Last weekend, while my site was down, I was skipping Valentines Day weekend with Kim and instead spent it with Josh and another buddy from college at Wyndham’s Glacier Canyon Resort in Lake Delton, WI (near the Wisconsin Dells). I expected a weekend of watching TV, napping, eating, and enjoying a few decent beers, but what I felt I ended up involved in was something far more sinister and so creepy that at one point I honestly considered Kim’s suggestion that I get a room at another hotel for the evening and bail out the next morning for Minnesota.
As you can see, there’s a new poll for this week (which will only run until next Monday) which talks about high-pressure timeshare sales. Everyone has considered taking up the offer of “one hour” of your time in return for $100+ in gift certificates at local restaurants or retailers. Hell, even Kim and I opted for a champagne breakfast on our honeymoon which culminated in a 15 minute argument with the sales person that I already owned a timeshare and didn’t plan on purchasing one in Hawaii. Kim’s parents were offered a glass-bottom boat ride where they were brought to an island and not permitted to leave until they heard the spiel. Josh and the other buddy from college (Tim) were led around for 4 hours last year at a ski resort in Virginia for their $100 in free food. In all of those cases people were given something and more-or-less knew that they might be inconvenienced before heading out on their adventure. Well, it would appear, from my experience that all of that is changing.
Josh and I arrived at the resort just before dark. The place is huge and looks really, really, really nice. The lobby was very woodsy with a lot of comfortable couches, chairs, etc. There was one check-in for the normal hotel and one for the resort. Josh was being waited on when I finally sauntered in and the woman behind the counter was friendly, outgoing, and was very interested in the fact that the day we checked in was Josh’s birthday. After telling Josh about skiing options and snow depths, she mentioned that she’d be over at Monk’s Bar and Grill (located across the parking lot and on the resort property) that evening at the dueling piano bar beginning around 10:30. After her and Josh discussed dueling pianos, she asked him to move down to the end of the row where someone else would give him a welcome packet and offer a 15 minute in-room timeshare sales pitch for $50 in gift-certificates at one of the restaurants on the resort property. Josh agreed to that and they setup a time for 10:30 AM the next morning. We said our thank yous and went on our merry way.
Josh and I did a bunch of stuff and waited for our buddy to arrive. After getting all set in the condo, we walked over to Monk’s for food/drink at about 9:30. Strangely enough, just as we walked in the door of the bar and were trying to decide what to do, the woman from the front desk, now accompanied by what appeared to be her significant other, rushed past us and suggested we join them downstairs. Strange, didn’t she say she’d be there at 10:30 after she got off work? We followed the two down the stairs and were told that we were with them, avoiding a $5/person cover. Unfortunately we were still charged the $5 cover each and went in. We sat at a table by ourselves, off to the side of the stage, and enjoyed the show which included Josh being called up on stage, with another person in the crowd, to be picked on while sitting on the piano. This was orchestrated by the Wyndham employee and after he got back to his seat, she asked him if he wanted to join her and her companion at their table. Josh agreed and asked if we would join them as well.
The two worked Josh over hard. They bought him a shot of bourbon and started chatting with him. While I couldn’t overhear everything that was said, it was immediately obvious to me that something was up with these two. I immediately attempted to send Josh a text message which simply said, “Dude stay away. It’s the hard sell,” and not only was it that, but it was one of the most well orchestrated, cloak and dagger, creepy, and unbelievable sales tactics that I had ever witnessed.
From what I could tell, it would seem that they were trying to do numerous things:
1. Separate the three of us.
2. Use Internet research to engage us in discussions about topics we were comfortable with (musical tastes, personal likes, etc).
3. Get us to purchase and utilize on-site restaurants and services instead of leaving their Creepy Campus (TM) to eat, drink, and enjoy ourselves elsewhere.
4. Keep us drinking while appearing to drink themselves.
When I first sat down, the man playing the staff member’s husband started talking to me about Keller Williams and the fact that he attended Wilkes University in PA. Ok, I can buy the Wilkes University thing but the KW reference was a bit odd and immediately set off my bullshit detector. I just couldn’t believe that this dude was into jam band music. Later, I mentioned my iPhone to our buddy, and the guy leans to his partner and says, “iPhone!” and then pulls his own PDA/phone out and points the screen towards me while not doing anything productive. Her phone is out at the same time and it appeared to me that they were trying to get my attention for a conversation starter–I ignored them.
After this, the guy enters a long string of random characters on his phone, and hands it to the woman and says, “just hit the green button.” Being that there was limited to no mobile service in the basement of that bar, which is one of the reasons we were probably dragged down there, she was able to make a “call” on this phone with a random garbling of numbers, and said, “It’s not working, get here.” I learned later that soon after what I felt was a fake phone call, the woman told Josh that the other woman we met at the front desk that day would be arriving to join us. This was becoming quite the ordeal. It was at this point that I realized Josh wasn’t going to get my message and I told him to go upstairs with me. I told him my opinions on what was happening and he really didn’t believe me. It wasn’t until they brought on a third person, someone Josh said he had seen walking around the lobby when we checked in, wearing a jacket and button down shirt who claimed he had never been to the resort before. After some time, Josh overheard him tell the two that I felt were accosting us, “see you on the next go-around.”
