What good value!

We didn't mean to book another holiday. We were just brwsing around the RCI website when we decided to go to Florida again next year.

And all of a sudden we found a resort to die for in Sarasota on Longboat Key in September 2010.

The second week soon clicked into place with a lovely resort on Marco Island.

A quick phone call to RCI Points and we're booked.

For 95000 points, we have 2 weeks of frontline accommodation. We are very choosy. Our unit must fully face the beach and those resorts are quite hard to find.

95000 is exactly the value of my week at Clowance. So for the annual maintenance fee of £515, we have 2 weeks of superb accommodation in Florida. The advertised prices for these 2 resorts are in excess of US$1000 per week which is approx. £700 per week.

What great value!

timetravellers

Dealing with those Touts!

There can be few people who can say that they haven't been caught by the scratchcard touts.

I don't know how they manage to guess our nationality although we have been asked if we are Scandinavian.

There is always a winning scratchcard and it is always a great surprise to the tout that you have won!

We are then persuaded to go with them to claim the fantastic prize which can range from a 'free' holiday or a bottle of alcohol or sometimes even cash.

We have tried lots of different things to avoid going to these presentations:-

I have denied that we are an item 'I only met him he other day'! The reply 'Just pretend you're a couple so I can earn my commission'!

The best thing to do is ask which resort they represent and then either say that you're staying there already or that you attended a presentation there a couple of days ago. Another good get out is to say that you own 4 weeks of timeshare already and don't need any more. ind out the names of a couple of timeshare resorts so that you are prepared.

If you decide that you would like the prize like we did (a bottle of whisky), then by all means go along. But the only one hour presentation will be more like 3 to 4 hours and, whatever you do, deny that you have your card and cash with you. I know an awful lot about timeshare and usually end up telling the sales person all about the Points system and how it works. Be prepared.

The concept of timeshare is brilliant but do plenty of research back home before deciding to buy. You will find a much better deal buying from a reputable resale Company back home.

timetraveller