Keep your valuables at Home!

[KAMAY11]

We were just at the Riu Palace in Cabo for our wedding....I was aware of the theft issues before we went, so I was SUPER anal about locking everything up. (I even locked up my makeup!!) There were some people in our group who had some $$ stolen-luckily it was nothing substantial...but the point is: DON'T LEAVE ANYTHING THAT IS OF VALUE LYING OUT IN THE OPEN IN YOUR ROOM...LOCK IT UP! That is what the safe is for!!!! My DH and I as a result, never had anything taken from our room.

To ease your mind, maybe give your guests a head's up about the theft issues and reiterate that they need to use their room safe.

[zorlack76]

Yeah, to reiterate, locking things up is a must. We brought a few hundred in cash down with us the last time, and we locked that in the safe the second we got there, then we just took money out when we needed it like an ATM or something. But things like cash, small cameras, and any electronics (iPods, etc) should be locked up at all times unless you are using it. We did not have any problem with any stolen goods while we were there and actually left a $2000 camera laying out on out bed a lot when we werent in our room and had not plans on taking pics. Thank God no one took it, but it was too big to fit in the safe. Just be smart about everything, and stay kind of tidy...that way you know right away if something is out of place.

[MonoAmor]

Does anyone know if all the safes have an emergency key to open that the staff has? My moms friend had things stolen from her safe in Mexico last year. Apparently some of the maids had keys that open the safes that they are supposed to use if people forget their passcodes. Im not an expert on safes, but I know we are trying to bring as little expensive things as possible to try and avoid any problems. My mom is thinking about getting a small lockable box for her stuff to bring with her. Hopefully they dont steal the whole box!

[zorlack76]

I think thee is probably a master key for the safe, just in case someone forgets their passcode...but I dont think the maids have access to it. Dreams/Secrets is a very reputable company and I dont think they would let something like this get in the way. If they had a lot of incidents of stolen items, people would not feel safe going to those resorts, thus, they would lose business. I woudnt get too over concerned with it, but just pack your belongings smartly and dont leave those $1000 earrings laying on the vanity in the bathroom

[**TIFFANY**]

Usually only the maintanence people have the master key to the safe. We were in Punta Cana in August and our safe was locked when we got into our room so we had to call to have them fix it and the maintenance people came with a key. We used the safe the whole vacation and had no problems or issues. We've also stayed other placed and didn't use the safe and were fine. A couple times we even brought our laptop and since it's 17" it doesn't fit in the safe and we didn't have any problems.

[~Melissa~]

It's sad but it happens everywhere. Best to be prepared for the worse.

[JBinjour]

No, I've travelled to Mexico and various islands throughout the Caribbean without any issue of thief. When you travel, you can have good time, but also be safe and reasonable about the situation.

I carried locks with me and used them in our suite at Riu. Basically, I would use everything I needed out of my suitcase and placed everything back. As far as makeup, I left the cheap stuff out, but placed my more expensive products in my suitcase. I also did not use the in-room hotel safe. I locked my rings, watches, and any other valuables (i.e., travel documents, wallet, cash, credit cards, etc.)in my suitcase too.

Yes, you can read the reviews on tripadvisor. You must also read them with a grain of salt.

[rodent]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MonoAmor Does anyone know if all the safes have an emergency key to open that the staff has? My moms friend had things stolen from her safe in Mexico last year. Apparently some of the maids had keys that open the safes that they are supposed to use if people forget their passcodes. Im not an expert on safes, but I know we are trying to bring as little expensive things as possible to try and avoid any problems. My mom is thinking about getting a small lockable box for her stuff to bring with her. Hopefully they dont steal the whole box!

yes, some staff can open the safe. this is often how things get stolen out of the safe. a bride on this forum staying at dreams tulum had this issue. they robbed the guests during the ceremony. they knew that it was a staff member using their code to open the safe, because when they got to their room, their codes no longer worked.

I felt much safer using the luggage lock I brought than the hotel safe. We kept everything in a locked bag that was inside another bag. that way the lock wasn't visible. we didn't take valuable stuff except our camera & some cash.

we gave all of our guests luggage locks. some still used the safe, but no one had an issue.

on our last day there was a couple that couldn't open their safe. the shuttle was there to pick them up and their stuff was still locked up. i don't know what happened, but i felt really bad for them.

[LisaG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morgan yes, some staff can open the safe. this is often how things get stolen out of the safe. a bride on this forum staying at dreams tulum had this issue. they robbed the guests during the ceremony. they knew that it was a staff member using their code to open the safe, because when they got to their room, their codes no longer worked. I felt much safer using the luggage lock I brought than the hotel safe. We kept everything in a locked bag that was inside another bag. that way the lock wasn't visible. we didn't take valuable stuff except our camera & some cash. we gave all of our guests luggage locks. some still used the safe, but no one had an issue. on our last day there was a couple that couldn't open their safe. the shuttle was there to pick them up and their stuff was still locked up. i don't know what happened, but i felt really bad for them.

Yes, the maintance people opened our safe during our ceremony/reception and took $1400 in cash out. They then reset the safe code to whatever they wanted it to be in order for it to close and our code did not work when we got back to our room. I had security pull the key card activity for our room while we were gone at the wedding and 5 seperate people were in our room. None of them confessed and our $$ was never returned.
I really like Morgans idea of the luggage locks!! I think that is a great gift idea for your guests.

[~*Kathy*~]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nic123 Is anyone else freaked about all the theft that goes on at the resorts in Mexico. I've been reading reviews on Tripadvisor about various Riu resorts in Mexico and there are several guests who have had things stolen from their room. It's not just money or jewelry, it's clothes, makeup....you name it. I would feel really bad if I my guests had items stolen from their room. It doesn't seem fair that they lock up all of their goods and padlock the closet but that may be the only guarantee that stuff doesn't go missing. Should I stop reading the reviews and focus on the positives? I know people are more likely to complain than give a positive review.

I'm totally freaking out and my FI is just increasing my paranoia! Obviously I want to bring my e-ring and wedding band for the wedding with me to Mexico, but he keeps saying "what if it gets stolen?", I kind of need those for the ceremony though! I don't know what to do...it makes me really sad actually.