I grew up traveling extensively, but not staying in timeshares. After a lot of research, I'm pretty sold on purchasing a resale DVC contract in the near future as WDW is a location we know we'll visit annually (or every other year at least). Now I'm beginning to research the wider world of timeshares and I'm a bit skeptical.
From a cost/accommodations perspective with 2 children and occasional extended family that tag along on trips, it definitely makes sense to buy a resale timeshare (probably point-based/non-fixed week); especially for traveling within the US or to a specific location we plan to frequent every year or so. But as an international traveler, I worry that timeshare locations will be more limited and lacking in the local/cultural immersion experience, which are big priorities for us.
For those of you that do travel internationally, do you reserve your timeshare time for domestic or "all inclusive" beach vacation type travel and go the hotel route when you want the cultural immersion when traveling internationally? Are there specific timeshares that are better for a combination of international travel and domestic, or would we be better off a) not purchasing a timeshare (except DVC ;-D), or b) purchasing a smaller timeshare contract to use primarily in the US for one week annually or every other year for a larger unit?
Hubby and I both have a good amount of vacation time and plan to spend a solid week or two traveling internationally every year and another week or two domestically. We are limited in when we can travel based on the academic calendar (I get about a month "off" from early/mid Dec to early/mid Jan, spring break week, and 3.5 months over the summer), and school year will matter for the children when they're older as well. But that still leaves quite a bit of flexibility in when we travel.
Thank you!
From a cost/accommodations perspective with 2 children and occasional extended family that tag along on trips, it definitely makes sense to buy a resale timeshare (probably point-based/non-fixed week); especially for traveling within the US or to a specific location we plan to frequent every year or so. But as an international traveler, I worry that timeshare locations will be more limited and lacking in the local/cultural immersion experience, which are big priorities for us.
For those of you that do travel internationally, do you reserve your timeshare time for domestic or "all inclusive" beach vacation type travel and go the hotel route when you want the cultural immersion when traveling internationally? Are there specific timeshares that are better for a combination of international travel and domestic, or would we be better off a) not purchasing a timeshare (except DVC ;-D), or b) purchasing a smaller timeshare contract to use primarily in the US for one week annually or every other year for a larger unit?
Hubby and I both have a good amount of vacation time and plan to spend a solid week or two traveling internationally every year and another week or two domestically. We are limited in when we can travel based on the academic calendar (I get about a month "off" from early/mid Dec to early/mid Jan, spring break week, and 3.5 months over the summer), and school year will matter for the children when they're older as well. But that still leaves quite a bit of flexibility in when we travel.
Thank you!