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The staff and management of Costa Maya Reef Resort will be welcoming our first guests on October 8th.

Costa Maya Reef Resort is the newest member of Interval International and has been awarded five star status from the exchange company's review board.

We are also looking forward to sponsoring the first annual Costa Maya Cycling Classic (a community event) in October 12th in conjunction with a Pan American Family Sports Day.

A few websites to review for more information on the above:

Costa Maya Reef Resort - the resort
Rancho Banderas Resort - our sister resort in Puerto Vallarta
Interval International - the exchange company

Come visit us soon!

Costa Maya Reef Resort
costamaya@btl.net
6 Miles North
San Pedro Town
good luck to you all ,know your resort a very nice property ..the best to you ,will take a ride up one day to check out the new facility , best wishes and regards ... capt jeff .......
Thanks captain!

I look forward to seeing you.

The first Belikin is on me.

Chris
FYI - This is the old Avalon Reef Club for any one interested. It is way North by Mexico Rocks.
Looks like they finally got the place cleaned up.
Thanks RobertE., I was wondering.

It looks like a very nice piece of property - best wishes for your success, Chris.
Thanks RobertE I was wondered what the name of the prior resort was, yes the NEW looks great.
Good location near Mexico Rocks.
Capt,

Will you be in the big fishing tourny this weekend?
smile
chris no .. I have a big meeting ,I must attend to be politically corect. will be down the 16 in belize city to look at new fishing boats with my buddy bicho ,fishingsanpedro.com then oct 18 to the 25 in san pedro ,,did you get me e mail I sent to your resort ????????about bicho ??? if so you can e mail me at my work e mail [email protected] you have a great day and keep up the great job you do at your resort helping people live the dream and enjoy life ,,warmest regards capt jeff
Chris,
Great that the resort has reopened. I toured it last year (or was it the year before?) and was hoping to do some business there, but it closed shortly thereafter. I would like to come up and visit after I get rested up from the tournament - either Monday or Tuesday.
Posted By: Anonymous Re: Costa Maya Reef Resort - Interval International Five Star - 10/05/03 04:11 PM
We bid on a 3 night stay on Ebay, so we'll be checking out the Resort! Look forward to meeting ya'll and seeing the changes.
Cheerz!
Anything would be better than Avalon.

But I don't know why these timeshare places don't just come out and say the word -- timeshares.

--Lan Sluder
Same reason that you don't admit to being a hack writer that leeches off everyone in Belize
Wow Chis,
That's hard! Sounds like there's some history here; feel free to let us in on it!
Lan,
Timeshares come in many colors, isn't it beautuful?
Gail;

Bring your catch up for us to cook up for ya. laugh

Short;

I really feel that any property in Belize can do very well with proper management. Unfortunately not all properties on this beautiful isle have had this in the past.

Avalon's plans didn't fit here in AC, at least not for now or the near future. They have fabulous properties in Mexico and are very successful, they work there well.

The owners of Costa Maya plan to manage and develop in a way that does fit in with the island and compliment the Belize and Ambergris Caye tourism product.

We really look forward to introducing you all to Costa Maya, again. smile

Come see us soon!

Chris Burkey
Timeshares throughout the world have done wonders for tourism especially in the "off" seasons,and IMO they should work well here-it is just that one has to make sure that the resort is fully owned by the directors/partners with little or no borrowings-the problems that I have seen with the industry is that many resorts open and close due to large scale debts and invariably the people who have bought a timeshare are the secondary lienholders and get,in the end, nothing for their investment,as the bank or loan company is the first,and grab every asset-this is a general statement of timeshares worldwide and is not aimed at Costa maya as I have been informed by the new owners that they own the resort outright.
Chris,
Are you serious? We actually were planning to bring our catch in on Sat (we will fish our way up from Placencia to SP) and have Papi do it for us, but if our captain is not totally exhausted from dealing with 5 or 6 wild Belizean women, could be an addition to our itinerary.
Papi Chulo!!

You are more then welcome to use our grills or our chef can prepare your fish for you and also offer you an array of accompanying side dishes.

We will whole heartedly enjoy catering to a boat full of wild Belizean women. eek


CB
costamayareef@btl.net
Costa Maya Chris,
Sorry for the confusion; I was addressing Chismera on the fit of anger against Lan Sluder.
I fully agree with you, and wish you all the best with this beautuful property! In fact, I hope to be there also for the Costa Maya Bicycle Classic! See you then.
Short
I've read with interest the postings about resorts and timeshares. My understanding is that the Costa Maya Resort has not yet been paid for. I understood that in the beginning it would be financed by a bank or financial institution. I am now interested in whether the owners have financed and what protection timeshare owners have since the property is not in the Belizean strata system. Of course this means that no ownership papers can be issued. This has led to many problems with various resorts on this island that have been unable to give ownership papers for precisely this reason. I have two further question.

