You spend the money on the timeshare itself, sign the contracts, agree to the maintenance fees, accept the responsibility of having to schedule vacations and trips potentially months or years in advance, and then, you think to yourself, “I’ve done it!”
Well, not quite. You may assume that with these costs and preparations that your perfect getaway is now budgeted, bought, and paid for. All you have to do is show up, right? Bags in hand, sunglasses and sandals on – now this is the good life!
But there is one factor that is often overlooked when considering these purchased timeshare vacations – the cost of travel itself.
One of the ways timeshare resorts seem desirable is by being located in desirable places: sunny, warm, on the beach, by the ocean, in the big city, far out in the scenic countryside. But you have to get there before you can stay there, and that means plane tickets, rental cars, gas, taxis, and all of those other associated costs.
Knowing that you own a condo in Miami is fantastic. You bought a timeshare there because you know your family deserves time off from their busy lives. So you budget your money so that you spend your cash making sure you get this vacation, that you own this vacation. But then after you pay for the timeshare, a funny detail comes up. How exactly do you realistically afford to get your family there?
You spent your reasonable vacation budget on purchasing a timeshare in a beautiful place, but now there are all of these other things to pay for that make that initial timeshare purchase not seem like such a good idea. They didn’t mention travel costs to exotic places when you were at the timeshare meeting. They didn’t talk about how much plane, train, or bus tickets cost, especially during principal vacationing times, and especially for a whole family.
So, when dealing with timeshare and vacation budgets, don’t get caught up in the beauty and the daydream of where you can travel to, thinking that the geographical financial factors were already presented to you during your initial investment. Make sure to think about how often you can pay how much in order to get how many people there.
The reason that timeshare can often feel too good to be true is because they generally are, and travel costs are a big part of the reason for that reality check.
About the Author: The timeshare experts at Apex Professionals, LLC, concentrate on helping disillusioned timeshare holders to rid themselves of unwanted maintenance fees, unnecessary assessment costs, and to do away with those annoying high-interest mortgages by offering to take over unwanted timeshare agreements instantly. Related posts:
Excellent point. This has actually been the number 1 reason why I’ve been unable to use my timeshare in the last 3 years. Sure having a timeshare in hawaii is nice… but honestly I can rarely afford the plane ride over there. They didn’t really mention that during the sales pitch. I can see why.