Brian Taylor
Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
The EU have now delayed the intro of the EES, due 10th November. No new date yet.
BBC News – European Union delays introduction of new border check system – BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgey0vvxxw7o
The next Monte committee meeting is on the 15th October, if you have any questions or comments please let me know.
The October meeting sets the budget for 2025 which includes the contribution to the replacement fund, though the replacement fund allocation is not detailed until the February 2025 meeting.
The committee is an consultative one so can comment on what Anfi proposes though Anfi have the final say.The % increase in 2024 was kept low by Anfi and the replacement fund needs to be increased to cover items like the furniture replacement, some lift controls, as well as the normal replacement items.
And more info on the 2025 ETIAS
——————-In 2025, the EU will introduce the new European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS).
When ETIAS is introduced, you will need to apply for authorisation to enter Schengen area countries if using a UK passport. You will need to provide personal information and details about your trip, and pay a 7 Euro fee, as part of the authorisation process.
The EU has already set out more information on ETIAS, including what information will be required from each nationality, on the EU’s official Travel Europe website. – https://travel-europe.europa.eu/ees_en
Restaurante Valentino Patalavaca reopens again on 2nd September 2024 – more info on their Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/kXpz8r8tBDiHxaqa/?mibextid=WC7FNe
“Hello dear guests, our holidays are also coming to an end.
From the 2nd of September we will be back for you. We are happy to pamper you again.
Greetings from the crew”Geoff has been known to have a routine where he does 3 of the shuffleboard sessions ending up at Monte, which of course follows onto Bingo and happy hour!!
Pam & I took our grandaughters to Vinci’s last year – we ate at about 6.30 but by 7.30 ish there were people queuing waiting for tables to come free, it seemed very popular.
The Indian, Taj Palace, at Mogan Mall is good, as is the Taj Palace at Purto Rico marina area.
There is also a Steak Bar bar near the Indian which is good to.
Goldcar have had a really poor Which? rating for over 10 years – I do hope Bob gets on OK.
Cicar come out well on Which? ratings. I found their check-in process quite slow – even though I filled in precheck online. And I’ve seen some very long & slow moving queues for Cicar at the airport.
If anyone is looking to use Cicar at Anfi, best check prices as when I looked a year or two ago, it cost more for 3 or 4 days hire at Anfi than it does for a week from airport. Though no queue as Roger points out.
There is another company near Arguineguin that one of our members, Wolfgang, recommended – I’d have to look up the name.Roger, I used Royal Mail tracked to send some documents to Anfi Management – it took over 2 weeks to get there and the tracking was aweful, RM processed same day at their office near my house BUT 2 weeks later it was still not registered at Heathrow RM depot, and then a few days later it showed as delivered (Anfi did sign for it, though tracking showed the first delivery attempt failed).
Apart from the members recent DHL experience, I used DHL to send some documents to a slightly remote non-EU country – sent on a Friday and got there on Monday. Brilliant!
Does cost more though but I think it is worth it if docs are valuable or hard to replace.There is another benefit of the new contracts, in that it states your right to hand back, provided mainentance fees are up to date.
There is a potential downside if you have a floating/points contract – the new contract replaces this with 3 documents
– your underlying week
– a Flex contract to put the week into floating system
– an AVC contract
The above, in itself, is fine and replicates the old floating or points contract.A member recently tried to change to their underlying week and have been told they cannot remain in AVC if the underlying week is reclaimed. This may not matter if you are looking to sell the week, and only affect members wanting to get their fixed week and remain in AVC.
A member recently used DHL for sending sale document to Anfi – the tracking worked fine and the document got their in 4 days – pretty good service
recent Which? report is available without a Which? login
https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/car-hire-rip-off-tactics-exposed-aKcWZ6M7AM9hHope you have a good flight – the Which? member reviews for Ryanair are not great, but Robert and other members have had good experiences and great value.
I’ve had some issues with BA flights. As I live in south west London, Luton or Stanstead are a bit of a haul though the Ryanair fares look good.I said back in Feb that Easyjet seemed more expensive than British Airways and that difference seems even bigger now – I was looking at prices for Feb next year and Easyjet around 50% more expensive that BA on like for like booking
Anyone else finding any good deals
Hi Clive
Thanks for update
Be interested to know how it ends up – on the new contracts, as far as I recall, you have 3 docs:-
1 – the ownership one with the underling week
2 – then you have flex contact that put week into flex/floating, with the 5 year cycle
3 – then a separate AVC contract
I think you’d argue that all you are doing is removing No2 the flex element and that your AVC memnbership remains as isI’ve not used RCI for some while, and hope other members may have info for you
Good luck
Kind regards, Brian
Hi Diane
Thank you so much for this post and such a lovely story, and I’m so sorry to hear of your loss.
