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Sandy Villas Hotel & Resort Reviews

Sandy Villas
Address: Puerto Morelos Playa del Secreto, Mexico Tel: 878787 Fax: 878787 Email: sandygardenvillas@hotmail.com URL: Sandy Villas	Type of Property: Villa Beach Location: Beach Front (Directly on Beach/Water Front) Island: Mexico

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Summary of All Property Reviews for: Sandy Villas Ratings based on answers from a total of 5 reviews 10 is best 1 is worst
Feature	Ranking	Feature	Ranking
Cleanliness of Property	7.40	Quality of Property	6.60
Privacy & Quietness	5.20	Quality of Service	5.00
Courtesy & Hospitality of Staff	5.80	Accuracy of Website (marketing hype) VS. Actual Experience	5.20
Food and Dining Experience	4.80	Price/Value of Property	6.00
Safety Factor (Did you feel safe at property)	6.20	Quality of Beach (ranked closest beach if property is located off the beach)	6.80
Total Property Score: 5.90 out of 10 | Average Star Rating: 2.80 out of 5

• 60% (3 visitors of 5) said they would go back to Sandy Villas again.
• 60% (3 visitors of 5) said they would recommend Sandy Villas to friends.

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We stayed at Sandys Villas last January and we loved it, and so did our 5-year old son.
Nice quiet beach - right across the dirt road, 1 or 2 minute walk -, big waves to play in, on calmer days we snorkeled and saw beautiful fish. The water does not get very deep until you have walked into the sea for like 50 mtrs, it was ideal for our son who is not a big swimmer yet.
Also loved the garden and the pool. Our son could play in/round that pool forever.
We stayed in a 2 bdr villa, and it was a very nice house with good working AC and everything else also worked, from blender to shower and everything inbetween.
The place also felt very safe; we never saw people that were not supposed to be there.
And it was so peaceful and quiet, it is the absolute opposite of the crowded tourist areas in Cancun and Playa del Carmen.
It is best to have a car if you stay here, because nothing is at walking distance.
The surroundings are beautiful, mangrove jungle with lots and lots of birds, and we even saw a crocodile in the mangrove at the end of the road. How exciting!
And yes, there are potholes in the road, mosquitos, gecko's (which we do not have at home and therefore even liked them being around; funny little creatures)and when it rains the dirtroad becomes one big pool of mud. It comes with the country, and if you like Mexico you just have to live with these small inconveniences.
I read a lot of negative reviews about this complex and the people who manage it, therefore I write this review, because we really liked it and I do not understand all the negativity about the complex.
I do not know anything about the people everyone is complaining about; we booked the villa with them, but we did not meet them, they live somewhere else.
We only dealt with Carlo, the manager on the spot, and he was being very nice and helpful.

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We were three families who visited Playa de Secreto for two weeks in December and had a wonderful time. What you see in the pictures is what you get - fairly rustic, low key, pleasant, perfect, in my opinion. But we are not the resort sorts...We enjoyed the more authentic experience of Mexico. Carlos was very helpful, Christina fun and talkative, and Alberto worked hard. (Their kids are adorable) The rooms were clean and well stocked, everything functioned properly, problems were dealt with right away, and yes, there was toilet paper! The pool was pleasant and the beach was beautiful. It was pretty rocky, but if you have beach shoes, the swimming is good - no riptides. We had wonderful times at night talking with our neighbors - a varied and interesting bunch of folks who, like us, preferred to "rough it" compared to staying in a resort. If you like, you can pay a fee and spend the day in the Mayan Palace Resort which is a 20 minute walk down the beach. The only drawback for us was our teenagers wanting more action, so we drove in to Playa del Carmen and Puerto Morelos fairly frequently. (Good food, lattes and snorkeling in PM) Potholes? If you navigate them, then you get a big prize at the end of the road - a low key, sweet, restful place where you can get away from it all.

