Marriott Vacation Club Reviews

Worst decision we ever made was to buy Marriott Vacation Club! Run and never look back!!!!

They are absolute snakes. They lie to get you to buy something. Don’t sign anything on the spot, take it away and read it and you will see it is all lies. Avoid at all costs - especially the ones in Spain

We are leaving this review to let potential customers of the Marriott Vacation Club know just what kind of company you would be dealing with. We were deceived into purchasing extra "points" and lied to when questioning that deceit at our next face to face opportunity. We have been given a run around for the last two years, attempting to either sell back or even walk away (despite investing thousands of dollars). We have written letters, emails, and communicated with representatives all with the goal of ridding ourselves of this product, which was purchased under false pretense, and dissolving our business connection. We have been led to various departments, with evidently no one in any of those departments at Marriott Vacation Club knowing exactly what to do for us, and all we are asking to do is sign it back over completely, knowing we are losing money. We are frustrated and disappointed with the treatment that we have received, as well as the never-ending circle of referrals we have been given. We have had enough of Marriott Vacation Club, and this is a PRIME EXAMPLE of why.

I also wish I could give less than 1 star review. They take hundreds of thousands of your dollars - and then the availability of actually being able to USE your points is close to non-existent. Marriot will rent the rooms for cash to you - because they have plenty of availability of rooms. But when you try to use actual points - there is very, very little availability. RUN, do not walk, away from buying any Marriott Vacation Club points. They are terrible.

My experience with Marriott Vacation Club (MVC) in Orlando, FL, has greatly disappointed me. The sales pitch I attended was, I found out years later, filled with false promises and a lack of transparency that has left me feeling scammed. I was led to believe that MVC ownership was a wise investment backed by the Marriott brand. However, over time I realized that this so-called investment had no value. The sales executive, Dawn VonGraff, omitted crucial details, such as the fact that the MVC points expire unless actively managed EARLY in the year. I almost lost $10K due to this hidden expiration policy. It took me 2 years of accumulating mortgage points to be able to go on a single cruise, highlighting the lack of value in my supposed investment. When I sought to alleviate the financial burden by selling my MVC ownership, I had to retire 2 years early to care for ailing, aged parents after my wife’s death; I discovered that Marriott was no longer buying back mortgages, despite their sales-pitch assurances I was investing in the future. I thought, okay, I’ll sell it to someone else. Instead, I found the market was flooded with MVC properties selling for next to nothing, reinforcing my sense of being scammed. There is literally NO VALUE to my investment. The ever-escalating maintenance fees and my newly understood potential for burdening my children with this financial obligation in the event of my death were never disclosed during the sales presentation. These undisclosed costs and risks and the need for more financial transparency during the sales pitch made it clear that MVC knowingly operates deceptively. I have been a Marriott champion for decades and have never felt so betrayed by a brand. In my experience, MVC is no more than a glorified PONZI SCHEME. The promises of a worthwhile investment and luxurious vacations are merely illusions. You can do FAR better online shopping for travel and cruise deals. Learn from my costly mistake, and don’t buy into the hoopla.

Can I give -1 star? They are the worst. I woke up with bites when I checked the bed I found a bed bug 😩. When I called the front desk they took forever to send someone up. They did change my room…I went from ocean view to overlooking 2 cranes digging on a lower floor. So I got down graded.

Want to give them zero star. One star is too much. Paid cash for 4 platinum weeks. I call every Monday on the day of releasing weeks to book my weeks in my resort in Marbella. No availability for 4 weeks. Very frustrating. I am an owner for 10 years. I am sure weeks were over sold. DONT EVER BUY WERKS OR POINTS. JUST STAY AWAY FROM THESE THIEVES

Marriott, oh Marriott, where do I start? Let’s see, your sales staff told us we’d have a “personal assistant” to help book and schedule trips, yet they’re never available and they ignore our calls/texts. Aside from that, we’ve tried booking on our own and there’s never anything available. We were also pitched, that we’d have free car rental, and a $75 Resort Voucher, but when we tried to utilize this benefit, we were told it was one or the other and not both (so many lies to keep track of). The salespeople also told us that we’d be able to use this for rental income to help offset costs, and it wouldn’t be an issue doing this because Marriott partners with AirBnB. All around this was the worst experience of my life, and I wish we’d never formed this relationship with Marriott. This is like making a deal with the devil. Keep your soul, do not let Marriott take it.

