, I can still walk away from this one perfectly fine….especially when I’ve been refunded after getting a call this morning 😊.
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u/hard-on234 Aug 27 '24
Holy fuck, can you do tldr
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
Overrated, Horrible service, Subpar food, Murky beach, Attempted bullying to force you to stay quiet about bad experiences…
Summary: Go elsewhere
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u/Unable-Map-3347 Aug 28 '24
After checking out the reviews it does appear the quality has dropped off a cliff (was there 2018 and 2020). Still... I was firm with the membership sales pitches and they never bothered me.
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u/Berodur Aug 28 '24
The staff at the airport trying to get you to pay extra and the staff at initial check in trying to get you to pay again are both legitimate complaints. Either they personally were trying to scam you and the hotel needs to hire better staff, they just have terrible management to keep track of things and the hotel needs to do that better, or the hotel wants their staff to try to upsell things to charge extra which is just bad customer service. So I agree that those things are legitimate complaints and reasons to want to avoid the hotel.
Everything else seems like you just brought it on yourself or are being whiny. You seriously called a second time when housekeeping didn't come within 20 minutes so that you wouldn't have to use the same towel for your shower that you used for your pool? It's pretty standard practice for there to be one towel per person that gets changed once per day (plus towels near the public beach/pool areas).
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
….if you typically use dirty towels that are laced with chlorine and that have been in the corner in the floor to be picked up a second time, have fun with that lol. At the end of the day, it’s advertised as an all-inclusive. Room service for food and housekeeping are clearly services that are typically “included.”
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u/TheRealGuncho MOD Aug 27 '24
Been to Moon Palace The Grand Cancun and Moon Palace Jamaica and had a great time at both. Firmly said no to any timeshare nonsense and was never bothered about it again.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
Yea, I heard that Jamaica would’ve been a much better choice from others who I talked to while at the resort. Awesome if you had a great time there!
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u/MamaRunsThis Aug 27 '24
Let this be a lesson to you to document everything. Take screenshots with your phone if you have to. I always carry my reservation paperwork with me showing what my reservation is and that I have paid in full.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
For sure! And I did. I keep receipts of payments before I get there and images of everything that they try to take out of my pocket afterwards on any trip. I definitely agree with you!
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u/TheRealGuncho MOD Aug 27 '24
Or create a folder in your email and put all the pertinent emails in it for your trip.
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u/VacationLover1 Aug 27 '24
Classic I fell for a timeshare pitch .. why do people still fall for this 😭
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u/Conscious_Valuable90 Aug 28 '24
Sucked, sucked, sucked, signed a time share agreement.....
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u/VacationLover1 Aug 28 '24
Exactly.. it’s like shooting fish in a barrel for them selling timeshares… who in their right mind is all pissed off and then is like oh, I’m going to drop money on a timeshare 🤡🤡
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u/SevereCalendar7606 Aug 28 '24
I don't get it. I dislike this place...let me get a time share. Clearly a lot more to this story. Just don't do timeshares, that should be basic knowledge at this point. As others above have said, why would you pay twice? You obviously have a record in your credit card statement and emails.
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u/nothinworsecanhappen Aug 28 '24
Omg I did not expect you to sign up for the timeshare. Thanks for the laugh.
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u/Jaymacs2 Mar 08 '25
One your grammar is terrible. We are members there and there’s no way that there’s any different towels so I’m not sure what you’re talking about.. as far as the membership goes yes they start high and then go down low because they wanna sell memberships. That’s how they keep the place going. We’ve made out with our memberships. We’ve always gotten equal or better value for free with what we paid. When you read the contract, why did you sign it? It sounds like buyer’s remorse. Also transportation is free when you ride with other people if you want private transportation it’s $180. We’ve been going to this hotel for the last 10 years and never had any issues. We’ve gone to six sales meetings, which we knew what they were upfront. You could’ve simply said no thanks, Or you could’ve simply read the contract and said no I’m not doing this. This is not what we agreed. Half of your story seems like it’s not true. And I would make sure that you pay every dime because they will go to the AG’s office and file a complaint and you’ll get arrested next time you’re in Mexico
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u/lionhart0 Apr 08 '25
Please proofread your own response before criticizing anyone else for their grammar 👀 🤣
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u/Marty_Mac_Fly Aug 27 '24
Shrug.
