- Joined
- May 20, 2006
- Messages
- 47,708
- Reaction score
- 19,213
- Points
- 1,299
- Location
- NE Florida
- Resorts Owned
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Marriott Grande Vista
Marriott Harbour Lake
Sheraton Vistana Villages
Club Wyndham CWA
We spent only two nights at Vistana Villages over the weekend and opted for the sales presentation. The offer was only 6,000 SPG points but we didn't really have anything planned except lounging by the pool. We were able to get an 8:00am time slot, so we went for it.
My first observations of the sales area was that it reminded me of a sweat shop. Rows upon rows of cubicles filled with sales people and victims. Kind of what I would think a Westgate sales floor looks like. No charm, no displays of properties, just a cube with a big monitor a few books and the sales person.
We were told that our presentation was courtesy tour, the rep wasn't sure what that meant. Asked when we last toured but then realized it was because we own external resale weeks. Courtesy tour meant they could end it at any time. I was of course game for that. He explained a few things, "Marriott" was perhaps every third word out of their mouths. Even overhearing other reps when ours was off talking to his manager "or taking a break", they were all saying; Marriott, Marriott, Marriott. More so in connection with the SPG/MR side as opposed to the ILG acquisition. They didn't really talk up the acquisition, which surprised me.
Toward the end, the sale rep left, then came back to actually ask us if we would at all be interested in buying points, we said no. I guess his manager asked him if he even asked us. He left again and came back with an offer of $17,000 + closing costs to take our two mandatory resale weeks from us in return for 114,000 Flex Options and a small pot of SPG points as an incentive. We turned it down. We were somewhat interested in the Explorer package, but for only 80,000 SPG and a seven night stay in a 1BR for $2900 all in, it seemed a little steep. The 240,000 MR points that it would have netted us would have been good enough for a MR Travel Package, but the cost per point just didn't seem to be low enough.
My first observations of the sales area was that it reminded me of a sweat shop. Rows upon rows of cubicles filled with sales people and victims. Kind of what I would think a Westgate sales floor looks like. No charm, no displays of properties, just a cube with a big monitor a few books and the sales person.
We were told that our presentation was courtesy tour, the rep wasn't sure what that meant. Asked when we last toured but then realized it was because we own external resale weeks. Courtesy tour meant they could end it at any time. I was of course game for that. He explained a few things, "Marriott" was perhaps every third word out of their mouths. Even overhearing other reps when ours was off talking to his manager "or taking a break", they were all saying; Marriott, Marriott, Marriott. More so in connection with the SPG/MR side as opposed to the ILG acquisition. They didn't really talk up the acquisition, which surprised me.
Toward the end, the sale rep left, then came back to actually ask us if we would at all be interested in buying points, we said no. I guess his manager asked him if he even asked us. He left again and came back with an offer of $17,000 + closing costs to take our two mandatory resale weeks from us in return for 114,000 Flex Options and a small pot of SPG points as an incentive. We turned it down. We were somewhat interested in the Explorer package, but for only 80,000 SPG and a seven night stay in a 1BR for $2900 all in, it seemed a little steep. The 240,000 MR points that it would have netted us would have been good enough for a MR Travel Package, but the cost per point just didn't seem to be low enough.
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