Apparently you have a language problem when trying to speak with people in Cancun Mexico

Don’t waste your hard earned money by purchasing a Marriott timeshare. The sales people will make false promises to get your money. We bought into the points system ten years ago & were finding that we were unable to book barely any of the resorts 13 months out. We went to a presentation in April 2023 & were told that we were unable to find any availability for bookings because we were at the executive level. Keep in mind that we had 7500 points at that time. We were told that if we bought more points then there would be more inventory available to us. The representative said, “You have to pay more to get more. That’s how the world works.” We went ahead & bought more points for a total of 11,500 points which moved us to the presidential level. After signing the contract, we knew that we only had ten days to cancel. So we logged onto the MVC site and were still finding that we were unable to book anything. Our representative said this was because we were in a reconciliation period and to trust him that everything would be okay. Of course, this supposed reconciliation period lasted way past the cancellation period. It is now about three months after our purchase and we are still in the same situation despite spending thousands of dollars later. For example, I went on the site at the 13 month mark & plugged in 26 resorts for May 2024 and only 2 were available and those were two of their least desirable properties. I did this for June 2024 & July 2024 & had the same results. Contacted our representative, who said this shouldn’t be happening & he’ll look into it. No calls back despite us reaching out to him multiple times. Upon further research we found out that week owners get first priority & points owners do not. When you include maintenance fees & money we put in, we could stay at a 5 star resort every year until I die. Save your money & don’t fall prey to this scam.

Marriotts process is very unclear and will leave you with an unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach. We were pitched all these great things to do, benefits, and outlined what being an owner looks like. It wasn’t until after signing the contract, and doing some research on our own, that we’ve found every benefit they claimed came with ownership to be false. We were told our maintenance fees were fixed and would not increase. Yet they’ve gone up about 5% every year, which is an absurd amount for something you can’t ever use. We were told it’d be a QUICK meeting yet were there for over 3 hours. We declined their offers numerous times, but they would not let us leave until we signed. The signing was only 30 minutes long if that. That’s how badly they pressure you, and once they know you’re going to sign, they want you out of there as quickly as possible. I would NOT recommend Marriott to anyone!

Marriott Vacation Club has to be the worst scam ever. How they are allowed to get away with their deception is beyond belief. Buying into their vacation club for thousands of dollars buys you absolutely nothing. That so called ownership is worthless. The amount that is spent every year on maintenance fees, you can go on a nicer vacation. The things they withheld from telling you while signing the contract under extremely high sales tactics is as sleazy as it comes. Not only that, but the clubs are not pet friendly. They even frown from allowing Service pets, but do it because its the law. They do not allow Emotional support animals. Shows you how much they care about you as a person. Marriott should be sued and closed down for good.

I cannot believe Marriott, a company with such a big, trusted name, turned out to be such a big scam! We are in utter disbelief that they’d take advantage of us in such a dishonest manner! We still have about $72,800 left to pay and this is after already paying them more than $55,000. With all the money spent and all the money still owed, we are relegated to taking vacations off-season and to low-demand destinations. Our last upgrade, we complained about the cost versus the benefit and the salespeople promised with this upgrade, we will be able to access high demand locations year-round and it will qualify us for their rental program. This is the only reason we upgraded, and we still haven’t had a quality vacation and you guessed it, NO RENTAL INCOME.

Marriott is NO LONGER A TRUSTED NAME! We’re both retired, and on a fixed income. They sold us a timeshare and said it was a real estate investment, but when you own a property, you can refinance it, and build equity over time. We found out that was impossible with Marriott Vacation Club. In just under 2 years of being ‘owners’ we’ve only been able to use our timeshare 1 time! Our contract is 92 PAGES LONG, and it took less than 1 hour to go through it! Their Loan Officer wouldn’t ever give us a straight answer, it’s ALWAYS VAGUE, but that’s how they hook you into a perpetual contract. I cannot believe how corrupt Marriott is for targeting the elderly! I WOULD NOT WASTE YOUR TIME, DON’T EVEN ENTERTAIN THE IDEA OF GOING TO ONE OF THEIR MEETINGS! I PROMISE YOU WILL REGRET IT!

I had a bad experience as a Marriott timeshare owner. The salespeople were dishonest and didn't tell me about all the fees. They pressured me to “invest” in a program that wasn't fruitful and I regret signing up for it. Salespeople promised to transfer my father's week for free if I attended a presentation, but it was a high-pressure sales pitch. I tried to cancel my contract, but the staff tried to convince me otherwise and offered another program that also turned out to be useless. The points have very little value, and I could never find any availability. I prefer staying at Airbnb's during my vacations these days since they are more reliable, pleasant, and affordable. If you are thinking of investing in a Marriott timeshare, be cautious and do your research. Make sure you understand all the fees and the legal rescission period. Don't let the sales personnel pressure you into making a decision you might regret later!

we are Chairmans Club level (highest level) and have recently become very unhappy. Reservations are impossible to get, even calling 13 months in advance at 9am, exact time they release room.

