Anyone here ever do a Hilton Grand Vacation prevue?

[Misskitty3]

We rec'd an offer from Hilton Grand Vacations to prevue their property on the Big Island of Hawaii. If we accept we have to sit through a a sales presentation.

Just wondering if anyone here has attended one of these presentations and, if so, what was it like?

Thanks!

 

[mjplantz]

We sat through the presentation one trip to Orlando, I believe it was a 90 minute session. They held true to the time, basically for us there was about 4 times at the end they tried to sell a different level. Our orginal sales person made his pitch (1), then the manager came over and made a couple 'special deals' (2) then they had a lady come over to do a 'survey' and she had a one time deal to offer as well(1).

From a timeshare perspective it wasn't that bad, it was definitely worth it for us as I was a Hilton Platinum Member at the time and when they called with the offer like you got I ended up negotiating with the manager and got us 4 days/3 nights with Park Hoppers for our family of 4 for $199. It was worth the 90 minutes for that deal.

Just know your plan of action going in, if your partially interested then do your research so you can ask intelligent questions. If you know your not interested, our scenario, we just prepared to say no at every offer no matter how good it seemed at the time. I think the last offer was like a one time return visit type special that seemed like a good value and we thought about it for a couple minutes but stuck to our plan to avoid buyer remorse.

 

[jmunutt]

We're HGVC owners and sat through the sales pitch in NYC. If you are at all interested in buying a timeshare, please consider buying resale. HGVC is a good buy, but only if you're interested in the places they're located. Their resorts are beautiful and spacious and we've been pleased with our buy so far.

Do some research before decided. Google HGVC or Timeshare users group and read.

Good luck with your decision, Hawaii is beautiful!

 

[Deb & Bill]

We did it several years ago (I am Hilton Honors) and got discounted rooms at the Doubletree Guests Suites near DTD plus two tickets to Seaworld (we already had WDW tickets). We had friends who had purchased HGVC and we already had DVC and we wanted to compare. We sat through the presentation, took the tour of the property and told them we had DVC, but were interested, and probably would not purchase at this time. They thanked us for our time, gave us our Seaworld tickets and bade us goodbye.

 

[Misskitty3]

Thanks for all the replies. I have never sat thru a time share sales pitch so wasn't sure how "intense" it would be.

No, we are not interested in a time share at all. We have rec'd 2 phone calls from Hilton in the last 9 months and now an email invitation. They are offering 7 days at the Hilton Waikoloa plus a rental car and some extra Hilton points all for $799. Seems like a "too good to be true" type of deal....

 

[Green Tea]

MissKitty: I did the HGVC offer on the Big Island. It was great. We did not buy but the package was just as they advertised. We stayed in a 2 BR unit, but I think sometimes they put people in the hotel or another HGVC property. Lots to do there. It was a great deal and the presentation was not awful. If you are not interested they are not going to keep you past your time.

 

[Green Tea]

Food on property was expensive, even by resort standards and the hotel property is HUGE. There are restaurants and a grocery store nearby. We walked there a time or 2 but you willl want a car to see the rest of the island.

 

[DuffGT06]

We just did this deal in early April and the resort is amazing! Staying in the condos is great because you have a kitchen, w/d, etc. Like the previous poster said, the food at the resort is expensive and not that great so I'd cook in or go offsite. The rental car is economy but it's free. We had a great time and almost every day I've wished I was back!

 

[holden]

We did this at the Parc Soleil in FL. The kept us the entire time, even though we had our 2 kids with us (we were both required to stay for the entire presentation). We had no intention of buying and let them know that in a nice way. The kids were "bored" by the time the last 45 min. rolled around and I had brought an arsenal of things for them to do (coloring, games, etc.). The HGVC person kept us in our seats until the last possible moment! No mercy there! But we did know what we were getting into, so they can't be blamed.

It was an interesting deal, but it just didn't fit our travel style. I could see how it would be great for some people. Friends of ours bought it and have used it without any major complaints. They did have an issue using it when they went to HI (home base is FL), but the situation was recified.

I don't think we'd do it again, but I'm glad we did it. We had a wonderul long weekend and only sacrificed 2hrs of our time.

 

[cndij]

All I can say is stand firm to your intentions. We were persuaded to buy a Marriott Timeshare, and looking back, it was the very worst financial decision of my life. Even if I hadn't lost my job of 27 years, 6 months after purchase, it would have been a bad idea. Now if you're sure you can stand firm, Waikoloa is beautiful, not a really great beach right there, but you are less than 10 miles from some of the highest rated beaches in the world. It is a beautiful resort, and has a Swim with the Dolphins program on site, that we took advantage of for 2 of our neices. If you are gold or higher with Hilton, they do have the free breakfast program, very basic, but hey free anything in Hawaii is great. There is also a very small shopping center right on the access road to the hotel, and it even has a Dairy Queen there, as well as Roy's, and several small shops.

 

[bmraar]

How do you get these offers? I am looking at a Hawaii vacation next year, and would be willing to sit through a 2 hour presentation in order to save that much money. Just not sure how to find the deal. Thanks!

 

[holden]

How do you get these offers? I am looking at a Hawaii vacation next year, and would be willing to sit through a 2 hour presentation in order to save that much money. Just not sure how to find the deal. Thanks!

I think they call frequent Hilton guests. We have Hilton Honors #s and they call us about every 6 mos. with a different offer. I'm sure Marriott, etc. work the same way. If you stay at these hotels, make sure you have a membership in their "club". It's like accumulating frequent flyer miles for hotels.

We have had many free stays because we accumulate lots of points!

 

[babyflo1]

I think they call frequent Hilton guests. We have Hilton Honors #s and they call us about every 6 mos. with a different offer. I'm sure Marriott, etc. work the same way. If you stay at these hotels, make sure you have a membership in their "club". It's like accumulating frequent flyer miles for hotels.

We have had many free stays because we accumulate lots of points!

I got the offer when I booked a room a week ago, the offer I took was for one of the three Orlando properties and the deal is so good I am thinking of extending it to a week if I can. Compared to recent stays on Disney property it does seem almost too good to be true. Tripadvisor ratings are really good though!

 

[platamama]

What timing, I just bought one of these packages yesterday for the Waikoloa Hilton. Does anyone recall if they also had to pay the $25/nt resort fee as well as the $17/nt parking fee on top of the package? And are you guaranteed a room in a condo since they are trying to sell the timeshare, or are you getting a standard hotel room?

The prices on the menus there are pretty high, but looking at menus for other places in the area none of those are inexpensive either.

I must have received the offer due to signing up a couple months ago for their loyalty club when I stayed at a member hotel. I didn't get points for my stay since I booked third party, but I did get a complimentary bottle of water and a couple bags of chips as my "welcome" gift.