Anyone done the Wyndham vacation timeshare presentation?

[oldie]

Has anyone attended one of these 2 hour sales fest and lived to tell about it? How painful was it? Would you ever do it again?

We attended. The sales pitch was so-so - I wasn't impressed - and there was similar or less pressure than in your typical used car sale, with usual "this deal is only for you and is only valid today" (hahaha). We got $150 out of it, and scheduled it between events on vacation, so instead of browsing Internet for an hour I learned about some destinations and got paid a bit, not bad.

If you still consider going, I'd recommend the following approach:

- 2hrs is too long, I'd say I only have one hour and cannot spend more. They'd likely accept (they did in my case).
- Put in the specific schedule. I said I am flying in at 11am and have an event to attend at 2pm, so I can only do 12:30pm - 1:30pm, and will only agree to this scheduled time.
- Have the rep on the recorded line verbally agree to what you said.

Before going:
- Do some research. You *must* at least understand what timeshare is, the difference between deeded (you own something) and point (you own a right to book a "free stay" if you can).
- You need to figure out why timeshare isn't for you - and if it is for you, why can't you just buy a resale? Generally timeshare only makes sense to a very few people with specific needs. The job of sales people is to convince you that you're part of it. Your job is to understand why you aren't.

When going:
- Arrive on your scheduled time (I arrived 5 minutes before);
- If they're late, remind them you're leaving at the previously agreed time, even if you're in the middle of presentation.
- Listen and watch everything they show you.
- Do not ask questions unless genuinely interested. Your "job" is to spend an hour in an air conditioned room with drinks, and get $150 for it. No need to make the other guy sweat more than necessary.

Defusing sales pressure:
- There are several tactics. Mine is, agree with everything except to proceed. "looks cool? yes. Would you like to own it? No. But why? I won't tell you". Do not give any excuses. They'd want to know your reasons so they can counter them; they've heard them all and will find a clever answer. Just no.
-Keep reminding yourself you're being pressed to buy a property. Would you buy a house after 1hr presentation without any follow-up research? Of course not.
- Keep watching the time and counting dollars. Okay, one more minute, 2 more dollars.

Overall it is an interesting experience if you do your research and isn't an impulsive buyer (and if you are, you can cancel the purchase agreement within 3+ days).

 

[oldie]

I am very well-versed with timeshares because we travel about 3 months a year and stay in luxurious suites with full kitchen, living room, dining room, with views of golf courses and the ocean.

With an addition "each stay is exactly one week" (unless they made this more flexible), this is a good summary of where timeshare would be valuable. If someone values staying in this kind of accommodations and willing to pay corresponding prices, a timeshare may be worth considering. It would give you a discount stay in exchange for some added hassle and inflexibility. Of course you'd still buy a resale.

However if one cares less about staying in a luxurious suite, and can comfortably stay in Super 8, the timeshare market isn't for you at all.

 

[Dalmore]

Super 8 fits DW's definition of "camping". She doesn't camp.

 

[oldie]

Yes, then I agree that timeshare makes sense in this case.


OTOH, the timeshare sales guy was puzzled when I told him the maintenance fees (1200) for one week stay is ridiculously expensive amount, even in Tokyo and Singapore I paid less for a one week stay. But then, I don't even use dryer sheets, I dry clothes in the backyard.


To each his own

 

[ER2B]

Thanks for the posts here. I shared with my DD and SIL. They're going to one for the first time.

 

[Scuba]

I think the one we went to years ago was Hilton, not Wyndham. We aren’t really good candidates for this because we often prefer to get an Airbnb in a local neighborhood instead of a posh resort that will only have tourists. Or if we do a resort, we like private island resorts with very small hotels. We listened to their pitch, then asked to see their list of properties that participated in their program. We looked up the 3 private island resorts we had most recently been to. Of course, none were in their program so the salesperson gave up on us quickly and sent us away with our $200 gift card.

 

[Music Lover]

We bought a small "discovery" package from Wyndham and used it to take a small tour of the US (we're Canadian). We stayed in Myrtle Beach, Edisto, Panama City Beach, Nashville, etc., and by choosing off-peak periods the cost worked out to about $80 CDN per night. For that we got 600 - 850 sq. ft. places with a full kitchen. We pay no fees of any type when we stay.

