Sedona Summit Resort

Exchanged a high value week in coastal Maine for a studio off the parking lot-poor service for exchange guests

My husband and I deposited our 4th of July week in coastal Southwest Harbor, Maine and exchanged for a week at Sedona Summit Resort. It was very disappointing and after great effort to request an alternate accommodation, we abandoned the unit after one night and paid money to book a week with a well-known internet vacation website, and found a place in Prescott. The unit we left at Sedona Summit Resort was about a fifth the size of our high value unit in Maine and was steps off the parking lot with no view and absolutely no privacy when the blinds on the patio doors were open or when we sat outside. There was trash on the ground by the outdoor chairs.

When we arrived, the office was busy. Upon learning we were not owners, we were hustled out of the line in the main office to a husband and wife guest service team in an adjacent and smaller office. They were clearly a sales team, not a guest services team. Initially, the woman offered to “take care” of all our needs. After learning we were not willing to sit for a sales pitch in return for show tickets, we were given the key to our unit and we were sent on our way. Often checklist items on the Diamond Resort Commitment to Excellence found in our packet, only two were earned by the resort: we received a calendar of activities and instructions for the internet, so this resort earned a 20% score. We were not shown to our unit. The ice maker was not turned on because it didn’t exist. TV operation was not explained and it did not work. AC, lighting, and other unit features were not explained.

The lack of privacy, the smell inside and litter on the ground outside was unacceptable. The room smelled like someone had smoked prior to our visit. There were cigarette butts and a used dental pick on the ground by our first floor sitting space. That sitting space was about three steps from the edge of the parking lot. I like meeting new people, but I did not want to greet each arriving guest who walked in front of us. I did not want to keep the blinds closed so that I could change my clothes and avoid being viewed in our unit. We called the resort office and asked for alternate accommodation, not the first floor bordering the parking lot. We were promised an effort to locate an alternate unit, but they wouldn’t even call us back later that day or the next day. We decided to leave, booked another vacation rental. I called the front desk and when I said we were leaving, the guest services employee then said they would try again to find us a different unit. I said our week was too short to wait any more days and I didn’t trust they would solve this, and then we left without any refund or apology for the poor service and poor location and cleanliness of our unit. I do not recommend exchanging in, as you will not be treated the same way as the resort owners are treated.