Oh, yes, about that dangerous well - the sides are about 4 ft high, as I recall. It's not at all an attractive nuisance. Hopefully those with young children will be watching them closely while in the garden - as this is also where the pool is.

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My family, consisting of 9 adults and children stayed at Sandy's Villas for 16 days over Christmas and New Years 2006-2007. When we first arrived it was 1:30 a.m. and were greeted by Carols, resident manager. During our 16 day stay Carols was fantastic in helping us with securing a good deal with car rental (he speaks spanish) and giving us tips on where to shop for groceries,places to eat out and sites to see. My kids are 8, 12, 12 and 16. We had a wonderful time in the pool, swimming in the ocean (on calm days - Wilma blew out the reef and some days were rough) and walking the beach in search for wonderful shells. We met Cristina,Alberto and their kids, very nice people and cute little kids. The 2 - 2 bedroom condos that me and my family rented were kept very clean, air conditioning worked, toilet paper was provided when we asked for it and towels were changed for our 2 week stay. When we had a fridge break down, Carols and Alberto brought a replacement that same day. I have read many reviews from other guests and I am sorry they had a bad experience, but I cannot say enough about the help from Carlos who lives in the complex and friendliness from him, Cristina and Alberto too(they live in the house across from the villas). About the bugs, yes there are bugs - this is a TROPICAL place what do you expect! I live in Canada and we have bugs here too - yes big spiders, ants and mosquitos, carry a can of raid. These condos are quite and away from the busy trafic of Playa del Carmen which we all enjoyed. The rough road was filled 4 days after we arrived, so was easier driving on. Yes, we needed a car but it gave us the freedom to come and go when we wanted. We loved Pureto Morelos, cute little town where we did some shopping and eating out. Playa was fun to silver shopping. Please feel free to mail me if you are thinking of visting Sandys Villas and Playa del Carmen and I would be pleased to give some suggestions on attractions. I am also sure that Carlos (resident manager) would also help you upon arrival.

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We had a very good stay with our (then) 1 year daughter.The villas are nice and clean and the garden is wonderfull as well as the palapa and the pool. The beach we enjoyed a lot alltough it has changed after Wilma it's still a nice and quiet beach with only people who stay in Playa del Secreto. The negative review I read above I don't understand and I doubt if they stayed really in Sandy Villas if yes they had maybe an awfull lot of badluck. What they say about the road is true but it one of the caracteristics of Playa del Secreto, if they paved the road there would be way more strangers and mexicans who visit the beautifull and quiet Playa de Secreto. We went here for three years and last year even for 7 weeks so we think we know what we are talking about, and we are planning to stay here again next december or januari. Any one who wants any information about this place is welcome to mail me. WE ENJOYED IT VERY MUCH!!!

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Hi Christina and Alberto, we just got back from vacation and wanted to thank you very much for the wonderful time we had. Everyone was very friendly and helpful. When we had a problem with the tv you helped us right away. The place was very clean and it felt just like home. The pool was wonderful for our granddaughter. She had the time of her life..The ocean was great as always. We would like to make reservations for the same weeks next year. Thank you again for the wonderful time. Amy, Tom and Tori

