timeshares
We're fans of timeshares, but we have become increasingly selective about the corporations that own/manage the timeshares. We've moved on to a timshare at the Hilton Hawaiian Village; they are professionals in the lodging business, they are clearly not going to go out of business tomorrow, they manage properties and trades around the world. So we figured how could we go wrong. So far it's blissful . . . left is a view from our two-bedroom suite on Waikiki. Oh, and that week cost a grand total of $59 (plus round-trip airfare from the mainland.)
Upsides of timeshares:
- You won't ever have to sleep in a broom closet, which I did once in London when nothing else was available. (As broom closets go, it was nice—it actually had a huge window overlooking a square and as it was snowing and I was cold, I remained in bed reading "The Hobbit.")
- A week in a one bedroom condo in Cabo San Lucas which cost us nothing other than the food we purchased (photos left).
- Once the timeshare is paid off, travel is actually free for the next one-hundred years, with the exception of airfare, food and entertainment, and annual maintenance fees which are around $1,000/year depending on the resort.
- Rack rates on the deluxe accommodations provided by a timeshare of the caliber of where we stay would easily exceed $2000 per week.
- A great gift: If you don't think you will be able to use your time, consider giving it as a gift to family, friends or clients. They will love you for it!
Downsides include:
- You can't always get reservations in cities that you would like.
- Some timeshares are inconveniently located; always check in advance to ensure that the location works for you!
- We stayed in a timeshare in Phuket, Thailand that was miles away from anything, the resort did not provide transportation to/from the center of town, there were so few amenities that we moved to a Holiday Inn on the beach.
- We stayed in our timeshare outside of Cairns, Australia. While it was somewhat inconvenient, the grounds were beautiful, a mother kangaroo with her baby in her pouch lived in the forest behind our suite, amenities excellent, transportation to/from Cairns and dive sites also excellent.
- We've been told that we have to book a year
out for Greece or Italy and because we never plan that far ahead,
we opted to trade our timeshare for a cruise along Mediterranean
coastlines. That worked!
- Our Mediterranean cruise was purportedly $1500 off of rack rate because of the timeshare affiliation we had at that time. That turned out to be untrue and we paid rack or more.
Cautionary Notes:
- Be careful of timeshare sales people. It's worth researching the resort on Google. We were thinking of a new resort in Mexico and were stunned to read nightmarish reports of untruths told by that timeshare's staff.
- Never never pay their first asking price. Timeshare sales prices are amazingly negotiable.
- Most timeshare sales people will tell you it's easy to sell your timeshare outright or sell your weeks to others if you don't need them in any given year. Neither statement is true.
Changes in Latitude, Changes in Attitude