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[ 2016 ] Palmera Vacation Club

JLM2017

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We also recently attended and purchased a Quest Travel Club package for $2,395 with the same deals. Have you been happy with your decision? We, like you, felt that with all the "free" stuff they gave us, it was well worth the $2,395 even if the travel club wasn't any good. Can you please update us with your experience thus far?
 

Passepartout

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Travel clubs are not well thought of here. Lots of 'bait & switch', unavailability, high pressure sales presentations, inferior accommodations, unanswered communications, and ultimately walking away feeling ripped-off. We hope your experience will be better.
 

Electrichead

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Please excuse typos as this is all in my phone. My fiance and I just went to a presentation today in Hilton Head. We were not told how many points most trips were, in general. What we were specifically shown were resort stays under 1k points and the seller was very clear that you have to book them for 30 days out or LESS, as they are hugely discounted at that point due to needing to clear the monthly inventory. He made no mention of availability issues with this method. Now getting home and reading up on it, it seems like all the trips cost a lot of points, more than you get in one year, and that it's hard to book in advance for to lack of availability, much less last minute. This send to be the biggest complaint from what I can tell, aside from those selling and running into problems. I admit, I'm now concerned. We have not been able to see the points yet, only the destination resorts across the world. We were told that the points can roll over each year if unused for a maximum of three years. We can also get an advance on points for the current year by taking them from the following year. We can also buy extra points for a few hundred dollars. To me, this all seems costly at first, but once it's paid for, you only worry about the annual fee of 595, which can raise with inflation. I was specifically told it has gone up $7 in seven years. Aside from that, you then own the deed to your share and it can be passed on for generations if you will it so. We are both young and see it as a long term investment for not only discounted weekend trips, but for those large, point-expensive trips as well. So that's what sold us in this. It was 12k total and we were given three packages... Quest, sports package, and I think something called smart stay but that could be part of quest... I can't quite remember at the moment. I remember that quest had huge discounts on cruises, and I LOVE my cruises. Other perks were nice rooms discounted (believe me, they were definitely discounted compared to online research into similar rooms) and the discounted costs shown are prorated by night, so it's even less if not planning to stay a whole week. I did look into a few of their hotels for the world abroad, Croatia for example, and not all of the resorts are extravagant. The review on that one was downright bad actually... so that's something to consider. Our cancellation period is fresh, so I plan to read the fine print very carefully... All in all so far, based on what I was told and what I have read here and on other internet sites, I find some things a little worrisome, but all in all I don't feel like they lied to me about any of it. He answered the questions I had, he was super friendly and personable, but at the end of the day I know he was a salesman. They just focused really hard on the good part, like every other sales person ever. It's a matter of worth. Is the amount of money we plan to spend on vacations for the rest of our lives, both small and large, worth the price of the club now. From what I can tell, it seems to be. I worry about availability mostly. I an not sure if we will cancel or not at this point but will post more as I find out more. Oh yeah, we were given a tour of Coral Sands, which was nice. Not beach front, but nice.
 

SW357

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We also recently attended and purchased a Quest Travel Club package for $2,395 with the same deals. Have you been happy with your decision? We, like you, felt that with all the "free" stuff they gave us, it was well worth the $2,395 even if the travel club wasn't any good. Can you please update us with your experience thus far?

We've booked our return trip to HHI for this April. They told us we'd have multiple resorts to pick from, but the fine print says you'll stay at Park Lane Suites. It looks okay, but it's not Harbor Town or Palmetto Dunes. They also said we could reserve a 2-br and bring friends to hear the pitch. It's a 1-br suite... We had to pay the same $99, but get $50 in VISA card and $50 in restaurant gift coupons. I was skeptical about the latter but they say it's like monopoly money and the 40+ restaurants all take it. We'll see... We were told we wouldn't have to go thru the entire presentation again, but to block out 90 minutes. We aren't supposed to take any tours of Coral Sands again. I'm trying to book the 1st free 7-day certificate this fall in Napa Valley. I'll let you know how that goes. So, to answer your question... it's too early to tell.
 

Momonvacation

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My advice is do not give them another red cent! We already paid our money and gave up our timeshare but are trying to fight the contract because it is fraud and that does trump a contract. You are lucky you have only paid partial. We found out the same thing you get nothing for those points. We are trying to dispute it and void the contract and possibly file a class action law suit. The problem lawsuits go on for years and I do not want to pay another red cent to a lawyer. Hard to believe this has been going on for years under a different name of Coral Sands now Palmera. Hilton Head was such a great place but I have lost all faith in Hilton Head since they are part of this Palmera. Only advice I can give is do not give them any more money cause you will never see it or them again.
Can you give me any update on what happened with your situation? Did you ever sue? Did you ever get out of it?
 

Momonvacation

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Already do have a file opened with the South Carolina Consumer Affairs Department, and I would highly recommend anyone else who has been scammed contact them as well, there is strength in numbers.
How would I do this?
 