Amazing to think that your parents bought when there was only one block and no pool or garden, they really bought into the Anfi dream.
I can see your father was a member of the Anfi UK Club many years ago. I’m really pleased to hear they sold and built a conservatory as a result of the sale proceeds.Pam & I bought in early 2020’s much like you. We bought when Gran was still being built around 2002.
We only got into it as Pam’s Mum & Dad had RCI, and a year or so before Pam went to Anfi with her Mum via RCI, and thought it was great. We then went out to Sonnenland the next year and it was aweful – so we went to Anfi and signed up there and then!I never knew Puerto did free champagne when they opened – don’t recall that at Gran!
Kind regards
BrianHi Clive
You are the first member I know of who has tried to convert to a fixed week from a floating or points contract.In my contract if I wish to convert to the fixed underlying week, I have to give 18 months notice before the start of the next 5 year period – otherwise the flex contract renews and I have to give notice before the end of the next 5 year period.
I suggest you first check your contract as it sounds as if you have missed the 18 month notice. Perhaps yours is different and is 12 months?
The notice needs to be given formally as well – which means emailing customer services with details and confirming you wish to convert to a fixed week. (or whatever is stated in your contract)
Whether you can stay in AVC is a good question – you should be able to as you bought from Anfi and are just converting from floating to fixed. Then you would be able to bank the fixed week like any other AVC member.Worth checking given your health, whether you can just bank your floating week, which would solve your immediate problem – I thought you could though I have points rather than floating AVC. I have Monte floating week with AVC Weeks (as we bought that resale) and we can bank the week into the next year.
Getting a week in May out to be easy as May & June are the lowest occupancy – often around 60%.
I’m pleased to got to Richard’s practice in Wigan for the regional meeting – I’m afraid I can’t vouch for our commitee members choice of football team!!
If you wish to discuss direct please email me on treasurer@anfiukmembers.co.uk and we can set up a phone call
Kind regards, Brian
Hi Bob
Thanks for the info – be really interested to hear how you get on
Goldcar has a reputation for pressure selling of insurance and for poor customer service. Which? members have rated them the worst car hire company for 10 years now – so take care – and you may have a different experienceThe excess cover insurance is a good tip – I did this for a while and in the end I just pay the extra for most hires. With Autoriesen it is €2 a day for superinsurance, and capped as well & saves having to check car when I take it out, or when handing back.
I did reverse into one of the Monte car park pillars last year, and creased the wheel arch, and when I took the car back there was no problem at all with Autoreisen. Just a few minutes to fill in some details of where and when.Regards, Brian
I was looking again to book for October, meant to do earlier as you can always cancel and rebook. Autoreisen is now quite expensive, really gone up a lot and about 300€ per week.
With TopCar you can pay half of that price. I booked a Clio for €170 per week and you can get a Polo for less – price includes super insurance.Interested to hear what other members are paying.
Also worth noting in a recent Which? report on car hire that of the independents Autoreisen and Cicar come out as recommended (not sure if Which? measure TopCar as it used to be linked to Autoreisen before they split) I’ve found TopCar good though can be a wait at their desk, though nothing like the queues for Cicar.
Also although David found OKMobility good their trustpilot reviews are aweful, scoring 1.3 out of 5, and I read another review that warned of their poor service and upselling before you take the car – so take care if considering using.
to add my report in the latest Newsletter and a few additional points:-
Like the other Clubs, Monte’s elected members wanted an increase in fees of around inflation for 2024 to support the replacement fund.
Management imposed a lower fee increase and this means your replacement fund (RF) is under pressure this year. Though we are spending about €500k this year from the RF and we will have €600k left at the end of the year, this provides no cover for things like furniture replacement which will cost around €1m and is now expected over 2025-26.
It is also less than we expected as 2023 costs ended up higher than predicted and this comes out of your replacement fund.There are also uncovered costs for some of the lift controls issues (see below) and for things we would like to see done sooner, like renewing the old kitchen hobs and microwaves and finishing the bathroom replacement work.
A further concern is the state of the kitchens and cabinets which after 25 years are showing their age – despite my representations and lots of photos, Anfi have no plans to replace these for another 5 to 10 years yet they are really starting to show their age. Hopefully some steps for limited repairs will be done in in each year, though I have no real confidence about this.
A full kitchen replacement is pretty expensive and not budgeted for.Pools:
· The children’s pool has been fine since the work was completed earlier this year. Two of the main pools, out-of-use for repairs, have reopened. The larger pool and the smaller pool next to it had leaks from the drainage channels, and these have been resealed.
