| Written by: Mark Ostermann

Sheraton Vistana Villages Timeshare Presentation Offer

Last month I finally made the trek to Orlando to take advantage of my Sheraton Vistana Villages offer. If you remember, that was a timeshare like offer that did not require a timeshare presentation to take advantage of it. I had been targeted on and off for the offer over the last several years, but this year everything finally kind of lined up for us. We added the stay to the tail end of our $900 one night Universal Studios hotel stay (that was still an amazing deal). While on property we received a Sheraton Vistana Village timeshare presentation offer we just couldn't resist. Yes, we were “suckered” into going to a presentation even though it wasn't required…

What Happened

While we were spending our time at Universal parks I kept getting a text from the Sheraton Vistana Villages point of contact. He asked for our updated estimated time of arrival each time. I kept putting him off a bit since it was to be determined depending on how long we hung out at the parks. We were trying to extract as much value out of our overpriced theme park tickets, especially with those “free” fast passes from our hotel stay.

After brushing him off a few times he asked if I could get on a call with him real quick since he was leaving for the day soon. I knew exactly where this was going – time for the hard sell. I knew he wanted to try to offer me some type of goodie to join a timeshare presentation while on site, even though I didn't need to as a part of the offer we had booked the resort with. The problem for him was that there was no way he was going to convince me of doing that. I had booked this offer solely because I wouldn't have to give up 2 hours of my time while on vacation after all. I was going to be firm, and that lasted for a minute or two – until I folded like a cheap suite.

Sheraton Vistana Villages Timeshare Presentation Offer

The On Property Sheraton Vistana Villages Timeshare Presentation Offer

Just in case you missed the last article, here is the offer we had booked to stay at Sheraton Vistana Villages:

  • 5 Days + 4 Nights in a two‑bedroom villa at Sheraton Vistana Villages in Orlando, Florida
    • Features include a kitchen, washer and dryer, separate living and dining areas, private balcony or patio, and complimentary Wi‑Fi.
  • PLUS your choice of 15,000 Marriott Bonvoy® Points OR a $100 Gift Card to Planet Hollywood® restaurant at Disney Springs®
  • Cost is starting from $449

I had booked it for $449 plus tax and was going to take the 15,000 Bonvoy points. It seemed like the better option even though I hate the Marriott program. The value proposition was pretty even when compared to the $100 Planet Hollywood gift card, but I didn't plan on going to Disney Springs this trip. Plus, Planet Hollywood restaurants are usually very mid and overpriced.

Here is the additional pitch that he made to me on the phone call:
  • Upgrade from a 900 square foot two bedroom condo to a 1,200 square foot condo
  • Plus our choice of the 15,000 Bonvoy points and a $150 Visa gift card OR just a $250 Visa gift card

My plan was to rebuff all advancements, but after looking at the damage my wallet had taken that day at Universal my foundation started to crack. My parents were also joining the four of us for half of the nights, so the extra space could make a big difference. I put the representative on hold while I chatted with my wife for a second. It didn't take much convincing before she said she was game to ride this wave of freebies as far as we could go. She was probably still riding the high of the 15 minute timeshare presentation win we had last time around.

Would We Do It Again?

I will say that the room did not disappoint. We had a ton of space for everyone, were close to two of the pools and the snack shop. We also had a pretty decent view out on the back porch. The $250 gift was given to us the following morning when their award desk opened. We ended up using it to cover an excellent dinner for the 6 of us at Kobe Japanese Steakhouse that evening.

Unfortunately, the timeshare presentation offer was not as quick as last time. The good news is we were out in well under two hours at least. I told the sales rep about my job and how we use miles and points for travel, so the timeshare set up had no value to us.

He did make a compelling pitch about their last minute cash rates that was pretty interesting. Without being able to play around with their booking system for a few hours, and seeing how availability was across the board, I wasn't going to fork over tens of thousands of dollars for interesting though.

He put up the good fight for about 45 minutes before finally throwing in the towel. I think his eagerness and confidence played against us with the timeline. It seemed like he was excited to take on the challenge, even though it was a losing prospect from jump street.

On the way out the sales manager had one more offer for us. It was a boomerang type of offer that I could see being compelling to some, but I'll write more about that tomorrow.

Sheraton Vistana Villages Timeshare Presentation Offer: ToP Thoughts

You know what they say about plans, don't you? Well, I had a plan – but it went right out the window as soon as I got punched in the face. Wait, that is what Mike Tyson says about plans … or something like that. Anyway, we had no intention on taking a Sheraton Vistana Villages timeshare presentation offer, but you have to be open to strike when the iron is hot. How many idioms and pop culture references is that in one article now?!

The offer for a larger room was the tipping point with the six of us trying to cram into one room. If it had only been the four of us then we may have passed on this timeshare presentation offer. While the $250 Visa gift card is decent, it wasn't enough of a reason for us to carve out a slice of our vacation to attend the required presentation. Although, Universal bleeding us dry at the moment the offer was made did play a major role here.

Would you have accepted this on property Sheraton Vistana Villages timeshare presentation offer? Let me know over in the ToP Facebook Group. Be on the lookout for that boomerang offer tomorrow too!