Wednesday, July 23, 2008

The Secret...

The moment all two of you have been waiting for....drumroll please.

We've been traveling to nearby destinations for the past 3 years using (and abusing) this system. All it requires of you is a little bit of moolah and a 90-minute presentation. But look at your options....

You could go here - Newport Beach Villas (AWESOME place for a staycation)


OR...Kauai's Beach Club (if you can afford a ticket to fly)
OR....Lake Tahoe's Timber Lodge
OR....an Arizona golf resort


Plus, most of them have at least one bedroom and a kitchen. Some have two bedrooms. We packed 9 adults and 3 kids into the Newport Beach Villas and, you know, it wasn't that bad! A little W.T., but not uncomfortable. They are great places to go when you have kids!



So, how much would you pay for a two bedroom + kitchen place that sleeps 8? An arm and a leg right? Probably around 400-600 a night!

Well, with this offer you'll pay much, much less. (okay, somebody from Marriott really needs to hire me!)


Here's what you do:

Call 1.800.416.1705

Tell them you are interested in one of their preview packages. Ask them to give you all their options as far as locations go. I don't know them all, just the four I listed above. These are all West Coast destinations, by the way. BUT, you could call and see if they have East Coast preview packages available too. Then choose a location and sign up!



Just to give you an idea pricewise, since that's all we really care about right?


We stayed in Tahoe in a one bedroom for 3 nights, 4 days for.....$198

We stayed in Newport Beach in a two bedroom for 3 nights, 4 days for ....$298 (I think the price has gone up?)

We signed up for 6 nights, 7 days in Kauai for.....$1200ish (later canceled when flights skyrocketed)




I think the deal is unbeatable for the quality of the accommodations. Their packages are for set amounts of time and make sure you ask about the number of bedrooms. In Tahoe they tried to put us in a studio, but I asked about a one bedroom and they arranged it. In Newport Beach, you have to be careful because they will sometimes try to arrange your accommodations at a nearby Marriott hotel. Just be specific and tell them you want to stay in a two-bedroom at the Newport Beach VILLAS!

The best part about this is even if you don't buy into their timeshare, you can continue to "preview" a different property each year. You can visit the same property every three years. So, we decided to get on a three year rotation between Newport, Tahoe and Hawaii. Seriously...we have this system down! (are you embarrassed for us? cause I am.)

Give it a try. If you have a question, ask me in the comment section and I will reply with an answer in the comment section.

Thank you and good day. It's been a pleasure serving you as your blogging travel agent.

16 comments:

Troy said...

Ali forgot to mention that our Newport and Tahoe stays also came with a $100 gift card to some great local restaurants.
Troy

ali said...

thanks dad. I mean troy. i mean sugar daddy troy.

kelly said...

I'm glad to see you two are commenting to yourselves. :)

You are right, these deals look irresistible. Why am I always so skeptical and think it's too good to be true? Plus, I would be nervous the night before the big seminar, lying in bed wondering how to get out of NOT buying into something I would regret (sound familiar?). We need to get over that, and look into this great deal, thanks for sharing, Travel Agent Ali!

shawna said...

hey ali, I'm actually in maui at the marriott ocean club! It's my sisters time share. you should still consider kauai. watch the airfare it keeps changing. aloha,:)see you sunday. Shawna G

heidi said...

I really want to try one of these some time. We're trying to find a getaway for Christmas--I'll have to look into this more, though it would be a nice Christmas present to buy a timeshare...ha ha.

Roney Family said...

When are you guys going to come and stay in Laguna? We would love to see you. And the beach is so close to Laguna.

Whitney said...

HA! As long as you are taking on the roll of "blogging travel agent"...tell me some good stuff to do in Seattle!

melissa ellen parker said...

WOW! That's amazing. After we get all settled in a new house I might just have to call.

Kaylynn said...

Kyle and I did this a couple of years ago - to San Francisco - we stayed 2 nights and 3 days in a great Hotel in Fishermans Wharf and got 2 tickets to Phantom of the Opera for $199 TOTAL! It was one of the best vacations we have taken (we didn't take our child at the time) We had to suffer through the presentation but believe me on our income it was very easy to say no! Thanks for the travel tip - they actually just called me again but I declined this time- just too busy to get away right now.

Marie said...

gotta love the 90 minute presentations. they always bring over the big guns when we say no and no and no. we had a fun staycation camping. posting soon!

Amy said...

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSOoo great! But I think that we'll just keep mooching off good ole Joe. So far being poor has really paid off!

Lori said...

Great tips! I was looking for this very thing. Our anniversary is coming up and we will try it out. We have done the 90 minute presentation before with the Hyatt Resort in Carmel and I loved it. There was no pressure to buy anything I actually enjoyed the presentation video and discussion. We were able to stay there for $100 and they gave us $100 back for dining. Can't wait to try more out.

melissa said...

Thanks for the great tips! And yes, it is me. Although, I haven't used the name Landrey in a few years. ;) Glad you found me. I haven't seen you in something like 4 trillion years. You look great. And what a cute family. It sounds like you've had lots of fun adventures this summer. Hooray for finding long lost friends on facebook, eh?

Joe and Amy said...

Thanks for the tips Ali. We are staying at the Tahoe Timber Lodge this fall with my husbands brother and his wife and kids (we're mooching off his wife's parents time share package). It looks really nice...I would love to do the preview deal, especially since we're a close drive to both places in CA.

Can you do the preview deal once a year as long as you choose a different destination? and did you say you chose Hawaii and then were able to change it to a different destination?

ali said...

amy - you can do one per year as long as they are different locations. I am glad you commented because I've been trying to get access to your passworded blog for some time now! Send me an invite for heaven's sake!

The McLaws Clan said...

WOW! Okay Ali, and Troy, this is one big selling point you have going. I must say, I would love to hire you with us here at Marriott, but unfortunately, selling is not my thing. I do have one thing to say though, It is better at these places and more when I get to go stay for free. We have been telling people that if they just get me and my wife (sometimes my daughter) there, then I will provide the accomodations free. Well, just a thought. I will be updating our blog in the next few days, now that I work from home. Yipeee!!!!!!