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I found a lot of negative reviews here but we enjoyed our vacation from 01/13/07 to 01/20/07. I was there with my wife and adult daughter (23).
When you go Playa del Secreto you need to realize that it is in boondocks. It’s actually tiny village between Puerto Morelos and Playa del Carmen. I counted 5 functioned villas there and in the morning I was totally alone on beautiful long Caribbean beach. . So it is really remote place and don’t expect to meet many people there and have parties. It’s probably not good place for families with small kids especially if your kids don’t have real village experience.
You have to have rent car there – there was not grocery store there. Although I met a couple that use taxi. Our manager helped them to call taxi. But if you want to be independent it’s better to have car there. Playa del Carmen has pretty good supermarkets where you can buy everything what you need. Rent car is expensive in Mexico because a lot of taxes and expensive insurance. I rented Dodge Stratus in Hertz and I spent almost 700$. But we explored Yukatan on our car and saw Coba, Chichen Itza, Valladolid and many remote Mayan villages. Definitely we drove several times from Puerto Morelos to Tulum.
Our 2 bedroom villa #8 was in pretty good condition. There was running cold and hot water, all 3 toilets worked perfect. There are convenient king beds and good sofas there. All necessary kitchen utensils were excellent and we cooked without any problems. Air conditioner was perfect so we really enjoyed there. But you need to realize that it’s really exotic place so don’t be surprised to meet lizards in your bathroom.
Now about beach. Sandy’s villas are not directly on beach – you need to walk 5-10 minutes to convenient beach place. There are not convenient palapas or shadow places on beach and it was issue for my wife. There were moderate waves and it is not good place for snorkeling. You have to have reef shoes to swim in the because there a lot of stones in the sea. I enjoyed swimming in the sea but my wife was not happy - waves were too strong for her. But shell collection is truly unique there. We found huge and small shells in perfect condition. By the way we really enjoyed snorkeling in Hel-Xa.
There are really wild crocodiles in close by mangrove swamps but they are not dangerous if you don’t touch them. I took couple good pictures of them.
Feel free contact me if you have any questions.

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My family just returned from a week long stay at Sandy VIllas- our party actually rented out much of the resort, so we were able to see many of the different villas. All were very very basic! Don't expect any type of luxury or really even bare neccessities unless you provide them yourself. Their ads state all units have telephone service- none of the units we stayed had any type of telephone service and there were no cell phones given to us to use. THe A/c didn't work at check in, a toilet was giving problems, one of the showers didn't work all week- well no hot water anyway. There was also no grocery store as stated in these ads. THe closest sotre is a 10 mionute dive away. You cannot get ANYWHERE without a car and no cabs come to this area...many do not know this place even excits! The beach is terrible and would be dangerous to swim in. The whole facility is dangerous for kids...roof top balconies are falling apart, crocodiles in nearby mangroves, huge mosquitos, and that is just a start. We also had to but everything for our unit- including toilet paper! Don't expect to see Cristina either- we had done all prior communicating about our vacation with her via email- she assured us the facility would be ready for us and that she herself would make sure everything would be satisfactory for our stay....well, when we arrived we were told by Alberto that Cristina lives in Europe and had only even been to the resort twoce that year...anothe LIE- her reply to many reviews stat she lives here with her daughter who swims in the pool and bech everyday....NOT TRUE!!!!! THis place is a rip off!!!!!! I would NEVER EVER recommend it to anyone, not even my worst enemy!

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We had to rent a car to go a safe beach down in Akumal as the beaches up in plata del secreto have huge rip waves challenging for any adult let alone children. Last years hurricane completly destroyed the reef system and has washed it in close to shore making wading treacherous. There are no stores or restaurants here as they advertise in their websites. The pool is small but nice and we found the room pretty decent for the price. You should not be spending more than $500-$600 to stay here. Cristina trys to be accomodating if you can find her and Alberto, well lets just say he defintiely needs some hospitality training to say the least. I not writing just to leave all negative comments but confirming other peoples reviews are an acurate depiction of the place. These units are reccomended for seniors with a car who like peace & quiet but definitley not for families with children as the beach and surrounding area is unsuitable. I have spent my life on the water and can say it is unsafe for children.

