4. My Trendwest Experience 2 - The Presentation
On the designated night, I attended the Trendwest presentation, making sure that I go there the requisite 15 minutes early to go in the draw for $500.
It turns out that the $500 draw is actually over a period of several months amongst all the people who attended Trendwest sessions at all locations during that period. So, the chance of winning is actually quite low, yet a successful incentive to get people to attend and arrive early. A great investment by Trendwest!
Sign-in
Rushing to get to the sign-in desk on time, I was presented with Trendwest financial disclosure information and had to sign a small slip of paper saying that I have received said documentation. That's probably part of the Financial Services legal requirements since Trendwest is acting as a provider of financial services.
I also dropped my entry for the $500 draw into a box.
Waiting
We were next ushered into a waiting area with about 25 seats, a large video screen showing exciting vacations and an area offering (rather cheap) refreshments. The room had other attendees (both singles and couples) who weren't particularly interested in eye-contact or friendly conversation.
I cruised around the room and noticed a Code of Practice on the wall. The paragraph that stood out went along the lines of:
Partnership
This waiting period didn't last long and we were all soon called by name by friendly, similarly-clothed individuals. It turned out that these would be our assigned salespeople for the night.
We passed by a noticeboard with pictures of happy people (with dates shown in the lower corner) who had presumably purchased a Trendwest package. In studying the photos, it appeared that the salespeople were the ones with the biggest smiles!
We were taken to small tables, each party sitting face-to-face with their assigned 'friend'. I'll refer to my assigned salesperson as 'Bob'.
Bob first confirmed that I had received the appropriate documentation, told me that the whole idea was to have a fun evening and got me to complete a questionnaire about income and holiday habits. They pretty-much had this information already so I didn't mind supplying it again. He also confirmed that I'd be able to get a holiday if I stayed for the complete 90-minute presentation. (This was mentioned in the fine-print on the letter I had received confirming the evening's activities.)
The Video
All groups were then ushered into a theatrette where we were shown a video about the "WorldMark by Trendwest" concept. I'll explain more about Trendwest/WorldMark in future posts. However, it's worth noting that the video featured Noni Hazelhurst (past presenter of Channel 7's 'Better Homes and Gardens' and occasional actress).
The video outlined the relationship between Trendwest and Cendant. If you're interested, I've also found information online about Cendant purchasing Trendwest.
This was then followed by a Trendwest staffer trying to have an interactive, exciting conversation with the audience. Judging from the response, I'd say that most people were just there for the free holiday!
The Sell
We were all then taken back to our assigned salespeople. Bob led me through the process, using a pre-printed form to illustrate his points. Interestingly, this form had lots of blank bits that he deftly completed while writing upside-down! The ability to write upside-down is probably a part of the salesperson selection process at Trendwest! :)
Bob told me all about the great destinations, links with ICE (who offer cruises) and Interval where holiday credits can be used to have holidays at non-WorldMark properties.
This was all a little strange since the idea of timeshare is that there are multiple shared owners of property. If it's possible to exchange points "out" of WorldMark, then how does the recipient get paid? Does it require an equal exchange of WorldMark time to the other party (meaning non-WorldMark people stay in WorldMark properties) or does it mean that there is a money equivalence to holiday credits? More about that later!
Standard vs Premium
One particularly interested tidbit came up in conversation with Bob, to do with the Standard vs Premium deal.
You see, the standard deal is something like 12,000 units for a period of 60-odd years (I forget how much, but it's for the current life of the unit trust, without automatic renewals). That's all.
The Premium deal is:
I asked Bob what the cost would be to upgrade from Standard to Premium and his response was "Oh, nobody does that!".
Yes, it turns out that if people don't sign-up on the night, they don't bother purchasing. This explains the need for various sales tactics on the night. (I won't say they're high-pressure, but there are lots of incentives and attempted financial justifications in an effort to try!)
Even though nobody apparently purchases the standard package, it is fully documented in the disclosure information. My perusal of sales on the Internet suggests that only Premium credits are available.
The Close
So, after the requisite time of chatting I declined to accept the offer and was ushered to a person to receive my free gift, then out a side door.
I found the whole process quite interesting -- both finding out about Trendwest and examining the whole sales process (hence this website).
I'll post more about the financial worth of a Trendwest offer later.
Your feedback
Did this match with your experience of a Trendwest information night? Post your experiences by clicking on the comment link below!
Want to read more?
Visit the main page of this site for the latest posts, or click one of the Archive links on the right.
-- Fabbo
Tags: trendwest worldmark
It turns out that the $500 draw is actually over a period of several months amongst all the people who attended Trendwest sessions at all locations during that period. So, the chance of winning is actually quite low, yet a successful incentive to get people to attend and arrive early. A great investment by Trendwest!
Sign-in
Rushing to get to the sign-in desk on time, I was presented with Trendwest financial disclosure information and had to sign a small slip of paper saying that I have received said documentation. That's probably part of the Financial Services legal requirements since Trendwest is acting as a provider of financial services.
I also dropped my entry for the $500 draw into a box.
Waiting
We were next ushered into a waiting area with about 25 seats, a large video screen showing exciting vacations and an area offering (rather cheap) refreshments. The room had other attendees (both singles and couples) who weren't particularly interested in eye-contact or friendly conversation.
I cruised around the room and noticed a Code of Practice on the wall. The paragraph that stood out went along the lines of:
Attendees are allowed to leave the presentation at any time without being put under undue pressure. (My approximately recollection.)This started to give me an uneasy feeling!
Partnership
This waiting period didn't last long and we were all soon called by name by friendly, similarly-clothed individuals. It turned out that these would be our assigned salespeople for the night.
We passed by a noticeboard with pictures of happy people (with dates shown in the lower corner) who had presumably purchased a Trendwest package. In studying the photos, it appeared that the salespeople were the ones with the biggest smiles!
We were taken to small tables, each party sitting face-to-face with their assigned 'friend'. I'll refer to my assigned salesperson as 'Bob'.
Bob first confirmed that I had received the appropriate documentation, told me that the whole idea was to have a fun evening and got me to complete a questionnaire about income and holiday habits. They pretty-much had this information already so I didn't mind supplying it again. He also confirmed that I'd be able to get a holiday if I stayed for the complete 90-minute presentation. (This was mentioned in the fine-print on the letter I had received confirming the evening's activities.)
The Video
All groups were then ushered into a theatrette where we were shown a video about the "WorldMark by Trendwest" concept. I'll explain more about Trendwest/WorldMark in future posts. However, it's worth noting that the video featured Noni Hazelhurst (past presenter of Channel 7's 'Better Homes and Gardens' and occasional actress).
The video outlined the relationship between Trendwest and Cendant. If you're interested, I've also found information online about Cendant purchasing Trendwest.
This was then followed by a Trendwest staffer trying to have an interactive, exciting conversation with the audience. Judging from the response, I'd say that most people were just there for the free holiday!
The Sell
We were all then taken back to our assigned salespeople. Bob led me through the process, using a pre-printed form to illustrate his points. Interestingly, this form had lots of blank bits that he deftly completed while writing upside-down! The ability to write upside-down is probably a part of the salesperson selection process at Trendwest! :)
Bob told me all about the great destinations, links with ICE (who offer cruises) and Interval where holiday credits can be used to have holidays at non-WorldMark properties.This was all a little strange since the idea of timeshare is that there are multiple shared owners of property. If it's possible to exchange points "out" of WorldMark, then how does the recipient get paid? Does it require an equal exchange of WorldMark time to the other party (meaning non-WorldMark people stay in WorldMark properties) or does it mean that there is a money equivalence to holiday credits? More about that later!
