I won Vistana Villages on SkyAuction!

[ushkina]

Why is it so cheap? 45$ + fees/taxes!! Is there a catch?

Thanks!!

 

[momof2inPA]

Well fees/taxes are $195, but that's still cheap. Congratulations.

 

[ushkina]

Yeh, I know the fees are 195$, but this is for a week, not per day, right? Still seems suspiciously cheap to me.. Are there any resort fees that are extra?
I just received an email from them asking for my CC number and travel dates, so all seems fine now.. My travel dates haven't been confirmed yet, though, so I am holding my fingers crossed..

 

[momof2inPA]

I've never done skyauction but am seriously considering it. The rates are so good, even if the dates are limited.

The last time we went to Vistana Villages there were no resort fees. Good luck. Let me know how it works out.

 

[ushkina]

momof2inPA,
Is parking free? Is housekeeping included or extra? Do they provide bed sheets, towels, cookware etc?
Thanks!

 

[momof2inPA]

Parking was free.

Housekeeping will be extra with a condo rental.

All dishes, silverware, cooking pots and utensils were provided. Towels and sheets were provided, and there might be a mid-week cleaning, but I don't remember.

 

[ushkina]

Thanks!! One more question: will they automatically charge me extra money for the housekeeping, or they'll ask me if I want it?

 

[21yankees]

Just thought I'd give my 2 cents. I just got back from Florida this afternoon, and I stayed at Vistana Villages (Sheraton, right?). You'll love it, we had a great time there.

 

[swilshire]

That's a great catch! What time of year was it for?

Sheila

 

[HeatherC]

That's an awesome deal. I priced the Vistana Villages for a 2 bedroom for October and the lowest rate through Starwood was over $200 a night!!!

We stayed here a while ago and thought it was beautiful. You will love all the space and the pool area is spectacular.

There is no catch with Sky Auction. I've used them before and are using them again this coming Friday. You should have a wonderful time!!!!

Congrats!
HeatherC

 

[lawgs]

you always have to add 195 +15 dollars to your skyauction bid...to get the true price

but you are still getting a bargain

......considering someone who owns there .....has the initial outlay ($$$$$) + yearly maintenance fee ($$$) + rci/ii membership ($$) + exchange fee ($$$), the same week can cost them 700$ in fees not including the initial thousands of dollar outlay

since what you will be on is essentially an exchange and not a rental....you will not have to pay Housekeeping fees....

this is a very nice resort by the way....

did you get a one bedroom or two bedroom....

full kitchen or partial kitchen.....sometimes with the one bedrooms you are getting what is known as the LOCKOUT part of a two bedroom which is much smaller than a regular one bedroom and may come with only a partial kitchen...

check out

www.tug2.net

and read more about timeshare owners and what they think of skyauction etc....

but as long as skyauction is gonna offer things like this, a person should take advantage of a vacationing lifestyle that heretofor was primarily the domain of timeshare owners....you get to taste it without payng caviar prices....smilawgs

 

[ushkina]

Thanks, guys! It is for May 14-21, 2004 (the dates were listed as available, but I did not get confirmation yet). There are several other auctions for Vistana Villages there now.. some of them are availabe for certain dates in May, August, September and November.. The choice of availabe dates is limited though.

 

[ushkina]

lawgs,
Thanks for the advice. I got a 1 bedroom (there are three of us going, all adults, so I hope there'll be enough space) with the full kitchen. I did not even know some of the units have a partial kitchen, thanks for the warning. Any idea whether a Master bedroom of a 1 bd suite has a jacuzzi?

 

[lawgs]

ushkina

once you get your confirmation ( usually via email unless it is too close to the "acution date" ) and print it out

there should be a comment on it about "Kitchen F"

make sure the resort does not try to stick you with a partial if you are suppost to get FULL

just be firm with them if they try to do this (celebration world seems to do this quite a bit ) not sure about Vistana Villages

think the one bedrooms have the jacuzzi but you can do a search on google to get to their website where they should have some floor plans available


you should enjoy the resort ( there is a nice Publix and Walgreen's in a plaza just down the street about a half mile )

premium outlet mall is just across the street from this plaza and you will also see the new Hilton Grand Vacations timeshare in this area

smilawgs

 

[ushkina]

Thanks for your advice!
I checked villa floor plans, there are three types of 1bd suites, only one of them has a whirlpool bath in the bedroom, but most likely this is not the type we will get. Not a big deal though

 

[SRUAlmn]

So this thread prompted me to go and look at skyauction for the first time, and WOW I found that there are 5 places that are listed most often and I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on which would be the best. Just two of us adults travelling. Not sure if we'll have a car yet or not, but would prefer a place with free transportation if possible. Do you have to sit through timeshare promotions for any of these? Distance is really my main concern, but I think we will be going to Sea World for a day or two too so it may not really matter how far we are as long as there is transportation or it's close enough that we won't get lost Here are the 5 places:

Sheraton Vistana Villages
Radisson Resort Parkway
Hotel Royal Plaza
Rosen Centre Hotel
Hilton Grand Vacations Club (Sea World)

Thanks for your help!!

 

[ushkina]

From what I read on these boards, Vistana VIllages (not to be confused with Vistana Resort - it's also available on SkyAuction but a different property) is about 15 mins drive to Disney and 5 mins drive to SeaWorld. See this thread:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=527408&highlight="Vistana+Villages"

See this thread about whether you need a car at Vistana Villages:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=286813&highlight="Vistana+Villages"
There is a complimentary shuttle going to Disney from VV, but I don't know the schedule, and I heard you tip the driver..

There are some great deals on car rental available if you use coupons, contract IDs (check Transportation board) - we are renting a car for 120$ a week and find it comparable to the price of the shuttle to/from the hotel for the three of us. So you might want to consider renting..

 

[laurabelle]

Congratulations! You got a great price! I also recently won a 1br at Vistana resort, though mine is for July and I paid more for it, still a bargain at $400 for the week total. Just my observation, it seems like the auctions that go for the least amount are the ones with travel dates within about a month, or for off times (like Sept.) I was too anxious to wait it out! We'll be driving down so that's not an issue.

Please post or PM me when you get back, I'd love to hear how it went and which unit you got. I bet you'll love it!

 

[laurabelle]

Originally posted by SRUAlmn
Do you have to sit through timeshare promotions for any of these?

From what has been reported on these boards you are not obligated to sit through the timeshare presentation when you win a villa through skyauction (unless you are bidding on one that clearly states it's a timeshare presentation, I've never seen this on a Vistana auction) though they will call you a few times to try to get you to.

As far as the other properties you listed, check out the Orlando Disboard for info.

 

[ushkina]

laurabelle,
The one I won is for Vistana Villages, not Vistana Resort, so maybe that's why the price was cheaper..

>Please post or PM me when you get back, I'd love to hear how it went and which >unit you got. I bet you'll love it

Sure! I just hope they confirm my dates (any idea how long it takes them to make reservations for the actual dates?) - I am so ready to go!