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First of all, Cristina, the owner, does not live in Mexico and rarely visits. Even though she knew that a large group would be renting the villas for our son's wedding at a nearby resort, she did not tell the resident manager that we were coming until two weeks in advance- hardly enough time for everything to be prepared. When we arrived, a toilet was not working well, a shower in another unit wasn't functioning, all the remotes for the air conditioners needed batteries, several lights needed bulbs- all evidence of lack of preparation.
About the place- Playa del Secreto will be in the middle of the tourist area in about 8-10 years, but for now, it is still a secret. Taxi drivers couldn't find it ; we only found it because we knew where to look. The road down from the highway was washed out and rough-- ominous considering that the high season is just beginning. . .
Do not even think of going to VS without a car. There is nothing anywhere nearby to which you can walk. We did walk to Mayan Palace a couple of times- about 30 minutes down the beach, but you need a car for groceries or to go anywhere.
Villa Sandys is not on the beach, but across the road and up a little from their beach access. It is about a five minute walk over to the beach. At this time, the beach was rough with a strong undertow - we couldn't let the kids in at all. Lots of coral lined the shore about where the waves break, which meant wearing shoes into the water. There were tons of great shells and coral on the beach, but not much swimming. The pool was nice, but we couldn't lay out very long anywhere because of the mosquitos. Bigger than flies in the States, the mosquitos came out at 3 p.m. and stayed out until morning. (The entire place is surrounded by mangrove swamps with a couple of resident crocodiles down the road). As a result, the BBQ and other events planned for outside had to be moved indoors.
The most dangerous location is a well which has been built over a cenote. (a limestone cavern) Although the sides of the "well" are about 4 feet high, an ambitious child could easily get up on top. There is no grate, mesh or anything else to keep anyone from falling the 15 feet into the water below. When I asked about this, the resident manager said that they were going to add a top to make it look more like a well, but had no plans to cover the hole.
NOW- about the resident manager. At first, he had anaggressive manner with us. Once we set him in his place and explained that Cristina had known of our arrival MANY months in advance and that we had written her in response to the negative comments on this web site, he mellowed out and became helpful.
Would I return here? Never with children- too dangerous on many counts, maybe if I wanted total seclusion in a somewhat rustic setting at least 15 minutes from any store, telephone, or other amenity.
Did we get our money's worth? No. A more appropriate price for what is offered would be around $600 per week. A week at the Grand Mayan (same amount of space, daily maid service, fresh towels daily, fabulous pools and restaurants, a kitchenette in your room, all services available on grounds) is $1500. If we knew then what we know now. . .

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My husband and I spent a week at Sandy's Condos & Villas in Playa del Secreto 10/21-28/03. It is a lovely place with a very private beach. The owners, Christina & Alberto, are Italian. They are BEAUTIFUL and FRIENDLY people. We stayed in the 1-br unit on the lower level. It had a nice patio & pool and privacy. Full kitchen, a/c, fans, nice bathroom.

The only drawback was the drive in and out of the condo to get to the main HWY 307. The road is not paved, and there were many holes. Rain on one day made it even harder. We fell in love with Playa del Carmen, so we drove in and out of that road a lot!

But I would definitely recommend Sandy's Condos & Villas in Playa del Secreto. They are 8 miles south of Puerto Morelos, and 13 miles north of Playa del Carmen.

Two wonderful restaurants in Morelos - ASIAN & John Gray's Restaurant. John Gray's is gourmet, Asian has different oriental dishes. Both were wonderful.

In Playa del Carmen, I highly recommend Palapa Hemingway.

Have fun wherever you go...Bonnie

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Just got back from Playa del Secreto, about 6 km from Puerto Morelos. We stayed at Sandy's Garden Villas for 2 weeks and it was great. Playa del Secreto is a long white sand beach with very few people. If you see 15 people on a busy day(usually Sunday) that's as busy as it gets. Tried snorkling a couple of days at the north end of the beach, it wasn't great but still pretty interesting.
If you have a car, Sandy's is a great place to stay, very private and great condo's. Puerto Morelos is about a 10 minute drive and Playa is about 20 minutes.
PM is a great town, very laid back. For great info on PM go to www.divepuertomorelos.com , Cat is a great source of info.
Also heard there is a cenote outside of PM that has just been discovered, Cat will know about it, as she is going to be the first to dive it, sounds exciting!
The bookstore is still open, but the Sunday market isn't happening.

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Hi Cristina,

Just thought I would reconfirm that you got the keys and the cell phone and charge. The phone has most of its minutes, we did not need to use it.

We left some food and stuff in the cupboards, maybe the next guests can use it. Also we left a couple of things in the fridge, maybe someone can use them.