We plan on staying in Orlando in January at which point our points will have run out. So for us it was a good deal as we got to travel to a bunch of places we may not have gone to otherwise. And $80 CDN a night for a nice place with a kitchen in those places is a great deal. A low end hotel room costs that much or more.

Each place we stayed at invited us to a presentation offering us breakfast and a $100 or $150 pre-paid Visa card. So we went to 5 or 6 presentations, had breakfast, and collected about $750 US ($1000 CDN) for our efforts. We had no problem telling them that we had no interest in owning a timeshare.

We're currently in Kissimmee for a couple weeks where our Wyndham Discovery points will run out. As I mentioned in my previous comment, the Discovery package worked out nice for us...we got to tour several areas in the US for about $80 Canadian per night. All the rooms had a full kitchen and laundry 600 - 850 sq ft and we think we got our money's worth.

We went to one last sales pitch yesterday and received another $150 pre-paid Visa card. They promised that it would only be an hour but we were out of there in a half hour. As soon as we met the salesperson I said, "We've been to 6 of these presentations before and said "no" every time. Our answer will be "no" again and we told them that when we checked in but they pressured us to come. We're sorry for wasting your time." We could have put our foot down and said no when we checked in but decided that if they were stupid enough to pay us $150 every time we said "no" then we'd take them up on it.

Surprisingly, the salesperson didn't push it, I guess he knew it was a losing battle. He went through the motions for a half hour and then we collected the $150 and left.

We'd never own a time share but in our case, the Discovery package was worthwhile.

 

[plsprius]

The timeshare presentation is a similar sales experience to buying a car at a high pressure dealership.

But, if you are "strong" and know what you are looking for (or not, in the case of a timeshare), the benefits of the multiple day stay, airline miles bonus, discounted car, and the like makes for a fine subsidized vacation at a nice resort. I figure the salespeople need more experience, and I'm happy to have them practice on me.

I've done it twice in 10 years, and just accepted another one.

 

[Markola]

I just received a letter from Wyndham timeshares. It shows a balance of over $32,000 in accumulated maintenance fees at $230/month. These people never give up. I laughed, and once again invested in a postage stamp on their return envelope to tell them that my father in law died nearly ten years ago.

 

[Ready]

I just received a letter from Wyndham timeshares. It shows a balance of over $32,000 in accumulated maintenance fees at $230/month. These people never give up. I laughed, and once again invested in a postage stamp on their return envelope to tell them that my father in law died nearly ten years ago.

Wow. How did they get your contact information? What is the law regarding financial requirements of maintenance fees after one's death? Is the estate still responsible, assuming there is one?

 

[Dtail]

I happen to just come back from Vegas and part of my vacation we stayed at a Hilton as part of a timeshare sell. 4 days and 3 nights.
We actually waited 30 minutes until they spoke to us. I reminded them about the 2 hour limit. The first 30 minutes there was a presentation about some of the properties and some details. It was done well and was interesting.
The last part we were showed various room layouts all in one "apartment". The harder sales portion lasted about 25 minutes.
I asked a few financial questions that the "finance guy" had trouble with. 2 more pushes from them and I just told them due to various financial factors and a recent "personal issue", I have to pass.

It was worth it to me, not as much to the DGF. For me it was kind of a game and we stayed in a suite which was clearly nicer than our usual Hampton Inn type accommodations.

 

[punkinhead]

My wife works for one of the large timeshare companies mentioned in this thread. An employee benefit is a free week at any property each year, assuming there's an opening. We rarely used it because resorts don't fit in with how we like to vacation but we did use it a few times over the years. Once we stayed in a suite in a very nice new resort and they tried to talk us into sitting through a sales pitch. I told them that we were staying free due to my wife working for their parent company but they insisted that purchasing a unit would be a "very good deal". I asked, "better than free?" and that was the end of the conversation.

 

[Markola]

Wow. How did they get your contact information? What is the law regarding financial requirements of maintenance fees after one's death? Is the estate still responsible, assuming there is one?

We had my late DFIL’s mail forwarded to our address to assist us in closing out the estate. There’s nothing left of the estate, as he died a nice, fun guy who was destitute due to a lifetime of dumb financial choices, including buying timeshares. I imagine one middle finger reaching out of his grave at these vultures who who not give up. I could pay for a lawyer to write a “go shove it” letter, but Wyndham’s computers only bother us with an automated bill every year or so, which we will of course never, ever pay.