ChrisParker
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2011
- Messages
- 515
Hi all
I have been debating whether or not to share this but I can't stop thinking about it and I'm also considering writing to Disney themselves but I really don't know if it will make a difference.
Nevertheless, here is our story.
Last year I convinced DH to go to a conference in Orlando so I could take a few days off and go with him. During that time I went on the DVC presentation because why not. I didn't even know about the fastpasses when I went that time and we were staying at the conference hotel so there was no gift card. I had a lovely hour with a gentleman named Judson who answered all my questions and gave me lots of advice that I found helpful (including Canadians shouldn't use our financing. You should do that on your own at home and go from there, which turned out to be relevant later). There was no pressure and after I talked to him I was thinking it might be a possibility for us.
Fast forward to last week when DH and I were both at WDW for a vacation without the kids and I said you should really do this thing with me and see what you think about it. So off we went. We made an appt with a gentleman named Ashley in Disney Springs and they picked us up from Movies at 8:10 the next morning. The driver was great and we were soon there.
I won't name the salesman we spoke to but if anyone wants to know his name to avoid having him do your sales pitch, PM me.
We sat down in the little room and watched the video. Then he turned to us and said, "Why are you here? You went last year already." I was a bit taken aback. I said, well, my husband is here now and I wanted him to hear first hand the information also.
We then sat through a high pressure sales pitch. I can't remember it in sequence, partly because I was so shocked for the first 10 minutes.
Highlights included - You should really buy today. Prices just went up 20% and if you wait even a few weeks they could go up that much again.
I mentioned what Judson had said about Canadian financing. I was told I should lock into the DVC financing today and then pay it off early if I found a better deal at home.
I mentioned that this big of a purchase would require us to go home and talk to our advisor and look at how it would fit long term. I was told that my advisor couldn't understand the value of a Disney vacation so it wasn't worth talking to him.
My husband naively asked about the benefits of buying direct over resale. We were told that if we bought resale we would not have membership cards and that we would miss out on a lot of perks, and that Disney had never lessened the perks of DVC but would only ever increase them.
I mentioned the fact that the US dollar is at $1.38 at the moment and that if that changed it would make a big deal of difference on a bit purchase so we were trying to time that as well. I was told that I hadn't let the dollar make a difference when I planned my current trip (which was not true) and I shouldn't let it make a difference here either.
I asked about the resale restrictions at the Riviera. First he pretended not to know what I was talking about. I was told that just as "a certain type of clientele" buy at Grand Floridian, it would likely be the same type who would want to buy at Riveira, so it wouldn't be an issue on resale because there would be so many people who would only want to stay at Riviera, but he would show us the Wilderness Lodge suite as well. (It so happens that we liked it a lot better.)
He spent a lot of time telling us how we could use our points anywhere we wanted all over the world, etc. and stressed that we should cruise with them also. Then I asked about Aulani. I said, well how about Aulani, what would that price point be? And he flatly refused to tell me. He said, "You don't want to buy there. It's too expensive to get there. You couldn't fly there every year." I said, "Yes, but you've just told me how I can use the points anywhere." He ignored me and started talking about something else.
At some point, my husband flat out said, "We're not in a position to sign today but we are interested in taking the information and considering it."
Within about 5 seconds of that, the salesman said, "Well let's get you the things you were promised and get you out of here."
Suffice it to say, I was deeply offended by the experience, as well as shocked. I left there thinking why on earth would I ever deal with these people instead of going resale? I keep going over it in my head and I have never heard anyone say they had an experience like this.
Anyway. Maybe now I've shared it with y'all I can get some peace around it and leave it.
I have been debating whether or not to share this but I can't stop thinking about it and I'm also considering writing to Disney themselves but I really don't know if it will make a difference.
Nevertheless, here is our story.
Last year I convinced DH to go to a conference in Orlando so I could take a few days off and go with him. During that time I went on the DVC presentation because why not. I didn't even know about the fastpasses when I went that time and we were staying at the conference hotel so there was no gift card. I had a lovely hour with a gentleman named Judson who answered all my questions and gave me lots of advice that I found helpful (including Canadians shouldn't use our financing. You should do that on your own at home and go from there, which turned out to be relevant later). There was no pressure and after I talked to him I was thinking it might be a possibility for us.
Fast forward to last week when DH and I were both at WDW for a vacation without the kids and I said you should really do this thing with me and see what you think about it. So off we went. We made an appt with a gentleman named Ashley in Disney Springs and they picked us up from Movies at 8:10 the next morning. The driver was great and we were soon there.
I won't name the salesman we spoke to but if anyone wants to know his name to avoid having him do your sales pitch, PM me.
We sat down in the little room and watched the video. Then he turned to us and said, "Why are you here? You went last year already." I was a bit taken aback. I said, well, my husband is here now and I wanted him to hear first hand the information also.
We then sat through a high pressure sales pitch. I can't remember it in sequence, partly because I was so shocked for the first 10 minutes.
Highlights included - You should really buy today. Prices just went up 20% and if you wait even a few weeks they could go up that much again.
I mentioned what Judson had said about Canadian financing. I was told I should lock into the DVC financing today and then pay it off early if I found a better deal at home.
I mentioned that this big of a purchase would require us to go home and talk to our advisor and look at how it would fit long term. I was told that my advisor couldn't understand the value of a Disney vacation so it wasn't worth talking to him.
My husband naively asked about the benefits of buying direct over resale. We were told that if we bought resale we would not have membership cards and that we would miss out on a lot of perks, and that Disney had never lessened the perks of DVC but would only ever increase them.
I mentioned the fact that the US dollar is at $1.38 at the moment and that if that changed it would make a big deal of difference on a bit purchase so we were trying to time that as well. I was told that I hadn't let the dollar make a difference when I planned my current trip (which was not true) and I shouldn't let it make a difference here either.
I asked about the resale restrictions at the Riviera. First he pretended not to know what I was talking about. I was told that just as "a certain type of clientele" buy at Grand Floridian, it would likely be the same type who would want to buy at Riveira, so it wouldn't be an issue on resale because there would be so many people who would only want to stay at Riviera, but he would show us the Wilderness Lodge suite as well. (It so happens that we liked it a lot better.)
He spent a lot of time telling us how we could use our points anywhere we wanted all over the world, etc. and stressed that we should cruise with them also. Then I asked about Aulani. I said, well how about Aulani, what would that price point be? And he flatly refused to tell me. He said, "You don't want to buy there. It's too expensive to get there. You couldn't fly there every year." I said, "Yes, but you've just told me how I can use the points anywhere." He ignored me and started talking about something else.
At some point, my husband flat out said, "We're not in a position to sign today but we are interested in taking the information and considering it."
Within about 5 seconds of that, the salesman said, "Well let's get you the things you were promised and get you out of here."
Suffice it to say, I was deeply offended by the experience, as well as shocked. I left there thinking why on earth would I ever deal with these people instead of going resale? I keep going over it in my head and I have never heard anyone say they had an experience like this.
Anyway. Maybe now I've shared it with y'all I can get some peace around it and leave it.
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