1. If the resort has leins, what guarantees are in place for a potential timeshare purchaser?

2. If the resort, at a later date is sold, what legal insurance does a potential timeshare purchaser have to be able to use any of the other amenities other than their timeshare on the resort?

I ask this out of interest because I am presently seeking to purchase an apartment on this island and find that many people do not have paperwork here after purchasing over five years ago.
Quote
Originally posted by Costa Maya:

We enjoy nothing less than catering to a boat full of wild Belizean women. eek

Chris, I'm thinking you'd enjoy nothing MORE than catering to a boat full of wild Belizean women ??

I'd hate to think these ladies were being made to feel unwelcome, unintentionally ... didn't sound at all like you were trying to make them unwelcome ...

Don't mean to be nitpicky, it just sorta stood out ...

& PS a big ol' HI to the regular boarders here laugh
OG;

In any major purchase, completing your due diligence is a must.

Paradise Villas offers fee simple ownership among many other Strata Title plans in San Pedro.

A timeshare purchase can be risky even if a "title" is delivered to the purchaser, in any part of the world.

Costa Maya Reef Resort has a very unique ownership program that is designed to protect the individual interval owners. We hope that our paperwork can be referenced as a guideline when it comes to drafting timeshare legislation in Belize (Mr. Mahler of the BTB is working currently working on this).

In regards to how this works in detail and to discuss other issues regarding the resort, please feel free to call me and allow me to set-up a presentation for you. 226-4700

Chris smile
Just want to inform folks that I am not the same Chris as Costa Maya Chris.

Costa Maya Chris, as you are using this forum to advertise your (timeshare?) sales could you kindly confirm that you and I are not the same person! I have a bad reputation to live up to and I don´t want people to think I am associated with timeshare. This is because timeshare has such an untarnished image worldwide and is noted for being a product that gets a 100 percent satisfaction rating from buyers.

Thanks!
For some entertaining reading on timeshares, go to Crimeshare.com.

Rarely if ever should one buy a timeshare at the resort. Retail timeshare pricing is a RIPOFF. Better deals can be had from resellers and Ebay.
Now after visiting http://www.crimeshare.com I've decided not to buy any timeshares. Thanks anyway.
oldgringo you're not fooling anybody. What you really wanted to know is whether they own the resort (free and clear or financed), or whether they're selling timeshares on property they don't own. Did you get your answer?
Actually I DID get my answer, but not from the resort. That's why I lost interest.
Is Marcel still there?
If he is then tell him to fix up the pool table cause Me and Bruce are gonna come up and take all his Pesos. $5bz at a time till its over.
FYI they have the best table on the Island and maybe in BZ.
Jim cool
Posted By: Anonymous Re: Costa Maya Reef Resort - Interval International Five Star - 10/11/03 03:36 AM
You sure about the best pool table??????
Cheerz!
We can only hope that this is a successful venture for everyone who is or will be involved. Glad to see somebody did something with the property, it's better than just letting it sit there.
Jim;

Marcel has been practicing, bring lots of $5 bills. laugh Bernice wants a shot at ya too!

Marcel has mentioned that Clarence and Bruce claim our table is the best on the island.

Come on up on Sunday. We have many ready to compete in the billiards competition.

Hope to see you there big Jim!
I have been talking to other boarders, and we feel that an important issue is being ignored in this discussion. The question is burning, but nobody dears to post it, so I guess I'll have to be the bad one.

Oldgringo, who claims he did some background search, with Avalon Cancun, on this, claims that the resort is not owned yet.

The owners have assured to Pedro that it is. Actually Jim Leonard, one of them, said the same thing to me.

What we think is strange is that Costa Maya Chris is avoiding this subject, in stead of making a firm statement that would take away all the doubts surrounding this matter.

I do not want to play the devils advocate, but I along with some other boarders have been following this discussion anxiously for the past few days.

Short
Short: Since Cris offered..."Costa Maya Reef Resort has a very unique ownership program that is designed to protect the individual interval owners. We hope that our paperwork canbe referenced as a guideline when it comes to drafting timeshare legislation in Belize (Mr. Mahler of the BTB is working currently working on this).
In regards to how this works in detail and to discuss other issues regarding the resort,
please feel free to call me and allow me to set-up a presentation for you. 226-4700"
Why don't you simply call him and get the whole story rather than speculate on this message board?
Or do you really want the answer?
Thanks for all the great responses.

I never would have imagined a simple posting announcing the arrival of our first guests would generate so many replies.

Creole saying "Bigga circus dun come a town an broke up."

I do understand the concerns involved with ownership. The details of the sale are confidential (yes, to all on this post). But, for all the concerned parties above, the sale was made final; Yucatan Resorts Limited has been transferred to the new owners.

