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Hello...I am new here, and my husband and I just returned from a week-long stay at Westgate Lakes. A friend of ours offered us use of her timeshare at Westgate Lakes for a long-overdue vacation. Before we left, she advised us to steer clear of the sales people and she said that we should not buy under any circumstances. She told me that she's sunk about $20K into her timeshare at Westgate Lakes, and how it's been the biggest regret of her life. My husband and I are in no position to buy into a timeshare anyway, so we didn't feel we were in any real danger.
Before we left for Orlando, my husband purchased Disney tickets through Westgate. Once the transaction went through, the sales rep on the phone advised us that our attendance at the timeshare preso was required before we'd be given the actual tickets.
We arrived at the resort on Sunday and were transported by golf cart to our room...it was a studio, small, but enough space for us for the week. I was not impressed with the decor (it looked very 80s), but I wasn't going to complain; our friend was generous enough to let us use her timeshare. We were horrified to discover the next morning that the unit we were in had an insect problem. When we went to the main building for the presentation we told one of the attendants that we needed to be moved to another unit. They were very nice and apologetic, and told us they would have us moved as soon as we finished the presentation. Whatever.
For our presentation, we were introduced to a gregarious, fast-talking New Yorker named "Joe". He took us up to the second level for the buffet breakfast (which was pre-packaged crap served on styrofoam plates). While we were eating he chatted us up and schmoozed us, getting us buttered up for the big sell. The whole time "Joe" was chatting, my husband and I kept nudging each other under the table. When we went on a tour of the property, we were given the wonderful song-and-dance about how the owners at Westgate were 100% satisfied with the property and how it was run, and how that Siegal owner dude was the best thing since sliced bread. When "Joe" took us to see the "piece de resistance", a four-bedroom, two-story unit, we were mildly impressed. The "Fantasy Island-esque" decor really threw me. I was waiting for Mr. Roarke and Tattoo to appear and welcome us.
So when we got back to the main building to talk numbers, "Joe" started scratching out figures and fast-talking us, and the next thing we knew, he was talking about an $8700 down-payment and if we'd be putting it on a credit card. HELL-TO-THE-NO! My husband was very stern in telling "Joe" no. Well, "Joe" kept scribbling figures and he went from $8700 to $4500 down-payment. When "Joe" refused to acknowledge my husband's refusal he turned to me. I told him, he really didn't want to hear what I had to say about the cost of timesharing versus booking hotel rooms. I've traveled a lot for work over the past few years, and accumulate hotel points with the Marriott, the Sheraton, etc. I've been able to vacation for free because I had enough hotel and airline points to cover the cost of reservations. When "Joe" heard that, he began going in on the "you'll-have-a-deed" spiel. We were unmoved. While he was struggling to break us, some linebacker looking sales dude
came to our table and asked "Joe" if he got a phone call from some person. My husband and I knew that was nothing more than a sign from one shyster to another. 
The linebacker came back a few minutes later and started in on the "I know you think you can't afford it" script and how he could offer us a resale as some owner just called and upgraded to a bigger unit. All the while, sales reps were standing up making the fake-a$$ "Sales team, remove unit blah-blah-blah week number whatever from your inventory sheets. It's just been sold to the Stupid family from Suckerville, Ohio!" I told my husband later I bet the use the same unit numbers and same weeks every day.
When my husband told Joe's linebacker friend that he wasn't interested and that we prefer to go the hotel route for our vacations, the linebacker's facial expression changed and then asked us why were we there wasting their time. What the eff? Then he started up the guilt soundtrack hoping that one of us would bend. He then launched into a series of questions about how we got down there and how much we paid. I told him we were guests of an owner -- a paying owner -- and she made the reservations for us. He asked us how much we were paying her. My husband and I decided to give her $250 although she didn't ask for it; when we told him we were paying her about $200 to use her timeshare for the week, then the linebacker tells us he could give us a $200 discount off of the $4500 or so. Big whoop. Then he started in on the "you're probably struggling, but you need a vacation so let me show you what I can do for you." The prices were cut in half, and now they were looking for about $2000 in a down payment. My husband told them no again. Next thing we knew, some long-haired chick in heels, tight dress pants and a low-cut blouse
shows up with a notepad. Joe and the linebacker leave the table. Cleavage Girl proceeds to scratch down some figures, all the while, leaning towards my husband so he could see her ample cleavage. She forgot I was sitting at the table. When my husband turned down her "good deal" of $125 down, $99 a month, and $34 in maintenance fees. Joe returned to the table with a sheet we were supposed to sign saying we acknowledged we weren't permitted to attend another sales preso and that Westgate management could refuse us access to the resort at a future date. Whatever. As if we wanted to stay at their raggedy resort ever again anyway.