Standard vs Premium
One particularly interested tidbit came up in conversation with Bob, to do with the Standard vs Premium deal.
You see, the standard deal is something like 12,000 units for a period of 60-odd years (I forget how much, but it's for the current life of the unit trust, without automatic renewals). That's all.
The Premium deal is:
- The ability to start with only 6,000 units and buy more later (with the price fixed for 12 months)
- First-year membership of ICE and Interval (which would actually be better in later years since you'd probably want to use WorldMark properties only in your first year or two -- but at least this introduces people to the concept of ICE and Interval and certainly gives a better marketing message for intending purchasers)
- The ability to 'stockpile' credits for a year and 'borrow' credits from the next year (effectively giving access to 3x credits for a single booking)
- Access to bonus time where you pay 6c/unit for 'standby' rates at WorldMark properties (but the fineprint later shows this to be fairly restrictive)
- ...and some other things I can't recall
I asked Bob what the cost would be to upgrade from Standard to Premium and his response was "Oh, nobody does that!".
Yes, it turns out that if people don't sign-up on the night, they don't bother purchasing. This explains the need for various sales tactics on the night. (I won't say they're high-pressure, but there are lots of incentives and attempted financial justifications in an effort to try!)
Even though nobody apparently purchases the standard package, it is fully documented in the disclosure information. My perusal of sales on the Internet suggests that only Premium credits are available.
The Close
So, after the requisite time of chatting I declined to accept the offer and was ushered to a person to receive my free gift, then out a side door.
I found the whole process quite interesting -- both finding out about Trendwest and examining the whole sales process (hence this website).
I'll post more about the financial worth of a Trendwest offer later.
Your feedback
Did this match with your experience of a Trendwest information night? Post your experiences by clicking on the comment link below!
Want to read more?
Visit the main page of this site for the latest posts, or click one of the Archive links on the right.
-- Fabbo
Tags: trendwest worldmark
posted by Fabbo at Thursday, January 20, 2005
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57 Comments:
Well....yes except that my husband I actually purchased a premium package..after being told we have a five day cooling of period..and in the time home to do some reseach of our own..please feel free to contact me through email dragon___rose@msn.com if you wish to as any questions in regard to joining up...I am very pleased i found you blog...will be helpful in our decision making venture..Rose
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 19 March, 2005
I'm sure you'll love to know my wife & I arrived 6 minutes late, and were still asked to fill in the entry coupon for arriving early.
By
Anonymous, at Monday, 21 March, 2005
I just got back from a TrendWest presentation in SLC, UT USA. It seems that the owner of this blog is in Australia but neverless, the presentation sounded almost identical. The only difference is that instead of using ICE for international travel we would use a company called RCI.
In my case TrendWest acquired my information by holding a $50,000 sweepstakes that I entered into at a professional sports event. They called me twice to 'verify my sweepstakes entrance information.' These calls were turned out to be qualifying questions to be sure that I was who I said I was and to qualify my purchasing power. They then called a third time and informed me that I hadn't won the $50,000 prize but I had won a 'mini-vaction' and all I needed to do was come down to their offices and pick it up! Then they proceeded to tell me that I would also need to sit through a 90 minute presentation... Ah ha! The catch!
After I finally figured out that I hadn't really won anything and this was just another timeshare scheme to get people in the door I almost cancelled, but I thought 'heck, I'll give it a try.' Huge mistake!
When I arrived at the office I was sat down in a waiting room with other supposed 'winners' and waited to be let into the presentation room. We then watched a short movie about Cendant and TrendWest followed by introductions to our sales reps. This part was very interesting because I noticed that the women reps all were assigned to men that were there by themselves, which didn't really seem too odd until the flirting began. These women were pros! They would softly touch my arm or shoulder any opportunity they could and also tell me how 'sweet' I was. Very weird... The rep proceeded to explain in very convincing detail how I would be saving thousands of dollars over hotel prices and how I would have 'ownership' in the property. Immediately I started drawing parallels of this presentation with the traditional high-pressure car sale, complete with scribblings on the offer sheet and the ultimate closer - 'getting the manager.'
By this time I was totally annoyed. Both the sales rep and manager tried and tried to convince me that this was an investment but how could it be? I know for a fact that timeshare's don't resell for more than their original price and they are also income draining investments due to the maintainance fees. The question that I kept asking is 'how did you come up with this price($20,600)?' It was rediculous, they had no answer... My argument was that the price was too high and there was no real value to it because you never really own it, at least not like you would true real estate. The manager got visibly agitated because I wasn't buying the sales pitch and began to feverishly defend the value being quoted and tried to bait and switch me to a lesser plan because in his words I 'obviously couldn't afford the premium plan.' Bizarre! I never said anything about not being able to afford it, I just said I wanted to know how they came up with the price. At one point I said I felt like I was in a car dealership, at which the manager got very upset and defensive, claiming not to be a 'scummy car dealer.' I rolled my eyes to his comment and he demanded that I not roll my eyes at him! I couldn't believe it! He was scolding me like I was a child! At this time the table got very quiet and a staredown ensued. It was very uncomfortable... I thought that I might be in for an actual punch-down drag-out fight. Then he made a comment something like 'just get him his free gift' and immediately left.
The whole experience was sooooo crazy! After the incident with the manager the sales rep tried to get me to refer some friends for her to call and I just laughed. NO WAY! The sales rep was actually fairly friendly and I felt like she was as up front as she could be considering the whole thing is inherently very shady, but the more I think about it the more I realize she was just a small part of the grander deceptive scheme.
Overall I lost any interest in dealing with them directly. I would consider buying a resale TrendWest timeshare but I still don't quite understand how one gets out of it. If there is no time limit does that mean you have to pay the maintainance fee even if you're 100 yrs old and don't holiday anymore?
Regardless, I felt obligated to share my story so that no other innocent people would have to deal with the 'Wrath of the Car Dealer!'
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 13 April, 2005
I had a similar experience but instead; when my husband & I declined to purchase they sent us to a second table & yet another sales person attempting to sale us a shorter less expensive package. I was so tired & I had an excruciating headache that we just agreed to purchase. After which we tried to cancel & had such a horrible time with that company & would advise anyone that asks about it to turn the other way!!!
By
Anonymous, at Friday, 12 January, 2007
My wife and I had a similar experience. We were interested in the premium membership, but concerned with the now or never part. After claifying the cooling off period, we purchased. I went home and researched. I found you could buy a membership through a resale broker for 1/2 the amount they charged. I took my " I changed my mind letter" in the next day. I contacted a broker and had a 6000 credit membership for less than 1/2 the price. They weren't very happy. That made it even more pleasurable. We enjoyed a great week in Branson, MO last summer. We look forward to more in the future.
