One year living in our timeshares: 2 1/2 year update

[GoofyDad1970]

You'd be my husbands hero if I told him about your lifestyle. LOL. We spend at least 1/3 of the year in some type paid accommodations. Glad to see I'm not the only one with housekeeping issues with Wyndham. In Feb we stayed at 2 of them and had no problems but just spent 3 weeks at Bonnet Creek. Despite my best efforts our bathroom was never cleaned. Did manage to get sheets and towels changed on day 10 - but it took 3 days of trying and me working my way up the ladder. My comment was that they could certainly find me to try and sell me their timeshare but not to clean my room...

Had a different problem at the Wyndham in Kona several years ago. I had washed all our towels, folded them and put them in the closet. Housekeeping came in and took them.

LOL they probably went and put them on somebody else's bed- somebody who was complaining louder than you.

 

[edith76]

re;Kona .... Housekeeping was still outside when we got back so I ran out and asked about my towels. All she said was - "OH, I thought they looked clean" - duh! Why would I fold dirty towels and place them on a shelf in an actual linen closet. On a side note - The villa also came with ants and the dining table was outside on the deck and came with stray cats and a giant cockroach that landed on my plate during dinner. Even so, this was not our worst Wyndham stay.

 

[OhioDVC]

Any other suggestions on different categories for comparison?

 

[SuwaneeDisneyFan]

Sounds like a wonderful lifestyle!

 

[Cee]

You are my hero.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[dvc at last !]

Thanks for your info - you are living the dream !

 

[MinMouse]

Thanks for your service and sharing your wonderful adventure!

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

In my travels I have found that Wyndham deliveries lower quality accommodations and service compared to the timeshares I have experienced over the last 20 years and more recently over the last year.

Where I've gone with Wyndham:

Bonnet Creek WDW FL 5 stays
Santa Barbara - Pompano Beach FL
Emerald Grande at Destin - FL
Riversides San Antonio TX
La Cascada San Antonio TX
Kona Hawaiian Resort - Big Island Hawaii
Kauai Beach Resort = Kauai Hawaii
Royal Gardens at Waikiki - Honolulu Hawaii
Wyndham Nashville - TN

I have also toured the following: Royal Sea Cliffs HI, Bali Hai Villas HI, Waikiki Beach Walk HI, Royal Vista FL, Sea Gardens FL and Palm-Aire FL.

Here are my observations.

Understaffed compared to other timeshares I've been too

Extremely aggressive timeshare push, refuse to take "NO" to attend owner's update

Takes 20 minutes to get Bonnet Springs front desk to answer phone

Low number of front desk staff at Bonnet Creek compared to number of units

Bonnet Creek front desk TWICE programed room keys to end at midnight the night BEFORE check out. My niece and husband stayed with us and where at the hot tub past midnight. They could not get back in the building. Went to the front desk and they provided our names, their names, names of their children(all registered guests)but could not remember my street address. They were told to leave the property or they would be arrested. The front desk refused to call us or let them use a phone to call us. (they had no ID since they were in the hot tub). Finally MX person let them in. They will never go back to Bonnet Creek.

Stayed at Bonnet Creek for 2 1/2 weeks and got NO HOUSEKEEPING except for changing out towels once. I made 5 complaints and got nowhere.

At Kauai they only had air conditioning in the bedrooms, no problem - trade winds right? The windows were screwed shut because they were so rusty they would not work. The sliding grass door came off its tracks because the tracks were totally rusted out. The unit was totally DISGUSTING. The rug was extremely strained and the unit needed remodeling 3-4 years before. The beach was beautiful!!!!

At Nashville the Concierge refused to give us our parking permit until I scheduled a member's review. Things got ugly and she ended up throwing the parking permit in my face and stormed off.

I resent the strong arm tactics at check-in to get you to go to another timeshare presentation.

Wyndham will nickle and dime you to death with charges. If you make too many reservations, they start charging you. If you make a guest reservation, they charge you. If you cancel a reservation, points go into cancel points status with limitations, even if you cancel 1 year out. No ability to bank points unless you put them into RCI. Limited ability to borrow.

At most resorts, they restricted reservations in 3, 4, or 7 day increments. Must check-in on Friday, Saturday or Sunday if staying 7 days


IMO - Wyndham buys distressed properties. Example - Emerald Grande was built to sell as individual condos but the market crashed. Wyndham bought 64 units (as of last June) and rents them out.) Another company actually runs the complex and they do it on the cheap. When we were there 90% of the workers were college students doing an internship - and they were lost!

