The Sheraton Vistana Resort Thread (key links on p.1)

Thanks bankr63
Great answer. Really appreciate it
Last time in Vistana..Courts. December 1991!
Big changes.
Since 1991? BIG changes. We own in Courts, and there is a HUGE difference between the old 70's Miami Vice decor and the much more elegant decor installed across the resort. Hard to describe just how impressed we were when we finally got back into our own unit after the refurbishment was completed!
 
Hey Vistana peeps, I would like to pick your brains :).

We are heading back to SVR in October and have already reserved our ownership week. We will be in Orlando for a total of 8 nights, though, so we need to book one additional night in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath villa. If anyone has any good sources for great rates on a single night reservation, I'd sure appreciate you sharing where to find them. So far, about the best I've found is $180-ish a night plus taxes and fees.

I did try the Dreams Unlimited code but it doesn't seem to be working for just a one night booking.

Thanks a bunch!
 


Hey Vistana peeps, I would like to pick your brains :).

We are heading back to SVR in October and have already reserved our ownership week. We will be in Orlando for a total of 8 nights, though, so we need to book one additional night in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath villa. If anyone has any good sources for great rates on a single night reservation, I'd sure appreciate you sharing where to find them. So far, about the best I've found is $180-ish a night plus taxes and fees.

I did try the Dreams Unlimited code but it doesn't seem to be working for just a one night booking.

Thanks a bunch!
Oh, I wish I could remember where I got the discount I used last time I did this. I am nowhere the bargain hunter you are, but I do remember I had a code, have no recollection where i scared it up. I did rent my extra night direct from Sheraton however. At worst, remember they do offer AAA discount if you have autoclub. Hopefully someone else pipes in with a decent code.
 
Oh, I wish I could remember where I got the discount I used last time I did this. I am nowhere the bargain hunter you are, but I do remember I had a code, have no recollection where i scared it up. I did rent my extra night direct from Sheraton however. At worst, remember they do offer AAA discount if you have autoclub. Hopefully someone else pipes in with a decent code.

We do have AAA, and Steve gets a discounted corporate rate as well.....but I'm a cheapskate and am still hoping for something that costs less than either of those :rotfl:. So far I'm seeing around $180 plus taxes and fees, so realistically $200 a night. Compared to a Disney room, its still a bargain. Compared to what we pay for a full 7 nights using our ownership week, that's when it's a little harder to swallow. I may make a cancellable reservation and just keep looking for the next few months. If you do happen to see a great source for a discounted rate somewhere along the lines, do feel free to share your source! :flower3:
 
Hi everyone, Is there any way we can avoid timeshare? Thanks
By timeshare, I suspect you mean the timeshare sales pitch? Easy peasy UNLESS you booked an ultra-low rate that requires the presentation. Most timeshare resorts offer very low rate vacations that require attending a presentation, and if you don't attend, they charge you full rack rate for your accommodation. So let's assume it's NOT one of those deals, as it's probably only about 10% of bookings.

In general, Vistana is a pretty soft sell, but you need to know what to watch out for. Depending on when you arrive, you will usually be sent to the activities desk to get your parking pass. The person there is tasked with enticing you to a presentation by offering cash, credits, or discounted tickets. Just say no, in no uncertain terms and they should leave you alone. The worst thing to do is to leave them with any impression that you might change your mind. BTW - no need to be rude, and they will offer plenty of legitimate discounts and travel information - it is a real activities desk after all. It doesn't take much to get the hang of it; just remember, their objective is to get to say yes, and your objective is to make it clear that the answer is no in no uncertain terms.

If you are particularly late or early arriving, you will skip the activities desk person. In that case, they will probably call your room a couple of times with an offer for a free breakfast; they might call even if they got a no at the desk. Many people unplug the phone, but be aware that the resort also distributes information via voicemail regularly as well (like pool closures, or activity/show times). So if you unplug, I would still plug in once a day to check messages. If they get you on the phone, same thing applies as above, our vacation time is fully booked, and we will NOT be attending a presentation.