By
Anonymous, at Monday, 14 May, 2007
I a single woman thought what the heck I'll go and see what they have to sell. They repaetly stated this was NOT A TIMESHARE..which it is so a timeshare. I did not want to purchase any of the pakages but a third sales person came and offered me 6000 for $695.00, forgetting to mention that until the full amount of $695.00 was paid in full could I use these points! So here I sit with $595.00 still owed and only a limited number of places to use these 6000 points at and until there paid for what would be the use of looking at a vacation. I am retired sinlge and on a limited income...would I tell any of my friends to do this or am I going to use these points, probably not, I am going to sell them as soon as I can. This was a real SCAM!!!
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 31 July, 2007
My bf and I attended a presentation in January. We were told the same thing everyone else has been told about getting a free trip and gift certificates just for attending. We thought "why not?" We were curious to see what these presentations are all about. We made the worst decision ever going in the first place. We were forced into signing a trial package called "Trendwest Experience" for $600 and paid $100 before leaving just so we could go home and not have to deal with them anymore. I've had so many medical bills since we signed up I decided I wanted to get out of the contract but they won't let me opt out of the contract. there was a law suit in 2003 against the company for misleading customers and not letting them get out of contracts...the person who is assigned my account said there is no way for me to get out of my contract but I know there has to be a way to do so. DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO GET OUT OF A CONTRACT WITH TRENDWEST??? I don't even have a regular package....just a trial membership. I NEED HELP!!! I could easily pay the rest of the fees over time but this company LIES to customers and all they care about is pressuring you to sign with them...they tell people how awful they are if they don't sign up for packages because they aren't thinking about their future children, etc. I want nothing to do with them...I just need to know the right thing to do ..what to say in order to end my connection with Trendwest forever.
By
don'tbuytrendwest, at Thursday, 02 August, 2007
I have been contacted by Trendwest to hear their sales pitch. My question is I have no intention of buying a timeshare (especially from this co. after what I am reading), but I do want to go to get my "free vacation". I was just wondering if the free vacation was a scam and would like to hear from people who actually went on it. Was it legitimate? Any bad experiences? Also, did you end up having to pay anything? Thanks.
By
Dreena, at Saturday, 04 August, 2007
I would discourage anyone from attending this waste-of-time presentation. We signed up for a "free" 3-day 2-night vacation to San Francisco. We did resist all the hard-sell sales pitches, but the fine print on the vacation requires departure between 6PM and 10PM on departure night, and return between 6AM and 11AM. This means you spend two days on travel and only have one day in the city. I imagine this is to discourage anyone from actually collecting on their "reward" for enduring the sales pitch torture. And you are required to pay taxes. I'd like to hear if anyone else has actually collected their free trip and had a good experience.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 05 September, 2007
I have been invited to go to a presentation for a "free" two night vacation. I have no intention of buying a timeshare but is the free vacation worth the trouble? Anybody take the vacation and have a good time? With travel, it seems you only have one day in your destination city.
By
kayedwrds, at Thursday, 13 September, 2007
OK guys, Now its my turn..Firstly, I am glad that I found this website which prevented me from those vultures. Now read this. I received a phone call from Worldmark (Timeshare, Trendwest) saying that I won a trip to Vegas/Orlando and I just have to come for a presentation. I was ensured that I will get a flight ticket (for 2) and 3 days, 2 nights hotel stay. I am very happy as we recently planned to go there but could not. One of my friends told me that they had a bad experience and have to come back as they went there 15 min late. Then I read all the reviews here in THIS website and got complete idea, BUT still I thought I would give a try. I went there 30 min before..The room was good, colorful with pretty girls ( someone here referred them as pros and I think they are right). I said I am here to receive my 'free gift'. they asked me to sign a per saying that its my gift, however, I just have to attend a presentation. I saw several people there 9atleast 20)..I got a doubt that why so many people were selected for gifts thru a draw!!!I was greeted by a sales guy and went inside (Its in Broomfield, CO) and then my headache started. he started telling about all the goodness it is associated with and why I should consider it with an 'OPEN MIND'. I was reluctant and was not in a mood to answer all his Stupid questions. (BTW there was huge noise with all rock music and all other sales guys/gays/pros were jumping, shouting with balloons etc). When he observed my silence he was very angry (believe me his face turned red) and told me that I am wasting his time..How funny...I went there all the way from N Colorado wasting MY time and this guy told me the other way! Then we were taken to a presentation for 15 min followed by some asshole's intro. Then there were 2 more gifts, one for shouting and jumping among all the viewrs and other for having maximum total numbers in a credit card.. Then after the presentation, we were again accompanied by the same guy and then he stared talking again and again 9some one in these reviews even mentioned that they can write upside down) and they are right. .He started taking out all his books and other info one by one and told how well it fits my budget.. I am a student and I earn almost nothing and the worldmark deal is $616 per month and they still tell me that I can afford it!!! How FUNNY.. Then I decided to go even without my gift (I have been asking him whether its real or just a prank) and he was really angry, shouting at me why I am not OPENMINDED! He said I am a liar, and I do not have dreams!!! It seems I should sign up for a villa in Hawai..I was annoyed and my blood pressure increased so much that I just blasted him (Believe me, everyone was looking at us). ONLY THEN he calmed down..He called the sales manager and that FAT bastard is the biggest jerk I have ever seen..He was like a drug addicted pig and started telling the same thing and asking me to sign (It was almost like having me to sign on a paper forcibly). I just said a big NO and started walking off. he then stood on my way and asked me to sign on the paper, the rudest day I have ever had! I just walked down...Not over yet. then a beautiful lady came to me and said I can have a lower deal also. But I said NO gain (I think I told NO for at least 50 times)..I just walked off to the entrance of their office. Then someone kept a file in my hand. I opened and checked it (although its just stupidity, out of a hope I looked in it). Now the rules and regulations of the crappy gift..You need to pay $ 50 per person and then fill out a form and send to the address given without a time period. (50 dollars is refundable..is it?!). Then they will (hopefully) send you a reservation package.. There are several harsh regulations..No trip during weekends, holidays.. Only on Mon, Tues, wed in between 3-10pm, Then come back by the day after at 7 AM. How funny..I also read in one of the reviews that the worldmark resorts are very bad and the agents ther will make hell of your life.. So Guys,,Becareful of these dragons.. they are very very bad…NEVER LIFT A PHONE WHEN WORLDMARK calls!! That’s the best thing you can do.. All the best..Now..I am planning to go to Vegas on my own during Christmas! I just trashed their offer! God bless you all..
By
Anonymous, at Friday, 14 September, 2007
For what its worth...
There is a lot of negative talk on this web-site. I wonder if many of you realize that you are faced with marketing (or as they have been called on this site "schemes" "catches" etc.) on a daily basis. I also worry that so many people are so negative about the experience. If you talk so harshly using language like "that fat bastard sales manager" etc. Are you any better than the people you are so upset with? Its one thing to have a negative experience, its another to engage in bashing. Remember, there are always two sides to every story.
