WP Over 3 1/2 Hours of Torture
Westgate Timeshare Resort Issues
Date of Incident: 6/6/2003
We gave telephone approval in the summer of last year to "tour" the Westgate Towers in Kissimmee, FL for December 2002. Our deal was $199 for 3 nights in a 2 bedroom unit plus 2 Walt Disney World tickets. When I was giving my credit card info I asked the agent to include "all" of the offer on my receipt, including the tickets, before we hung up.
Like anything else that might be to good to be true...I had my suspicions. When I checked in on December 13th, I was adamant about where to pick up my tickets and my persistence paid off, I got my tickets with the check-in papers. Granted this was a TERRIFIC offer, I was ready to hear what a timeshare was exactly and had an open mind to possibly purchase one. At 7:30 a.m. our young salesman started by taking us to the nursery area where the children were corralled. We insisted on eating "together" so after a 10 minute chance to eat together he whisked us back to the nursery and of course my 4 little girls were ready to stay there...with all the TV's, video games, crayon stations, etc. etc. The salesman started out by showing us his family, a wife and 3 year old little girl...with tears in his eyes he sadly explained that his wife had passed away of cancer when their daughter was an infant. That left him to care for her all alone and thanks to his job he has been able to make ends meet...Was this a ploy to gain our sympathy? I mean I really did feel sorry for him but looking back...?? While we were in the main room there must have been 10 families who "successfully made new purchases into Westgate"...was that real?? Same story pretty much as everyone elses happened from here...after 2 hours and 45 minutes we insisted on checking on our girls. One of them was ready to go/stay with us and he scooped her up and told her how much fun she would have if she stayed and I took her from his arms and said that she WILL stay with me. We have alot of patience, so we thought that we would continue to fulfill our part of the obligation, although we were starting to get agitated. After we toured the 4 bedroom unit and went back to the main food hall there was a second person (a mid-aged tall Hispanic man) who came over and offered us a unit that had "just been traded in for an upgrade". The price had been reduced drastically because we were only to be responsible for what was owed on it...ha ha! Passing 11a.m. now with NO, NO, NO, NO, NO...our first salesman came back over and introduced a lady to us that was with their "fair treatment group" to ask questions and be sure that we were not high-pressured. Yet again, more sales pitches!! At this point I stood up and said "I am going to get the girls". As we left our young "widowed" salesman said with tears in his eyes "keep my daughter and I in your prayers". What a joke... Had I known that since I had my tickets already and I was only obligated to 90 minutes, I really think that I would have walked out. I kind of felt like it was our fault in the delays with "eating together and checking on our children" that I should here this poor fellow out.
That's not all, the burley second salesman (who had such a Hispanic deep brisk voice) called us within days of our return home - he had a fabulously grand deal to offer us!! Pah-lease!!! I would rather pay full price for Disney tickets a top of the line hotel than go through something like this again. Unfortunately, this was our first encounter with the idea of buying a timeshare and Westgate made it our last.
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