Opinions about timeshare companies

[lej3156 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close lej3156]

Does anyone have any positive or negative experiences they can share regarding timeshares?

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Anyone else chuckling?

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

Just about everyone does. Our chief nattering nabob of negativity is probably JLB. It's a dirty rotten industry and most of those involved in sales or other cons are the scum of the earth in suits.

[timeos2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timeos2]

What Tony said. & JLB (Jim). And most of the other largely negative posts you'll find here & on most timeshare related BBS's.

Don't get it wrong - a well selected timeshare used right can represent a great bargain. But the companies that sell & market them - or in many cases if those same companies manage them vs an owner or independent management - then you are likely to hear little but bad reports across the spectrum. Their tactics & alleged ethics are, lets say, questionable in the best of cases and outright frauds in the all too common worst.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

For all but a small number of timeshares, free is too expensive.

Yeah, those guys know because they've seen me convert from an hours-a-day, every-day timeshare advocate over the last 15 years.

They've soured, too.

We got old. We soured. Oh well.

[lej3156 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close lej3156]

Well I knew there were negative opinions out there...but wow! lol I'm doing some research for a company I work for and thought I'd "poll" the users. I have a timeshare and absolutely love it! Use it every year and have gone various places from Hawaii to Colorado to florida to Canada. I wouldn't be going on these vacations without it. Bad experiences definitely make a bad rap for the good timeshare people.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

Unless you fully utilize a timeshare and the annual cost is reasonable, you have a lifetime liability. When times are bad timeshares are the first thing people try to get rid of. That's the reality, but some of us do enjoy our timeshares and travels.

[BWolf Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BWolf]

If you are asking about experiences with exchange companies, let me just say that we are strictly Interval International users. We also have gone many places by exchanging. Sometimes the process is long, laborious, and slow. We are looking to exchange to Devon or Cornwall in England next summer, but nothing has come available yet. So, by the time we get an exchange, it will be too late to use air miles for the flights. Maybe we will upgrade our seats with our air miles, but it may be too late to do that as well. So, there are these little issues to deal with.

OTOH, exchanges may come quickly and be surprisingly good. We got an exchange to Marriott's Marbella that we used for our wedding anniversary! My wife's brother and sister met us there and their daughter, who was studying in Spain, joined us as well because it was spring break. We had a great time. There was the little matter of the Ash Cloud that led BA to cancel our flights to London and Madrid, but we overcame that by booking thru the Portuguese Airline. The Ash Cloud experience, including arriving later than expected and taking the train from Madrid to Malaga (preferente class, lots of free wine) is now a staple of family folklore.

BTW, we have so many air miles now because we had originally booked all flights to Spain with them. BA graciously restored them, as well as our "tax" money.

I'd say we don't regret owning our timeshares. We'd like to sell one or two, but that is another matter entirely.

HTH

[Presley Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Presley]

I my family, owning a TS is the only way we ever take 5 + days off of work for travel. I like the mini-systems in Grand Pacific Resorts and HGVC. One of my GPR units allows me to book several smaller stays or the full week. The HGVC is very flexible and lets me trade online with RCI if I want to. I buy where I want to stay. I haven't had a lot of the issues that others have with their timeshares, but I am also fairly new to TS.

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

You happen to be asking your question at a time when an unprecendented number of owners are trying, unsuccessfully, to unload the financial anchor that comes with timesharing.

They are unable to do that because there is an unprecendented number of owners trying to unload . . . .

It is not an entirely dissimilar situation than the housing debacle, where, for instance, Floridians' homes all of a sudden were worth one half what they previously were worth, but their house payments were still high, based on a value that no longer existed.

Would you expect them to be overjoyed about that?

[chriskre Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close chriskre]

I'm happy with most of my ownerships but did overbuy and can't fully utilize what I own so am paring down by giving away a few.
It's been a good ride with lots and lots of really cheap vacations, but now I'm more into the experience and wanting to upgrade the quality a bit.

I'm still gonna take advantage of the bargains and there are plenty here living in FL, but I'm definitely planning further in advance to get more out of my ownerships than just quantity. So far it's working pretty good. I've booked 6 weeks for next year already and one for 2014. Something I never would have done in the past. It's all thanks to the good people here on the forum who have taught me how to work the systems.

Luckily most of what I bought has value to a Floridian so it's fairly easy to downsize. I actually have a few friends fighting over a week I am giving away. It only cost me a $1 but I searched ebay for it for months to get it and it's at a great resort close by that all my friends love since they visit me every year there.

I'll probably regret downsizing once I retire and have more freedom but for now 8 ownerships is way too much. I was just being greedy.

[Jasonb334 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jasonb334]

Well I knew there were negative opinions out there...but wow! lol I'm doing some research for a company I work for and thought I'd "poll" the users. I have a timeshare and absolutely love it! Use it every year and have gone various places from Hawaii to Colorado to florida to Canada. I wouldn't be going on these vacations without it. Bad experiences definitely make a bad rap for the good timeshare people.

You mention that you are doing research for a company you work for, is it a timeshare related company? or ?

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

Well I knew there were negative opinions out there...but wow! lol I'm doing some research for a company I work for and thought I'd "poll" the users. I have a timeshare and absolutely love it! Use it every year and have gone various places from Hawaii to Colorado to florida to Canada. I wouldn't be going on these vacations without it. Bad experiences definitely make a bad rap for the good timeshare people.

Well, we have gone on more than 120 exchanges, most very nice, and most that we would not have done without owning a timeshare.

So what?

That's got nothing to do with us owning a timeshare now. or 6

[ronandjoan Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close ronandjoan]

Check out my BLOG

we're in our 5th year of full time timesharing

JOAN

http://ronandjoanjourney.blogspot.com/

[JLB Please excuse me, I'm a Dick. Not a moron just a Dick Find all posts View Profile Close JLB]

A new Ray Harper.