Momonvacation

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Same thing has happened to us. We were there last Feb 2017 and they promised us 8000 for our mystic dunes resort in FL as a trade for this one. Told us it was guatanteed and they have a company that sells it for free but if it wasn't sold within 6 months that they would be sending us the check for 8000 that was told to us.
After waiting all this time and making payments of 187.00 a month on the balance I realize my contact is totally different from what we were told at our presentation. I've tried multiple calls and no one will return my calls. I feel absolutely sick. I've owned my other timeshare for over 15 years and never had a problem. I just want to cancel this contract and be done but I don't know what to do or where to turn at this point.
Did you ever get anything resolved? We are now in your same situation
 

Momonvacation

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My advice is do not give them another red cent! We already paid our money and gave up our timeshare but are trying to fight the contract because it is fraud and that does trump a contract. You are lucky you have only paid partial. We found out the same thing you get nothing for those points. We are trying to dispute it and void the contract and possibly file a class action law suit. The problem lawsuits go on for years and I do not want to pay another red cent to a lawyer. Hard to believe this has been going on for years under a different name of Coral Sands now Palmera. Hilton Head was such a great place but I have lost all faith in Hilton Head since they are part of this Palmera. Only advice I can give is do not give them any more money cause you will never see it or them again.
What did you end up doing?
 

Tamaradarann

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Look at the contract and ignore every word that comes out the their mouths. You are buying a certain number of RCI points, that is all you are getting. For me it was 3000 points for $14,000. Now go on the RCI website and try to book 4 weeks a year with your RCI points. Good luck. You will not even get a week in prime season anywhere for 3000 RCI points.

Clearing 3000 points in RCI can maybe get you 1 weeknight at a secondary resort during White or Blue Season. The Palmera vacation club may have a special book with point values that are different than RCI. The HGVC system has a different point system where 2400 points gets you a Studio during prime season in a Gold Crown Resort. I think it is about 1700 points during a off season.

However, the real scam with destination clubs is that the resorts and the seasons that you can exchange your points for or pay cash for are the leftover units. It is basically Last Call type of inventory, or the booking fee is not the minimum $249 or whatever they quote you but 3 or 4 times as much which is like extended vacations. In either case there is a lot of timeshare leftover inventory out there so they are making it available for you for a fee.
 

tschwa2

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Clearing 3000 points in RCI can maybe get you 1 weeknight at a secondary resort during White or Blue Season. The Palmera vacation club may have a special book with point values that are different than RCI. The HGVC system has a different point system where 2400 points gets you a Studio during prime season in a Gold Crown Resort. I think it is about 1700 points during a off season.
3000 Palmera points are the same as 30,000 rci points. Its still bad but not as bad as if it were straight rci points.
 

Momonvacation

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A very similar thing happened to us - only they were not "buying" our previous timeshare with a cash value, but we were owners at Island Links so they said we had to switch since Palmera bought out all of Coral Resorts and the only way we could trade back in to any of the resorts, would be through Palmera since the resorts were being removed from RCI. We were told so many stories, which unfortunately we believed and now have found not one thing is true! We also tried repeatedly to call - no return phone calls, email - no answers. We sent a certified letter to Palmera stating all of the facts and saying we are prepared to take further action if they will not cancel our contract. Not even an answer to that!! They told us we would be able to book back into any of the HHI resorts without any problem - at any time - as long as we booked in advance....wrong........zero availability for next year. Previously we have owned a timeshare for approximately 30 years and never ever had a problem - now it's all a joke.

There is a group of attorneys on HHI who, I believe, have taken on Palmera and we will be contacting them next week. I know it is a long shot but I do not want to pay for 10 years for nothing I can use - plus the "club membership"...ridiculous. Not one thing has proved to be true....when we got home and reread the contract, it was so different from what we were originally told. At no time where we told there was a variable interest rate and it could up to ridiculous amounts!

I wish there was a way to stop all of this because it is nothing but a scam. We received a call to "come visit for $99" or whatever the amount was and I asked if this included a "visit" with Palmera and they said yes. I told them they are nothing but scam artists and to never call us again.

As to the question on Quest....be very careful. We have checked their "benefits" and they are not much more than things we could find on our own. Most likely the cruise would be to the Bahamas one on the older Carnival ships for a few days. I firmly believe anything associated with Palmera is deceitful and a lie.

After all these years of great experiences with a timeshare, we have now been taken advantage of but will vow to fight back as much as we can!
Did you ever contact the lawyers. Did anything happen? Are you still stuck with it?
 

Momonvacation

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Being cautious! Its so upsetting. I just want this to be over with. I never ever had a problem with my other timeshare company.
Why can't people just be honest anymore?
Can you tell me anything more? Any update on what happened? Who did you talk to?
 

loringel

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Palmera vacation club is a scam. Originally it was Reba management, then elite resort group, and now palmera vacation club. They use deceptive trade practices, and are constantly changing names as they are constantly being sued. It is the same people but you need a scorecard to see what they call themselves each year.
 