We had a wonderful holiday and enjoyed the villa. My kids love your kids, they wish they could speak italian or spanish so they can talk to Chantelle.

I am sure going to tell everyone about Sandy's Villas and Casa Chanty, maybe I can send some business your way...

I will email you pictures of Chantelle once we down load them.

I hope you have your break in Italy this summer, and hope to see you again soon.

Heather

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We recently stayed at Sandy's Villas, the first night someone tried to break into our 2bdrm villa, we have 2 small children and to say the least this scared us right out! We told Christina the mgr about it the very next day and coincidentally her partner manager later that day asked US for the key so he can make a copy of it in town! Did they realize theirs' may have been missing? Someone definitely slammed our door shut in the mid of the night. There were mini taranchula spiders, don't know the correct spelling but described them to another local and that is what they were. These were IN our villa, along with geccos found dead in corners of the villa, and alive on the ceilings again IN OUR VILA. Don't stay here without a car, there is nothing around even in walking distance. The mini store they have took 2 days to find, and this was after my husband had to drive into Puerto Morales in the rain, in the dark searching for a store to buy toilet paper! They do not supply it after your first roll!! This was very stressful to be worried about the insects, and break in the first night, the pool was too deep for our 2 year old which they said was great for kids, even a picture on the website which strangely looks like the manager and her kid...hmmm. I wouldn't go back. We even went and stayed somewhere else in Cozumel and tried to call them to check on things, let them know, etc and NO ONE EVER answered their phone. We tried for 2 days and even upon our return to gather our things NO ONE was around, OFFICE was closed up and Christina's house had no signs of a car, people or anything. This was a pretty creepy place to stay. We had no working cellular phone in our villa which was promised in the ad, we literally had to beg for one (with little kids you need this) and finally the manager hunted us down and still charged us $10us to even borrow it, which was suppose to be included in the rental. I would have liked to ask for a portion of our money back but I could not find anyone to talk to. I will not be back there nor refer anyone there.

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If you see positive reviews for this place, I am sure that alberto and cristina wrote them (the owners), themselves, as it is pretty obvious from the very generic reviews and they keep mentioning themselves in the reviews to stroke there already huge eagos. Alberto is probably the worst hotel manager I have ever experienced in my extensive travels around the world. He is akin to a greaseball stray skinny dog that needs a good shower and some food.

Twice he came into my room (a non-smoking room) smoking cigarettes (he is a chain smoker), and telling me that the broken air conditioner, and broken shower were no big deal, and that the room will be charged at full price with them working or not. Then he threatened to kick us out because we were upset that he was not going to fix them, or give us a different room, and was not going to refund any of our money.

We had ants in our room, a scorpian in our bathroom (no joke), no AC, one of the sliding glass doors would not lock (the lock was missing), the apartments are all falling apart (we saw some of the other units), and the property is located out in a sketchy area off a road meant for 4x4 trucks.

Needless to say, when I see people writing positive reviews for this place, get wise, because anyone who REALLY stayed there would not. The pictures are very decieving and are probably from when they first starting managing the place about 5 years ago before it fell apart. Also, the maintenance staff consists of one person, there young cousin, which is obviously not enough to maintain an entire complex. Good marketing Christina and Alberto! BUYER BEWARE!

Look around at some of the other reviews areas for Sandy's villas, including the websites entitlded 'Don't Stay at Sandy's Villas' and you will see some more HORROR stories. When multiple people from all over the place take the time to submit these warnings, there is obviosly a reason! Also, Sandy, the previous owner, probably did an OK job, but Sandy is long gone, and now it is managed by white trash people from Italy. My advice is to stay in Playa del Carmen, you will have a much better time if you want to visit the Yucatan.

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we had a wonderful week in sandy's villa we enjoyed our family vacation in the quiet of this secluted area, playa del secreto has a great sandy beach perfect for kids.
thanks to alberto and cristina for this great vacation

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