For further details, in regards to the security of investment for interval owners (here or elsewhere), this can be discussed with myself or the CEO and President who is residing on property when not in Calgary.

For those interested in due diligence (timeshare) or just for your researching pleasure:

Hotel & Motel Magazine Online .

Happy Pan American Day to all!

Marty, thanks for the Reef Ransom post.

Chris
smile
Thanks Chris,
That's an answer! This evening I can tell my friends; "I told you so".
Short
just so folks know, its also the same property as Casa Caribe, prior to Avalon
In the U.S.A. it is impossible to sell timeshares without having a minimum 80% equity by the owners/directors/trustees -that means there can only be 20% loans due on the property,and normally that is done on vacant land which has yet to be developed or for bringing the resort up to a five star standard.
With all the timeshare sales that have happened on this island and with the exception of Capt. Morgans all have failed miserably. I think that the questions are fair and valid,and should be answered completely especially if it is going to be sold differently to the U.S.A. where purchasers
are totally protected by state and federal law.
The problems here come down to there being no law and no protection for a client who purchases as they will always be the second lien holder for example if I borrow from one bank on a land/building project no other bank will take a second lein-however if I get a non-banking institution i.e. potential purchaser to lend/give money the same rules do not apply.The secondary creditors will unfortunately be in the mire and up a creek without a paddle if the resort fails and goes into receivership(as many have done but not in the U.S. or the U.K.).
However on the positive side if there is a full disclosure of assets and liabilities of the principles,as there should be as the purchaser is entering a legally binding contract with them and should have all facts and figures to hand-just like buying shares in any company everything must be available for the prospective investor.If this is made public(at least to the potential investors) I believe that Costa Maya/Yucatan Resorts/Avalon/Casa Caribe could well be a very successful resort.
Anybody who wants to check it out for theirself, or wants extremely inexpensive lodging, should check out:

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.d...de=0&since=-1&sort=3&rows=50

it's for 5 days, and the winning bidders are agreeing to a sales presentation.
Having just read the last post what a fantastic deal50usd or 150 usd for four nights -why buy timeshare -the maintenance has got to be higher than that-without a doubt the best deal on AC
Just checked out the eBay thing, and it struck me that the resort pictures are 4-6 years old, and the interior picture is taken no where near Belize!!

Resort picture1 (small) is probably 4 years old: the old dive shop and the dock with palapa (right margin of the pic) were destroyed during hurricane Keith (October 2000).

Resort picture 2 doesn't even have all the houses built!! That's a looong, long time ago.

The interior picture doesn't look near to what the rooms look like - actually there is only one building (3 rooms) redecorated, but no wooden ceiling, and nowhere near to what this looks like. When you look closer at that picture, you can see (through the windows) a town outside built in a style you don't find anywhere in Belize; my guess is Mexico.

What struck me even more is that when you look at the Cancun offers on the same page, the resort called "Calinda Beach Resort" is actually Avalon! And then I came up with, amongst others, this link: http://www.badbusinessbureau.com/reports/ripoff56487.htm

By the way, the Costa Maya Bicycle Classic was a success! I spent most of the day there, and it was very busy. About 15 Cyclists started and about 9 made it back, I believe nr. 2 won! Talked to Chris, but he was so busy, I couldn't really introduce myself!
Short
Very interesting, Short. If I were in Belize, I would like to go and hear their sales pitch. Anyone out there that has?

PS: Costa Maya, does this Michael Kelly have anything to do with your operation?
A legit business wouldn't have any problem disclosing the principal players of the venture. I agree with Warren, go to the sales presentation and ask!

Oops, nevermind asking at the sales pitch, go ahead and ask right here!
Actually, the interior photo appears to be a bedroom at the 4000+ sq ft Casa Tortuga Villa (a couple of miles south of town). Wonder if they got permission or just decided to use this photo on their own. Notice the disclaimer.
I cannot believe that anyone would use the wrong photographs on purpose-surely it is just an error that can happen to anyone for I am sure they will have paid to use those photos otherwise where would they have got them from-perhaps they are offering timeshare somewhere else and it all a mistake on the boards part for misunderstanding what has been written.
Let me tell you all an interesting story....

When I first was made aware of the eBay offer, I thought it was a scam. In fact, I contacted eBay to notify them of this. After contacting our VP of Sales & Marketing, I learned this offer originated from our "mini-vac" vendor in Orlando. The company has been using them (Riverfloat Sales) for years with our sister property in Puerto Vallarta. They too complained that the photos are out of date and that they require more photos and especially recent ones (showing the new developments). We should have the new images uploaded shortly. The interior shot? No idea.

Pedro1 was just here at the bar!

Thanks for stopping in amigo.

