How did you purchase your first timeshare?

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

Technically we didn't buy our first. My MIL "gave" it to us as a Christmas present. She purchased it from the developer years before and never used it. I'm actually looking to unload it now as the MFs are getting too high and it no longer has the TP it used to with II. But, it was a cheap way for me to learn about TSing. I was almost addicted to research and learned how to make the most of it. Aaah the days when I use to deposit it with II, get an AC that was worth something and trade both into DVC. Those were the days.

My first real TS I purchased. It was on Ebay.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

1999 was our 25th anniversary. Going to Hawai'i had long been a dream. Sometime around March or April of 1999 we got an offer in the mail from Marriott for seven days, six nights at the Kauai Beach Club + rental car + $75 in gift certificates usable on anything charged to the room for $499. I had enough frequent flyer miles banked to for two tickets for us. We decided this was what we were waiting for.

When we checked in they offered us another $75 in gift certs + a few other goodies if we signed up to do timeshare sales tour. We thought that sounded like a good deal, so we signed up. They wanted to the tour the day before we left (for obvious reasons we now realize) but we insisted that we wanted to get it out of the way early, so they scheduled us for the next day. We had an outstanding salesman. He totally sold us on timesharing. It was exactly what we had been looking for, without realizing it, and he opened our eyes. We ended up buying two one-bedroom units at Marriott KBC.

As the week proceeded we went around, and one day we were wandering through the Ching Young shopping center in Hawai'i, and wandered past a timeshare resales store. I looked at the ads posted in the window, and saw units listed that looked identical to what we had purchased for a fraction of the price we paid. Ultimately I went in, learned about the resale market, and learned that there were lots of other timeshares on Hawaii besides KBC. We were still sold on timeshare, so we spent a bit of time winnowing down the options and decided that we were mostly interested in the southeast and south shore areas. Before we left we left we visited Kaua'i Beach Villas, Lawai Beach, and Embassy Po'ipu, and decided that Po'ipu was the place for us. After we got home we rescinded our Mariott purchases, and started looking for an Embassy Po'ipu resale.

The rest is history.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

I purchased my first TS from the developer...can't say I regret this as it opened up a whole new world of luxury travel from my family. When we didn't use the TS, we traded in for points and were able to do travel packages that included air and hotel. I then discovered resales - and how different ownerships got me to different places. I then started learning about point based TSs and am really enjoying these ownerships as they offer great flexibility.

Over the years I have purchased units and sold units,,,,I love Caribbean Travel so have many ownerships there.
just always seem to be tweaking....

[bjones9942 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close bjones9942]

After a great Mexican cruise, I decided that I'd like to spend a little more time in Mexico. Ebay has been my (too close) friend for some time now, so I searched and found that timeshares were crazy low ($1). Did my homework, waited until what I wanted came around and then I snagged it. That was four years ago. Since then have added (resale) one more timeshare in Mexico and an eoy in South Lake Tahoe. Unless I hit the lotto, this is where my available vacation time and budget line up!

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

I never heard timeshare before I have no idea or clue, until we went to TN smoky mountain and stay on a resorts, they said 90minutes and it ended up with intimidate high pressure 4 hours sale, me and my husband so innocent until we gave up and believe them talking about good investment for our kids, by the time we know we signing the contract just to get out there and we even put big down payment, while on vacation I keep thinking about it. Until we got home and start searching what timeshare is. Believe me is shocked me! I felt so bad. I start digging the contract with headache and it took me a while to find and figure it out how to cancel. By the time I find out it was 10 days and its night. So I mailed my certified mail for rescinding at 11 days. (in Tennessee it's 10 days to cancel) so they got my mail and they saying we cannot cancel and sell it instead. I know we cannot sell it because it is too expensive for 1br deluxe. and our monthly bill start kicking, I'm here trying to find out what to do to finish this mess. We make a mistake and I don't know why we did not scream saying NO, I know they have good mouth and now we stuck, the money is supposed to be for our kids education. Anybody here can help me what to do? thanks

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

I bought my first two timeshare a couple of weeks apart, directly from the developer. I didn't know any better at the time. I purchased my third timeshare from ebay......All in all, I feel that timesharing has been good to me, so no real regrets.