By
Anonymous, at Friday, 28 September, 2007
Worldmark vacation credits is a smart way to vacation. All of you that are complaining about everything are complaining because you don't know how to use it effectively!. As far as making reservations, you have to be aware of the different seasons. Most of you are probably making a reservation during a high season couple days in advance. If you want to use the resorts in high demand seasons (such as Orlando, San Diego, Hawaii, and Anaheim) you should plan it out ahead and give them advance notice. Most of the the people that are dissatisfied with their ownership are unhappy because they don't know how it works. Worldmark offers owner classes at the resorts (and even online. Seriously people, if you know more about how the credti system works, it really makes sense and is a great flexible way to vacation.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 29 September, 2007
my name is Gloria, in my mid 20's and one night i received a phone call from worldmark said that i win a SUV or a vocation package.I think it's weird because she never leave any message to me just a local number appear on my cell.I search the number online it's say it's a residential number 208 467 1404 or 1866 699 9928... i think it's really weird then i continue too search on yahoo/ google and i found out many bad things about this worldmark.... I'm glad I'm very carefully and check and didn't fall for the BIG TRAP.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 06 October, 2007
Holy smokes!!!! I know you can't please everyone all of the time, but you people are unbelivable. I purchased Worldmark 3 years ago. I have never had problems using it. I love my worldmark credits without them I could never travel the way I do. All I am hearing is ignorance here. Why would you spend so much time and energy tearing down something that you it is obivous that you know nothing about. Yeah big deal they have crumby marketing and they all use the same presentation. At least they helped me and others to spend time with our familys. Maybe you all should consider it instead of spending your lives bitching about nothing. Oh for those of you that say nothing is available.. ha! I stayed in Anahiem in August on Bonus Time! Learn how to use what you own it's only a tool! You have to operate it correctly! I think that makes it your fault. MORONS!!!
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 10 November, 2007
Will someone please comment on their vacation. We all want to know if it was worth it or not. Did they put you up in a nice hotel or was it sketchy? Did you end up spending more on the trip than what it was worth? Someone please answer.
By
Lori Briggs, at Friday, 16 November, 2007
DH and I just returned from one these presentations for a free trip.
They received my information from a give away for a Porsche at the Flatirons Mall in Broomfield, CO. I was told I won the 2nd place prize. Yeah right!
We tolerated the lame 15 minute talk that required group participation. Then went to the other room with the VERY loud music.
I don't see how some one would give $38,000 to a company they just heard about minutes before.
We chose not to join, we may in the future. They just do not offer
something we need or require.
We did get the voucher for the free trip. It says it is for
economy accomodations. Nothing on
the strip, I am sure. And it certainly is not FREE when you have to send $100 to get it.
So, no, no information on the quality of the trip.
I did feel like I wasted a couple hours of my day.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 01 December, 2007
wow, my DH was contacted about "winning" a trip to Orlando via WorldMark. They got his info from a motorcycle giveaway at the Pavillions, downtown Denver. We are set to go to their presentation tomorrow, although now that I've read this stuff I'm extremely wary. My question is: Why do you pay $100 just to get the free airfare/hotel? And someone else here says you pay taxes? I can understand the taxes, many legit giveaways have that, but paying $100 for the trip?
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 05 January, 2008
well i dont have quite as much to say as the rest of you guys...yea i went to there little sales presentation....knowing perfectly well i didn't want to buy anything...just wanted the trip to cabo san lucas.....of course i didn't buy anything and i didn't get "forced" into getting any kind of trial membership neither....sounds like someone is an easy sale and they saw you coming.....anyways booked the free trip for july....didn't really realize the flight times so thanks to the person who left that comment just to give me the heads up but im 21 going with a 22 yr old girlfriend so we'd probably just be clubbing out there the 1st night anyways....paying bout 200 or so bucks in fees isn't a big deal anyways..gas to get there and back woulda probably been double that......
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 19 January, 2008
No one can comment on their vacation because I doubt anyone can actually use the POS! I just finished my sales presentation and read the fine print of my "travel voucher" only to find out that the flights have to originate in one of three cities (Seatle, Portland or Salt Lake City) - I LIVE IN NEW MEXICO!! In addition, there are indeed lots of restrictions on times of flights and days of travel as others have mentioned. A complete rip off. Don't waste your time.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 30 January, 2008
Having fun with Trendwest/Wyhdham sales dudes.
I like to go to the sales office in Broomfield, CO as long as they promise me a real tangable gift I can take home with me that day. I always toss the free trip in the trash but keep the cash! Their office is on my way home from work so if I have the time I stop by for the presentation. I chat with them, smile and say no thanks. If you push them on the first phone call they will always offer the free "crappy" trip but will also throw in merchant gift cards as well which you can spend right away. I have received $75 in Home Depot cards, $40 in resturant cards and some other stuff I can't remember. You have to get them to offer the cash when they first call you however, and the boiler room callers are rather clueless. The last time they offered me the resturant gift cards,(Red Lobster), they said I could only use them while I was on my free vacation. I asked how the resturant would know I was on vacation and if Red Lobster would deny them if I was really arriving from home? What if I went on the free trip, came home and then used them? Would they be no good? They caved and said "I don't know"
I like the writing upside down bit and actually I think the overall product has some good value. It just isn't something I want or need since I already travel alot. As someone else mentioned as well, I would never plunk down 30K for something I just heard about, and I could invest that 30K instead, grow it and have plenty for vacations with a lot left over.
It is way overpriced, they could go out of business, who knows. I do like watching them push push push with those sales tactics, it's kinda entertaining for an hour and a half. Go for the CASH!
By
Anonymous, at Monday, 04 February, 2008
I just went to one of these presentations yesterday before heading home from a couple nights of gambling in Reno. They offered me a 3 night hotel say, a two night hotel stay, and a $75 American Express gift card. The 3 night stay could be used to stay a few of the nice Casinos in downtown reno, or it could be used in other places like Vegas, Hawaii, Orlando, etc. The two night stay is good for some other locations, but it's for cheap Wyndham hotels like super 8. I don't know if everyone gets all the same stuff, but the gifts seemed to add up as I said no to the lady trying to sign me up for the presentation. I finally said yes, but only because she broke down told me she had some friends that were going just to get the free gifts and all I had to do was say no to the sales pitch and there would be no pressure. I was also drunk. Once I said yes, she asked me for $20 to hold my spot. I laughed at her and told her to forget it, but she said if I don't end up making it to the presenation, I could go to any of their booths in the casino and get my money back.
I ended up going to the presentation because it started right after my checkout time and I figured that it would be worth $75 in gift cards to sleep through the presentation. They took us over in a van from the casino to their presentation center. Everyone was real nice. They gave my $20 back as soon as I got there. I was expecting to go watch an hour long movie, then have someone ask me if I wanted to buy. It wasn't bad, but it didn't go quite like that.
They sit with you for 30 minutes asking you about yourself and slipping in questions about your vacationing habits to try to use later in their sales pitch. I felt perfectly comfortable and there was no pressure. The lady we dealt with was younger and very nice, I don't think I would have been as comfortable with one of the washed up car salesmen looking men there, but I'll never know.
Then we went into the presentation and our sales lady did the presentation. She said she was pretty new and it was only her 3rd or 4th time, but she did a good job. The group presentation literally lasted abut 15 minutes, which I thought was weird. We then went back to the room to sit one on one with our salesperson. (by the way, the room was a large open room with a bunch of tables with salespeople and their prey. It was very very loud in there and hard to hear a lot of what our person was saying. Pretty lame setup, but that's another story). Anyways, she elaborated on the group presentation for awhile. I asked about price and she said she was getting to it. All the paperwork and all of her notes and responses were all obviously prepackaged by the company. Eventually, she got to the price and the terms. She wrote out one package and then another one which was much better, but only available today.
I pretended like I was interested (who knows, maybe some day I will be) and I asked about financing, etc. She went and got someone else to explain it and promised that "this isn't where the pressure starts." The other girl that came over was pretty fake. She told me she loved my name and lets just say my name is about as plain and common as "John." She explained everything then they looked at me. I said, so this is where I tell you guys yes or no? They both shook their heads and I said no.
It got silent for a second, then I told them that I don't make decisions to spend 10-20,000 in an hour and a half. I told them that I'm sure I could get this one time offer later on if I really wanted to and that I was sure if I came back later and wouldn't settle for anything less than that package, they wouldn't refuse a sale.
Then the terms started getting better. They tried to throw in more incentives. They offered no down payment and no interest for 6 months. I continued to tell them that I wouldn't make that big of a decision in such little time no matter how good the deal was. The "closer" gave me a shitty look like I was missing out and shook my hand with a fake smile and walked away. Then our sales lady told us she would go get the guy who would give us our free gift. I never really felt any pressure at all.
She walked us to the guy who would give us our free gift and he kissed our asses some more. Then he offered us a test run of a years worth of credits for just $99. I assumed that there would be a catch, so I declined. He gave us the gift package. We walked out, got in the van, and went back to the casino.
The gift cards seem legit, but they expire in May. The hotel stays were sort of a disappointment. Like everyone else said- only Sunday, Monday, Tuesday arrival. No big deal though- they're free. The gift card paid for my time.
The only thing I'm worried about, is that the vacation vouchers are through an outside marketing company and you have to send in some information before they will send you your hotel options. I'm sure they will be calling me up the ass with marketing calls, but oh well- I just won't answer the phone.
Also, speaking of that- I signed up for a vacation at a car show this past summer and Worldmark by Wyndham called me 3-4 times a day (I didn't answer or hung up when I realized it was them). Eventually I answered once to tell them to leave me alone. They did for awhile, then started calling again. I told them again and haven't heard from them since. My sales rep told us that Trendwest did that sort of thing and that they "cleaned them up."
The end.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 19 February, 2008
So Im guessing no body got their free gift trip. Same story. They called to tell me I won but didn't win the cash but the trip instead. So glad I found this site because Im suppose to be at the presenation in less than two hours. Good to know. Im not making it.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 09 April, 2008
OMG, i can't believe this company. They have also tried to get me into there little scheme. On 3 different occasions they have called me and told me i have won a trip. The first time i spoke with a lady and she asked me pre-qualification questions. if i was over 21yrs, married, and an income question. the most important to them was that i had to make 35K a yr in income. Which i don't since i'm a an independent full time college student so i said no. so the lady started whispering to me just to say i do so i can qualify. that in order for me to get the free trip i have to make that much. i really couldn't hear her b/c the place i was in, but she kept whispering just to say yes. i was like ok, yes. then she asked me what is the name of the other person in my home that will be attending and i told her if i could take someone else instead and she said no. that it had to be the other person in my home.
well she passed the phone to her superviser so he can make my appointment legit for the 90min presentation. i never went to the presentation after my sister convinced me it was a scam. after about one month they called me again and told me the same thing, that i had won a trip for two in the the drawing i had entered for a motorcycle. this time i told them i didn't make 35k and the lady asked me again to make sure i didn't and i said no. she said i couldn't get the prize b/c i had to make that much in income. so i said ok then hung up. they called me again this 3rd time from a local number. i said yes again but i'm not planning to attend after reading all the different bad experiences. for the people that write that this is not a scam bc we're the ones who don't know how to use process. i feel they must work for them. But we know this is a SCAM!!!
By
Anonymous, at Thursday, 17 April, 2008
Its like being stuck at a car dealership for a hour and a half having some pushy person(s) try to make you buy a used pinto.
I pretty much had the same experience...got a phone call 5 months after I entered in a drawing to win a free car in the mall. The lady was really nice and said that I didn't actually win the car but won a free $50 gift card to either coles, home depot, or jc penny's and a 4 day 3 night vacation to either Las Vegas or Orlando. Or I could get a $100 gift card to Red Lobster if I choose to go to Branson instead. After reading other comments I pretty much knew that the vacation was a scam and bogus. But I had heard the gift cards were legit. So I asked my husband and he said that he thought it was worth the hour and half to go get the "free" red lobster gift card.
I really didn't want to go but did anyways...cause I figured if they pissed me off I would just walk out. I got a life and I aint wasting it on them. Sales people were vultures and we basically had to tell them "we don't vacation." After that they sent in the "closer" I guess I was getting pissed cause it was running late and I had other stuff to do than listen to these yahoo's so I told the lady that we were about to file bankrupcy and she backed off.
I tell you its the last time I enter in to win a "free" car from the mall.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 19 April, 2008
Bottom line is DON'T DO IT!!! There is hardly any value in it. Unfortunately, we thought it looked tempting at the time, we were told that if we were to cancel, to contact only the people who sold it to us (which was false information) and now battling it with Worldmark to get our deposit back, and was still only a week after signing up.
Why is there no value to it? Because they tell you that you are paying up front for ownership. Then why do you pay $500-900 a yr of maintenance(which is subject to inflation, but they don't tell you that in the presentation!!!) Sorry, but when you OWN a property, you would pay maintenance fees accordingly to your ownership of the property. So if you only own it for 2 weeks in a yr, you would theoretically only pay 2 weeks of average maintenance costs (which should be $25) Also, say you use your points for travel instead of accomodation, why are you paying maintenance for that? That $500-900 a yr could get you an international flight on it's own. Then when you are staying at one of their resorts, even using your points (and maintenance) you are still subject to housekeeping fees for staying there. Sorry, but I would much rather pay as I go, and stay at a Comfort Inn. There is no REAL difference between Wyndham "condominium" and (INSERT NAME) "hotel room." Seriously, I cannot stress the big ripoff that it is... It's great for them, they get your upfront investment to put straight in to their properties, and they get good residual income from you every year! Worst of all, they make it sound like you're making a property investment through ownership! Well of course that statement is true, but it's not your investment and ownership, it's theirs! Last of all, how much maintenance will you be paying in 15 yrs time? $1500-2000 a year? More? Once again, don't do it!!
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 23 April, 2008
My experience with Worldmark and Trendwest have been very positive. We bought the program in 1997. We also took the free trip. Which worked out for us, free air and accomadations -- although not nearly as beautiful as the resort accomodations if you buy. Althought we wern't sure about it the first month, as soon as we used it we were knew we made the right decesion. And if you talk to other owners on vacation they are also very happy with the program. We have traveled much more than we would have otherwise. The resort at Cabo is wonderful. We have been to over fifteen of the resorts and they are consistently well appointed and in great locations. If you enjoy travel this is a great oportunity. The staff is very friendly. If you own it and don't know how to use it go to an owner information night and get out there and enjoy what you have.
By
Anonymous, at Sunday, 27 April, 2008
We went to their presentation, and actually bought a premium package that night. But we decided to cancel it the next day after careful consideration of our financial status. We fax and mail the cancellation statement to Wyndham in Florida. We got our refund back in about a month. Everything seems ok so far, but we did receive our membership cards. Not sure what went wrong, will need to keep an eye on next month's mail.
