Experience shows that package holidays are not only cheaper and more convenient but they also offer greater short-term flexibility. Moreover, package holidaymakers have certain rights of redress should their holiday be spoilt by poor accommodation, significant delays or other mishaps.
If you decide to buy a timeshare accommodation you should ask the seller the following questions:
1. Don't sign up on the spot!
Ask the seller if you can take the contract and all the other documentation away with you to have a look at and then get back to him in a few days' time.If the sellers refuse, it means that they know that you will not sign the contract if you are left to think about it in peace. They want to exploit the mood of the moment to take you for a ride.
Don't be rushed into making a purchase of several thousand euro! Would you buy a new lounge suite without even comparing the price and quality of several different products?
2. Ask the seller if you have the right to withdraw from the contract without giving grounds within the first two weeks following signature of the contract, and ask him if he will you confirm this in writing.
A cooling-off period of at least 10 days applies to all timeshare contracts with a term of at least 3 years. When it comes to holiday clubs, some offer a cooling-off period.
Have nothing to do with any seller who does not abide by this legal obligation!
Note: Any seller is perfectly at liberty to grant his customers more than the statutory minimum level of protection, so insist on a "cooling-off period" of 14 days for all timeshare contracts, regardless of their duration.
3. What does it cost?
Customers pay a one-off amount in advance to "buy" each week, often several thousand euro, plus several hundred euro per year in additional charges.
4. Is there any additional charges?
Even if you do not want to use your week or are unable to do so because of illness, for example, you still have to continue to pay the extra charges. Although, at the outset, these charges for repairs, administration and so on appear negligible, sooner or later they become a real problem. Our experience is that, over the years, maintenance costs tend to rise, with no end in sight.
In any case, you have no way of effectively influencing how your money is being spent because, once you have paid the high entry price, you have played all your cards.
5.Transportation and board?
As timesharing is merely a form of accommodation, it is up to you to get to the resort and feed yourself while you are there. In high season, in particular, it can be very difficult or expensive to find a flight.
