Timeshare Sales Pitch Weekends

Linda and I have taken a couple of weekend get-a-ways where the bulk of the cost was borne by one of several timeshare marketing companies.

Generally, timeshare companies cover lodging and some meals but not transportation. But, TNSTAAFL, there’s no such thing as a free lunch – the cost of a timeshare subsidized weekend includes sitting through a high pressure tag team sales event. These are usually advertised as 90 minutes long, but in my experience you rarely escape before three hours have passed.

The multiple and continuous sales pitches can be frustrating and irritating, especially when they delay giving you the premiums you were promised until seemingly every sales person and manager in the place has had an opportunity to work on you.

The stakes are high for the sales team. Their commissions are high but their marketing expenses are high as well. They need to sell some minimum number of time shares per session to recoup their marketing expenses and pay their sales commissions. So, they push hard.

If you can’t take the hard sell for an extended period of time without caving; stay out of the situation. Pass on the timeshare weekend. Actually buying a timeshare could make this weekend the most expensive vacation of your life.

Linda and I have stood up to the test, but the fact that timeshare companies continue to offer weekend vacations in their marketing mix is testimony that someone’s been buying under the pressure. Don’t let it be you.

Link to Other Topics in the Special Report: Cutting Expenses