Joe then very nicely told us he knew it was all an act on our part, but that it was okay with him we had to do what we had to do. Another ploy to try to guilt us into buying. We didn't fall for it, and asked him for our discounted Disney tickets (which at $210 for 2 persons for a 3-park/3-day visit was a great deal).
Now here's where they got us. When we went downstairs to get the tickets we were asked to provide email addresses of people we thought would be interested and that they would give us free stuff. We thought we'd get more discounts perhaps to use for Universal tickets. Were we naive. We were given two cheap-a$$ money pouches emblazoned with Westgate's ugly-a$$ logo. I made the ridiculous mistake of letting the Westgate sales demon talk me into logging into my email account on one of their computers and clicking email addresses through a Plaxo interface, giving them permission to pull the persons contact info. I thought I was outwitting them by going through and deliberately selecting invalid email addresses that were saved to my address book, and I also selected my husband's and my alternate email addresses. Well, to my horror, one of my girlfriends called me this morning to tell me she got a call from Westgate. Her email address was NOT one of the ones I selected. I panicked. When I used their computer they most likely pulled my entire address book in, or at least more contact info than I checked on the list for them to pull. Dumb mistake!
Then this morning, I logged into my email and noticed that several of the emails in my inbox were marked as 'read', but I had not seen or read any of the emails from the previous day! Once I changed my email password, I didn't have any more problems. Now I have to send out an email and/or call everyone on my contact list to warn them about Westgate. I talked to a couple of people and told them to let me know if Westgate calls or emails them. In the meantime, I will be filing a compaint against them with the Florida AG's office. 
It doesn't end there! About mid-week, I got a call from some buffoon fronting as a concerned management person wanting to inquire about the bugs in our room and our reception with the sales person. Of course, the conversation steered in the direction of the sales perosn. The buffoon, we'll call him Pancho, was oh-so-concerned about what we thought of the presentation about Joe and about how we were treated. I told him I didn't want to go into it with him. He wanted to set up time for me and my husband to come to his sales office to talk about the bugs and the sales info over coffee. After sampling that wack-a$$ buffet they were passing off as a "full breakfast" I surely didn't want to try having their coffee. He kept pushing me to make an appointment, and I told him we were down there to enjoy Orlando and Disney, and not to sit through endless rounds of high pressure sales pitches. Eventually he backed down.
Anyone considering visiting or buying at the Westgate, DON'T. The place is not worth the money. I've stayed at budget hotels that were of a much higher quality than the Westgate. The decor is outdated. The facilities, while passable for some, lacks adequate accommodations for families. Their planned activities were so boring and screamed "senior citizen" -- "Make a Crochet Wallet", "Play Twister/Bingo", "Make a Replica of Your Villa Using Popsicle Sticks" -- that I thought they'd give out jello and help you remove your dentures at the end of the evening. The Westgate is famous for nickel-and-diming owners and guests for every little thing. The in-room internet usage rate amounts to highway robbery. Their on-property restaurant, the Smokehouse Grill is mediocre at best. Most of the staff there is very friendly, although some are less than efficient. For the money they want people to shell out, their product and service is NOT worth it. At all.
If you can stomach the pushy sales people, then you will be okay. Just note, they WILL call you if you don't attend one of their timeshare cult meetings whether you own or are a guest), and they don't take NO for an answer. My husband and I watched a proper, reserved family go carnival-show-crazy on their sales rep and stormed out of the room. The location is great...it's smack dab in the middle of Universal Studios and Disney World. There's a Wal-Mart down the street, and it's only about 5 minutes away from International Drive and lots of shopping and restaurants.