Santa Barbara was an old hotel that they remodeled into timeshares - awkward! Next door was an empty field where an old resort was torn down - an eyesore.

At Kauai they only own about half the resort. Waikiki Royal Gardens had about 6 floors as permanent owners. The resort had the smallest pool I have even seen for a hotel or timeshare.

About 40% of the Wyndham properties I have stayed at are what I consider substandard for major timeshare companies.

I spoke once with an assistant manger at Bonnet Creek and their statement summed up Wyndham's attitude towards its members...we were discussing the difference between DVC and Wyndham, and I quote exactly..."DVC is an entertainment/lodging company, Wyndham is a sales company"

Better then most, DVC to some degree, treats you like a member, Wyndham treats you like a "mark" to try and hustle to buy more timeshare.

Here is an analogy to make my point:

Wyndham is like buying a car from a sleazy used car salesmen.

DVC is like buying a new BMW or Mercedes.

Your other questions...

The Wyndham Royal Gardens in Waikiki was a very small hotel room with a mini, partial kitchen. Nothing special, very small pool, valet parking only at $35 per night. OK views of the canal where they practice with the outrigger canoes. No view of the ocean. 2-3 block walk to Waikiki beach and very convenient to downtown.

We haven't stayed at the Wyndham in San Diego yet but have reservations for January and February to stop there on our way to and from Hawaii

Well, that sums up my thoughts on timeshares BEFORE we bought DVC.

 

[lilpooh108]

re;Kona .... Housekeeping was still outside when we got back so I ran out and asked about my towels. All she said was - "OH, I thought they looked clean" - duh! Why would I fold dirty towels and place them on a shelf in an actual linen closet. On a side note - The villa also came with ants and the dining table was outside on the deck and came with stray cats and a giant cockroach that landed on my plate during dinner. Even so, this was not our worst Wyndham stay.

Not to excuse Wyndham, but having rented many condos in Hawaii (both full ownership and timeshares) and having many friends from Hawaii, flying cockroaches are a fact of life there. In fact, my friends claim that they live inside cars and if you ever catch the roaches off guard by opening your door too fast and the light turns off before they scatter, you will see them scatter.

I'm not afraid of roaches, and I "caught" a 4 inch flying one in our rented condo at Kolea (Big Island). I showed it to my husband and he nearly cried

At Aulani they spray daily, so I keep my kids off the grass.

 

[bcrook]

In my travels I have found that Wyndham deliveries lower quality accommodations and service compared to the timeshares I have experienced over the last 20 years and more recently over the last year.

Where I've gone with Wyndham:

Bonnet Creek WDW FL 5 stays
Santa Barbara - Pompano Beach FL
Emerald Grande at Destin - FL
Riversides San Antonio TX
La Cascada San Antonio TX
Kona Hawaiian Resort - Big Island Hawaii
Kauai Beach Resort = Kauai Hawaii
Royal Gardens at Waikiki - Honolulu Hawaii
Wyndham Nashville - TN

I have also toured the following: Royal Sea Cliffs HI, Bali Hai Villas HI, Waikiki Beach Walk HI, Royal Vista FL, Sea Gardens FL and Palm-Aire FL.

Here are my observations.

Understaffed compared to other timeshares I've been too

Extremely aggressive timeshare push, refuse to take "NO" to attend owner's update

Takes 20 minutes to get Bonnet Springs front desk to answer phone

Low number of front desk staff at Bonnet Creek compared to number of units

Bonnet Creek front desk TWICE programed room keys to end at midnight the night BEFORE check out. My niece and husband stayed with us and where at the hot tub past midnight. They could not get back in the building. Went to the front desk and they provided our names, their names, names of their children(all registered guests)but could not remember my street address. They were told to leave the property or they would be arrested. The front desk refused to call us or let them use a phone to call us. (they had no ID since they were in the hot tub). Finally MX person let them in. They will never go back to Bonnet Creek.

Stayed at Bonnet Creek for 2 1/2 weeks and got NO HOUSEKEEPING except for changing out towels once. I made 5 complaints and got nowhere.

At Kauai they only had air conditioning in the bedrooms, no problem - trade winds right? The windows were screwed shut because they were so rusty they would not work. The sliding grass door came off its tracks because the tracks were totally rusted out. The unit was totally DISGUSTING. The rug was extremely strained and the unit needed remodeling 3-4 years before. The beach was beautiful!!!!

At Nashville the Concierge refused to give us our parking permit until I scheduled a member's review. Things got ugly and she ended up throwing the parking permit in my face and stormed off.

