If you visit a Park Royal hotel in Mexico, like the one in Cozumel do not go to the sales presentations for vacation clubs. If you do a search for Royal Holiday before you go, you will understand why. There is a warning by the United States government to beware of timeshare, and vacation club sales in Mexico and other countries. Just DON'T DO IT!! Please, research it now and save yourself all the grief you will read about as you research Royal Holiday, and other vacation clubs. People who don't research it are not prepared for the high pressure sales, and don't understand how they are lying to them. It is terrible, so if you are going on vacation to Mexico beware of these scam artists.

Jonathan Rodrigo Diaz Gonzalez ([email protected]).

Most people do not check the State Departments warnings before traveling. Please do not go to timeshare presentations? This is from the U.S. State Department. Thousands of Americans have fallen for this scam:

Purchasing Real Estate and Time Shares

U.S. citizens should be aware of the risks inherent in purchasing real estate in Mexico, and should exercise extreme caution before entering into any form of commitment to invest in property there.

Investors should hire competent Mexican legal counsel when contemplating any real estate investment. Mexican laws and practices regarding real estate differ substantially from those in the United States. Foreigners who purchase property in Mexico may find that property disputes with Mexican citizens may not be treated evenhandedly by Mexican criminal justice authorities or in the courts.

The Mexican Constitution prohibits direct ownership by foreigners of real estate within 100 kilometers (about 62 miles) of any border, and within 50 kilometers (about 31 miles) of any coastline. In order to permit foreign investment in these areas, the Mexican government has created a trust mechanism in which a bank has title to the property, but a trust beneficiary enjoys the benefits of ownership. However, U.S. citizens are vulnerable to title challenges that may result in years of litigation and possible eviction. Title insurance is virtually unknown and untested in Mexico. In addition, Mexican law recognizes squatters' rights, and homeowners can spend thousands of dollars in legal fees and years of frustration in trying to remove squatters who occupy their property.

American property owners should consult legal counsel or local authorities before hiring employees to serve in their homes or on vessels moored in Mexico. Several American property owners have faced lengthy lawsuits for failure to comply with Mexican labor laws regarding severance pay and social security benefits.

American citizens should exercise caution when considering time-share investments and be aware of aggressive tactics used by some time-share sales representatives. Buyers should be fully informed and take sufficient time to consider their decisions before signing time-share contracts, ideally after consulting an independent attorney. Mexican law allows time-share purchasers five days to cancel the contract for unconditional and full reimbursement. U.S. citizens should never sign a contract that includes clauses penalizing the buyer who cancels within five days.

A formal complaint against any merchant should be filed with PROFECO, Mexico's federal consumer protection agency. PROFECO has the power to mediate disputes, investigate consumer complaints, order hearings, levy fines and sanctions for not appearing at hearings, and do price-check inspections of merchants. All complaints by Americans are handled by PROFECO's English-speaking office in Mexico City at 011-52-55-5211-1723. For more information, please see the PROFECO’s "Attention to Foreigners” web page at Profeco (Procuraduría Federal del Consumidor).

Avoid Disputes With Merchants. Be a Careful Shopper.

I am getting e-mails from many who have signed contracts for vacation packages while at Park Royal Resorts in Mexico and other places. Park Royal vacation destinations are generally good, but they will try to get you to go to presentations. SAY NO!! People who attend are offered deals too good to be true, and unfortunately after signing and getting home find out what a scam it was. Here are some of the answers I have given:

There are no "class action suits" in Mexico. The best recourse is to research the Internet, make copies of other testimonies with similar experience. Fie with PROFECO, the Mexican agency assigned to these problems. The sooner the greater the chance for them to do something. Also, if your contract did not have the notification of the Mexican law five day cancellation period send a copy of that law (you can find information about this on the Internet) with your contract to your credit card company. Use the other peoples testimonies as support to demonstrate a pattern of misrepresentation, and fraud with your own documentation to support your situation. Join the support group through Yahoo groups about Royal Holiday to keep informed of other members' results. There are many positive outcomes, where people get the money back. The important thing is as soon as you are aware you are in this mess act. If you act fast the credit card company does help. If you don't PROFECO had helped many, but that takes close to a year. If you wait for over a year, because you kept trying to use this, and it took you longer to find out this is a scam (not your fault) PROFECO might not take the case. Then you have to demonstrate that Royal Holiday did not provide the services and still push your credit card.

Remember, you are not alone. Don't give up hope, use the help and advice from others who have been successful to beat the scam to strengthen your resolve to fight for yourself.

Your luck depends on your action.