Timeshare…to buy or not to buy. That’s the expensive question. Who doesn’t love a vacation right. For me vacation equals warmth and either a beach or a nice pool. I love basking in the sun all day with a drink in hand, but I also love doing fun things. In my opinion, Florida is a well-rounded “go to” place that can fulfill all the vacation needs, and for us New Yorkers it’s a quick flight away.
I really like Florida. Especially Orlando. I love the warmth and sunshine. And I know, it rains often as well but that doesn’t usually last long enough to be a bother. There are so many things to do and of course I also love the parks. Even though I’m not a Disney fanatic, I do believe there is something magical about it.
A resort feel without the Disney price tag
At 20, I took my first trip to Florida and my first (of many trips) to Disney World and I loved every minute of it. We stayed at a friends timeshare in Florida called Vistana Resorts. And it was a beautiful place. The rooms were actually these 2 bedroom apartments with a kitchen and dining area enough to accommodate a good sized group. The grounds were really nice with lovely palm trees and landscaping. The pools and hot tub were definitely resort worthy.
So when my son was 5, we decided to bring him to Disney for the first time. We didn’t want to get sucked into paying a fortune to stay on Disney property. And since you’re not spending much time in the room anyway, we felt it was better money spent in the parks. The Vistana still gives you the resort feel plus it’s also great because it’s centralized to every attraction. So we decided to give it a shot to see if it was still as great as we remembered.
Timeshare vacations
It’s a Sheraton property so anyone can go online and book one of the 1, 2-, or 3-Bedroom Villas. At check in they will offer you a timeshare presentation and if you agree to do it, they give you $100-$150 credit or visa gift card. You basically promise to give them “one hour” of your time to hear all about becoming an owner of a timeshare. If you’re already an owner than they offer you the “owners update”. You’re basically agreeing to hear their pitch to sell you a timeshare or if you’re an owner, to sell you more. If you don’t mind sitting through the spiel, it’s an easy way to earn free money.
Being the sucker that I am and not knowing how to say no, I take the presentation. On the morning of, they give you some coffee and muffins and wait for your sales specialist pick you up. After about 10 minutes the sales specialist takes you back to their cubicle, and the wheeling and dealing begins.
World traveling
They tell you that you about all the opportunities you have by owning a timeshare. You could travel the world by simply trading your week. You name it, Italy, Bali, France, Hawaii…the possibilities are endless. As enticing as it was, world traveling wasn’t in the cards for me at that time. My son was 5 and as a working single mother. Florida was the most realistic. I wanted a place to be able to always take him to especially since we loved it there.
For me, I’m content in Orlando. There are so many things to do even without the parks. Plus, the resort itself was great with so many of their own amenities. We sat there for well over an hour while they showed us all the “options” we get by buying into the Vistana property.
Trading timeshare weeks
They also told us about an option to “trade your week” for international travel through a banking system called Interval International. Pick your desired location and travel date and you’re off.
After our TWO hours of questions and promises of the best vacations ever, they came back with the whopping price, of 25,000 dollars!! Wait WHAT?! At this point you think I would’ve run, but nope. They continued to talk us into how worth it is. So if we used this timeshare to go to Hawaii for the next 5 years of vacation, the cost of the timeshare would “pay for itself”. Our particular timeshare has about 12 places available to us without trading and Hawaii is one of them. Awesome right?!
But who’s going to Hawaii every year. Especially when a week really isn’t enough when it basically takes a day for you to get there and back. But ok I’m still listening. They went onto explain how it could be upwards of $500 a night at a regular hotel in Hawaii. So if you were actually able to find availability with your timeshare then you’re getting the resort experience and that’s what you get as an “owner”.
Pros
The deal is good if you know that you will always get to go away every year. If you can’t go one year, you do get to bank your week. That means the following year you have two weeks to use. That would be a great options if you could snag a place like Hawaii. You can also bank the week for international travel as well through an external company called Interval International.
If you are an avid traveler, then the timeshare option could be a way to go.
Also we own this timeshare forever. Some timeshares are only good for 99 years. But this I actually have a deed that I can pass down to my son if I choose.
When you’re an owner, there is a week dedicated and available to you (at your home base location). So you’re always going to be able to go away. And most timeshares are very flexible with how you choose your week.
Cons
They are very expensive. Upwards of $25k. And once you’ve paid your mortgage, you’re never completely FREE. In addition to the property cost, you have to pay an annual maintenance fee which fluctuates between $1000-$1200 a year depending on villa size and location. Between property cost and maintenance, you’re paying a lot just to spend 1 week in this resort. Don’t get me wrong, I love this resort. I loved it 15 years ago and I love it now. The hospitality and grounds are great and it’s a perfect place for family.
Trading through interval international will not always be a guarantee. If you you want to travel during peak time, it may not always be available. That trade is not guaranteed for anytime you want either. It’s actually way more detailed and somewhat complicated system. But this is it in a tiny nutshell.
Is it worth it
If you’re a family that requires more than one hotel room or if you always have to request a roll- away bed, this could be the option for you. Each Villa is equipped with 2 bedrooms and two bathrooms, and enough sleeping room for 6-8 people. They all have a full kitchen as well if you want or need to save on eating out. This resort has multiple beautiful pools, tennis and basketball courts and play grounds. Lot’s of resort activities and dining. I do really love this resort.
You can actually book one of these Villas direct on their website. It will cost you between $900-$1200 for a week depending when you book. You still get all the same amenities as if you were an owner
Do your research
If you have a family of 4 or less and only intend to go to Florida once a year, I don’t think purchasing the time share is worth it. If you’re still not sure if owning a timeshare is right for you, I suggest start by researching. Red Week (not sponsored) is a site that allows you buy and sell timeshare at a fraction of the cost. You are buying directly from the owner and the site even verifies people to know they are legit. You could even buy an individual week and get a feel for the property first. I wish I would have done more research before buying and really thought about what I wanted my yearly vacations to look like. At the current time I had the Florida sunshine blinding me instead of thinking about where my other less affordable favorite spots are.
NOTE: There is definitely room to haggle and you absolutely should. As soon as you say it’s out of your price range, they WILL come down. Keep going until the price is right for you. Big mistake I made was not doing this.
Decide what makes the most sense
Aruba for example is one of my most favorite places in the world. There is never a bad time to go, the weather is always amazing and no hurricanes. So rethinking the situation, I wish I would have invested in a place like the Marriott Surf Club in Aruba. Although it has a really high maintenance starting at around $1800 a year, I think this would be worth it.
Aruba is stunningly beautiful. It’s also really expensive and if you want to stay at a nice resort it’s gonna cost you. It’s pretty unlikely to get a hotel room for less than $400 a night, and certainly not during peak season. The maintenance cost is higher in Aruba, around $1800 annual. However, you can’t find a two-bedroom room in Aruba for a week in a hotel for this cost. You can barely get a week in most of the Highrise hotels for that price depending on when you go.
The bottom line here is to do your research. Check the resorts directly and compare on websites like Red Week. You really have to consider the annual maintenance and make sure it makes sense for you and your family.
