This is NOT something I ever thought I would have to do. I have NEVER posted any public reviews of any place I have stayed, no matter how good or bad it was, until now.

I have booked and stayed all all kinds of place over the years from regular hotels to high-end resorts and everything in between.

I made the mistake of booking El Faro 103 in the Coral building at Playa Del Carmen in March for 19 days in May 2022 from May 10-29 for just under $5,000.

I went back and forth with Susan Mattingly of PlayaLuxuryRentals.com to book it.

Here is how it is represented:

The ONLY thing this place has going for it is the location, right on the beach – and that’s it.

With respect to her claim of beautiful and plush mattresses, and “spa-like” experience, this place is NOTHING like that.

We arrived May 10, and had to wait at front desk while they were still cleaning it.

When we got in the unit, it was disgusting, full of bugs, white towels were so dirty they were grey, mold everywhere.

The beds and pillows were so nasty that we had to put beach towels on the pillows and slept in the clothes we arrived in.

Here’s a photo of a towel that is supposed to be white:

Here’s some lovely mold around the “spa-like” shower:

My wife is allergic to mold so we have to figure out Plan B, and booked flights to leave the next day and go elsewhere for vacation as we had all booked time off already for our trip.

Here’a video of the mold:

I emailed Susan Mattingly the next day (May 11) when we left letting her know we were leaving and WHY we were leaving (the bugs, the disgusting condition of the unit, lack of cleanliness, mold etc. To top it all off, there were mountains of seaweed on the beach and in the water. 2 days go by, no response.

I email her again (May 13) and she finally responds saying she never read my email, but would look into it. She asked for photos and video which I sent her. She responded that she would speak to the owner on the Monday and get back to me, then asks me if I got trip insurance. I ALWAYS have insurance, but it would not cover this in this case.

She responds on May 16 focusing on the seaweed issue and how it’s not her problem. The seaweed issue simply added to the overall problems with the place, and she had said that before we left, we should have asked them to clean it. Remember, when I sent the email to her May 11, she ignored it for 2 days and I had to send her another for her to respond, so how confident would you be to get the place cleaned? To wait 2 days for her to respond?

Not to mention that this place needs renovations, NOT a good cleaning. To remove the mold is a big job and should have been done BEFORE this place is rented – remember, it’s marketed as “luxurious” and “spa-like”.

She basically said that I was threatening her (I wasn’t – just trying to resolve this issue amicably) and she focused on insurance again, which doesn’t cover this. Also, NOT ONCE did she take ANY responsibility for the condition of the unit.

May 18 I send her another email, and within one hour, I get a Reservation Cancellation email – remember we still had paid for 11 more nights after May 18 and she RE-LISTED the unit. She kept our money AND also tried to double dip by renting to someone else.

There’s the screenshot I took when I noticed on May 18 she cancelled the remainder of my reservation and re-listed it for rent.

Again, notice the description “beautiful”, “plush mattress” “Luxurious Master Suite” – every single one is false advertising.

May 24 I emailed her again saying I noticed she cancelled the reservation, and relisted and also let her know my insurance doesn’t cover anything. I told her the right thing to do was to provide a refund or come to some sort of agreement together (I was willing to pay for a portion even though I stayed 1 night of 19).

Her email back to me May 25 was combative and the complete opposite of any kind of customer service you would expect from any renting a place. Instead of trying to come to some sort of amicable resolution, she dug in her heels and could care less.

I responded to her email same day May 25 and her response to me May 25 was that I am wrong and to quit badgering her and that everyone loves the condo and she doesn’t agree with my issues.

My last email to her was asking if her final position was zero refund for any of our stay, and she ignored it.

Well here is a recent review of her condo that do not support her claim of “everyone loves the condo”:

From VRBO:

Not sure WHO is renting but the reviews from Jan-April 2022 only talk about location and NOT specifically about the unit. I will re-iterate, the location is the ONLY good thing about this place.

Maybe in the past the unit was in good shape, but I am going to show you the current condition and issues, not past condition.

Here are some videos we took of the condition of the place and you tell me if you are interesting in renting a place like this. Now if it’s marketed as Motel 6 or Super 8 quality, then sure it lives up to the hype, but that’s NOT how it’s marketed:

Here are Videos of the ants:

If those issues aren’t bad enough, with the unit NOT living up to any standard, she is also fully aware of the seaweed situation which makes her beachfront location useless.

Here’s a video of the beach: