Club Wyndham vaction ownership (timeshare)

Club Wyndham is a point-based timeshare ownership that provides its owners access to resorts in the Wyndham Vacation Ownership network. As of December 31, 2011, Wyndham Vacation Ownership had developed or acquired more than 160 vacation ownership resorts throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and the South Pacific.

Before I go into details about Club Wyndham, I should share the source of my knowledge on the subject. Truth is, I love to travel. So the timeshare sales pitch is meant to woo people exactly like me. So as you may have guessed, I've had a number of exchanges with timeshare companies.

My first timeshare experience came in 2004. Following up on an offer for a free gift, I ended up in a timeshare sales presentation for Silverleaf Resorts. Anyone that has been to a timeshare sales presentation knows how 'good' they are at selling. Young and impressionable, I succumbed to it....but once I got home, I realized I had made a huge mistake. Thank goodness consumer law in the state of Texas provides a cooling off period. Despite the salesperson not returning my calls, I took it upon myself to drive back to the sales center and cancel the contract, before the cooling off period ended....problem averted.

My next timeshare experience came in 2009, during a visit to Las Vegas. I was again lured by the offer of a free gift (a free dinner to be exact) to a timeshare presentation for GeoHoliday. And once again, not as young but still impressionable, I succumbed to it...I became the interest owner of 15,000 points awarded every other year. I kept the GeoHoliday timeshare for a few years and actually used it to visit Costa Rica in 2011. However, I later realized that those points weren't worth much outside of the GeoHoliday network and the exchange value with RCI made me unhappy. I didn't want to spend more money to buy more points, so I decided to get rid of GeoHoliday. 


3 bedroom presidential floor plan

My most recent experience with timeshares was in 2012, where I proved to be a smart, educated consumer by purchasing a Club Wyndham ownership interest on ebay (849,000 annual points). I won't say how much I paid for ownership interest (let's just say I got a great deal), but I will say that my assessment fees are a little over $4,000 per year. To put everything into perspective, a 3 bedroom presidential unit at my home resort in Myrtle Beach, SC ranges from 425,000 to 625,000 points/week during prime season. A 2 bedroom deluxe unit for the same season ranges from 224,000 to 425,000 points/week.

Club Wyndham points can be used to book reservations using the Club Wyndham website or through a live agent. Owners have access to all resorts included in the Wyndham Vacation Ownership network, as well as other brands through RCI or Interval International Exchanges (II). Club Wyndham points can also be used in a number of other ways, including making arrangements for hotel stays, rental cars, airfare, cruises and entertainment packages. Options for unused points include conversion to maintenance dollars (to be used to pay maintenance fees) and depositing to RCI/II or the Club Wyndham credit pool for future use. Consistent with the timeshare theme, the units at Wyndham Vacation Resorts range from 1-4 bedrooms and most include a full kitchen and washer/dryer.

Like most others people, my vacation days have to be planned around my child's school schedule and work deadlines. And because of family life requires flexibility, I am sometimes afraid of planning/committing to a trip too far in advance. That said, I have found it difficult to plan my vacations using Club Wyndham because of high demand during prime seasons, as well as high demand within 3 months of travel. There have been several instances where the resort that I wanted to visit was not available on the week/weekend that I wanted to go. Resorts have to be booked as far in advance as possible.

My favorite feature of Club Wyndham is the Points Plus Travel program, which allows me use Club Wyndham points to make arrangements for hotel stays, rental cars, airfare, cruises and entertainment packages. And although, when you do the math, the Club Wyndham point value is more expensive than paying cash, this flexibility makes up for the unavailability of resorts.

Overall, I am happy with my Club Wyndham ownership interest. I have used it several times since acquiring it in 2012. In fact, I was able to book 2 stays and airfare before even making my first monthly maintenance installment. And I love being able to book vacations without paying at the time of purchase - its almost like my trips are already budgeted.

If you are considering timeshare ownership, I think that most people would be happy with the quality of the Club Wyndham resorts. As an alternative, I am also a member a travel club that offers weekly stays at timeshare resorts, in addition to other travel benefits. This membership is a great alternative to timeshare ownership. Although I keep and use both (the timeshare and the travel club) at the moment, the travel club seems like it offers more flexibility without maintenance fees, i.e. I only pay for what I use.