We timeshare all over, and this is pretty much standard at all resorts. A firm no takes 5 minutes, and Sheraton is pretty good at taking no as an answer. They don't want to damage their brand. For the value you get, it's a pretty small inconvenience.

We actually had a great interaction with the "sales pumper" guy at Sheraton Broadway Plantation (Myrtle Beach) a few years ago. He was an absolute blast, gave us an excellent recipe for Blenheim's and Vodka with lime, a couple of excellent restaurant recommendations with coupons, but we still didn't cave to the presentation, and he took the no with grace and cheer.
 


By timeshare, I suspect you mean the timeshare sales pitch? Easy peasy UNLESS you booked an ultra-low rate that requires the presentation. Most timeshare resorts offer very low rate vacations that require attending a presentation, and if you don't attend, they charge you full rack rate for your accommodation. So let's assume it's NOT one of those deals, as it's probably only about 10% of bookings.

In general, Vistana is a pretty soft sell, but you need to know what to watch out for. Depending on when you arrive, you will usually be sent to the activities desk to get your parking pass. The person there is tasked with enticing you to a presentation by offering cash, credits, or discounted tickets. Just say no, in no uncertain terms and they should leave you alone. The worst thing to do is to leave them with any impression that you might change your mind. BTW - no need to be rude, and they will offer plenty of legitimate discounts and travel information - it is a real activities desk after all. It doesn't take much to get the hang of it; just remember, their objective is to get to say yes, and your objective is to make it clear that the answer is no in no uncertain terms.

If you are particularly late or early arriving, you will skip the activities desk person. In that case, they will probably call your room a couple of times with an offer for a free breakfast; they might call even if they got a no at the desk. Many people unplug the phone, but be aware that the resort also distributes information via voicemail regularly as well (like pool closures, or activity/show times). So if you unplug, I would still plug in once a day to check messages. If they get you on the phone, same thing applies as above, our vacation time is fully booked, and we will NOT be attending a presentation.

We timeshare all over, and this is pretty much standard at all resorts. A firm no takes 5 minutes, and Sheraton is pretty good at taking no as an answer. They don't want to damage their brand. For the value you get, it's a pretty small inconvenience.

We actually had a great interaction with the "sales pumper" guy at Sheraton Broadway Plantation (Myrtle Beach) a few years ago. He was an absolute blast, gave us an excellent recipe for Blenheim's and Vodka with lime, a couple of excellent restaurant recommendations with coupons, but we still didn't cave to the presentation, and he took the no with grace and cheer.

Hi, Thanks for your reply. I am really appreciate for all the information you give to me! If I don’t see your post, I will certainly waste a lot of time struggling to say “no”. This is the first time I book a timeshare resort.

We are going there next week, the rate we got was around 180-200 per night. Is this a very low rate? I don’t remember there is any words said on my reservation that I have to attend a representation. And we will arrive after 7pm. Maybe we can skip the parking desk directly?
 
The Mousesavers Newsletter is promoting some Vistana savings. They are saying 40-50% off. Worth taking a look for those of you who aren't trading.
 
Hi, Thanks for your reply. I am really appreciate for all the information you give to me! If I don’t see your post, I will certainly waste a lot of time struggling to say “no”. This is the first time I book a timeshare resort.

We are going there next week, the rate we got was around 180-200 per night. Is this a very low rate? I don’t remember there is any words said on my reservation that I have to attend a representation. And we will arrive after 7pm. Maybe we can skip the parking desk directly?
That is a normal rate for Vistana; certainly would not require a timeshare presentation. When it gets down around $100 a night you need to be careful of the terms. Again, don't worry about the presentation, just say no.
 
The Mousesavers Newsletter is promoting some Vistana savings. They are saying 40-50% off. Worth taking a look for those of you who aren't trading.

Just wanted to say thanks to you, @damo , for that great lead. I had been looking for a good rate on the additional night that we needed for our October/November stay (to add on to our ownership week which was already reserved), and this was easily the best price I have been able to find. Pretty much every other source had a final rate, with tax, of $200 (and +++) on a two bedroom villa. That mousesavers rate came in at $163 all-in ($145 plus taxes).