· Temperature gauges are now in place above the Monte Vista kitchen. There are two sets of gauges, one covering the main pool and the one adjacent to it. The other gauge is on the children’s poolside covering the 2 pools on that side. Puerto also has temperature gauges now.
· If you slip by the pool, please report to the lifeguard or to reception, so a record can be kept.
Furniture: A demonstration apartment will be opened this year, with replacement planned for 2025-26.
Access cards: New cards, using proximity technology will replace the swipe cards currently in use. These will be more reliable and have to be used across the Del Mar resorts.
Lifts: The main lifts are awaiting new controls and floor indicators. The panoramic lift and the lift at Block C have the same control problems and will require attention. The Block C lift also had some indicators that were difficult to read. At Beach, new indicators and controls have been installed in some lifts and appear to work very well.
Bench seating: Seating past the pools was put in temporary locations earlier this year. We agreed to relocate 2 of the 4 benches to give members a better range of locations. The seating remains past the main pool areas, for those looking for a quiet place.
Façade: Work continues on the façade to secure the pebbles covering the walls across the front of Monte.
Shuffleboard: The shuffleboard area is due to be resurfaced and will be done like the Gran, where the markings are sealed in, which will reduce wear and give longer life.
Minigolf: Though not at Monte, it is notable that the minigolf area is looking much tidier; it is being swept and maintained, to an extent, by Anfi. But you still need to bring your own clubs or know someone to borrow them from.
Chromecast TV: Will be installed at Monte and all the Del Mar resorts, following a successful trial at Emerald.
The Monte meeting was held on the 20th June. As usual we had an informal walk around earlier in the week and discussed:-
– The children’s pool has been fine since the work completed earlier this year and the tiles have remained intact, so far!
– Two of the main pools were out of use. The larger pool and the smaller pool next to it had leaks from the drainage channels and these had been resealed and were due to be brought back into use the following week after testing.
– The new-ish temperature gauges are in place above the Monte Vista kitchen – there are two gauges, one covering the main pool and the one adjacent to it. The other gauge on children’s pool side covering the 2 pools on that side.
– The main lifts are awaiting new control electronics and floor indicators, and these are on long lead time. I pointed out the panoramic lift and the lift at Block C have the same control problems and require attention – if more than one floor is selected then, once the lift gets to the first floor the other floor selections are cleared, until reselected. The Block C lift also had some indicators that are difficult to read.
One of the Puerto lifts has the same selection issue, yet the other one is fine. Anfi are getting engineers to look further at the issues.
At Beach new indicators and controls have been installed in some lifts and appear to work very well.– Bench seating past the pools was put in temporary locations earlier this year. We agreed to relocate 2 of the 4 benches to give members a better range of locations. All the seating remains past the main pool areas and give quiet locations for those wishing to sit and read or think, or admire the views.
– There had been a report of a slippage near the pool, and we discussed whether any incident reports had been logged. And also the timing of the anti-slip treatment which is applied twice a year. If you do slip and fall please report to the lifeguard or to reception, so a record can be kept. (More details in my report to follow on the committee meeting.)
– The main building support pillar and adjacent wall area was screened off – this had raised some concern as to whether further work on the pillars was being done.
However, the work is only on the adjacent wall to fix the large pebbles that coat the wall, and is a follow on to the work on façade undertaken last year. All the work on the pillars was completed last year.– The occupancy in June is quite low, around 50%, and there were plenty of sunbeds free. The Monte Vista area gets busier around 3pm onwards for shuffleboard, then bingo and happy hour!
The shuffleboard area is due to be resurfaced and will be done like the Gran one where the markings are sealed in which will reduce wear and give longer life.– Though not at Monte it is notable that the minigolf area is looking much tidier – it is being swept and maintained to an extent by Anfi. You still need to bring your own Club’s or know someone to borrow from.
Please see my report, to follow, for more information following the meeting and about the replacement fund, furniture, and other items.
Interesting, Pam went in May and had a few tummy issues for a couple of days. Maybe a one off.
there is another Cabosuroeste just past Palm Garden – not sur e about holiday closures
I didn’t know about this one, will try to look in Ocotber when we are back at Anfi
Great to meet up with you Robert
Tiki bar does close late afternoon
The Anfitron coffee bar definitely has the best coffee
thanks Andrew, good to know they loved it – I hope the rest of your holiday was equally good.
Let’s hope the repair work lasts this time, with no loose tiles or leaks.There is a Monte committee meeting next week, so if any observations about anything Monte do let me know – I travel out on Sunday