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

We "baby sat" a friends parrot while they went on a cruise/resort vacation to tour TS (1997). We said have fun, but DO NOT BUY!!! We did not own any TS's but had heard bad stories from the old days... Well of course they did buy. They were NAVY, and we watched for 3 years as they did not use what they purchased. I started researching (when I found out they paid $800 to "sell it") and found we liked the system. At the same time, I discovered the resale market and knew they could never recoup their $$. We wanted to try it out, offered to use their points and pay their MF's for what we used (they were doing nothing). Loved the WYN resorts and flex of system, so bought some resale points. To this day, they still do nothing with it.. and it is at a very high MF property...

[philsfan Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close philsfan]

We went to BIS-DUCK with my BIL and SIL for a couple of years for week 52. In the 2nd or 3rd year we found a flyer on our car offering 'closeout' weeks sold by the resort. We called and had the guy over. He was super low pressure. We had been through the high pressure sales presentations at this resort before and had written a deposit check on a 12K unit before grabbing our check back and escaping. This time, the guy laid out what he had available. Recommended the 2 bdr summer week for $5K. Being the smart people that we were, we decided that if we were gonna ever trade the unit, we should grab the 3 bdr week 51 unit for 3400....cause everyone wants to spend Christmas day in a third floor walkup on a beach in the mid-Atlantic area, right? Needless to say, we were not able to trade for much. That frustration lead me to forums like this where I got some education and learned how to work the system a little better. I sold it years later for $1 to a guy who said he was a local and needed a place to store his relatives when they visited during the holidays. Phew.

[mkarizona Member Find all posts View Profile Close mkarizona]

We have been to many timeshare presentations but bought only once and immediately rescinded. I inherited my parents timeshare when they passed away a few years ago. They bought Fairfield Flagstaff from the developer in the early 80s when it first opened and used it mostly for trading. I love our unit and the resort but use it to trade for DVC because my husband won't vacation during the wildfire season.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

A story I've told several times, but I'll go through it again.

Rewind to New Year's Day of 1999. I take three of the kids on a ski trip to eastern BC - myself, two sons (16 years and 21 years) and DD (19 years). I make a budget and to conserve money we are staying in Motel 6 types of units with two queen beds. DD gets one bed. The three males are swapping through sleeping on the bed and sleeping on the floor. Cold cereal, milk and yogurt for breakfast out of the ice chest, lunch on the slopes, and takeout pizza and Chinese in the room for dinner. When we get back and I'm tallying up expenses I'm struck by how much we spent on food.

Later that year - DW and I are celebrating our 25th with a long-dreamed of trip to Hawaii at the Marriott Kauai Beach Club. We decide to take advantage of the freebies for sitting through a sales presentation. The salesman does his spiel, we tour the unit, and I realize that for the same amount of money I spent on that ski trip we could have stayed in a condo with a kitchen by substituting cooking our meals and preparing lunches instead of buying food. At that point I am sold. We sign on the dotted line to purchase two one-bedroom units.

Later that week we are in Hanalei and happen to pass by an timeshare resale office. I see ads posted in the window that are exactly what we bought for about ten percent of the price. I don't believe; if it seems too good to be true, it probably isn't. So we continue on our way. But as we're heading back to Lihue the ads are nagging at me, and I tell DW we need to go back and check this out. So we head back to Hanalei, talk to the guy in the office, and realize this might be true. We also learn that Marriott isn't the only timeshare on Kaua'i, and get an overview of others.

Armed with this info DW and I quickly determine that the South Shore is where we want to be. We focus in on Lawai Beach resort and what is now Diamond Resorts Point at Poipu, and our last day on the island we arrange to check out those properties without going through a formal presentation. We settle on Point at Poipu as the place for us.

First thing after we get home we rescind the Marriott contract and begin searching for a resale at Point at Poipu. Four months later we found our unit and closed the sale.

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

My story starts where many before me have started. Hawaii.

I'm lucky in that I have always sought out condos or vacation homes to rent. My kids ask me how I did that before the internet. I can hardly remember. Magazine ads I guess. Hawaii magazine in particular used to be chock full of FRBO before the internet came along...now, not so much. Sometimes travel agents. Anyway, we already avoided hotel rooms when at all possible. We have also done the cereal in the room bit along with eating on the edge of the bed if there was no table.

Timeshare was a natural transition. I just didn't know HOW. I didn't have the kind of money necessary to buy from the developer. I knew this because looong ago we attended a high pressure pitch up in Big Bear before we even had kids. That was back when they would gift you some worthless certificate for a 3 day vacation (that you could never book) or a small b/w TV. Your choice. Thinking back-it was quite likely Lagonita Lodge which I have since stayed at on 99.00 DAE bonus week. Ha!

