Totally Awesome Vacations I Have Taken Because of Timeshare

I have a cool strategy to share with you about how we have traveled to some really nice destinations around the world, stayed in luxury digs and did it all on a budget. If you've never heard the term timeshare exchange, don't worry. I will explain. I am not trying to sell you a timeshare. I just want to tell you what we did. I hope this is helpful for you and your family to enjoy great vacations together.

My family enjoys really nice vacations. We work (and study) hard all year and we like to let loose and really enjoy our time together. We have created some really great memories as a result. You've probably noticed how the price of vacations continue to climb especially when you have the whole family going. I totally understand it. So this is directed at you. I have found a way to stay within our budget and not skimp on the quality.

Here's how we do it: We own a timeshare in Hawaii. It's beautiful. It's everything you want in a vacation. Although we love it there, we don't want to go there every single year. So what we did was trade our week at that resort with someone that owns another week at another resort. That's called an exchange. We found other owners (on the internet or through friends) at resorts that we wanted to vacation at.

Actually what sounds complicated is quite simple. We just ask them if they want to "trade" or "exchange" their week for our week. The cost is free. And there are no taxes or extra fees added on top.

We made sure to always check out the resorts first to make sure they were of high quality. We look for villas that have all the nice amenities included like large pools, in-room jacuzzi tubs and full kitchens. Maybe you have stayed in hotel rooms with amenities like that. I have seen those rooms and they are called the Presidential Suite and over a thousand dollars per night. That's slightly out of our budget. Hotel rooms are at least $150 per night and then you have all those fees, taxes etc added on top and you are coming up on $1,500 - $2,000 per week.

Eating out every meal gets expensive not to mention tedious. So once we check-in to the resort we head out to the local market and buy groceries to stock our in-unit fridge (not the mini ones you get in a hotel; a real fridge). We figure we will eat breakfast in the unit most of the time since we prefer having a healthy breakfast in our kitchen over having to rush around in the morning to the fast food drive-thru. That allowed us to eat better, have more time and save money. We would choose a couple of the nights to prepare dinner in our kitchen with local fresh food. This was always fun. Somehow cooking in this new kitchen seemed like more fun than our own. We also whipped up a batch or two of frozen margaritas to enjoy while watching the sunset from our balconies overlooking the beach or mountains (when was the last time you did that at a hotel - no way). And if you are fortunate enough to be in a "wine area" that is a perfectly suitable substitute.

We find that going to attractions all day can be a lot of work and at night we just want to unwind. And some space is really helpful. The kids get their own space and we get the jacuzzi and a bottle of wine. We get all of this with timeshare.

One of the things I always appreciated was the knowledge we received from the timeshare owner about the destination we were going to. And it was always so good and accurate; like knowing a local when you travel. Where to go; what to do; where to eat; where the discounts were; all great. And that always saved us money and lots of time on vacation. They certainly know the area, they're the experts. They own there. You've probably heard of timeshare exchange clubs like RCI and Interval International. We have too. That's what most timeshare owners get signed up for right off the bat when they buy. If you are familiar with that system, then you will appreciate this even more. We essentially automated the exchange process and made it faster and easier. And we made it fun.

In closing, whether it was the whole family or just the 2 of you, timeshares can bring you luxury vacations all over the world. It cost us less than staying in a hotel room and helped us save money many other ways. And with the extra money we saved, we had more money for fun, food, and exploring.


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