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Quick question...we are staying here in December. Doing one day in Universal and one day in Magic kingdom. Are we better off getting tickets and park or at the activity desk at resort? Thanks!
 
Quick question...we are staying here in December. Doing one day in Universal and one day in Magic kingdom. Are we better off getting tickets and park or at the activity desk at resort? Thanks!
Disney tickets are generally the same price at the activities desk as they are direct from Disney. They are only discounted if you attend a timeshare presentation, and you DON'T want to do that. Getting them at the activities desk the day before will save you some time at the park though and get you into the park faster. If you are only doing one day at each park, that could be worthwhile.

Universal often offers deals for online advance ticket purchases, so you might want to look at ordering those in advance if you see a deal come up.
 
Just wondering if anyone has stayed here through sky auction recently? If so, how did the process of booking and checking in go for you? And any information, if you have it.

We stayed at SVR in May and hubby and i are looking at a last minute getaway. I'm checking the getaways through interval but the sky auction 1 bedroom units seem to be a little cheaper.
 
Just wondering if anyone has stayed here through sky auction recently? If so, how did the process of booking and checking in go for you? And any information, if you have it.

We stayed at SVR in May and hubby and i are looking at a last minute getaway. I'm checking the getaways through interval but the sky auction 1 bedroom units seem to be a little cheaper.
There have been some posts here in the past from people using Sky Auction.

Seems to work well, but maybe someone will chime in with personal experience. I think regular contributor @Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina may have used them once. The villas they are offering are usually the II unused weeks, so I'm not surprised the pricing is similar. I would check carefully for the terms and conditions on Sky Auction. There are usually additional fees associated and premiums over bid price for certain weeks, so it may add up to more than you think. The fees are usually well disclosed in the auction, except that you do have to read the fine print carefully to find them.
 
There have been some posts here in the past from people using Sky Auction.

Seems to work well, but maybe someone will chime in with personal experience. I think regular contributor @Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina may have used them once. The villas they are offering are usually the II unused weeks, so I'm not surprised the pricing is similar. I would check carefully for the terms and conditions on Sky Auction. There are usually additional fees associated and premiums over bid price for certain weeks, so it may add up to more than you think. The fees are usually well disclosed in the auction, except that you do have to read the fine print carefully to find them.

Thanks for the reply!
I'm not sure what this means? .... "The villas they are offering are usually the II unused weeks, so I'm not surprised the pricing is similar."

The listing title is "Sheraton Vistana Resort in Orlando, Florida near Disney - September 2018 - Buy a 7 Night Stay in a 1 Bedroom Suite! Taxes & Service Charges Included" Under notes: Note: Spend the weekend or stay the week, the suite is yours for 7 nights. Also, there is no presentation to attend, so all your vacation time is yours to enjoy.
There is an auction also, it starts at about $20 less than the buy it now price I see with the above listing.

The listing has check in dates starting on Fridays in September. We're flexible with our check in dates so that's fine. The last getaway I priced through interval was way more! They had a recent sale for $60 off, but it didn't come close to the sky auction price. Even the Mystic Dunes listing on interval was almost $200 more than sky auction. I'm genuinely perplexed!
 
Quick question...we are staying here in December. Doing one day in Universal and one day in Magic kingdom. Are we better off getting tickets and park or at the activity desk at resort? Thanks!


We just stayed there last week and used SkyAuction for the first time. NO problems or issues!
 
Just wondering if anyone has stayed here through sky auction recently? If so, how did the process of booking and checking in go for you? And any information, if you have it.

We stayed at SVR in May and hubby and i are looking at a last minute getaway. I'm checking the getaways through interval but the sky auction 1 bedroom units seem to be a little cheaper.