By
Anonymous, at Thursday, 01 May, 2008
I'm in Australia and am having similar problems with this company. They lured me into their sales meeting with promises of a free gift, and suckered me into signing up for 7,000 credits. The thing is, to qualify to buy credits, you have to be over 25 and earning a certain income, right? Well my girlfriend co-signed with me and she was under 25 and earning much less than the required income. But they still let her sign the contract. So she couldn't afford to make her half of the repayments and now I've been stuck with the full brunt of the $196 monthly payments PLUS the upkeep levies which are probably now in excess of $1000 they say I owe them. It's killing me and I can't afford to pay it.
I've put probably over $5000 into these timeshares so far and haven't even used any of it yet. What I would like to do is cancel my contract and recover all my money back on legal grounds!
On what grounds could I file a lawsuit?
Please email me on bossplaya77@optusnet.com.au if you have any advice or can help.
Perhaps we could get together a group of people who are in a similar boat with Trendwest in Australia and file a Class Action lawsuit against the company.
I will be consulting some lawyers and getting some legal advice soon. Please email me on above email address if you wish to put your name down for a Class Action lawsuit against Trendwest, cancel your contract and get your money back!
Jesse Ward
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 21 May, 2008
trendwest is a great way to vacation instead of staying in a crapy hotel room. i am 24 years old and i got it 3 years ago and i been using it 4 times a year and thier is about 5 million owners. GREAT RESORTS, and alout of people are not happy with the free vacation..... that is why it is free what do you expect. people do wan to get out of the contract bashing the company it is your falt that u can't afford it. some people are just idiot's u can't afford ur bills why would u want to buy it....... think people, no and i don;t work thier but i had the best time of my life going to europe while u guys are stuck looking at pictures.
By
Anonymous, at Sunday, 08 June, 2008
I've been reading all the comments on this website and I just wanted to say that I bought in 2001 and have not regreted it. I am able to take a wonderful vacation knowing that the facilities where I stay are well maintained and nicely furnished condominiums instead of a motel room. I am very glad that I made this investment
By
Anonymous, at Thursday, 26 June, 2008
how could people say its great investment?! annually, this thing cost $7000+ (plus hidden fees like someone said $100 maintenance fee?!?!), thats 3 freakin nice trips you couldve taken from a good travel agency. but take it with trendwest, and uhh consider that 2 vacations.
a 2.5 week vacation in peru total costs $2000.(incl airfare, food, room...)
2 week vacation all over europe costs $4k for two people!(mom did it a month ago. visited 12 countries in 15 days) I doubt you can do that with trendwest.
im glad i found this website, i aint going to my presentation in san diego, CA.
By
Anonymous, at Friday, 27 June, 2008
i forgot to mention, the peru and europe trip were not from trendwest.
By
Anonymous, at Friday, 27 June, 2008
Arguably the worst 2 hours of my life... the "free trip" has so many restrictions and the times offered are so horrible that you are basically there for a day tops... and it's 100 dollars to send in to get the tickets... which is "refundable", even though it isn't at all.
Enough about the trip. The "value" for this company is nonexistent... 4000 down, and 650 a month for TEN YEARS... plus, 100 dollars a month for life for "maintenance costs", which can go up due to inflation... that's 1,200 a year for "maintenance".. Utterly ridiculous..
We are going to an all-inclusive resort in October in Mexico for 8 days for 2,100... that INCLUDES AIRFARE.. which given rising fuel costs is the real dilemma for Trendwest, Wyndham, whoever they are... it's going to be brutually expensive to fly in the coming decades.. and their "vacation ownership" doesn't include food, drink, or airfare..
The sales presentation is laughable, and it is just like buying a car... the "closer" comes in to see "what I can do"... and then begins offering incentives that are indeed better than the original offer (god help anyone who accepts the original deal) but is still insanely expensive.. we then were shuffled off to a 2nd "closer" who tried getting us to send them 99 bucks for a year to "lock in" a week's stay somewhere.. we didn't really understand that either, but she was pushy, rude and unpleasant and I wouldn't have given her a dollar for anything...
People, do the math... you can take two vacations a year anywhere and save THOUSANDS over these nitwits... brutal marketing hijinks, pure and simple.
For those of you who have posted here who are "happy" with your purchase, have you ever done the math? I'm guessing not.
By
Greg, at Monday, 07 July, 2008
My parents own 2-3 timeshares and have been going through these things for years. The trick is to spend time and think about the investment. None of the companies will refuse you if you decide to buy in the future. Timeshares can be a great thing but only if you use them and understand how the process works. Always read the fine print on maintenance fees and things of that nature. If you don't want one but have free time, do what one of the above posters does. Get them to offer cash or some other incentive for attending. The free vacations are legit but they have tons of restrictions, blackout days, cleaning fees, etc etc... I remember my parents once arguing with a guy who started by offering free Universal Studios tickets and eventually ended on giving $200 cash to each of my parents. $400 to sit through a sales pitch for an hour is way worth it. Now that I am graduated and gainfully employed I can do these but it is not for everyone. If you got nothing better to do and want free stuff then sit through it and stay firm in saying NO. Never sign up for lesser packages hoping to cancel, that is how they get you. Always read the fine print and the most important thing is if at any point you feel uncomfortable leave.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 08 July, 2008
I just got back from one of those presentations last night, I wasn't going to go but my girlfriend wanted to go to Vegas. She had went last year with her friend on one of these little 'free' trips. Here is the deal with the trips: lots of restricted days, bad flight times, not so nice hotel. About the flight times, after you send in you coupon with the 3 dates you want to go they will reply back with an upgrade offer. She was originally scheduled to fly there at 10pm on wed and fly back at 7am on fri. They offered her a new flight that left at 8am and returned at 10pm for an upgrade fee of $200. So that plus the $100 in 'taxes' that she paid was a total of $300. Divide that between the 2 and it cost her $150 for 3days and 2 nights, at the Riviera by the way (cheapest hotel on the strip). When you get there they also offer you other free stuff if you want to sit through more seminars, but there is no pressure to get you to go to those. Hope this gives people a better view of the 'free' trip they offer. By the way my GF and her friend did have a good time and said it was worth it.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 12 July, 2008
Here's another thing they fail to mention. By the way my best friend and his family have been 'owners' in this company for years so I got a first hand look at how these work. Your points that you buy stay the same, year after year, forever, BUT the number of points it takes to stay at places goes up, year after year, presumably forever. So that 2 weeks anywhere in the world they say you can stay for you 12000 points will only be a week in 3-4 years, so then you gotta buy more points. and the cycle continues......... costing you more than if you saved and invested, and that doesn't include the rise in 'maintenance' fees every year. Lets face it, they wouldn't be in business if they didn't make money, it's just like a car. You can get from point A to point B with a Ford Focus or a BMW, but if you want the BMW be ready to pay for it.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 12 July, 2008
I received a call saying that I was a home theater system and that it's secured and waiting for me at this address. Also a chance to win a trip. The caller did not mention anything about a presentation or they are associated with TrendWest, instead Worldmark wynham (probably same thing).
What I found stupid was they said they talked to my girlfriend, but it was my dad that they talked to the day before.. how can they mistaken that?? Also they said me and my spouse has to come and in order to win we have to be 25 or older and they will ask us some questions like what our combined annual income us. I told her we're not even common-law and she just told me to say that we are to qualify.
I wish I have read this blog before I spoke with her and ask her millions of questions.
