I am writing to see if you are able to help me in my expose of a travel fraud perpetuated by Beaches Inn Resort in Negril, Jamaica owned by Sandals Resorts. Please read the following account of my family's vacation from hell:
In April my family took a vacation to Beaches Inn Resort in Negril Jamaica. The resort was advertised as 4 star as The Beaches Inn gives you the beaches quality at a budget price.in the Sandals brochure it is advertised as completely refurbished new world appointment steeped in old world magic.in addition we were told by our Cruise Brothers representative, Lisa Bianco, that Beaches Inn was the same high quality as Beaches but didn't have as many restaurants and pools as Beaches, Negril.in fact, my husband, Gerard McCarthy, additionally spoke with her to solely ascertain the quality of Beaches Inn before making our reservations.
Our reservations were made for a first floor Beachfront Suite. This included a bedroom suite with a bedroom and separate living area/kitchenette. It included one full bath with a bath and shower and one half bath with a shower only. Wrap around balcony and stunning ocean views. We were also led to assume that the Suite, as in those at Beaches Negril, had exclusive suite concierge service. This included V.I.P. Check-in, plush robes, daily NY Times, faxes and private cocktails parties as well as help making tour arrangements, booking restaurant reservations and responding to every whim.in fact, Lisa even mentioned that our own personal concierge/butler would cook for us and watch the children.
Our vacation started on April the 8th with high expectations. We arrived to the airport on time, went through the normal routine/paperwork, and then proceeded into the plane waiting area with high expectations. Fifteen minute after our plane was supposed to have left the airport the entire crowd was told that the pilots were caught in Boston traffic. An hour after our pilots arrived and the entire crowd clapped..
We arrived At Beaches Inn a bit tired after our 3-hour flight and subsequent two and hour drive to the resort but with high expectations. A representative sat down with us in the lobby to complete our paperwork. After this was complete, the porter led us to our room. This is when all our trouble began.
When we arrived at our room destination, the porter started to go upstairs. I knew something was wrong but did not speak until we went into the room. I noticed the corridor floor was peeling and unkept but my primary concern was that this room did not offer me the ability to step onto the beach as I had been told. I asked the porter about this but he did not know so told me that I should call the front desk.
When my family entered the room the first thing I noticed was the countertop and stove. The countertop had been worn away and brown was showing through the white paint.in addition, the countertop had a white paste on it as if it had been glued to fix some indent made on the counter. The stove burners were askew and sticking in the air. There was rust on the top and down the left side. As I further entered the room, I noticed that in the living area the blinds were awry on both the windows. The slats were bent and out of place and there were cracks and mold on the floor. I then went into the master bedroom. This was in the same condition as the living room.
I then immediately noticed that there was no door on the bath. I walked back into the living area to see where the 2cnd bathroom was. There was no second bathroom. This meant that the kids would have to use the bathroom in our room and everyone else would have to adjourn to the living area. My feelings of having been duped were starting to rise. Then I went into the bathroom. To my horror and dismay, I saw a room that had cracked tiles; cigarette burns in the vanity and what looked like mold in the shower. The soap that was left on the sink was used. I was about to cry.
Immediately after the porter left, I called the front desk. The man on duty said that we had been given an upgrade. When I told him that this was not an upgrade because we had a suite with only one bath and we were supposed to be in the first floor beachfront with 1 and 1 baths, he said that they did not have any rooms with a bath and a bath and. (By the way, they did have this suite and continually lied to me until I happened to talk to a guest that was in this very suite). I continued to express my dissatisfactions and he said that I would have to speak to Omar, the manger in the morning.
I arrived at the scheduled appointment at 10:00 A.M. After waiting 15 minutes the porter came over and said, we were not going to meet with Omar that day. Later that same day, a desk clerk showed pool front 2-bedroom suite three stories up. We decided not to take this room because we were still interested in working things out with our travel agent to obtain the beachfront with 1 and baths with a shower that we had originally booked. It was also implied that we were going to have to pay additional money for this room.
This was not an equal or an upgrade from our original purchase.
On Monday, I called my travel agent, Lisa Bianco. I thought the room was a villa because she had told me that the room was separate from the hotel and you walked straight out to the beach with concierge service. I was mistaken in this assumption, as it was the beachfront suite. I told her about the condition of the room and had Gerry speak to her about the amenities. This continued during our entire stay.
I have documentation of the brochures, the room (pictures and videos) as well as the card from another guest who stayed during this time period. The many guests I talked to were all of the same opinion they had been duped. Sandals did offer us compensation in a 5-day stay in any sandals of our choice but not in the accommodations type that we originally booked.
I have an issue with American Express for saying they would represent us in this dispute but who did not. (Their agreement says they will on the back of the AX documentation), Sandals, GMV International Vacation and Cruise Brothers for their false representation of these accommodations.
I have tried to settle this case on my own as well as went through the Consumer Assistance Council, Inc. I have all the documentation, pictures, etc I have a 3 folder filled with my correspondence and my efforts in trying to settle this case.
Even though Sandals/GWV International did offer my family and I a 5-day all-inclusive vacation at one of their resorts they will not offer us the same category as we originally booked. Cruise Brothers and American Express haave done minimal to nothing to help resolve this dispute.
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