Timeshare Presentations: What Is Your Time Worth?
When I was a kid, my family traveled to Disney World several times, where timeshare companies abound. I remember on one of those trips, my parents agreed to sit through a timeshare presentation in exchange for a “special gift”. The special gift turned out to be a table clock.
My brother, sister and I were escorted to a kids club waiting area while my parents got a tour and attended the timeshare presentation. In the “babysitting” room, the childcare workers were clueless. One kid decided to turn on the TV, and the movie Friday the Thirteenth was on. I was about 8 years old and scared to death!
My siblings and I decided we would leave to go find my parents. Nobody stopped us! We wandered around the resort until we found them, trying to fight off the advances of multiple sales people. All for a stupid clock!
Fast forward to my young adult life, and my boyfriend (now husband) got an offer to go to a timeshare presentation in Tyler, Texas. He asked me to go with him. The incentive for sitting through the presentation was quite large: a 3-night trip to Disney World including flights and hotel! Yep, I’m in.
We toured the complex, and honestly we weren’t impressed. It was in the middle of nowhere with hardly any amenities.
The presentation dragged on and on, way more than 90 minutes. Multiple supervisors came to pressure us. Finally, after close to four hours, we escaped with our prize.
My boyfriend used the prize to take me to Disney World, where he proposed to me at Cinderella’s Castle after the fireworks. Totally worth it.
A few years later, we attended another timeshare presentation at a local timeshare office for a $50 Outback gift certificate. Worth it? Not even close!