STAY AWAY FROM THE WESTGATE LAKES. Unless, you'd like to live out the saying "A fool and his money will soon part."
Before we left for Orlando, my husband purchased Disney tickets through Westgate. Once the transaction went through, the sales rep on the phone advised us that our attendance at the timeshare preso was required before we'd be given the actual tickets.
We arrived at the resort on Sunday and were transported by golf cart to our room...it was a studio, small, but enough space for us for the week. I was not impressed with the decor (it looked very 80s), but I wasn't going to complain; our friend was generous enough to let us use her timeshare. We were horrified to discover the next morning that the unit we were in had an insect problem. When we went to the main building for the presentation we told one of the attendants that we needed to be moved to another unit. They were very nice and apologetic, and told us they would have us moved as soon as we finished the presentation. Whatever.
For our presentation, we were introduced to a gregarious, fast-talking New Yorker named "Joe". He took us up to the second level for the buffet breakfast (which was pre-packaged crap served on styrofoam plates). While we were eating he chatted us up and schmoozed us, getting us buttered up for the big sell. The whole time "Joe" was chatting, my husband and I kept nudging each other under the table. When we went on a tour of the property, we were given the wonderful song-and-dance about how the owners at Westgate were 100% satisfied with the property and how it was run, and how that Siegal owner dude was the best thing since sliced bread. When "Joe" took us to see the "piece de resistance", a four-bedroom, two-story unit, we were mildly impressed. The "Fantasy Island-esque" decor really threw me. I was waiting for Mr. Roarke and Tattoo to appear and welcome us.
So when we got back to the main building to talk numbers, "Joe" started scratching out figures and fast-talking us, and the next thing we knew, he was talking about an $8700 down-payment and if we'd be putting it on a credit card. HELL-TO-THE-NO! My husband was very stern in telling "Joe" no. Well, "Joe" kept scribbling figures and he went from $8700 to $4500 down-payment. When "Joe" refused to acknowledge my husband's refusal he turned to me. I told him, he really didn't want to hear what I had to say about the cost of timesharing versus booking hotel rooms. I've traveled a lot for work over the past few years, and accumulate hotel points with the Marriott, the Sheraton, etc. I've been able to vacation for free because I had enough hotel and airline points to cover the cost of reservations. When "Joe" heard that, he began going in on the "you'll-have-a-deed" spiel. We were unmoved. While he was struggling to break us, some linebacker looking sales dude
came to our table and asked "Joe" if he got a phone call from some person. My husband and I knew that was nothing more than a sign from one shyster to another. The linebacker came back a few minutes later and started in on the "I know you think you can't afford it" script and how he could offer us a resale as some owner just called and upgraded to a bigger unit. All the while, sales reps were standing up making the fake-a$$ "Sales team, remove unit blah-blah-blah week number whatever from your inventory sheets. It's just been sold to the Stupid family from Suckerville, Ohio!" I told my husband later I bet the use the same unit numbers and same weeks every day.When my husband told Joe's linebacker friend that he wasn't interested and that we prefer to go the hotel route for our vacations, the linebacker's facial expression changed and then asked us why were we there wasting their time. What the eff? Then he started up the guilt soundtrack hoping that one of us would bend. He then launched into a series of questions about how we got down there and how much we paid. I told him we were guests of an owner -- a paying owner -- and she made the reservations for us. He asked us how much we were paying her. My husband and I decided to give her $250 although she didn't ask for it; when we told him we were paying her about $200 to use her timeshare for the week, then the linebacker tells us he could give us a $200 discount off of the $4500 or so. Big whoop. Then he started in on the "you're probably struggling, but you need a vacation so let me show you what I can do for you." The prices were cut in half, and now they were looking for about $2000 in a down payment. My husband told them no again. Next thing we knew, some long-haired chick in heels, tight dress pants and a low-cut blouse
shows up with a notepad. Joe and the linebacker leave the table. Cleavage Girl proceeds to scratch down some figures, all the while, leaning towards my husband so he could see her ample cleavage. She forgot I was sitting at the table. When my husband turned down her "good deal" of $125 down, $99 a month, and $34 in maintenance fees. Joe returned to the table with a sheet we were supposed to sign saying we acknowledged we weren't permitted to attend another sales preso and that Westgate management could refuse us access to the resort at a future date. Whatever. As if we wanted to stay at their raggedy resort ever again anyway.Joe then very nicely told us he knew it was all an act on our part, but that it was okay with him we had to do what we had to do. Another ploy to try to guilt us into buying. We didn't fall for it, and asked him for our discounted Disney tickets (which at $210 for 2 persons for a 3-park/3-day visit was a great deal).
