Review: Westgate Vacation Villas

chriskre · #1 (**permalink**) 11-16-2009, 11:43 PM

Following is an overview of the review that was added:

Got it on a bonus week with DAE and it was just what I expected. A cheap alternative to the motels in Kissimmee and a great last minute deal.

Please see the review here!

Please use this thread to discuss the review.

JLB · #2 (**permalink**) 11-17-2009, 05:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chriskre

A cheap alternative to the motels in Kissimmee and a great last minute deal.

About the best that can be said for it.

Still a sucky place run by a sucky company/man. Timeshare ripoff extraordinaire.

tonyg · #3 (**permalink**) 11-17-2009, 05:34 PM

I see they still have a nasty sales staff- I wonder if Mr. Seagull tutors them personally.

So exactly what are they trying to sell ?

JLB · #4 (**permalink**) 11-17-2009, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyg

So exactly what are they trying to sell ?

20 years ago, our first Wastegate pitch, EOY.

2 Years ago, Christmas Week, EOY.

chriskre · #5 (**permalink**) 11-17-2009, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JLB

About the best that can be said for it.

Still a sucky place run by a sucky company/man. Timeshare ripoff extraordinaire.

I certainly think that they need to upgrade the units so they can compete fairly with the updated resorts. They are asking Marriott prices for their weeks but certainly don't deliver on the product. It's a shame because the location is good and the grounds are nice, even the staff is great so what would it cost them to remodel. It just makes for a nice vacation when you are in an updated room. With so many hotels/motels in Orlando I don't think that any resort can afford the bad internet press which will drive their bottom line.
I feel bad for the owners at this resort. It really is a shame.

chriskre · #6 (**permalink**) 11-17-2009, 11:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonyg

I see they still have a nasty sales staff- I wonder if Mr. Seagull tutors them personally.

So exactly what are they trying to sell ?

According to my friends they wanted $15K for a 2 bedroom and $10K for a 1 bedroom in the new building. They could buy a 2 bedroom unit for 8K in the Villas which is the older area.

I warned my friends about their tactics and they've done many resort tours elsewhere and told me that this is the last time they are doing a tour. It was supposed to be a 90 minute tour and they started at 11am. They did not come back until almost 3pm because they just didn't have the guts to get up and walk away and be rude. They went for "breakfast" and tried to get in for "lunch" too. The sales lady got mad at them for wasting her time and were upset that they tried to do the buffet twice.

I waited for them by the pool on a lounge chair sipping my wine. No tours of Wastegate for me. But I have to confess that I did enjoy my stay.

JLB · #7 (**permalink**) 11-18-2009, 05:48 PM

Our last one was probably four hours by the time we ate and got through all the lines after the tour.

Actually, we did not take a tour during that tour. After the sales weasel asked the questions on the survey sheet, and after we told him where we were staying and all the places we have been, he said he didn't have anything for us.

He told us to sit there 30 more minutes, so we did while he walked around, stepped out for a smoke, etc.

timeos2 · #8 (**permalink**) 11-18-2009, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chriskre

I certainly think that they need to upgrade the units so they can compete fairly with the updated resorts. They are asking Marriott prices for their weeks but certainly don't deliver on the product. It's a shame because the location is good and the grounds are nice, even the staff is great so what would it cost them to remodel. It just makes for a nice vacation when you are in an updated room. With so many hotels/motels in Orlando I don't think that any resort can afford the bad internet press which will drive their bottom line.
I feel bad for the owners at this resort. It really is a shame.

Believe me the owners have paid plenty for those upgrades yet somehow we still have 1980's decor and rusty refrigerators! Those are to go along with the 1970's tv's and ripped leather sofas. I guess sales needed more money so they don't quite get around to actually fixing the unis we pay through the nose for. The resorts would have long ago been stripped of any ranking for quality, as RCI correctly did, but of course II keeps them as top ranked (Can't do enough for the favored developers you know - who cares about paying members?) Wastegate sales and management- the worst there is in every way!

chriskre · #9 (**permalink**) 11-18-2009, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JLB

Our last one was probably four hours by the time we ate and got through all the lines after the tour.

Actually, we did not take a tour during that tour. After the sales weasel asked the questions on the survey sheet, and after we told him where we were staying and all the places we have been, he said he didn't have anything for us.

He told us to sit there 30 more minutes, so we did while he walked around, stepped out for a smoke, etc.

Reminds me of what happened the first time I took a tour of Ft. Laud Bch resort. I had just purchased my unit on ebay and when we went to breakfast and the realtor asked me how long I had owned my unit, I told him I just bought it last year and that I bought it on ebay. He was good humored about it and asked me if I wanted my check now. The premium was $100 for doing the tour with free breakfast. I laughed and told him that he didn't need to show me the unit but that I was interested in hearing more about the resort and RCI. I had yet to join RCI and was curious. We chatted for a while and talked "real estate" since I'm also a realtor. It was a pleasant experience and I got my $100. But I did waste his time.

PeelBoy · #10 (**permalink**) 12-01-2009, 12:57 PM

Interesting. Reminds me of 1994 - my first time share experience when my ex-secretary who owned there referred me there for a two week stay, at a nightly rate of $95. Motel cost like $49 to $69, so it was a terrific deal.

The two bedroom and the resort were very nice then. This resort as well as the concept timeshare was like paradise to me. Westgate offered me a two bedroom President's Week for $12,000, before negotiation. I was tempted but due to tight financial situation, I chose to pass.

Last year, I saw my ex-secretary in a meeting. She still goes to the same resort, the same week in April - never did any exchange. Her kids have grown and left home and her husband also had left after a divorce, leaving her the matrimonial house and this resort. She said Westgate lasts longer than her family relationships.