Anyone use Endless Vacations by Wyndham to rent a condo?

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Has anyone used the Endless Vacations by Wyndham website to rent a timeshare condo? For the week we are going to WDW we can rent a 3 bdrm condo at Silver Lake Resort or a 2 bdrm condo at Orbit One Vacation Villas for a little under $600 for the week. It appears that you have to pay in full at the time of booking, I guess since these are limited rates. We are leaning towards Silver Lake because it is basically next door to Animal Kingdom and the condo is a larger unit; but there are a lot of good reviews about both timeshare resorts. Thanks

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Has anyone used the Endless Vacations by Wyndham website to rent a timeshare condo? For the week we are going to WDW we can get rent a 3 bdrm condo at Silver Lake Resort or a 2 bdrm condo at Orbit One Vacation Villas for a little under $600 for the week. It appears that you have to pay in full at the time of booking, I guess since these are limited rates. We are leaning towards Silver Lake because it is basically next door to Animal Kingdom and the condo is a larger unit; but there are a lot of good reviews about both timeshare resorts. Thanks

Anyone? I've seen this site mentioned on these boards a couple times

 

[jbbt]

I have never used Endless Vacations, but I get their emails and have been tempted - I just always find it a little cheaper to get certificates through skyauction. It looks like the same system though as they have the same availability. We have stayed at Silver Lakes many times this way. I think the 3 bedrooms are new. We love Silver Lakes as it is just about 1/2 mile from Animal Kingdom, but it is not Disney so manage your expectations. The staff is friendly, the grounds are clean and the pools are nice - simple but decent and most importantly, affordable and close to Disney. We are going again for two weeks in May. When you check-in, they send you to another desk to get your parking pass - this is where they tell you about the timeshare breakfast, etc... I just tell them that I am not interested, get my parking pass and leave - there's no pressure. They will call your room and increase the incentives to attend the talk - I just don't answer the phone - still no pressure if you answer the phone. They will call to make sure you want towel exchange on Wednesday, so make sure you take care of that if that is something you want. I just wash my own. I am happy to answer any questions you have as we've probably stayed there for 8 or more weeks. BTW - I would do it!

IMPORTANT - mine has always been non-refundable, non-transferrable and you can't switch weeks once booked, but a risk we have always been willing to take. I think you can put two names on the reservation though so that might give you some flexibility.

Brigitte

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Thank you for your reply. Silver Lake looks like a very nice timeshare resort and I love how close it is to AK Right now we are still trying to decide whether to stick with our WDW vacation pkg or if it would be more practical with our four kids to get a condo offsite. Price wise it would cost us about the same since we are booked under the kids play/stay free promo and if we stay offsite we would have to rent a minivan. This is why it is such a tough choice to make I really like Silver Lake though and there are so many nice reviews about it and it has a lot of awards. My only concern about the Endless Vacations website is that there is no "fine print" as to what the terms and conditions are, particularly if you have to attend a timeshare presentation, etc. I do know that you have to pay in full at time of booking and that it is non-refundable, that also concerns me. Otherwise, we are still considering it.

 

[jbbt]

Holy Cow! While doing some research for you I just realized that I was in fact using Endless Vacations - DUH! I never realized it as I buy a "Resort Vacation Week Certificate" on skyauction dot com then I got to resortcerts dot com to book it (which I see, in their upper left corner, is run by Endless Vacations). (btw - skyauction is an auction site where you can bid on the RCI weekly vacation certificates and the certificates are good for quite a while but the inventory available varies). I have done this for every time we have stayed at Silver Lakes, so everything I told you should apply, but you can email them and ask and then you have printed proof that you don't have to attend a timeshare presentation, etc... I was very skeptical at first as we had attended one timeshare presentation in Williamsburg and it was awful - high pressure! So I made sure I wasn't going to have to do this again - nothing is worth that.

All of that being said, we have been to Disney countless times, staying on and off property, and there is NOTHING better than staying on property for the full Disney immersion experience while NOTHING is worse than being with a family that is not happy and rested. I have done both and it may have a lot to do with the what you want out of your vacation and the personalities/temperaments of your children. I'm certainly not trying to sway your decision in either direction. I know it's a difficult choice!

