Author's product rating: 
| Advantages: |
Superb accomodation |
| Disadvantages: |
Large outlay of money |
| Recommend to potential buyers: |
yes |
Good Evening and Congratulations! You’ve just won a holiday for 2 in Florida. What do you think to this news, I bet you’re so excited you can’t speak etc….. Haven’t we all received such calls and probably haven’t taken the holiday as by the time you pay the insurance and flights you could choose your own destination at a time that suits you and not the promoters.
Time share people come in all guises, it can be like that on the telephone coming into your home unasked and usually at dinner time or it can be as you walk along a pretty promenade enjoying the view whist on your holiday that you are accosted. It was such a scenario that happened to us last May in Malta.
We had walked from Sliema to St Georges Bay, probably took us an hour or so but the sun was getting hotter and we walked up into the town to find a café for a long cold drink. A very polite older lady (at least in her 50’s!) spoke to us, and it turned out she was touting for business, yes she was the kidnapper as they are fondly called. The offer to see a brand new 5 star hotel and a cold drink was enough, the pretty little gold earrings and pendant in a Maltese Cross design and a bottle of wine for 1 hour of our time was incidental, it was the cold drink and to get out of the sun that was priority! So we followed her to a lovely hotel where we had our drinks and chatted to “the Babysitter”. He chatted away like an interested friend, are you enjoying your holiday? , have you been to Malta before? how many times a year do you go on holiday? …. I’m sure you’ve heard the questions before. Time passed our hour was up and we hadn’t even seen the hotel. I was sure my husband would be getting itchy feet and want to be off, but he seemed quite comfortable. This was unusual as he is often quite rude to Timeshare people, which is not in his nature.
Eventually we did a tour of the hotel. Well it was definitely 5 star, you sunk into the carpets, the staff were all very polite and very smart, the facilities were excellent , there was an indoor and outdoor pool, the sun bed area was huge and the loungers well padded for old bones! There was a leisure centre complete with climbing wall, which could be used by guests but was run separately and used by local people and even some film stars whilst filming in Malta had been in that week. Several types of restaurants both indoor and outdoor during the summer season and larger facilities for conferences and weddings etc and there was even an IMAX theatre and ordinary cinema underneath the hotel building if you fancy a film session. The apartments were still in the process of being built or at least the framework was there but the finishing touches were needed. But of course they had some ready for viewing. We saw the larger apartment first, beautifully furnished and fell in love! The smaller studio was more than adequate and very similar, but only had one bathroom. We only have one bathroom at home so no problem there.
Tour over, here comes the bit…..DRUM ROLL
This can be all yours to enjoy if your purchase a holiday ownership. The posh way of saying timeshare! By now we had moved to a more comfortable lounge/bar and had been served with coffees, and had the holiday ownership explained to us, we agreed we were interested in knowing more and so details were taken of when we would like to have our holiday. Our babysitter who was from New Zealand and was called Jason left to go to his superior (I guess he was the salesman) with our requirements and to work out the relevant details. MONEY wasn’t mentioned, after this is a very discreet way of selling!!
We were left to sit and chat. Was the area bugged I wondered? No. Pretty sure this was above board, we decided to see what it cost and what our limit would be and soon the Salesman/Manager was back. It started all again, are you enjoying your holiday etc.. I’m sure you’ve got the picture. But no pressure, and he was very pleasant, we discovered he was from England, living and working out in Malta because he suffers with rheumatism (all together now Awwwwwww!)
Pages of figures were produced but eventually it was sorted out to 1 week at a time to suit us, as I don’t like it too hot we choose Week 17 on their calendar the last in the Yellow period which is the middle price range. We choose a 1 bedroom studio, which sleeps 4 and has a small kitchen and bed settee in the living room complete with balcony with table and chairs. The bedroom had a door opening into the bathroom making it en-suite, but there was also another door so guests could enter without disturbing you. Small points, but if you like to be in the bathroom by yourself you need to lock both doors!!
He was not to persistent, the decision was ours, my husband was happy we decided to go ahead and forms were printed, explanations made and we signed a Visa form for our deposit promising to pay the balance a month after our return.
EASY PEASY! We shook hands and were put into a taxi for the return to our hotel complete with our FREE (LOL) wine and jewellery, signed and sealed documents and a huge book of all the places we could visit on holiday breaks, which would seriously put our luggage over the weight limit plus an invitation to go back in a day or two to look around and use the facilities if we wished and discuss any queries we had. In other words there was a cooling off period if we had major doubts of what we had done in the heat of the moment so to speak!
We did go back and looked around and asked some questions, mainly over the problem of flights from Glasgow being on a Thursday but our holiday runs from a Saturday. This wouldn’t be a problem in the early days of this Resort we were assured, they would be able to accommodate us.