Worst investment of our lives. We spent over $25,000 for points that we could not use. You should not have to spend significantly more money for more points (another $10,000-15,000 so you have the ability to book a trip when and where you would like. Also, I had to make muliple calls to receive rental car vouchers. Nothing is ever done correctly and you can expect long hold times and several angry phone calls to get something you paid for. The company does not do as promised and it is a huge scam. We actually sold our points to a reputable buyer and Marriott exercised their right to buy the properties back. Once again I am getting a complete runaround regarding the disbursement of funds that are not even 25% of what we paid. I received an email stating funds would be disbursed 7-10 days after May 10th. It is June 5th and nothing. Nobody answers the phone and when they did I was told that the settlement department does not have a phone and it was not possible to speak with a manager directly. When I asked to receive a call back, it never happened. Please don’t invest your hard-earned money for this scam. I promise you that you will regret it!! Oh, plus you have almost $2,000 In annual maintenance fees for properties you can not access. That is the price of a vacation. If this review prevents one person from making the mistake we did, it was worth it. I would not want anyone I cared for to invest in this scam so feel free to notify anyone that attends a sales pitch about this review. They make it sound so wonderful and their script is very convincing. Also, I did contact Marriott resale when we were not happy about our purchase to sell our points back. I was told that they do not do that. Well they do buy them back if you are trying to sell the properties for a fraction of the price on the open market. They are happy to exercise their right of first refusal and they probably resell the points for four to five times the amount you are basically dumping them for. Put it this way, they just keep selling points to people who do not have the ability to use them. Can you sell a house to three different families but only two of them can live in it? That’s what’s going on here!!

I just started looking at some of the reviews. Everyone's experience is different. I noticed some folks saying they could not reserve stays on web-site. Not sure what their issue is, but I have been able to schedule many stays in Maui, Oahu, The Big Island, Colorado for skiiing, Utah, Ritz Carlton, etc... To get the most out of MVC I think you would want to be Presidential or above. All the folks I have dealt with have been helpful and polite. Yes, you have to pay maintenance fees and they probably will go up because of inflation and appraisal values. If you own a house it probably has been appraised for a higher value, thus increasing your taxes and insurance. If your property is part of a Home owners association, you have probably seen the prices go up. That is similar to MVC in some respects and not a surprise to me. The key is do you think it is worth it for you and to take into consideration the cost and recurring costs of maintenance fees versus the value you receive. For me it is worth it, but this was not a financial investment, it was a decision to have a variety of very nice vacation opportunities, more Bonvoy points, higher Bonvoy status, and the maintenance fees make me take vacation every year :) to ensure I get value out of it. With Covid they extended my time to use points and have been able to use all my points. Trading MVC points for bonvoy points is not a great valuie. Either is using MVC points for cruises, but they are options to use your points veruse let them expire. The best value is to use your points for MVC resort stays, which includle many options (Marriot, Ritz, Sheraton, Westin, ...). I wish everyone safe and enjoyable vacations!

Marriott Vacation Club timeshare banking system is horrible. I tried to bank my 2023 week in May 2023. I was told that it is too late for me to do it and my week is lost. That means I paid for about $1850 and getting nothing back from them. They tried every single way to rob the consumers. Beware of the Marriott Vacation Club timeshare!!

Unfortunately, I have mixed emotions when it comes to Marriott. I have been a member of status with Marriott and now Bonvoy for years and through that system have been treated well. One day out of the blue Marriott vacation club calls me and tells me about a promotion for $199. I can go to many club locations with the caveat that once I get there I sit thru their 90 min promotional presentation. Additionally, many of the locations did not have additional costs while some there were additional costs if I wanted to upgrade my room. When it came time to book our vacation my partner and I called and spoke with Jessica and she verified the information I was given at the time of the original sale, (such as no additional cost to locations like Cabo, Aruba, Cancun etc.. Except in the case of upgrade to a nicer room. Also there were additional costs to Hawaii for a regular room and at some locations.. I took copious notes and could easily run down the cost but in this forum I'd rather save the type to share in the poor experience. Back to Jessica, she was very pleasant and provided lots of information, so much so, that we felt we would sleep on it an book the next day... TODAY... On this day, Yancy answered the phone and contrary to what was described to me at the time of purchase and less than 24hrs earlier (yesterday) there were now charges at every location at minimum of $200 additional. When I complained that they were changing the agreement that was discussed at the time of purchase they basically said too bad! your money is not refundable, what are you going to do? I was appalled! I demanded my money back or for them to make ammends. I still battle with them at this very moment.. but after reading all these reviews maybe its a good idea to not purchase here anyway!