It may be interesting to note that our first arrivals, Mr. & Mrs. Phillips of Fort Meyers, FL, booked their vacation with us through the eBay offer. Their winning bid was $US72.00 for both of them for the entire package (in a 1360 sq. ft. villa)!! They had a great time and will be departing tomorrow. You may see their testimonials up on the board soon.

Costa Maya Cycling Classic was great! Thanks for all those that came up.

Short, sorry I missed you. I barely had time to think. The day started with me and a scooter deep in mud but finished up pretty good.

Happy Pan American Day to all!
Quote
Originally posted by bywarren:
Very interesting, Short. If I were in Belize, I would like to go and hear their sales pitch. Anyone out there that has?

PS: Costa Maya, does this Michael Kelly have anything to do with your operation?
Interesting that Chris Burkey avoided answering your question: Is Mike Kelly still involved? Yes, because the resort hasn't been paid for yet; the money they put down was around US$ 100,000. They should be making their first major payment, that they missed last month, this Wednesday. So no matter how you look at it he or one of his companies must still own the place until it has been fully paid for. My information is that there is to be two more payments of approximately two million dollars over the next two years.
When you turn this thought around, and look at it from Mike Kelly's point of view, with the link provided to us, I did some more background research. It turns out he is actually being investigated by the FBI for running a Ponzi Scheme. He has run out of investors (the pyramid system may have caught up to him), so his next move, now that it has come out in the open, is to secure what assets he can and disappear (this probably explains his new luxury ocean cruiser), for some years. Then wait till the heat cools down return, and get back to what he managed to keep hidden from various authorities and investors. Don't you think it is odd that the resort was sold for a little over half of what it was listed for? The new owners were able to take possession, paying peanuts, missed their first payment and open the resort in the mean time? They must be very sure of what they are doing! Seeing the way they advertise the place using false advertisements, their morale can't be too high either. Most of the people that are involved are old (Belize) Avalon, I mean, they failed the first time, why would you want to take them back? I am not drawing conclusions here, but I have a strange feeling about the Costa Maya Reef Club. What do you think?
Interesting that Chris Burkey avoided answering your question: Is Mike Kelly still involved?

No, he is not Old Gringo.

So no matter how you look at it he or one of his companies must still own the place until it has been fully paid for.

No, the company was transferred to new owners Old Gringo. Check the Companies Registry for yourself (with full disclosure of shareholders and directors).

My information is that there is to be two more payments of approximately two million dollars over the next two years.

Your information is wrong again. Sorry Old Gringo, don't believe everything you hear, especially on this island, most of the time it is a bit off. Maybe you haven't learned this yet.

Seeing the way they advertise the place using false advertisements,

Lost me on this one OG. Can you back up this claim somehow?

their morale can't be too high either.

I wish something was just a little close to the truth in your post. The staff is excited about the new plans for the property and enjoyed a very action packed weekend. Just the trip to our property in Mexico and Canada was worth waiting for Costa Maya to open.

their morale can't be too high either.

Good staff, they are loyal. They are to blame now and not Mr. Kelly? Are you suggesting that we fire them OG? Or are you suggesting that nobody else will want to work here? Clarify please, if you can.

Avalon, I mean, they failed the first time,

Did Avalon fail OG? You may want to rethink that statement for me please. This property has never seen a foreclosure or bankruptcy. I'm surprised by you. You are purportedly a lawyer. Perhaps you have worked to hard trying to legalize your favorite habit.

I can not make any statements on Mr. Kelly and or Avalon other than he is not a principle in Costa Maya Reef Resort.

I believe what is good for Belize is good for us all. Costa Maya Reef Resort is a good thing for Belize. Using our past successes with Rancho Banderas in Puerto Vallarta and our Fairmont Vacation Villas (3 of them sold out) in B.C., Canada, we will make our Belizean boutique operation a success. I guess you will just have to wait and see OG.

But then again, some (although few), hate to see others succeed where they have failed, even if it is at the cost of the local Belizean people (I support four of them).

Here's to the development of North Ambergris Caye!

CB
Very good response Chris! Wishing all the best to you and your great staff of Belizean employees. Screw Old Gringo and his pack of "Twisted Sisters"
Hey,
I also won a ebay auction for 4 nites, I will be there in December and promise to give a review.
So far we did get our requested dates, but we were getting the sales pitch about upgrading to a villa at 4x what we paid for the room.
We shall see
Hey Chris, I am a menber of Rancho, and was thinking about coming down in Feburary, but if you are giving such good deals on e-bay, why should I use time from Rancho, just bid on e-bay? I want to tell people on this message board that i am happy with Rancho, just a wonderful place, maybe oversold, as time is very difficult to get there, but it is well taken care of, staff excellent, and a perfect vacation place.
I second Chismera's last post.
Jim cool
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