Along comes the internet and ebay. I had already started hanging around travel and timesharing sites. I was armed with information and with kids and school calendars. I bid on a 1bd Maui unit sight unseen. Fixed unit, fixed week in June. I'm pleased. It's going to be perfect. We love Hawaii! The next usage time we book a trip to Kauai and Maui. By this time my in-laws had started buying Marriotts. They promo us to the Waiohai on Kauai. 599.00 for 5 nights, rental car, $100 resort credit. All 2bd units as many of you know. I want to live there. It's nicer than my then home. I also didn't factor in falling in love with Kauai.

After Kauai we continue on to Maui to "our unit" Oh dear..this resort while nice, is older, it wasn't the Marriott. It feels like a let down. It's a 1bd...the kids are getting bigger and aren't fond of sleeping together let alone on a sleeper sofa. What have I done?

Nothing apparently because I have purchased resale. I sold that unit for pretty much what I paid for it. Had discovered Worldmark in the process and learned that owning a mini system was going to serve my needs much better with stays and trading just fine so I sunk the proceeds into Worldmark Credits. I have since then added a Marriott for trading. Could never shake that Marriott quality after that stay at the Waiohai and of course, the priority in II. And my little beach place in California that I lusted over for years but could never justify the price..that landed in my lap through my participation on the various timeshare boards.

All in all, I think I did very well. I only had to tweak my ownerships once.

AND, just this June while sitting on the beach in the evening at Marriott's Ko'olina, listening to the live music, watching the sunset, my now 17 year old daughter looks over and thanks me...she says I haven't a clue how all your timeshares work and I don't want to know, please leave them to my brother, but just...thank you!

WORTH EVERY PENNY!

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

We went to BIS-DUCK with my BIL and SIL for a couple of years for week 52. In the 2nd or 3rd year we found a flyer on our car offering 'closeout' weeks sold by the resort. We called and had the guy over. He was super low pressure. We had been through the high pressure sales presentations at this resort before and had written a deposit check on a 12K unit before grabbing our check back and escaping. This time, the guy laid out what he had available. Recommended the 2 bdr summer week for $5K. Being the smart people that we were, we decided that if we were gonna ever trade the unit, we should grab the 3 bdr week 51 unit for 3400....cause everyone wants to spend Christmas day in a third floor walkup on a beach in the mid-Atlantic area, right? Needless to say, we were not able to trade for much. That frustration lead me to forums like this where I got some education and learned how to work the system a little better. I sold it years later for $1 to a guy who said he was a local and needed a place to store his relatives when they visited during the holidays. Phew.

Your story made me chuckle...so glad it worked out in the end.

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

Interesting how we all got started.
Thanks for sharing your stories.

My story starts where many before me have started. Hawaii.

I'm lucky in that I have always sought out condos or vacation homes to rent. My kids ask me how I did that before the internet. I can hardly remember. Magazine ads I guess. Hawaii magazine in particular used to be chock full of FRBO before the internet came along...now, not so much.
!

Now thinking back, my actual first stay in a timeshare for rent was at Napili Shores in Maui.
I found it in the Entertainment book under the condo rental section.
I used to use the Entertainment book alot for hotel discounts before the internet.

Had no clue it was a timeshare til we checked in.
We had an oceanfront unit with a very short walk to the beach.
I was thrilled that even back then this unit cost us only around $40 a night.
I almost thought it was a scam.
This was back in 1987 or 88.

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

Interesting how we all got started.
Thanks for sharing your stories.






Now thinking back, my actual first stay in a timeshare for rent was at Napili Shores in Maui.
I found it in the Entertainment book under the condo rental section.
I used to use the Entertainment book alot for hotel discounts before the internet.

Had no clue it was a timeshare til we checked in.
We had an oceanfront unit with a very short walk to the beach.
I was thrilled that even back then this unit cost us only around $40 a night.
I almost thought it was a scam.
This was back in 1987 or 88.

Yes! Entertainment book was the hot tip for half priced stays too!

[ptlohmysoul Member Find all posts View Profile Close ptlohmysoul]

We don't own a timeshare, but dMIL does. I always believed it to be a waste of money. Then, we saw she wasn't using it and offered to use it so it wouldn't go to waste . After staying at three separate places in 1 year and really enjoying it, dMIL suggested we pay for it (sort of takes the enjoyment out of it). Then, we rented a ts at dvc. Now that Disney has timeshares, it can't be all that bad :/. Then, I found out we could go through the ts and rci and get a dvc even cheaper than renting through an owner. That got me into research mode to see if we'd be willing to accept the ts if we get it through inheritance.