Try before you buy

[Mosescan]

Hello all,

I currently own with HGVC. I have seen many posts from people about trying other systems before you decide to purchase or just as an economical means of taking an extra vacation at a resort in a location that you couldn't otherwise access. It seems to be around $1500 for a week at some of the nicer timeshares in Hawaii. I'm thinking about trying this with Marriot or Wyndham for a week on Maui.

My questions are:

How do you get these offers?

When you take these offers, do you tell them that you already own a timeshare with another system or do you pretend that you are a newbie to timesharing?

Thanks

 

[WalnutBaron]

Greetings, and welcome to TUG! There are several ways to explore other timeshare concepts different than the one you own. Here are a few ideas:

1. You can rent from existing owners. There are numerous rental listings right here on TUG in the TUG Marketplace. Typically, owners are trying to rent to cover their annual maintenance fees, although rental rates can be higher for certain high-demand periods like ski season in Colorado or major holidays. You can also find reduced rental rates if you're willing to travel on short notice.
2. You can contact the developer for the resort systems you're interested in and ask for an introductory offer. The developers will usually be happy to provide this. The pricing is very attractive, but you will be required to sit through a sales presentation, which is often time-consuming and can be extremely high pressure.
3. You can use your HGVC unit to trade into a unit of similar quality through the external trade system. In the case of HGVC, that would be RCI.

As far as whether to tell the sales weasels that you already own with HGVC, there is no harm in that. Even better, if you bought resale instead of through the developer, it may shorten your sales presentation because the weasels will know that you're not an easy mark and that you know about the huge differences in value between the resale and retail markets.

 

[GetawaysRus]

I won a timeshare week with Marriott. Marriott runs a program called "Friendshare" which allows other timeshare owners to refer you. If you would like a referral, you can PM me.

But as the above post points out, this isn't the only way to play the game.

 

[jlp879]

Lots of times I have gotten mailings or postcards from companies I have made an enquiry with. For instance, if you click on Marriott's Vacation Club page and request information, you might be the recipient of one of these "try before you buy" offers. I've had them from Marriott, Hilton and Westin. They can be very good deals. The 5 day package I had to Marriott Ko Olina even included a car for the entire time. Also, couldn't hurt to call them and tell them that you're looking for a specific location.

https://www.marriottvacationclub.com/request-information/index.shtml

 

[Petar Rankovic]

Hello, just wondering where I can find someone who can offer a "friendshare" from marriott.

 

[GetawaysRus]

I won a timeshare week with Marriott. Marriott runs a program called "Friendshare" which allows other timeshare owners to refer you. If you would like a referral, you can PM me.

Oops. Typos can be funny. I would love to win a timeshare week from Marriott (and according to the telemarketers who phone me constantly, I often win travel contests that I never entered). But actually I own a week.

 

[VacationForever]

Oops. Typos can be funny. I would love to win a timeshare week from Marriott (and according to the telemarketers who phone me constantly, I often win travel contests that I never entered). But actually I own a week.

Do not trust the folks who cold call you, they may be scammers, getting cc info, birthdates etc.