On return home we did wonder if we had been rash, normally we are careful and have always turned our backs on time share experiences. Talking to people we discovered that “INTERVAL INTERNATIONAL” whose organisation we were now members of, was huge and seemed very reliable, one of the big groups with places all over the world which were now within our reach. I was amazed at just how many people were members of such groups and I had always thought their holidays were just booked like ours at a travel agency or over the internet. So we felt a little more reassured. Life went on, we returned to work, received a welcome letter from the resort and reminder to send the cheque. We sent our cheque and didn’t hear any more, we didn’t receive a receipt even, but on paying the Visa for the deposit we discovered the exchange rate was against us and it cost us another £70 so a copy was sent off and they forwarded a cheque for this amount as was their agreement. I then emailed the resort as we hadn’t received any correspondence about the cheque which had been cashed, and they replied very quickly that there was a problem and no sign of our money. The man sorting this out gave me his home email and worked it out during the night, we received another e –mail in the wee small hours and over the next few days and eventually things were processed.
Deep sigh of relief. Oh boy, we were really worried! All the tales of dodgy timeshares came to mind. Happily this was sorted out and we met the gentleman in question on a visit back to the Fortina Spa resort (see my diamond review!) We decided to visit to see that it really existed as the only mention online when we logged on to the site was “Under restoration” so we were slightly worried as it had been due to open in the summer.
We now have a membership number and access to the web site for Interval International where we can exchange our holiday if we wish and go somewhere else in stead of to Malta for this there is a fee to be paid, the amount I cannot remember at the moment or we can buy Getaway breaks which come available, the price depends on the time of year, availability and size of the apartment. Anxious to see how it worked we crammed in another holiday last November when we went to Marbella (for which guess what! There is another review!) We booked a Getaway break at a wonderful 5 star hotel in Marbella for a week for £320 plus our flights. It was so easy to do, just a few clicks online. We thought it excellent value for money as there was room for another 2 people if they were happy to share the bed settee and the apartment was fantastic, with a huge balcony complete with table, chairs and 4 sun loungers, a fully fitted kitchen with dishwasher and washing machine – useful if you go for a long holiday.
Our holiday ownership lasts a long, long time!! For 30 years!! We, even if we are still alive will be too old probably to be pushed in our wheelchairs or race along on our zimmers but we can leave it to our family in our will. In fact they can now benefit as we can buy holidays for them. Just in case they read this I will re-phase that, we can purchase on their behalf and perhaps add a little on to make up for our original outlay! I forgot to add that each year you have a management fee to pay in our case this was £170 so basically once you have made the bulk of the money, you have a one week holiday for £170.
So I would say if you have a spare £6,000, then if this holiday experience appeals go for it, we did and so far we are very happy. Our investments were losing in the bank, so this sounded a good option, hopefully should we decide in the future to sell then we will recover some of our money and we will have had holidays, maybe we will be lucky and will make a profit (HA.HA) you never know, but as we are not gamblers this was quite a risky thrill for us!
The book shows details of the entire properties available world wide. There is a huge section in Canada and the USA, Great Britain and Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Eastern Mediterranean, Central Europe and the Low Countries, Scandinavia and Finland, Middle East and Africa, Australia, New Zealand, South Pacific and Asia. There is a wonderful choice of beautiful apartments.
So far we have not done an Exchange so I cannot comment on how well it works, but the instructions are well set out both in the book and online. It does say in the book under helpful hints, that units with more private sleeping areas generally yield more trading power because they are in higher demand. We were told to have the best trading power you need 2 weeks in the Red High Season, but not everyone wants or can afford that. Having said that we have now traded in our1 bedroom Studio at the Eden Bay Resort in Malta ( the hotel it is attached to is the Hotel Intercontinental) in the Middle season for a larger apartment with 2 bathrooms in the High season which is overlooking the gardens, only a few weeks later but hopefully slightly better weather!
Our family are looking forward to joining us, once they accepted their inheritance is being spent!
We purchased the Interval Gold Membership at an additional fee in the hopes of benefiting from other things, so far we have only saved on our Getaway break but as it lasts for a few years we live in hope! Getaway breaks are discounted by £15 for Gold Members. You can make savings on Travel, car hire, money off cruises and city breaks. There is a Gold Concierge available, like a PA who can organise tickets for special events and find out information world wide for places you are visiting. Savings for Golfers, Travel Insurance and parking.
My conclusion is this, that if you want the best and also like several holidays a year, and if you can afford the outlay go for a time share deal.