I resent the strong arm tactics at check-in to get you to go to another timeshare presentation.

Wyndham will nickle and dime you to death with charges. If you make too many reservations, they start charging you. If you make a guest reservation, they charge you. If you cancel a reservation, points go into cancel points status with limitations, even if you cancel 1 year out. No ability to bank points unless you put them into RCI. Limited ability to borrow.

At most resorts, they restricted reservations in 3, 4, or 7 day increments. Must check-in on Friday, Saturday or Sunday if staying 7 days


IMO - Wyndham buys distressed properties. Example - Emerald Grande was built to sell as individual condos but the market crashed. Wyndham bought 64 units (as of last June) and rents them out.) Another company actually runs the complex and they do it on the cheap. When we were there 90% of the workers were college students doing an internship - and they were lost!

Santa Barbara was an old hotel that they remodeled into timeshares - awkward! Next door was an empty field where an old resort was torn down - an eyesore.

At Kauai they only own about half the resort. Waikiki Royal Gardens had about 6 floors as permanent owners. The resort had the smallest pool I have even seen for a hotel or timeshare.

About 40% of the Wyndham properties I have stayed at are what I consider substandard for major timeshare companies.

I spoke once with an assistant manger at Bonnet Creek and their statement summed up Wyndham's attitude towards its members...we were discussing the difference between DVC and Wyndham, and I quote exactly..."DVC is an entertainment/lodging company, Wyndham is a sales company"

Better then most, DVC to some degree, treats you like a member, Wyndham treats you like a "mark" to try and hustle to buy more timeshare.

Here is an analogy to make my point:

Wyndham is like buying a car from a sleazy used car salesmen.

DVC is like buying a new BMW or Mercedes.

Your other questions...

The Wyndham Royal Gardens in Waikiki was a very small hotel room with a mini, partial kitchen. Nothing special, very small pool, valet parking only at $35 per night. OK views of the canal where they practice with the outrigger canoes. No view of the ocean. 2-3 block walk to Waikiki beach and very convenient to downtown.

We haven't stayed at the Wyndham in San Diego yet but have reservations for January and February to stop there on our way to and from Hawaii

I love your thread.

I agree with all your comments about Wyndham. I have DVC, Wyndham, and Bluegreen. Wyndham is the worst of the three for exactly the reasons you explain.

 

[mkunichi]

You should have your own reality show! Though it might be a bit of a snoozer because there's too much happiness and relaxation and not enough drama!

No, on second thought it should be one of those inspirational financial self-help infomercial-type shows. Your story is inspirational to the younger generation!

I can't wait for the next episode. Keep the story going!

 

[SuperRob]

You could sell a book about your experiences. The blog would be a great way to get started writing it and organize your thoughts.

 

[DVC Dude]

this is an awesome thread

 

[Tiggerball]

Loved reading about your experiences! Thanks so much for sharing. Good travels in the future.

 

[bcvlover]

loving your trip reports....

safe and happy travels,

let us live vicariously thru you...

bcvlover

 

[vek239]

Just found this thread! Love it and will come back later to read all the thread.

 

[OhioDVC]

First off I would like to thank DISBoard members for all their words of encouragement and appreciate for my military service.

Our daughter is joining us for the summer and I showed her this thread. She laughed her head off. She thinks we are the most boring people in the world and she can't believe anyone would be interested in our story.

I have toyed with the idea of writing a blog/e-book over our experiences from the beginning and "How To" live full-time out of your timeshares.

Any suggestions on what you would like us to cover/discuss.

We are in Sandestin Fl (panhandle) right now and have had about 20 inches of rain so far this month. It would be a great time to start writing.

 

[vek239]

We always said we'd never buy a timeshare but here we are with close to 1000 DVC points; no regrets.

If we wanted to "branch out" and consider a timeshare within driving distance- e.g. Branson, MO; does anyone know which company is the best- or who to stay away from??? We've been there a couple of times but weren't in the timeshare mode then. Anyone familiar enough to recommend anything?

 

[aclov]

We always said we'd never buy a timeshare but here we are with close to 1000 DVC points; no regrets.

If we wanted to "branch out" and consider a timeshare within driving distance- e.g. Branson, MO; does anyone know which company is the best- or who to stay away from??? We've been there a couple of times but weren't in the timeshare mode then. Anyone familiar enough to recommend anything?

You may want to check out the TUG boards.

 

[JeanfromBNA]

In one of your posts you mentioned that you bought several several TS at a deep discount during the last recession. What about the others? How did you decide it was the right value at the right time, especially DVC?