New England Patriots Fans at Gillette Stadium

Warning: This review is written from the perspective of a Houston Texans fan.


We traveled to Boston to watch the Houston Texans take on the New England Patriots during the second round of the NFL playoffs in January 2013. We are always excited to watch our beloved Texans, as well as visit a new stadium. This could have been considered a family trip - me, my husband, our teenage son, my teenage nephew and my brother (group of 5).

Because the kids had school, we flew in Saturday morning. We didn't have a lot of time to tour Boston and most of our trip was focused around Texans activities. After dinner, Saturday evening we went to The Black Rose. The entire second floor was filled with fellow Traveling Texans. We had a great time watching football and hanging out! It was a great venue.

Sunday morning, we arose bright and early to make sure that we were ready for the game! (Go Texans!!) We walked from our hotel to South Station to catch the Bowl Bus. The Bowl Bus was a fun experience, full of Texans fans - not to mention convenient for a visitor. The ticket was $55pp. I would definitely consider Bowl Bus for future out of town games.

The road to Foxboro required a lot of patience - there were limited lanes and lots and lots of traffic. It seemed like it took hours to get there. But it was cool to see all of the tailgaters posted up in business parking lots all along the road. It looked fun!

The Bowl Bus parked in the back of the Stadium lot, so we got the experience of walking through tailgating Patriot fans. Of course we were taunted, but we were also welcomed with grilled shrimp and high fives. We managed to make it to the gates without any incidents - that taunting was all in good fun.

Before the game, Texans fans met up on the first floor of CBS Scene....once again, the entire floor was filled with Texans fans - but this is where the harassment began. Someone from the top floor poured beer on Texans fans. How immature! I did not witness any other incidents, but I heard of at least one fight involving opposing fans.

After CBS Scene, we made our way inside of the stadium. We received more friendly taunting from stadium workers, asking us to come back to their station so they can give us a hard time after the Texans lose....Yeah right! Like that would really happen...but the banter was friendly and fun.

We sat in the upper level, section 314 - those tickets were $195ea, plus taxes and fees (resell) - this is where the harassment continued. There were several excessively drunk Patriot fans in our section that spent more time taunting us (using profanity) than watching the game. I don't want to go into details, but trust me it was bad. They did not want us to cheer, to stand up, or to even be there. Other Patriot fans in the section apologized for the behavior of their peers. The harassment continued throughout the entire game.

Unfortunately, the Texans lost - but life goes on. On our way out of the stadium, we encountered even more harassment. Patriot fans were running up to us shouting obscenities - in case, you forgot what I mentioned earlier....this could have been considered a family trip. One Patriot fan actually assaulted my brother....on our family trip!!!! This lead to an actual fist fight between a group of Patriot fans and my family....unbelievable! Finally, security came and escorted us out of the stadium.

On our way back to the Bowl Bus, we met more cool Bostonians that tried to redeem the horrible experiences we managed to have that day. The Bowl Bus took us back to Boston and we returned home to Houston the next morning.

As a Houston Texans season ticket holder, I was appalled at the behavior of those New England Patriot fans. In Houston, Texas we would never treat visiting fans like that - stadium policy or not. After the incident, I wrote letters to the Texans, the Patriots and the NFL. I only received a response from the Texans.

Lessons Learned -

• Do not sit upper level when visiting other stadiums - too many drunk fans
• Do not bring kids to certain cities that have been know to have rude fans - unsafe
• Always sit with other Texans fans when visiting other stadiums - easier to cheer in peace
• Report the rude fans to security/police

As a Texans fan, I will not be deterred by rude and immature fans from other cities. I will continue to travel to road games because I like it and I am able to. I will continue to cheer for my team regardless of which stadium we are playing in. Go Texans!!

Wyndham Grand Desert

Wyndham Grand Desert in Las Vegas, NV is part of the Club Wyndham Vacation Resorts. The resort is located approximately 1 mile from the Las Vegas Strip, near the MGM Grand. On site parking is provided free of charge.