Even after this, these two did not give up. At one point the woman was telling me about the steak offerings at their “high end steakhouse” Field’s. I felt that she knew I was into food and went on and on about searing the steaks with grape jelly and asked if I had ever heard of such a great idea. I rolled my eyes, smiled, and said, “oh yeah?” but before walking away from her she asked me, “when are you leaving again?” I took this to mean that they would again attempt to corner Josh later after I had left. I am anxiously awaiting any word from him about that.
Doing some simple Google searches will land you at various tales of timeshare sales tactics including this article about the sales pitch used by the predecessor to Wyndham at the Wilderness Resort. At least that guy knew what he was getting into when he called back and didn’t end up walking into an orchestrated ambush much like I felt we did. I must admit that I haven’t done as much research as I would have liked into this, but if I come across anything later, I will be sure to post it in the comment section below.
How about you? What sales pitches and tactics have resorts used to get you to buy into their timeshares, use their on-site amenities? If you have any especially creepy reports, like the one I posted above, I’d love to hear all about it.
Been Pressured by Timeshare Salesmen?
- Yes (52.0%, 13 Votes)
- No (40.0%, 10 Votes)
- N/A (8.0%, 2 Votes)
Total Voters: 25
Loading ...Then, after you comment, be sure to check out our expired polls in the archive or read through the previous posts about polls here.
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February 17th, 2009 at 11:38 am
complete, unadulterated, 125% bullshit, and they know it. it sounds like you and your party kept your heads on straight, but what about some other poor slob (person) unable to keep their wits about them?? these a———-s need to be held accountable for that crap.
we’re not interested in ANY timeshares, therefore have not heard any spiels. there may be ‘good’ ones out there, but i’ll never know.
bb
February 18th, 2009 at 11:37 am
I’ve attended at least 6 or so of them. I know what I am getting myself into and can’t afford it anyway and have zero interest in purchasing. So, they can say whatever they want, my answer is always no. I’m kind of dick at the things, show no interest in what they say, just keep asking when I get my prize, etc. I’m usually the first one out the door. “I’m not interested, you can say anything, show me anything, bring your boss over, whatever, the answer will still be NO.” This works quite well! My wife goes along with it and just rolls her eyes at me. It’s a numbers game people, they know a high percentage will say no, just don’t be the sucker who says yes. Easy! Also, I’ve never done out outside the US, and won’t ever, that is where I have heard bad stories about being basically locked in a room for 4 hours. I’ve never been on timeshare presentation that has lasted more than one hour tops. Heck, I was served a free lunch twice too.
I’ve received for my troubles:
Free airfare to and 2 nights hotel in Las Vegas (jumped through some hoops to reddem but they did)
2 Free tickets to Cirque de Soleil Mystere in LV
2 Free Tickets to Cirque de Soleil Zumanity in LV
$200 Visa Gift card in LV
2 Swamp tours and $75 for dinner in New Orleans
Helicopter Tour, Boat tour and Luau for $150 total in Maui.
February 18th, 2009 at 1:13 pm
See, I’d be tempted to go to one of these just for the free stuff and to mess with the heads of the marketers when they turn up the hard sell. I had a running email exchange with an email scammer doing the Nigerian money con once and had a lot of fun screwing with them. :)
February 18th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
We did a BlueGreen one where we signed up at Burnsville Center and actually bought a sample membership (as cheap as a hotel stay for five days) and used it to go to Aruba with a couple friends. The sales pitch to buy a full-on time-share was a hard-sell and I worked to wear down the price before agreeing. ANd once in Aruba we did the sales pitch again and got a car rental deal out of it for the length of our stay on the island. A moderately good deal on my part but not really worth the time.
February 18th, 2009 at 9:30 pm
p-funk, was your swamp tour down bourbon st??
bb
February 19th, 2009 at 11:50 am
Haha, but no, this was pre-katrina.
February 19th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
I’ve never gotten the hard-sell with a time share. But we are headed to Cabo next week and I have heard that it is full of time-share criminals looking to get you to buy in. Funny story. I hope you were at least able to have some fun that weekend.
February 20th, 2009 at 10:56 am
If Bill disappears without a trace I think we can assume the goons got to him and silenced his displeasure with his Wyndham experience.
February 21st, 2009 at 8:39 pm
That is one heck of a story, but the sad part is that it is so true. I used to be in Timeshare sales for Wyndham and I will tell you that it was all about confusion, smoke and mirrors. I am retired military and had to quit due to the nasty and brutal sales tactics. Even when the sales rep takes it easy because they know that they tour sitting in front of them are not going to buy, there is always the other two phases that a tour will have to encounter. Even if you rent a timeshare instead of going on a tour, you will still get caught by the sales staff. For anyone that got caught in a weak moment, and feels they were lied to or there was misrepresentation, Timeshare Advocacy International can assist in canceling your contract. there are no upfront fees.
February 22nd, 2009 at 5:41 pm
I fell for the timeshare spiel once way back when I was young and stupid. But I quickly caught on and bailed, after the free dinner.
