Trip to Vegas

[bjl584]

So my friend calls me last night and asks if I would like to join him for a long weekend in Vegas in May. He said it is through some sort of timeshare selling company. Basically, you buy the plane ticket, but all other expenses are supposedly paid for. Room and meals I assume. He said that you are obligated to sit in some sort of a meeting for 90 minutes where someone tries to sell you something. He said all that you have to do is refuse whatever they are selling and it's basically a free weekend in Vegas minus a plane ticket. So, me being skeptical asks him, What's the catch? He said there is none. I don't buy it. So, I'm asking the board, Have you ever heard of anything like this? What's the catch?

[MonkeyMama]

The catch is that most people are stupid enough to buy the timeshare.

The only place I have ever sat through a timeshare talk is in Vegas. Twice. Their rewards are really good. & when I vacation anywhere else (like Hawaii) I am not going to waste my time and ruin my vacation. But in Vegas? An hour or two timeshare talk will buy you a hotel all weekend - stuff like that.

The first time it was obvious we weren't going to buy and they didn't even bother with us (we were the first to leave the room). The second time the salesman got really pissy with us and told us we shouldn't have wasted his time. Right, like they didn't *beg* us to come. I felt really sorry for the timeshare company. We were probably the first to leave the room that time, too. He could tell immediately we were not going to buy.

I have had friends tell me they just couldn't resist the high sales pressure tactics. My dh and I just find the whole thing amusing - I don't see the draw. The Vegas one is hilarious. $50,000 for a week in Vegas every year for the rest of your life? This one hotel was off the strip. Nothing says luxury vacation like the middle of nowhere in the desert. They were trying to tell us how coveted and trade-able their shares were. I was *shocked* when they revealed the price. Insane! Considering we usually stay in Vegas for $30/night, or free with timeshare talk, it was going to be a really tough sell.

[bjl584]

Well, if all that I have to do is sit in an hour meeting, then I may consider going. I can "not" buy something that someone is trying to sell with the best of them.

[disneysteve]

The catch is you need to sit in some high pressure sales pitch for 90 minutes or more being harassed by the salesperson. Other than that, the deal is probably legit. I'd find out what company it is from and Google them. If it is a major player, like Marriott or Sheraton, go ahead and do it. There are other companies that are notorious for major high pressure and pretty sleazy stuff that just isn't worth the "free" vacation IMO.

[MonkeyMama]

This is the thing - if you have any financial sense, the "high pressure sales tactics" are just a joke. We've gone to the shady companies. *Shrugs*

They know people with common sense come through once in a while, and they just want to get rid of you before the other suckers notice you. Here - take your rewards and get the heck out of here!

[disneysteve]

This is the thing - if you have any financial sense, the "high pressure sales tactics" are just a joke. We've gone to the shady companies. *Shrugs*

It really depends. I've got pretty good financial sense and had zero interest or intent on buying but I still found the whole experience incredibly aggravating, and that was with Marriott which I would say is one of the "good" timeshare companies. The salesman was sleazy, obnoxious and condescending. We didn't enjoy sitting for 90 minutes while this idiot insulted us. Just wasn't how we wanted to spend our vacation time, though it did leave us with some good stories to tell.

[bjl584]

It really depends. I've got pretty good financial sense and had zero interest or intent on buying but I still found the whole experience incredibly aggravating, and that was with Marriott which I would say is one of the "good" timeshare companies. The salesman was sleazy, obnoxious and condescending. We didn't enjoy sitting for 90 minutes while this idiot insulted us. Just wasn't how we wanted to spend our vacation time, though it did leave us with some good stories to tell.

What sort of tactics did the salesman use Steve? It would seem counterproductive for him to be condescending to his audience. Why would anyone buy anything from someone that is insulting them?

[casadoma]

Sale people usually use close ended questions that entrap you, I seen people fall for these. Time shares always came across as a bit strange.

[jeffrey]

The other catch is it won't last just 90 minutes -- it will likely last anywhere from 2 - 4 hours. Since they are giving you a free room, if you leave the presentation before it's done, they will revoke the complimentary stay and make you pay for it forcing you to stay through the entire presentation. The longer you refuse to purchase, the longer the presentation will be.

[bjl584]

The other catch is it won't last just 90 minutes -- it will likely last anywhere from 2 - 4 hours. Since they are giving you a free room, if you leave the presentation before it's done, they will revoke the complimentary stay and make you pay for it forcing you to stay through the entire presentation. The longer you refuse to purchase, the longer the presentation will be.

That sounds awesome.

