- Joined
- May 11, 2012
- Messages
- 50
- Reaction score
- 35
- Points
- 228
- Location
- San Diego, CA
- Resorts Owned
-
Welk/Hyatt
Palm Springs Tennis Club (2-bedroom Wimbledon) - 2 units
Lagonita Lodge (4 units: Christmas week, New Year's Week, 2-bdrm Lakefront, 3-bdrm Bear Peak)
We just did the Owners Update at Welk Sirena del Mar on Dec. 30, 2022, so here’s some info/tips in case it’s helpful (beautiful resort and we had a great time, by the way; feel free to check out our TUG review).
1. INCENTIVES: They initially offered us $100 credit toward our tab (food, drinks, spa, etc.) for attending. Then, when I was chatting w/ other owners in the pool, I found out they had been offered $200 credit, plus 50% off activities. Didn’t need activities this time, but went back to the concierge, said we were reconsidering if we had time, and asked if they could give us $200 credit, and he agreed.
2. BREAKFAST: They said the update included breakfast, so that it might be the buffet breakfast at Estrella downstairs, but it turns out it is just a plate breakfast in the timeshare office, next to the lobby. They said we could bring our daughters for breakfast, and we did, but it turns out the only options were breakfast burrito, chicken or beef quesadilla; no options for our vegan daughter, so she went back to our room for avocado toast. The quesadillas w/ fresh guacamole and salsa were very good, though – the same ones you’d get down by the pool for $15 each. Choice of coffee or tea (no espresso drinks).
3. ONE-HOUR TIME LIMIT: They promised a max 60-minute owners update, and I said I’d hold them to that. On checking in, they asked if we had anything else booked, and times. I said “beach with the kids” in one hour, and I promised them I’d make it. I didn’t lead them along at all, and we were out in just under an hour.
4. HAVE SOME FUN: While we were eating breakfast, I glanced at my info sheet, and noticed it said “resale” on it w/ a sad face next to it. Sure enough, when the rep came back, he must have commented at least a dozen times about how we purchased our Welk points resale. To have a little fun, play a drinking game where you take a drink of your coffee or tea every time they say “resale,” or “rollover to Hyatt points.”
5. THE UPSELL: Of course an “Owners Update” is really just an opportunity to try to sell you more points, not actually “update” you about your membership or the Hyatt transition. I let them know I’m perfectly happy with the number of points I have, but the upsell was clearly to “rollover the Welk points to Hyatt points,” which seemed to involve buying Hyatt points – they started out by saying that the lowest price point was $70K, but overheard folks in the pool saying they bought 60K points for $12K-$15K.
6. THE EXTRA VACATION OFFER: After we politely declined the points purchase, but before we left, another gal offered us a 4-day getaway trip at several of the Welk resorts; the stated price was $1,100, but I’m sure they’d go down from there; we didn’t inquire; we still have points we need to use.
7.THE MISLEADING SURVEY: At the end, they had us fill us a written survey rating our presentation on a scale of 1-10. I was fine w/ it, so I rated it an 8. The woman said: “why so low?” I said I thought 8 was a good score. She said: “No, 1 is the highest, and 10 is the lowest.” What?! I looked at the fine print, and sure enough, it was “backward,” with 1 being the best, and 10 being the worst. Crazy. I suppose that way, if you think it’s terrible, so rate it a 1, and they claim it was the “best rating.” And if you rate it a 10, they tell you “it’s actually opposite,” and you cross it out and rate it a 1, so either way, they get all “high” ratings. Very misleading. When I got an email survey from Hyatt, I brought this up to them. But overall, for us, worth the incentives for one hour of our time!
1. INCENTIVES: They initially offered us $100 credit toward our tab (food, drinks, spa, etc.) for attending. Then, when I was chatting w/ other owners in the pool, I found out they had been offered $200 credit, plus 50% off activities. Didn’t need activities this time, but went back to the concierge, said we were reconsidering if we had time, and asked if they could give us $200 credit, and he agreed.
2. BREAKFAST: They said the update included breakfast, so that it might be the buffet breakfast at Estrella downstairs, but it turns out it is just a plate breakfast in the timeshare office, next to the lobby. They said we could bring our daughters for breakfast, and we did, but it turns out the only options were breakfast burrito, chicken or beef quesadilla; no options for our vegan daughter, so she went back to our room for avocado toast. The quesadillas w/ fresh guacamole and salsa were very good, though – the same ones you’d get down by the pool for $15 each. Choice of coffee or tea (no espresso drinks).
3. ONE-HOUR TIME LIMIT: They promised a max 60-minute owners update, and I said I’d hold them to that. On checking in, they asked if we had anything else booked, and times. I said “beach with the kids” in one hour, and I promised them I’d make it. I didn’t lead them along at all, and we were out in just under an hour.
4. HAVE SOME FUN: While we were eating breakfast, I glanced at my info sheet, and noticed it said “resale” on it w/ a sad face next to it. Sure enough, when the rep came back, he must have commented at least a dozen times about how we purchased our Welk points resale. To have a little fun, play a drinking game where you take a drink of your coffee or tea every time they say “resale,” or “rollover to Hyatt points.”
5. THE UPSELL: Of course an “Owners Update” is really just an opportunity to try to sell you more points, not actually “update” you about your membership or the Hyatt transition. I let them know I’m perfectly happy with the number of points I have, but the upsell was clearly to “rollover the Welk points to Hyatt points,” which seemed to involve buying Hyatt points – they started out by saying that the lowest price point was $70K, but overheard folks in the pool saying they bought 60K points for $12K-$15K.
6. THE EXTRA VACATION OFFER: After we politely declined the points purchase, but before we left, another gal offered us a 4-day getaway trip at several of the Welk resorts; the stated price was $1,100, but I’m sure they’d go down from there; we didn’t inquire; we still have points we need to use.
7.THE MISLEADING SURVEY: At the end, they had us fill us a written survey rating our presentation on a scale of 1-10. I was fine w/ it, so I rated it an 8. The woman said: “why so low?” I said I thought 8 was a good score. She said: “No, 1 is the highest, and 10 is the lowest.” What?! I looked at the fine print, and sure enough, it was “backward,” with 1 being the best, and 10 being the worst. Crazy. I suppose that way, if you think it’s terrible, so rate it a 1, and they claim it was the “best rating.” And if you rate it a 10, they tell you “it’s actually opposite,” and you cross it out and rate it a 1, so either way, they get all “high” ratings. Very misleading. When I got an email survey from Hyatt, I brought this up to them. But overall, for us, worth the incentives for one hour of our time!