February 28th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
sean austin, hi i would like more info on the timeshare advocacy int. the ones i;ve found want a fortune to help you.
June 19th, 2009 at 2:04 am
My wife and I once went to a presentation that they promised was to last only 90 minutes but of course dragged to 4 hours.
I was very insulted by the obvious high-pressure sales tactics used, as if I could not tell that I was being subjected to a very subtle form of humiliation. I could not forget the moment I said no to the sales person who was badgering me to buy a unit. Her expression turned from a smile into a frown of disappointment, as if I had let her down. I really, really wanted to spit in her face and yell that I have no obligation to say yes to whatever she wanted. The fact that she was a woman and my wife was present prevented me from doing so. I was so very angry.
What also made me angry was the fact that I think we were being observed by CCTV camera while we were having our “free” dinner, and were probably tagged for the hard sell, my appearance probably making me look like a soft target. I really, really hate it. It is demeaning, and below my dignity as a human being. I always do business with utmost consideration, and never ever exert undue pressure on my customers. I always make sure they are happy doing business with me.
June 21st, 2009 at 11:42 pm
Let me start by saying, and kindly pass this on, that if your parents/grandparents/aunts/uncles/friends ever set you and your family up on a 3 day getaway to your vacation spot of choice, ask them if they’re sending you to this location as a prospect. If so, best case scenario, politely decline. Worst case, punch them in the face. The free stay will NOT be worth your while, especially if you have children in tow.
It’s not that the two-hour yak and tour was so bad. It’s what comes after the “No” that makes you want to dial up a suicide bomber to take their whole operation out. What they do is introduce you to their biggest douchebag who conducts a “survey” to see how well you would rank your “experience.” I decided I would be nice and give the guy a 9 for trying. But see, the question isn’t “how would you rank your presentation”. The question is “Is there any reason why you wouldn’t rank your presentation a 10?” So I asked the person (whose hormone level indicated she should take maternity leave early), “Aren’t these things supposed to be confidential?” Instead of a cool-headed answer, she proceeded to ask again, then said something like “well maybe I should ask your wife.”
“Go right ahead,” says I.
She asks my wife the same question. My wife responds, “Do you mean the presentation only, or the presentation plus the Third-world-country piece of shit with an ocean view you set us up with for three days?”
I love my wife.
The Hormone then tries to plant the guilt trip seed with her “we paid for you to stay here” and “we’re ‘gifting’ you for your time” horseshit, to which I politely told her to keep the “gift” and go buy herself a coat hanger so the world soesn’t have to suffer dealing with another douchebag.
I finally got to take my daughter to Ripley’s Aquarium for Father’s Day, after the 2 hours of nonsense. But the whole thing is a mandatory waste of time. So, kids, like I say, the 3-day getaway Meemaw bought* for you on your anniversary is not worth the headache. Got it? Save your clams for a nice room at the Holiday Inn. Or go halvsies with another couple on a nice condo.
Don’t buy in to the bullshit.
*Meemaw didn’t “buy” you shit. It’s a deal she worked with the people who suckered her, that if she sends a couple of her “favorite” kin to a 3 day vacation, she’ll earn 10,000 point toward her next vacation.
July 15th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
We went to a spiel the last time we were on vacation in florida- and as a gift for sitting through the spiel- we got five free night stays in florida. well little did i know- after booking our five free night stays at one of the resorts- my husband and i have to sit through another spiel during THIS stay! which to me is total bullshit since we already are supposed to get our “prize”- the five night stay. when i booked, the lady on the other end said in order to stay the five nights free- we have to sit through another 60-90 minute presentation. My husband is going to be sooo pissed! I’m positive he will treat them like shit and walk out!
July 27th, 2009 at 11:27 pm
I can’t believe anyone would waste 2 hrs of their vacation over $100-200. We bought a timeshare and love it. WE get to stay in places that would normally be 4000 per week and we only paid 15K for life. For every loser that is broke and mooches off the timeshare titty, their are several people who stay in high quality accomodations for far less than normal who have bought one. I don’t feel sorry for any mooch who complains about a timeshare tour, they knew what they were getting into in the first place.
June 7th, 2010 at 8:39 am
We bought into Wyndham from a third part–411,000 points with 10 years left on the ownership in El Cid (Mazatlan). It cost us $2,500 as the guy was older and just wanted to get rid of it. We now pay ~$100/mo in fees but it is worth every dime.
It always amazes us that anyone would pay more than a few thousand dollars for these places when any local newspaper will have the same deal for cheap–people are over their heads in debt and need (probably due to buying these places at full price) so they need to get out even if it means a loss.
We use our unit to trade through RCI and get Presidential Suites at Glacier Canyon in Wisconsin (and a nice place in Orlando back in January 2010) for as little as $40-$70 a night–you just need to know how to work the system. Tell them to keep their fudge, dinner and attitude and do not talk with their sales staff. We just returned from Glacier and the sales rep was extremely nasty during the 10 minutes we allowed her–what a waste of time for us; all for a lousy brick of fudge!