Free Disney or Universal tickets? They'll cost you a lot more than you'd think

February 16, 9:02 PMOrlando Theme Parks ExaminerBarbara Nefer

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You've just finished breakfast at one of the chain restaurants on the 192 tourist strip or on International Drive. You pause at the Information counter near the door to grab Disney or Universal maps, and the friendly person behind the counter begins to chat you up. Which theme parks are you visiting? How long are you staying? Are you traveling with your whole family? Seems like friendly conversation, and then suddenly they dive in with a dazzling offer. How about some free Disney World tickets? Or maybe a complimentary pass to Universal Studio, with restaurant certificates thrown in to boot? Or perhaps a day at SeaWorld, with admission to Wet and Wild or Aquatica thrown in to sweeten the deal? It won't cost you a penny...unless you value your time, that is. You've just been wooed by a timeshare tour recruiter, and those freebies can be expensive in terms of hour and high pressure sales tactics.

Orlando is the Land of the Timeshare. There are plenty of reputable firms and big names, like Marriott and Wyndham, but there are some questionable outfits too. Some have desks inside stores and restaurants, while others are free-standing booths set off with huge "Free Disney Tickets!" signs. For all of them, the idea is to woo you in with free goodies, then take advantage of your excitement at being on vacation to entice you to buy in to their timeshares. They tell you they're selling guaranteed vacations, locked in for years to come at today's prices. To sweeten the deal, they'll talk up the fact that you can exchange your Orlando points for trips to Hawaii, Cancun, and other exotic locations.

Sounds good, right? Your brain is already reeling under the influence of the word "free" and the idea of those promised tickets. Now the idea of returning to sunny Florida year after year is making you seriously consider the offer. Don't let your excitement wipe out the old adage, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

Sure, timeshares lock in your future vacations at today's dollars...but what about a little thing called the "maintenance fee?" This is something you'll pay every year as your share of maintaining the timeshare property, and it is not locked in. It can pretty much shoot up indefinitely, offsetting the supposed savings.

Also, that point exchange might sound good, but it's far from guaranteed. You know all those destinations that sound so great to you? Guess what? Everyone else thinks they're great too, and you'll all be competing for a limited number of exchanges, especially for prime dates. Heading off to thrilling destinations is certainly a possibility, but it's not guaranteed.

That's not to say that timeshares are a bad thing. Many people love them. The bad thing is when you get suckered into a high-pressure sales pitch and end up paying too much for something you could have gotten much more cheaply on the secondary market. Timeshare salespeople are trained in slick tactics designed to wear you down by hanging onto you for a long time and having a comeback for every objection. Then they turn you over to a "manager" who goes in for the kill. At best, the "free" tickets will have cost you at least two or three hours of your time, and sometimes more, as well as a bout of high blood pressure. At worst, you'll walk away having spent tens of thousands of dollars, often financed at a premium rate.

If you want those free tickets, and you're convinced you can hold out and ward off the pressure, here are a few tips to help you make it through with minimal battering:

Beware of allowing the timeshare company to transport you to the site. When you don't have your own car, you don't have the freedom to leave when you want to. Before agreeing to take a tour, ask if you can bring your own vehicle. If you can't, be leery.

Beware of putting your children into the timeshare company's day care. It's much better to have them with you, as fidgety kids are a great incentive to get a long-winded salesperson to move things along.

Ask how much time the presentation will take, and when you meet your salesperson, set your watch alarm and say, "I agreed to ___ hours, and the clock starts right now. When the alarm goes off, I expect to get my free tickets." Then, hold the salesperson to that.

If you take part in the continental breakfast or lunch that the timeshare company offers, be aware that the time you spend eating won't count against the agreed-upon presentation time. If you agreed to two hours, and you spend half an hour on breakfast, you still have the two hours to go.

If you have no interest in buying, don't pretend that you do in order to be polite. Any tiny bit of encouragement will be like dripping blood into a shark tank.

Perhaps the best way to ward off an overly enthusiastic timeshare salesperson is to research prices on the secondary market. When you purchase new, you're paying for all the promotional costs as well as for the timeshare. There are always scores and scores of poor souls trying to unload their timeshare for much less than they paid. If you're really interested in buying, the secondard market is the way to go. When the salesperson, and perhaps the manager, are trying to hit you with offers that go progressively lower, whip out your secondary prices and ask, "Can you match this?" The answer will be no, and they'll probably try to get you out of there pretty quickly so other potential buyers don't overhear the highly discounted prices you can spout off.

What if you get overwhelmed and sign on the dotted line, then feel Buyers Remorse? The Florida Vacation Plan and Timesharing Act allows timeshare contracts to be cancelled within 10 days by notifying the seller in writing.

Sometimes you get approached by a timeshare company before you even leave home. They will send a postcard or call you up offering a dream vacation for a chickenfeed price. This may or may not be a good thing. One of the best firsthand reports I've ever read about taking a Florida timeshare vacation can be found by clicking here. As with the free tickets, you might get something of value, but it's not going to be free. You'll pay for it by loss of control over choosing your accommodations, as well as in giving up time for the presentation and enduring the high-pressure pitch. It might just be worth it to search out a bargain on your own that doesn't have any timeshare tie-in. Check out the special offers from Orange County's convention bureau by clicking here. You can read about more theme park savings by clicking here.

Next time someone starts chatting you up at an information booth or you see the "Free Disney Tickets" sign, ask yourself, "What will free really cost me?" before you get involved.

Want to learn some legitimate ways to get discounts? Click here for my article, complete with links to resources. For ongoing coverage of Orlando timeshares, visit the Orlando Timeshare Examiner's page by clicking here for some excellent insights from my colleague, Mark Silverman. You can see his perspective on this topic by clicking here, and you can view his home page by clicking here.