Reflections on my Positive Timeshare Experience

by Marcia Ling - FTOG Board Member

This was a presentation given at the most recent Florida Timeshare Owners Group meeting in Sarasota Florida on March 29 2014.  It was so fantastic, I felt that all TUGGERS would want to read it as well!

When Frank asked me to present a topic at this meeting, I said what will I talk about? Then I said to Frank, frankly I’ve not gotten that much out of that portion of our meetings. Frank made some suggestions, that you see here on the agenda, and I said, “OK why not?” 

When I thought about why I hadn’t found the topics presented very helpful, it occurred to me that many times they were of a negative nature ~ 

• I’ve got this timeshare and I never really wanted it but I can’t get rid of it
• I can’t ever get the exchanges I want
• You mean I can actually exchange my week to go somewhere else?
• I was talked into points that I don’t know what to do with – I never knew what to do with weeks either

That led me to my topic presentation today – concentrating on the POSITIVES OF TIMESHARING

I first bought a TS week in 1986 and it was a secondary market purchase – I wasn’t talked into it by some slick salesman – therefore I’ve never felt like I bought something I didn’t want or need. I had done the research. I bought a TS that was floating time, a 2 bedroom unit, in a multi-destination resort, and it’s an accrual week – to me all positive features. I picked up a 2^nd week about 6 years later. 

Some people buy with the intent of always trading and have never gone to their own resort. I think that’s a mistake. I bought locations that, if for some reason I could NEVER trade, I would be happy to go to – the mountains and the seashore. Buy where you want to go and what you’re proud to own. 

About 8 years later I somehow discovered TimeSharing Today and subscribed – my 1st issue was #12, Spring of 1993, and I have been a subscriber ever since. When I moved to FL in the early 2000s, TST led me to the FTOG and Frank. I joined in 2005 when they had had just one meeting – the first speaker I heard was Lisa Ann Schreier. 

Many timesharers don’t know they have other exchange choices besides “the big 2.” TST and the FTOG tell you differently.  TST taught me that I had other choices and that they were less expensive, more flexible, smaller and easier to deal with. 

Guest speakers here have been from DAE, Platinum Interchange, Trading Places, and more recently Crown Vacation Exchange. These could be called “the Fab 4.” TST publishes a chart of major and alternative exchange companies annually. The alternatives don’t have hidden trading power and unseen  inventory. What you see is what you CAN get, and so much more!

The 1^st three I mentioned have lists of their inventory online. I like to see what sorts of places each has available and channel my requests to the one that seems to have more of what I’m looking for, and that varies with each one. Don’t think that what you see is all they can get for you; call and talk to someone about what you’re looking for. And when you call back you can actually talk to the same person! There’s no membership fee and some don’t require you to relinquish your week to start an ongoing search. (And I’ve also learned that they sometimes trade among themselves or do each other favors to accommodate their clients!) 

My exchanges have taken me skiing from the obvious CO and UT to my home resort at Lake Tahoe to NM, ID, WY, the Northeast and Canada; to the seashores of both FL coasts, the Panhandle and the Atlantic coast; to back to back weeks on the beaches of 2 of the HI islands; to TX, AZ, the Caribbean, VA, the NC mountains, and most recently the Napa Valley of CA. I’ve never had a bad experience – some resorts are better than others, and I’ve exchanged into some extremely nice places. 

My timeshare weeks’ initial purchase paid for themselves a long time ago. My current annual fees for a multi room unit are comparatively less than what a single hotel room would cost.

This brings me to my recommendations

• Never get your heart set on just one resort – look for an interesting area
• Be flexible – with week and resort and area
• Start looking early, but don’t overlook finding a real gem in the online inventory
• If there’s some resort or area that you really want to go to and you’ve not had any luck getting there, consider keeping a standing request open with more than one exchange company
• Consider visiting any area in the off season – less crowds and more accessibility to attractions
• At check-in if you have a smaller unit than you’d like or you’d prefer a different location, ask for an upgrade – if they’re not full you’ll often get it.
• Consider going somewhere new and different – be adventurous!

-Marcia Ling