I would love to help you weigh your options - give you our opinion of pros and cons to both if you want? Have you been to disney before, how long are you going to stay and what Disney resort do you have booked?

Thanks for letting me share what would otherwise be useless information.

Brigitte

 

[DawnM]

Out of those two, I have only stayed at Orbit One. I have also only stayed in a 2 bedroom for $200 for the week through SkyAuction. It is a decent place and we have stayed there three times now I believe.

Are you going during peak season? Just curious as I have never seen the cost that high.

Dawn

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Holy Cow! While doing some research for you I just realized that I was in fact using Endless Vacations - DUH! I never realized it as I buy a "Resort Vacation Week Certificate" on skyauction dot com then I got to resortcerts dot com to book it (which I see, in their upper left corner, is run by Endless Vacations). (btw - skyauction is an auction site where you can bid on the RCI weekly vacation certificates and the certificates are good for quite a while but the inventory available varies). I have done this for every time we have stayed at Silver Lakes, so everything I told you should apply, but you can email them and ask and then you have printed proof that you don't have to attend a timeshare presentation, etc... I was very skeptical at first as we had attended one timeshare presentation in Williamsburg and it was awful - high pressure! So I made sure I wasn't going to have to do this again - nothing is worth that.

All of that being said, we have been to Disney countless times, staying on and off property, and there is NOTHING better than staying on property for the full Disney immersion experience while NOTHING is worse than being with a family that is not happy and rested. I have done both and it may have a lot to do with the what you want out of your vacation and the personalities/temperaments of your children. I'm certainly not trying to sway your decision in either direction. I know it's a difficult choice!

I would love to help you weigh your options - give you our opinion of pros and cons to both if you want? Have you been to disney before, how long are you going to stay and what Disney resort do you have booked?

Thanks for letting me share what would otherwise be useless information.

Brigitte

Right now we are booked for seven nights at Pop Century (two rooms) but we are also reconsidering the AS Music family suite because we are concerned about the possibility of not getting connecting rooms and also not having a microwave, coffee maker, or mini fridge in the room. It will be our first WDW visit as a family (I have been a couple times before as a child). We like the convenience aspect of not having to rent a minivan and being able to take the buses to the parks, but now we are starting to think that may not necessarily be convenient We really don't care about the full immersion aspect as being in the parks everyday for long hours is enough immersion for us It looks like another poster mentioned that the $600/week is high If we could get a better deal for the condo, this may be an even stronger consideration. I will have to look into Sky Auction. I have seen this site mentioned a couple times on these boards as well. Thanks

 

[JennSaint]

Right now we are booked for seven nights at Pop Century (two rooms) but we are also reconsidering the AS Music family suite because we are concerned about the possibility of not getting connecting rooms and also not having a microwave, coffee maker, or mini fridge in the room. It will be our first WDW visit as a family (I have been a couple times before as a child). We like the convenience aspect of not having to rent a minivan and being able to take the buses to the parks, but now we are starting to think that may not necessarily be convenient We really don't care about the full immersion aspect as being in the parks everyday for long hours is enough immersion for us It looks like another poster mentioned that the $600/week is high If we could get a better deal for the condo, this may be an even stronger consideration. I will have to look into Sky Auction. I have seen this site mentioned a couple times on these boards as well. Thanks

I think staying onsite with young children is a great choice! If someone needs a nap while others don't 1 adult can go back to the resort. The others can stay at the park. Staying offsite will make it harder for breaks during the day. And with kids your children's ages I would say taking a break is a good idea.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Out of those two, I have only stayed at Orbit One.* I have also only stayed in a 2 bedroom for $200 for the week through SkyAuction.* It is a decent place and we have stayed there three times now I believe.Are you going during peak season?* Just curious as I have never seen the cost that high.Dawn

Endless Vacations by Wyndham is offering Orbit One (2 bdrm) for $77/nt for the week we are going in Sept (they only rent for a full week-7 nights). I think the rate is the same for the Silver Lake 3 bdrm as well. I thought this was a good deal considering you can't even get many hotel rooms for that rate. Again, I am going to look into Sky Auction and try to learn more about that. If we could get a condo for $200 a week then we would definitely jump on that kind of deal

 

[OhioMom2Four]

I am scheduling a last minute trip to Disney for our family of seven for April 1- 10 or some combination of dates close to that. We have done too many last minute vacations lately but it always ends up working out ok. We've never stayed at a resort and I would love to find out how to book somewhere nice but less expensive.