WBDB2017

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I wouldn't say Palmera owners "enjoy universal dissatisfaction" I am a resale Palmera deeded owner - as far as I can tell they weren't bought out or sold to anyone, they are the same Reba managed Coral Resorts, they just did a name change when they started to sell beneficial interests in a trust rather than deeded weeks. The dissatisfaction is the same as it has always been with this developer: high pressure, hard sell with a lot of confusing double talk -I can't say they all lie but they certainly lead you to conclusions that are not true about the way it all works. So other than that one Happy poster who I believe is probably a shill, if you buy from the developer you will be unhappy and won't end up with what you thought you were buying. That can certainly happen with less obscure clubs like Marriott or Wyndham too, buying from the developer is generally a bad idea. The difference is Palmera has a long history including a long legal history with walking the shadier side of the line when it comes to sales tactics and overselling the benefits.
Hello .. I know this post if from a couple years ago. But I have a question. I myself just purchased a PVC deeded resale. Has it been worth your time ? Do you get all the portal benefits as someone who purchased from a sales pitch ? I guess I am asking as in with in the portal and RCI memberships ? Or can you become a RCI member on your own with your points ? Or do they offer it through their portal?
 

WBDB2017

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Was just hoping you could give me enlightenment. I see a lot of negative I hope to hear good things !
 

elaine

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elaine

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Sales gets a bad rep. Actual units are fine imho. We’ve been happy for almost 10 years as resale owner but never attended any sales presentation.
 

tschwa2

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keep in mind if it doesn't work for you or when you decide to move on you will likely have to pay the $1500 transfer fee plus closing costs. I bought for $1 (before they added the transfer fee) and thought I shouldn't have any trouble giving it away when I was ready to move on. I have better points generators and would like to pass it on but not enough to cover $1700+ to give it away. (EOY 106,500 points deeded week 27- 3 BR Island Links)
 

elaine

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Are you sure it’s $1500 for Eoy and not $750?
 

tschwa2

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cu97tigerlady

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So we attended the sales pitch because we traded through RCI and they promised golf for 4 for the week for free and $200 in Island cash. They wanted us to exchange one of our weeks for 3000 points for $15k and promised to sell our timeshare for $12k. Hmm, the guy couldn’t even remember the name of where we own and I know no resale purchase has gone through for anywhere close to that number. In fact, I bought it for $100!

Similar story that 3000 points is 3 weeks in a 3 BR unit, but what he showed us through the portal was suspicious. We clearly said only interested in local travel and he never clicked on the 425 units available for spring break in the US. That number is very low if you know anything about RCI. Probably the bottom of the barrel stuff we wouldn’t take anyway.

Guaranteed week in the summer at HHI. Talked about Quest travel club. I also got the line about writing off my timeshare on my taxes too. The last ditch was how much we would save of MF and that we were throwing our money away.

The “survey” guy thankfully saw we were definitely not going to bite and signed off on our agreed to stuff. Most of the discounts for golf we found better deals online. It was only free if we signed up for the $15k! Haven’t tried to use the island cash yet.

In my RCI search for finding this place, I learned these resorts are wide open available up until 60 days out and then they disappear. My cheap trade value unit easily got me a unit here for my kids September Fall Break. We had specific travel dates because of sports prior to the break, so ended up in a 1 BR. We are in a brand new building and the unit is very nice! Sort of dumb luck to be in the new section of Coral Sands. We have played golf every day at a reasonable price. My kids have been playing at our local 3 par course for months, so any course was an improvement to them.

I’ll trade for here again, just not waste an hour of my time.
 

jdlloyd67

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tschwa2

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I own island links in rci points not PVC points but I think the conversion rate is a simple 10/1. So 3000 PVC points would be equivalent to 30,000 RCI points when exchanging in RCI. So if you could get 3 last minute 10,000 rci point weeks then yes you could stay 3 weeks in a 3 BR for 3000 PVC points. Dead of winter it is possible there are tons of good deals in Dec-Feb in Hilton Head. I think a 1 BR in summer would be higher than 30,000 points so I don't see how you could be guaranteed a summer week .
 

Sn0wbird

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I own island links in rci points not PVC points but I think the conversion rate is a simple 10/1. So 3000 PVC points would be equivalent to 30,000 RCI points when exchanging in RCI. So if you could get 3 last minute 10,000 rci point weeks then yes you could stay 3 weeks in a 3 BR for 3000 PVC points. Dead of winter it is possible there are tons of good deals in Dec-Feb in Hilton Head. I think a 1 BR in summer would be higher than 30,000 points so I don't see how you could be guaranteed a summer week .
Did you convert your Island Links week/unit to RCI points? Once you converted to RCI points, do you still have to pay MF for Island Links and RCI MF of the points? Can you change back to week the following year?
 

tschwa2

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Did you convert your Island Links week/unit to RCI points? Once you converted to RCI points, do you still have to pay MF for Island Links and RCI MF of the points? Can you change back to week the following year?
I bought one already converted. To convert it would cost $5000+. Converted rci points weeks pay the MF's to the HOA the same as deeded weeks. The difference is that at 12 months if the home week isn't confirmed then it auto deposits into rci points. You have to reaffirm rci points participation every 3 years at least a year before the 3 year term ends if you want out.
 
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