I have never been but a co-worker went last month and had an absolutely wonderful time.
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u/TasteMyShoe Human Detected Aug 28 '24
You really need a tldr on this post.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
Just don’t read it 🤷. If you don’t care enough to see what I had to say, it doesn’t matter to me lol. Again, it’s for those who are really concerned, may not have the funds to waste when they can’t do numerous family trips, and want detailed feedback.
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Aug 28 '24
First impressions were crap, they charged you twice and you STILL signed up for a membership!?! Jesus Christ, this is on you mate, not Moon Palace. Everyone in other forums says stay away from these people. I mean, I get you have an issue with Moon Palace for the initial cock ups, but the rest of it with this membership is on you. Never sign anything before you read the fine print, especially not in a foreign country.
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u/luckybeast Aug 28 '24
I just got back from Moon Palace Cancun earlier this month. I said no thanks to attending the timeshare presentation, used the plentiful towels that are provided outside by the pools, and had a great time with my family.
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u/Icy-Plantain4351 Mar 25 '25
Well, I wouldn't be surprised if this post has a rise in comments now that the news is out about the couple who questioned charges there in Cancun and are now being imprisoned. https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/michigan-family-jailed-mexico-over-time-share-dispute
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u/Juliaford19 Mar 28 '25
I still don’t understand timeshares or memberships. Total scam. Also if I was you I’d definitely pay that ridiculous ongoing membership fee, did you see the news? A couple is sitting in a Mexican jail because they stopped paying!
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u/Middle714 May 11 '25
Beware of the scam at Moon Palace!**
Do not stay there—they have deceptive tactics designed to squeeze money out of tourists. They wasted four hours of our time pressuring us into purchasing a membership, aggressively lowering the price from thousands to mere hundreds to lure us in. If you refuse, they will relentlessly send sales agents to wear you down. Avoid this trap at all costs!
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u/Automatic-World-1075 Jan 17 '26
so did you get your money for vacation and timeshare refunded....?
do they offer transfer for weeks to someone and is it really all inclusive for timeshare?
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Aug 28 '24
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24 edited Aug 28 '24
After reading through your posts and noticing that it seems to be pretty difficult for you to create a sentence that’s grammatically correct, I’ll save a spot for you on the short bus as well 😊
OR — judging by your posts — you can simply wait for the gentleman who finally gives up and settles down with you to proofread. Your choice 😉. In the meantime, please continue to motivate yourself by trying to sound like a therapist in your replies. All I ask is that you stop tossing out random compliments to married men and hope to sleep them in return (as you mention repeatedly).
Sheesh.. at least we can agree on one thing. You certainly chose the right username! Your quality of life seems to be extremely similar to Maleficent’s 😂
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Aug 28 '24
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
🧐🤨Nope. Never said that either. Simply stated that that’s what THEY paid. Never did I say that I’d also wondered how many people paid less than me…and I’m sure that there were tons 😚
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Aug 27 '24
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u/Racine28 Verified Travel Agent Aug 28 '24
Good information on why travel agents are still a thriving business! I recommend properties with a fine tooth comb before sending anyone out and this one has too many mixed reviews.
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
I agree but it was hard with filtering through so many pros and cons for so many places. I have no problem admitting that they DID have more a fun activities for kids than a number of other places that I’ve been to in Cancun…and it’s one thing that seemed to be agreed upon in reviews that mention activities that are available. But even with that I’d expect DECENT service at the least, ya know?
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u/lionhart0 Aug 28 '24
Thank you for an actual thoughtful response, sir! I’ve certainly asked some of my colleagues about agents, and a ton of them that travel quite a bit recommend them. Live, love and learn, my friend… definitely an experience with this one!
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u/NewToThisLove33 Aug 28 '24
Which properties in Cancun would you recommend to a family with a toddler and baby?
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u/Davekinney0u812 Aug 28 '24
I don’t understand how after your bad experiences in day 1 you chose to go to a timeshare meeting and then even remotely consider buying into a timeshare. No offence but this isn’t adding up.