On the plus side, the suite was very nice, and Serenity beach and the VIP pool were excellent. Also read and Lisa were very helpful before the trip, with prompt service and answers to our questions. Thanks!
On the downside, I got food poisoning at the Blue Lagoon. The food at other restaurants was average. We heard Azul is fantastic, but we were not allowed there – it is apparently reserved only for the owners and shareholders.
The second low note was the weather, with two full days of rain and a couple of partially rainy days during our stay. The temperature was in the mid 70s – low 80s with pretty strong winds on the beach. We are familiar with the occasional scattered showers in the Caribbean, but many other resorts offer rainy day vouchers for future stay.
Lastly, we did not appreciate the manner in which the VIP staff handled membership sales. I am sure they are just following protocol, but their manner had left us feeling ambushed, lied to, and "processed." The ordeal began on our very first morning, while we were walking to the Serenity beach. We were stopped by one of the VIP guest managers, who welcomed us and offered us a tour of the property and a ride to the beach. Sounded good, except instead he dropped us off at the VIP tower to “pick up our welcome packages” and said that the person who got us the welcome package would give us a tour and a ride to the beach. Instead, that second person had handed us over to a sales rep who wanted us to “sit down and discuss membership.” He seemed offended when we indicated that we had just got there and did not want to sit through sales demos. When we asked him if he was going to show us the property and take us to the beach he replied “do I look like a tour guide?” When we again indicated that we were not interested in discussing membership, his reply was “OK, you may go”. We had to walk to the rest of the way to the beach, and, on the following days, we would repeatedly be stopped by the VIP staff in golf carts asking us when did we arrive at the resort and if we have “had the tour” yet. I must say that this experience has greatly detracted from the vacation. We have visited many time share and membership resorts in the past, but have never encountered such aggressive and dishonest sales approach. We had talked to several other guests who were also dismayed at this experience.