Recently we have had 2 or 3 holidays a year and each of these holidays have cost in excess of £1000- £1500 for the 2 of us. As we have stayed in hotels for a number of years I wasn’t too sure of having an apartment, but it was great, we could eat breakfast in the hotel which was part of our resort if we wished and did so on the first day as we arrived in the early hours of the morning so didn’t have any supplies and in the evening the choice is your own, there were several restaurants in our hotel which we used and also went out into the town to sample different things. To us this is a better option from Half Board. Normally we like to try local foods but we visited a Mongolian Barbecue which was great fun! It probably wasn’t much of a financial saving but we had a better class of hotel and facilities and most of us like a little (or a lot!) of luxury whilst on our well deserved holidays. Flights from Scotland are sometimes a bit harder but you can shop around and find a deal which suits you from which ever airport you want, Interval International will do this for you if you don’t like browsing on the internet, but I guess if you are reading this then the Internet is a comfy place to be!
We weren’t bothered by Time share people until our last day, when we were accosted 4 times in 20minutes! But we dealt with them firmly and politely and walked on! Not a job I would want to do but it presumably keeps them fed and housed.
Roll on the next holiday! I wonder where that will be......
| More Reviews |
 My little bit of heaven!!!!!!!
Review of Time Share by
Hippychick54
Advantages: my holiday is confirmed
Disadvantages: I have to come home!!!!
...at no extra cost. All time out there is ‘red time’ which means its good weather, usually expensive time. I have holidayed there at all different times of the year, (my son has a week in November) and the weather has always been glorious.
Flights from Birmingham range from £160 to £180 depending on the time of year and as my week is Monday to Monday I have a greater range of flights to choose from. It takes a little more than 4 hours from Birmingham ...
...but it is a necessary evil!!!
It is also possible to bank timeshare with a holding group and swap with other owners for other resorts all over the world. Dial an Exchange are very good. I was with RCI in the beginning, but as I always go to Bahia Blanca - my second home now, with many Spanish friends whose company and family events I have come to enjoy over the years, I have never used this facility. My brother has travelled the world by banking ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
| Value for Money |
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very helpful
16.08.2004
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 WORLDWIDE TIMESHARE HYPERMARKET
Review of Time Share by
angels_ackiz
Advantages: NONE!
Disadvantages: RIPPED OFF!!
...same place at the same time each year, year in year out. You could join a club (forgot the name) and bank your holiday, changing it for another destination and time period and enjoy holidays around the world at the same high standard.
Sounds great doesn't it?
It is really! The conn starts when you want sell your timeshare. Because you have to pay towards the cost of maintaining your timeshare each year, which runs into the hundreds of pounds, and ...
...can't afford it and want to sell it on.
You phone WORLDWIDE TIMESHARE HYPERMARKET who tell you they act as an estate agent who have hundreds of buyers on their books, they will do all the leg work and let you know when someone is interested and makes you an offer. Say you bought your luxury timeshare in India for £6000 and you were told that 'like a house, they go up in value' over time.
They promise you they'll get the best possible price for ...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful |
| Value for Money |
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very helpful
25.05.2004
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 5 star accommodation every time
Review of Time Share by
barny46
Advantages: 5 star accommodation
Disadvantages: cost of accommodation
Time Share Resorts
Thurnham Hall, Lancaster. Excellent accommodation, Sports complex and excellent restaurant. The resort over looks Morecambe Bay. Easy access to the Lake Ditrict and the Yorkshire Dales. Now part of the Thurnham Leisure Club which is now affiliated to Interval International. We actually own a week at this resort. You can even use the facilities such as the leisure club and resturant all year round.
Balaia Park, Algarve, Portugal. ...
...include excellent restaurant, 4 swimming pools, tennis courts. Close to marvellous sandy beaches. Well worth a visit. Fairly near Faro Airport.
Charlotte Bay Resort, Western Florida. Comfortable accommodation overlooking Charlotte Bay. A great place to relax. Close to historic Punta Gorda
Sea Oats Beach Club, Englewood, Western Florida. Excellent accommodation on the Gulf Coast with direct access to the beach. A great place to unwind after spending ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful |
| Value for Money |
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helpful
02.06.2002
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 Good and bad
Review of Time Share by
denis7
Advantages: usually quality
Disadvantages: can be costly
My family stayed in a Timeshare self-catering exchange apartment at Hotel Plas Dinorwic in Y Felinheli (Port Dinorwic)N Wales, in March 2005.The hotel chef extolled the virtues of a timeshare company based at the hotel. Verbal and written guarantees persuaded me to part with money that I will never see again, as it is probably in Spain with him.
Surprisingly but understandably top hotel management sought to distance themselves from this individual ...
...denying that F****H***** would have made the guarantees, and stating that his current address is unknown (but any payment can be forwarded!). An investigation by the BBC had to admit failure.
A holiday should leave you with happy memories and this one did NOT. I was gullible.
One verbal guarantee with FH was that the maintenance fees would be paid.They were not of course.Then that the money will be refunded,its in the post,in 30 days,and so on-still ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful |
| Value for Money |
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somewhat helpful
15.08.2006
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This product has not yet been reviewed. 
17.08.2000
