The following is my sad but true experience with the Coral Canyon Resort. Iโm taking no creative liberties. These arenโt alt-facts. The following is the truth. The whole truth. With a bit of supposition, sure. Really, I canโt claim to know what exactly goes on in anotherโs fatuous mind.
To wit!
I sent the owner, Eric, 1/3 deposit for a 4 night stay. $50. Then one email asking whether heโd received it and could he please verify the reservation. Then another. And another. Another. And finally the obligatory angry one. And then that recognition. The finality of it all: Iโd never hear from him again. Eric had simply scampered off with my money. I never did hear from him againโฆ
Now, I find it incredibly hard to believe anyone not in their right mind would steal a paltry fifty bucks for a business that generally relies on good word of mouth to thrive. But what other conclusion to draw?
Listen, I blame myself partly. He wanted the funds wired via Western Union. Maybe more than his desultory 2 week delay in getting back to me, that right there. Anyone in this day and age I don't care where in the world who doesn't use something akin to Remitly or Paypal but Western Union? It reeks of arthritis and macular degeneration; you are asking for trouble.
And that delay in getting back. It got me thinking. See, it was the utter indifference to my request. And now I was getting a sneaking suspicion he didnโt care whether I was ever a guest or not. You know those owners whose 2-star digs pretend to sophistication? Right?
But I really do love a pool when traveling. The pictures on their stunted website made it look agreeable enough. Iโd read about Ericโs quaint piano playing, soโฆ
When he finally responded with an alternate account number after his first proved disagreeable, I took the bait and wired the money in good faith. Expecting some kind of confirmation from him either way, I sent a screenshot of the WU confirmation to him. Can you please confirm you got the money? Something. Anything. Iโm not looking for War & Peace, how about: Oui et au plaisir de vous voir bientรดt!
Nothing.
Was what just happened really happening?
A few hundred bucks maybe I could understand. If you're gonna steal make it worthwhile: Go big or go home! But thieving $50 is akin to running off with that friend's jacket you coveted and then asked to borrow but never gave back. It's not just petty. It's gross. Juvenile.
Sigh. Cโest la vie, oui?!
So. My opinion of Eric? He strikes me as the kind of person who simply couldn't be bothered with sending the obligatory receipt and after one too many "bothersome" emails asking for any kind of reply? He simply decided that anyone who didn't do business his meandering way could hit the highway. And he pocketed the cash. Somewhere in his primitive mind, I think heโs justified the theft as a matter of person style...
And my sincere advice? Donโt ever bother with this place.