Orlando Time Share Advice and Warnings

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Orlando Time Share Overview

Orlando's white sand beaches, warm winter weather and year-round sunshine attract millions of visitors each year who come to enjoy the best of Florida, from its beautiful natural features to modern attractions like Walt Disney World. But Florida's attractive attributes make it a haven for time share marketers and other gimmicks that can rob the unsuspecting visitor of precious vacation time, and possibly even hard-earned money.

Florida has 28% of the time share market in the U.S. Time shares allow many people to have access to second homes or vacation destinations such as condos, cabins, luxury houses, and boats, and time share promoters are persistent in signing new clients. To advertise their properties, time share agents often offer incentives like free mini-vacations, discounted show and attraction tickets or lodging vouches, in exchange for visitors' attendance at a presentation.

What to Watch for in Orlando Time Share Scams

One type of time share representative called an OPC, or off-premises contact, seeks tourists at various destination locales in order to find new clients. OPCs may be in hotel lobbies, in kiosks at restaurants or shopping areas, at tourist information centers or even on beaches or street corners. They may offer a gift if the person comes to a marketing session to learn about the time share.

Although time share agents usually do provide the entertainment or lodging vouchers they promise, there are drawbacks to essentially turning over a portion of your vacation and time to a real estate company looking for new clients. First of all, at the marketing presentations, often lasting hours at a time, representatives present enticing "too-good-to-be-true" details about their offers.

Promotion attendees often feel uncomfortable in such a high-pressure setting, not to mention the time they must invest to attend, cutting back on their actual vacation time. Furthermore, once the promotion session has ended and that time is gone, the promised tickets or vouchers often cause more complications and hassle for travelers. The vouchers often come with certain limitations or may be difficult to exchange for actual tickets, which only wastes more time.