To expand on this story, my friend is going to Vegas to get married. He wants me by his side as his bestman/witness. We've been friends a long time, so I feel honored to go. However, sitting through a 4 hour presentation sounds awful. If I can score a cheap room through Priceline or someplace similar, then it may be better to just pay for my room and avoid the timeshare nonsense.

[MonkeyMama]

The other catch is it won't last just 90 minutes -- it will likely last anywhere from 2 - 4 hours. Since they are giving you a free room, if you leave the presentation before it's done, they will revoke the complimentary stay and make you pay for it forcing you to stay through the entire presentation. The longer you refuse to purchase, the longer the presentation will be.

Just to be clear - I wouldn't put up with that. I really have not found that to be the case.

I really do think most people put up with a lot, and when they get types like us, they just appease us. Because seriously, they put you in a room with a bunch of other people. THey don't really want you to start making a scene. That was my impression. It's never taken very long - we are usually out in a shorter time period, ourselves. & that was without getting anywhere near having to threaten to leave prematurely or making a scene, which we would do.

Now, if they don't have you in a room with 100 other people, maybe. I guess it depends. On the really scammy ones they just herd you in like cattle. I'd let to see them try to make us stay past 90 minutes.

One thing we have always done is lie about our income. We might not get off so easy if we were older and looked more wealthy. We did these in our 20s and we way lied on our income - I said like $30,000 a year or something (when income was about six figures).

I admit they are snakes and I am sure they screw many people over. I think we have just been in a good demographic. With age we might not get off so easy. But seriously, don't tell them anything that makes them think you actually have any real money.

[MonkeyMama]

That sounds awesome.

To expand on this story, my friend is going to Vegas to get married. He wants me by his side as his bestman/witness. We've been friends a long time, so I feel honored to go. However, sitting through a 4 hour presentation sounds awful. If I can score a cheap room through Priceline or someplace similar, then it may be better to just pay for my room and avoid the timeshare nonsense.

That's the thing, you can stay in Vegas pretty nicely for pretty darn cheap.

I think we do it because we find it kind of fun. We are weird that way.

I totally don't blame you for skipping it.

[disneysteve]

What sort of tactics did the salesman use Steve? It would seem counterproductive for him to be condescending to his audience. Why would anyone buy anything from someone that is insulting them?

I'm not sure if he was using "sales tactics" or if he was just a jerk.

From the minute he met us, he kept trying to act like he was our best friend, something I always hate when people try to do. You just met me 30 seconds ago. I'm not going to tell you my life story nor do I care to hear yours. This guy spent way, way too much time talking about himself.

He also asked us some reasonable questions about us but then seemed to disregard the answers in subsequent conversation. For example, I told him I was a family practice doc and that we took regular vacations throughout the year but he kept telling stories and using examples of why a busy obstetrician needs to buy a timeshare to force themselves to take a break sometimes. I'm not an OB and I certainly don't need to be forced to vacation.

He also asked us about our travel to the area and we told him how often we come, where we stay and what we spend (which is a fraction of the cost of the timeshare) but he still persisted in telling us what a great deal the timeshare was and how much it would save us over the high end hotels (that I have never once stayed in).

I have absolutely no trouble saying no, but this guy was just rude about it. I made it clear from the very beginning that we weren't buying but he still went through the whole process and then got angry that we wasted his time. He could have ended the presentation at any time. It wasn't us who wasted his time.

[Like2Plan]

DH and I recently sat through a Wyndham presentation. I think we spent about 3.5 hours in the presentation. They had a slide show and a tour and then the timeshare sales person's pitch. After we told the sales person no, we had another last chance pitch from another sales person before we could get out of the door and get our room voucher.

Normally DH will not go to these presentations, but it gave our friends who referred us an additional incentive (in addition to everyone getting accomodations for the weekend)-so he felt it was a worthwhile trade off.

I actually enjoyed the presentation and found it entertaining, but we were not in the buying frame of mind since we were in the process of selling some of our Disney timeshare points (which doesn't make you want to turn right around and buy another timeshare. ) In the end we did not buy into the timeshare.

[disneysteve]

I'm glad L2P mentioned Disney timeshares. We have done the Disney Vacation Club presentation. It is excellent, totally low pressure, very friendly, everything you would expect from Disney. The next time you visit Disney World or Land, take some time to do the DVC presentation. When we went, we got a nice talk, a tour, free ice cream and a free family photo taken. We each got a $25 gift card for attending (all 3 of us including our daughter). It was an entirely different experience than the Marriott presentation.