Does Endless Vacations have the capability to book something for us this close to our trip? I'm having a hard time finding the information I need. I think we would be ok with a two bedroom. Three would be great. I appreciate any help I can be given.

Any condo/ resort is fine with us within a 15-20 minute drive from Disney. We've stayed in both the Lake Buena Vista area and 192.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

I am scheduling a last minute trip to Disney for our family of seven for April 1- 10 or some combination of dates close to that. We have done too many last minute vacations lately but it always ends up working out ok. We've never stayed at a resort and I would love to find out how to book somewhere nice but less expensive.

Does Endless Vacations have the capability to book something for us this close to our trip? I'm having a hard time finding the information I need. I think we would be ok with a two bedroom. Three would be great. I appreciate any help I can be given.

Any condo/ resort is fine with us within a 15-20 minute drive from Disney. We've stayed in both the Lake Buena Vista area and 192.

If you go to the Endless Vacations by Wyndham website, on the front page you would select the "search and book online" area at the left side of the screen. Select United States for region, Florida-Orlando area for destination, and April for the month you are interested in. For April, it doesn't look like they have many options remaining for early in the month; but there are several resorts with greater 2-3 bedroom unit availability for mid-late April. I would go on the site and see if you find something that interests you. I have never booked with this company before so I wouldn't be able to give you more details than that. Another last minute option is Expedia. Sometimes they have some great last minute deals for both hotels and condo resorts. I do know that with sites like these you have to pay in full at the time of booking though. Good luck

 

[jbbt]

I have never seen a 2 bedroom Silver Lake unit for $200. I have seen a 1 bedroom though and I have seen other 2 bedroom units for other resorts like Orbit One. You can do a search on Skyauction to check. I usually buy the "home and away" certificates, but you can search for a particular resort or a particular size condo like "2 bedroom condo". Always read through the entire listing on Skyauction. You may only bid $1, but in the auction posting you will see additional charges - often $195 or $295 for the condos. You will also have to pay a $20 processing fee.

Here are some other thoughts:

1) If you decide to stay offsite, remember that you will have to pay for parking at an additional $14 per day - that might make your decision easy as it adds more cost.

2) I don't think staying at Silver Lake makes it harder to take breaks in the afternoon. I think it is actually faster to get in your car and then drive right up to your condo door (especially since Silver Lake is so close) than waiting for a bus, being dropped off and then having to make your way to your room. The splitting up would be more difficult but with the ages of your children and the Florida heat, I bet you wouldn't do that much anyway.

3) Renting a van made the whole stroller situation easier a lot easier for us. We could actually roll the whole stroller into the van without folding it - of course it depends on the seat configuration - but we didn't have to hurry unload it, fold it and drag everything onto the bus. You might have to do it with the parking lot tram though. We had AAA, so we parked in those spots and never took the tram.

4) Staying onsite allows for daily housekeeping. It is wonderful to walk into a freshly cleaned room after a long, hot day in the park.

5) The condo has a washer and dryer and while I don't devote a lot of time to doing laundry on vacation. I would throw in a load in the morning and at night. It was a treat for me to come home and not have to do laundry in the midst of my post-vacation depression.

6) Have you checked lateley to see if the 3 bedroom was still available? Even if it's not there now, it may come back later. Availability varies.

7) Silver Lake has 2 bedrooms that sleep 8. The one we got had 2 double beds in one bedroom, a sofa sleeper and the master with a king bed.


You'll have a great time no matter where you stay!
Brigitte