Now that I've read this I'm not going to go, even though it got me very excited, and I doubt it's not worth the trouble to find out I did not really win the home theatre system.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 15 July, 2008
I guess none of you have been caught by any other "Timeshare \ Condo" salespitch. They all stink. They are all a waste of time. They all offer you a gift that isn't worth much. SO GET OVER IT! You made the decision to enter one of those stuped drawings, and decided to waste your time sittin through a hard sell salespitch, in order to get something for free. Live with your choice, you made it. If you are over 12 years old, you should have already learned never to try that.
I bought my 10,000 credits aftermarket, & got what I beleive to be a great deal on them. With them, I have stayed on Maui, the Big Island of Hawaii, on the Oregon & Washington coasts,in Canmore BC, Cancun Mexico, and Orlando Folorida. I also sent my kids & grandkids (3 rooms)to Puerto Vallarta Mexico, and sent my daughter on her honeymoon to Mazatlan Mexico. Some of these were at Worldmark properties, and others were traded into RCI. (No timeshare condo trades as well as Worldmark, when trading into RCI! I know I have tried.) All of this was done in the last 6 years.
No I don't work for Worldmark / Trendwest etc. I am a regular owner, & Love It!
Complain all you want about the rediculous way all timeshares are sold. That stinks! But yes there are rooms available, and even in the hard to get locations. I have personal experience to speak from there.
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 26 July, 2008
i have a scheduled presentation on thurs. after reading all of these comments.. nevermind.. its not worth my time.. thanks everyone for helping.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 06 August, 2008
My husband and I went to the presentation and bought it, but now are desperately trying to sell our 6,000 points. Let me know if anyone has any great ideas on how to sell to another WorldMark owner that loves vacationing or to someone new. We are willing to sell the points for much less than the original price. We just got in over our heads!
By
Susan, at Wednesday, 20 August, 2008
We went to the presentation and got $75 of gift cards for home depot. We thought the premium plan sounded nice for someone who could afford it and had plans for vacationing every year for the rest of their lives. It's nice that the benefits can be passed on to your heir also, but we just could not afford it. We bought the trial package and went home. We looked online at resales and found some great deals so we went in the next day and canceled our trial package. The lady behind the desk took our folder and all of our trial member info. We noticed the monthly fee was still coming out for the trial package two months later, so we called and they claimed we never canceled. We didn't have the receipt... our fault I know... proving we canceled so we were stuck. They have no cameras in the Oceanside CA office so they couldn't look back and SEE that we came in and canceled and OUR RECORD HAD NOT BEEN UPDATED to show that we canceled.... that's shady if you ask me. They don't put anything on your record or remove it when you cancel? It just sits there as if you had never made a change? That can't be true. I've read so many stories on here of the EXACT SAME SITUATION that it must be their policy. It is a good deal, but there are better ones... and that's just shady business tricking people like that. HOLD ON TO YOUR CANCELLATION RECEIPT IF YOU DO CANCEL!
Now we are having trouble even getting info on how to use this trial experience that is now paid off. We'll let you know if the accommodations are worth the price of the trial. (probably not though after comparing online prices!)
Anyway, there are BETTER deals out there! Just good Worldmark or Trendwest resale!
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 09 September, 2008
Same situation here with the canceling. We didn't even get a reciept. Were told it was "in the computer, no worries we're cancelled"
then payments kept coming out same thing.
Anyone know how to use the trial package after it's paid off?
email me please
paulagraves21@yahoo.com
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 09 September, 2008
This company lacks integrity and I would like to know who to report thier fraudulent business practices to. I left a refundable deposit of $20 cash and was told I would get it back when I attended the presentation 2 days later. When I walked in the door to sign in I was told that they did not have any cash and would I like a gas card instead of my $20. I said no I wanted my $20 back as I was promised when I signed up. I was then told they would mail it to me. It was at that point I decided this was not a company I wanted to do business with, yet I fulfilled my obligation and sat through the presentation as I agreed to. Well, same experience as everyone else with a twist. When the 2nd offer came from the manager I informed him of my irritation with the failure to return the deposit. He apologized and said he would personally take care of it and refund my deposit. Then he disappeared. Then came the free gift...LOL. I recieved a certificate that was presented like this. "so here is your gift, there is a $294 port tax fee and a $50 per person fee, and you can only go on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. (Even though when I was initially invited to attend the presentation and asked about what gift I would like I was told it was a weekend cruise, friday-monday) Oh and top put a cherry on it all the certificate expires on Nov 30 2008 and I am required to make the reservation 90 days before my trip. Well today is September 9, 2008. So even if I wanted to I could not use the certificate. Oh and I still didn't get my $20 back. I will never do business with anyone associated with WorldMark, Trendwest or Wyndham. What really unfortunate is that I was actually going to purchase a package.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 10 September, 2008
I personally do not have a timeshare, but my co-worker does and she loves it. In fact she has booked me rooms before in Rosarito Beach Mexico and Las Vegas using the "Bonus Time".
Basically a room will run from 700-1500 credits a night. She gets to purchaes at 4.6 cents per credit. So a room runs $30-$60 a night, which is considerablly cheaper then another hotel in the same city. And since the room is per room and not per person, we will take 4-6 people with us, so it costs each couple about $10-$20 a night.
Definitely knowing how to use the timeshare is the key. Know how to work your Bonus Time. Yes there are restrictions such as Friday-Saturday can only be used once every 3 months, but if you add Thursday or Sunday to the trip it's unlimited usage.
I will be attending my timeshare presentation soon, and I already know all the "sales tactics" they will try. NO will be my only answer. I am going to get information, and then based upon the financials I may decide to purchase from a broker for 1/2 the price but still get all the benefits.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 16 September, 2008
Bought Trendwest timeshare nearly 4 years ago, the worst decision I have ever made. The sales rep said that it's easy to re-sell basically anyone would be queuing for the opportunity. I was looking over the internet for an opportunity to sell this nightmare a few months back, however other website were trying to sell 6000 credit (worth $12000) for a discount of up to 70%. They're trying to sell the "cheap holiday for the rest of your life" line, however after a lot of experience of booking through their south-pacific travel club, You'll think again. You can get a way cheaper deal by doing your own research through google. I've paid $6000 on top of my yearly points to go to NZ with trendwest, whilst the other time that I've booked myself through NZ Snow Deals I ended up paying only $4000. The biggest mistake. BIGGEST!!!!
By
Anonymous, at Monday, 29 September, 2008
This is amazing that i found this website, i believe they illegally obtained my girlfriend's phone number from a drawing she entered at the Ski and snowboarding convention at Portland EXPO center, i am going to be speaking with the organizer of that event or who ever regarding this info leak because i am sure that someone made money selling these names. Someone has to pay for this unlawful act.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 25 November, 2008
wow, thank you. i will save my time tomorrow too. thanks guy for sharing this info. sigh...i've lost $15 deposit, but, PTL for saving my precious time & energy!!!
By
Anonymous, at Saturday, 06 December, 2008
Anyone touting this racket in any positive light is clearly working for the company in some capacity. These types of scams have been around for many years and I remember going to similar presentations 25 years ago.
Fact is, they sell low quality garbage to foolish consumers who haven't yet established a proper boundry protecting them from predators. The thought that many of these people have children makes me shutter to thing how stupid their children will be.