Now here's where they got us. When we went downstairs to get the tickets we were asked to provide email addresses of people we thought would be interested and that they would give us free stuff. We thought we'd get more discounts perhaps to use for Universal tickets. Were we naive. We were given two cheap-a$$ money pouches emblazoned with Westgate's ugly-a$$ logo. I made the ridiculous mistake of letting the Westgate sales demon talk me into logging into my email account on one of their computers and clicking email addresses through a Plaxo interface, giving them permission to pull the persons contact info. I thought I was outwitting them by going through and deliberately selecting invalid email addresses that were saved to my address book, and I also selected my husband's and my alternate email addresses. Well, to my horror, one of my girlfriends called me this morning to tell me she got a call from Westgate. Her email address was NOT one of the ones I selected. I panicked. When I used their computer they most likely pulled my entire address book in, or at least more contact info than I checked on the list for them to pull. Dumb mistake!
Then this morning, I logged into my email and noticed that several of the emails in my inbox were marked as 'read', but I had not seen or read any of the emails from the previous day! Once I changed my email password, I didn't have any more problems. Now I have to send out an email and/or call everyone on my contact list to warn them about Westgate. I talked to a couple of people and told them to let me know if Westgate calls or emails them. In the meantime, I will be filing a compaint against them with the Florida AG's office. It doesn't end there! About mid-week, I got a call from some buffoon fronting as a concerned management person wanting to inquire about the bugs in our room and our reception with the sales person. Of course, the conversation steered in the direction of the sales perosn. The buffoon, we'll call him Pancho, was oh-so-concerned about what we thought of the presentation about Joe and about how we were treated. I told him I didn't want to go into it with him. He wanted to set up time for me and my husband to come to his sales office to talk about the bugs and the sales info over coffee. After sampling that wack-a$$ buffet they were passing off as a "full breakfast" I surely didn't want to try having their coffee. He kept pushing me to make an appointment, and I told him we were down there to enjoy Orlando and Disney, and not to sit through endless rounds of high pressure sales pitches. Eventually he backed down.
Anyone considering visiting or buying at the Westgate, DON'T. The place is not worth the money. I've stayed at budget hotels that were of a much higher quality than the Westgate. The decor is outdated. The facilities, while passable for some, lacks adequate accommodations for families. Their planned activities were so boring and screamed "senior citizen" -- "Make a Crochet Wallet", "Play Twister/Bingo", "Make a Replica of Your Villa Using Popsicle Sticks" -- that I thought they'd give out jello and help you remove your dentures at the end of the evening. The Westgate is famous for nickel-and-diming owners and guests for every little thing. The in-room internet usage rate amounts to highway robbery. Their on-property restaurant, the Smokehouse Grill is mediocre at best. Most of the staff there is very friendly, although some are less than efficient. For the money they want people to shell out, their product and service is NOT worth it. At all.
If you can stomach the pushy sales people, then you will be okay. Just note, they WILL call you if you don't attend one of their timeshare cult meetings whether you own or are a guest), and they don't take NO for an answer. My husband and I watched a proper, reserved family go carnival-show-crazy on their sales rep and stormed out of the room. The location is great...it's smack dab in the middle of Universal Studios and Disney World. There's a Wal-Mart down the street, and it's only about 5 minutes away from International Drive and lots of shopping and restaurants.
STAY AWAY FROM THE WESTGATE LAKES. Unless, you'd like to live out the saying "A fool and his money will soon part."
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