We've used Skyauction for SVR several times, the most recent being my son's stay in September 2017 where he picked up a two bedroom villa for $321 including all fees. He received a beautiful, clean villa in Fountains (the section where DH & I own in, and pay $965 per unit for our yearly maintenance fees.....so DS's cost for a week was literally 1/3 of ours!!). I booked SVR for one of my bosses via Skyauction a couple of years ago, and his trip was seamless. When we booked a one bedroom there in 2015, we even received a one bedroom premium (with the full kitchen and screened balcony). Never any difference between our Skyauction stays and our ownership stays: same great service, same great villas. Same check-in experience as well. Just an awesomely low price.

I would use them again in a heartbeat.
 
Thanks for the reply!
I'm not sure what this means? .... "The villas they are offering are usually the II unused weeks, so I'm not surprised the pricing is similar."
Was just speaking to how SkyAuction gets their inventory of villas. A lot of it actually comes from Interval International unused deposits.

Think of it like clothing. At first, when it is all new you find it at Sak's 5th Ave - those are the best units available for exchange on II. But they don't all go, so the stock moves to Sak's Off 5th Outlet store - those are the II last minute vacations. But there is still some stock that won't move, so Sak's sells it off to TJ Maxx - that's kind of like SkyAuction.

This is a gross oversimplification, but I just mean that on SA you are getting aggregated leftovers from various merchants from another reputable discount merchant. SkyAuction is generally less expensive, but not necessarily a steal. They often won't have prime weeks available at all as these are sold or exchanged long before they can hit SA.

And again, read the fine print on the listing. They often put up a range of dates as II might give them a hundred or more units to move for the period over say August through October. But the August dates often will have a premium attached because it is still fairly busy, and Labor Day (if available at all) will have much higher premium over the base auction price. September may not have a premium at all and may sell at a good discount over owner cost, as crowds curtail pretty quickly at the parks after school returns, and that is prime hurricane season as well.
 
We just stayed there last week and used SkyAuction for the first time. NO problems or issues!
Awesome, thank you!

We've used Skyauction for SVR several times, the most recent being my son's stay in September 2017 where he picked up a two bedroom villa for $321 including all fees. He received a beautiful, clean villa in Fountains (the section where DH & I own in, and pay $965 per unit for our yearly maintenance fees.....so DS's cost for a week was literally 1/3 of ours!!). I booked SVR for one of my bosses via Skyauction a couple of years ago, and his trip was seamless. When we booked a one bedroom there in 2015, we even received a one bedroom premium (with the full kitchen and screened balcony). Never any difference between our Skyauction stays and our ownership stays: same great service, same great villas. Same check-in experience as well. Just an awesomely low price.

I would use them again in a heartbeat.
Thank you so much for the reply! I seriously was wondering what I was missing since the price was cheaper than booking through interval. Did you book "buy-it-now" offered or did you actually bid on the condo?

Was just speaking to how SkyAuction gets their inventory of villas. A lot of it actually comes from Interval International unused deposits.

Think of it like clothing. At first, when it is all new you find it at Sak's 5th Ave - those are the best units available for exchange on II. But they don't all go, so the stock moves to Sak's Off 5th Outlet store - those are the II last minute vacations. But there is still some stock that won't move, so Sak's sells it off to TJ Maxx - that's kind of like SkyAuction.

This is a gross oversimplification, but I just mean that on SA you are getting aggregated leftovers from various merchants from another reputable discount merchant. SkyAuction is generally less expensive, but not necessarily a steal. They often won't have prime weeks available at all as these are sold or exchanged long before they can hit SA.

And again, read the fine print on the listing. They often put up a range of dates as II might give them a hundred or more units to move for the period over say August through October. But the August dates often will have a premium attached because it is still fairly busy, and Labor Day (if available at all) will have much higher premium over the base auction price. September may not have a premium at all and may sell at a good discount over owner cost, as crowds curtail pretty quickly at the parks after school returns, and that is prime hurricane season as well.

Makes sense, thank you! I do see on the lot of the listings for various resorts that they do on certain weeks. The week that we are looking at in September does not have any extra charges.
 

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