Paying $20,000 for off-season vactions spots for the next gazillion years? That's akin to paying $2,000 for a vacuum cleaner. Duh.
This scam is clearly for those with more dollars than sense.
A sucker is born every minute.
And for you fools that signed a contract, Congratulaitons, you just pissed away your childs college fund, you are stuck. You will be sued when you don't pay and the ONLY way out is BANKRUPTCY . So remember that when you tell your children that signing a contract with anyone without being allowed time to consider the terms away from the other party and preferably with a Lawyer or other wiser person with knowledge, is STUPID , and a lesson they should fully understand.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 17 December, 2008
For you East Coasters, the Guy posting 2 posts up, about staying in Seaside is talking about a drug infest Ghetto neighborhood. Would you take your children to such a place? Would you pay $20,000 to have such vacations? He clearly works for the scummy company.
By
Anonymous, at Wednesday, 17 December, 2008
We went to a presentation about a year and a half ago in Anaheim. It pretty much matched the descriptions here. But we did sign of for the trial membership 12,000 credits for 1200 dollars I think. We just used it this Christmas to go to Las Vegas for 3 days. I will say the room was nice, 2 bedrooms with a kitchen and living room. The kitchen was stocked enough for us to have family over for a xmas dinner. On the down side the construction of the building lacked a little. The elevator would stop working periodically for a few minutes, a valence fell off the patio door and the towel holder came off the wall. Oh and the carpet wasn't very clean white socks a little gray after a couple hours walking around. Then we had to go through another 90 minutes high pressure sales on the first day to try and sell the whole package again. Even though we told them we bought a trial package and haven't even used 24hrs yet they still insisted on going through their spew. Initially the only thing that puts me off is the maintenance fees at a little over 500 bucks a year. Whats to stop them from raising them over and over? Oh the sales people say the owner have to vote on that. Even if that's true how many city bonds get voted in year after year? Plus all the extra goodies they talk about are almost too good to be true. Booking a month in advance got us our room in Vegas no problem, although right now we're having trouble booking in Colorado for spring break. Can't get a response to voice mail although it is Dec 27 hopefully by next week we'll get our reservation. Then we'll post again.
By
Anonymous, at Sunday, 28 December, 2008
My fiance had told me about a company like this she had gone to that had been one of the worst evenings of her life. It had turned into high pressure with an abusive salesperson who had called her names while insinuating that she was too poor to buy the product.
I was at a home show and saw a sign for a contest so I signed up. Unfortunately, I did not know that this was the same company that had treated her so poorly.
I received a phone call, explained that I would never buy their product due to how my fiance was treated and asked that my name be taken out of the drawings and off their call list.
28 phone calls and 12 months later I am still "winning prizes" and being called. Each time I tell them to take me off the list and out of the drawings, but to no avail.
Luckily this has given me the opportunity to make sure my family and friends don't get involved with them. I just mention that the nonsense is still going on. They keep telling their friends so the pool of available customers of theirs keeps shrinking.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 21 April, 2009
I had purchased into worldmark myself about 4 years ago. I was told at the time of signing that I could cancel my contract if I was unsatisfied. A couple of days after my purchase I tried to book a vacation to try and se how it would work out. Tha places I tried to book were all pretty much booked for the next 3 months. So I called the numbers provided to me in the nice little green owners briefcase they had given me. I found out that day this was going to be impossible to cancel so I went to the office I had signed out of and they wouldn't help me cancel. They gave me instructions on how to request my cancellation and since I was five days into the contract, I only had 2 days left to cancel. At this point I wrote them an e-mail through the contact us link on thier website, Told them of my situation and that I did not like what I had purchased and requested a cancellation of contract.
Two weeks later I got a response saying that because the 7 days had already past I am no longer able to cancel my contract, a couple days later I recieved notice of payment due. I decided since not to pay and hoped It would all just go away since they have never collected from me and I did not plan on using thier service anyways. After four months my credit had plumetted due to them reporting and hurt my career in the military because I had a security clearance required for my job, I went under review due to the tarnish on my credit. So I made the back payments and since then have not fallen behind even with dues and fees that come about.
I feel for all those who where lied too, during this presentation. In a way we were suckered to believe we could cancel, when in reality they do not tell you how many days you have from the time you sign. They do not make any of this clear during thier presentation and sales pitch. They don't tell you about the limit for roolover on credits and how they actually work. They sold me a basic package that I will be paying on for about 8 more years now until it's paid in full.
I decided to pay for the contract in hopes that I would be able to sale and get out of it. I made 4 attempts in the past 3 years and have always ended up owing a large balance if I sold and would have to pay up for the balance in advance before it could be sold. So I say to all those who are interested look else where you will find the same thing for less from a time share reseller, and be able to stay away from a contract to if you are interested in credits alone..... buyer beware!
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 24 November, 2009
I am surprised at all of the negetive comments here. It sounds like everyone is upset they have to listen to a typical sales pitch and expect a 1st class vacation for free! REALLY??
I have had a couple experiences with Trendwest. I have listened to their presentation 3 times, and taken the 'free vacation' twice, with the 3rd in the works. The 1st 2 times, I went to Vegas. Yes, you arrive late and depart early, so you basically get 1 day there. BUT... my husband and I have 4 children and no time or money for vacations. This was a PERFECT little get-a-way for us! We are now planning on using our 3rd free trip to Cancun this year. No, not much time to spend there, but we are so looking forward to a quick get-a-way at the beach with a chance to unwind. And no, they don't book you at sleezy hotels. Both times in Vegas, we stayed at the Excalibur. Not top of the line, but not a sleezy hotel either. And the taxes and fees you pay are normal. How many of you can take a quick trip for less than $200? You couldn't buy airfare alone for that!
So, my suggestion is, if you are just in it for the free trip, yes, it is totally worth 1 1/2 hrs and a few nominal fees!!! Oh, and each time, they also gave us a $30 giftcard to Olive Garden as well! No one can be FORCED into signing a contract if they don't want to. You just need a backbone....
By
Unknown, at Wednesday, 31 March, 2010
Does anyone know if you can form a limited liability company to be the owner of a membership? If you wanted to walk away from the membership dues, you could, though that wouldn't make all that much sense when it can be sold.
By
Anonymous, at Sunday, 24 October, 2010
My brother and his wife have been members of WorldMark for over 15 years now. This past year they stayed in Hawaii for a week with 15 family members in a set of condos. They had a great time and still rave about it.
Recently my wife and I stayed with them in a beautiful condo in Leavenworth, WA. Three days of lovely accomodations, supplied just like an apartment. Nice view of the surrounding mountains that come with that part of the country.
We have now purchased into the system and using the RCI connection are looking forward to visitin Fiji. See you at the resort.
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 14 June, 2011
WARNING TO ALL READERS.
have a good hard long read of this blog and ask your self this, is it really worth it, go to the presentation and decide for your self. You got most people here talking about getting free stuff, cancelling contracts and complaining about fees, noone here talks about taking their family on 2-3 vacations a year because NONE of them do, You can listen to losers and timewasters or you can listen to the biggest holiday firm (which obviously uses heavy tactics) then ask you self who is right. The closest most readers here get to a holiday is the free one they scam off trendwest! which they then complain about! Tread your own Path!
By
Anonymous, at Tuesday, 24 April, 2012
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