The location is convenient to restaurants, casinos and shopping located on the Strip - we visited many places within the MGM Grand, Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino and Miracle Mile Shops. The location also allows for exploring off of the Strip - we took advantage of the steak special at Ellis Island Casino & Brewery....unlike other casinos in Vegas, I actually won a few dollars on the Ellis Island slots! We rented a car and found it easy (and cheap) to drive and park in the hotel/casino parking garages. Thank goodness for this, because we visited in July 2013 during a heat wave (the temperature got up to 120 degrees - it was like being in an oven), so walking outside was not an option. 

The resort hosts a number of activities and excursions. Activities during our visit included wine socials and pool parties. The staff was very nice. We received a free dinner voucher and $50 gift card for attending a Member Update (for Club Wyndham). Although there is a shuttle that goes to Harrahs, I recommend renting a car. This will allow you to visit the outlet malls, Freemont Street, grocery stores, etc. on your own schedule. Rental cars start at $23 on Priceline (Hint: Resorts360 members may be able to take advantage of the 110% Best Price Guarantee in this situation).

The accommodations were very nice - up to date, clean and comfortable. The 1 bedroom suite sleeps 4 (2 private), but I would recommend against more than 3 people, as space would be limited. More than 3 people would require the space of the 1 bedroom deluxe or the 2 bedroom floor plans. The units come with washer and dryer, refrigerator, stove/over, dish washer, blender, and more. We were able to keep groceries for a simple breakfast, smoothies, afternoon poolside grill and mid-day snacks; we were also able to reheat leftovers - all of which saved money on food expense. We did not eat at the resort café (I think there was only one).

Overall, I think Wyndham Grand Desert is a good place to stay while in Las Vegas, especially for families. It's far enough from the craziness of the Strip but still close enough to be convenient and fun. I would definitely stay at Wyndham Grand Desert again.

Big Bus Tours Washington DC

Big Bus Tours Washington DC is a hop-on hop-off sightseeing tour bus that includes recorded and/or live commentary. Hop-on hop-off tours allow you to see the most popular attractions at your own pace. The buses run in a continuous loop and usually arrive at the designated stop every 20-30 minutes. This allows you to ride to your desired attraction, get off the bus to explore the area and then take the next bus to another attraction when you are ready. There are day and night tours and the schedule varies based on season.

The Washington DC Big Bus Tour includes 4 loops - Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green. Between the 4 loops, a tourist would be able to see all of the highlights of the city. There is so much to see and do in Washington DC! This tour is great for those that want to see the most in a limited amount of time.

During our visit in September 2013, we purchased 24hr tickets from a Chinese Restaurant near the Woodley Park stop. The cost was $46/adult and $26/child (up to 15 years old). The 24hr ticket included free admission to Madame Tussauds wax museum. The 48hr ticket would have been $57/adult and $29/child, including admission to other museums and tours. The tickets are discounted up to 10% if purchased online .

We only had 1 day to sightsee and got a late start...so needless to say, we had to prioritize. Our target stops included the Lincoln Memorial, the White House and Georgetown/Niketown. During our journey, we rode the Green, Red and Yellow routes. So even though we only had 3 stops, we still saw a lot of the city. The commentary was informative and interesting.



We found the Houston Texans gear in Niketown

 

Visiting the Lincoln Memorial

We had a great time sitting on the upper level of the Washington DC Big Bus, but beware of the trees! Your safest bet is to sit on the left side of the upper level deck AND pay attention anytime the bus is in motion. As you can see from the picture below, the tree limbs are a hazard!

An alternative to the Washington DC Big Bus Tour is the Washington DC Hop-on Hop-off Trolley Tour. The concept is the same and this tour also has multiple routes covering all of the major attractions. Tickets for the trolley tour cost slightly less than the Big Bus Tour ($39 for the 1 day pass). Members of Resorts360 save more than $6/ticket. We choose the Big Bus Tour because of the upper level seating.

Overall, we thought the HOHO tour was a great way to see the city in a short amount of time. The ride was comfortable (minus the trees) and the bus route/times were accommodating. At the end of the day, we thought we would take a cab back to the hotel (for convenience), but we were actually able to catch the right bus routes to take us back without much fuss or wait. I would definitely recommend Big Bus Tours Washington DC to others, and I would definitely try this type of tour again in other cities.