Festiva

We do not recommend Festiva Resorts to anyone. Originally, we had been owners of another timeshare that we had a designated week every year.

When it was purchased by Festiva, it was converted to a points system. This is when all our problems began. It is impossible to book partial weeks, much less entire weeks, using our points. Of course, they told us we did not have enough points to do the things we wanted.

They force you into required members meetings which were just more high-pressure sales presentations that last hours! All they want is for you to spend more money for upgrades you dont need. You almost feel like a hostage at these meetings that drag on all day long! They promise you gift cards at these meetings, which we have never received.

Theyve misrepresented almost every aspect of our timeshare contract and now our children are worried because they will be obligated to take over the ownership. They told us we could go travel anywhere at anytime in the Festiva organization. Absolutely not true! They will say things like You can use your points to purchase products such as computers and iPads or You can save up your points and cash them in for a family trip to Disney World we have learned that these are all lies!

They even told us our timeshare was an investment and we could make money. Just plain dishonest!

My wife and I were manipulated byFestiva salespeople to upgrade our timeshare with them,over and over,to get to somemagical owner-level,where we would finally have access to services and properties we were promised years before.We were tricked out of thousands of dollars and lied to aboutlowmaintenance fees that have gone from $950 to over$2800!Not to mention more fees to do with everything reserving properties.Selling a long term vacation contract to a70+year old is a scam at best.But they have a great plan just for you!And dont worry,if you invest enough,they offer you a death clause,for another exorbitant fee,about $7000 extra.Weve thrown away so much money paying tobank points,we couldnt use,and lost thousands of points ,STILL ,paying maintenance fees on them!Lack of availability,selling us vacations we would never be able to use and a financial burden that will long outlive us.Our retirement vacation dreams have been a nightmare with Festiva.

We were called by Festiva and offered a 3-night stay at their resort in Branson if we attended a sales presentation, and we thought it was a great deal. We could not have been more wrong!

To begin with, we were not even given rooms at the actual resort, instead we were placed at a 2-star hotel down the street. At the presentation, we continually told the representa- tives that we were not interested in making a purchase, yet that did not stop them from continuing to pressure us for another 5 hours with better and better deals until we finally gave in. We were told that their resorts were exclusive for owners and that we were buying a piece of real estate that would be an ongoing investment for us.

We soon learned that these are NOT exclusive, booking is impossible, and the rates for the public are much more reasonable! We got completely ripped off by Festiva and they should be shut down!

I am submitting the following letter for the Board of Directors meeting on October 1, 2020:

TO: Festiva Board of Directors

DATE: September 26, 2020

We have been owners since 1990. First through Peppertree, then Fairfield, then Wyndham, then Equivest and now Festiva. I've written to this Board before with no acknowledgment, so well see what happens this time.

We switched from the fixed-week plan to the points plan when the company was sold to Equivest. We thought this would allow us the flexibility to take vacation time at our convenience and not when it was dictated by our fixed plan. We even bought additional points to be sure that as we grew older and into retirement, we could enjoy our leisure time when we wanted, whether it meant taking a three-day weekend, five days or a full week. This worked well under Equivest. We encountered no problems with Equivest. Not one problem.

When Festiva bought Equivest, the sales pitch was that this was supposed to be a better company - no booking fees, additional properties under the Festiva umbrella, ease of online reservations, etc. The biggest complaint we have and other members have is the difficulty of making reservations because of lack of availability. Bit by bit, you've sold off units to other travel and resort agencies, giving the OWNERS limited access to Festiva Resorts. I've lost count of the number of times I've called, 45 days out as required for a 3 or 4 day stay, only to be told there's no availability. And when we complain, we're told that Festiva doesn't own all of the units (which we already knew). What I do NOT appreciate is being told that if it wasn't for the other companies owning units with all the money they invest, the maintenance on the properties would go to pot. We personally pay over $1,600 each year in maintenance fees, but yet you actually try to make owners feel GRATEFUL that so many other companies are invested in your properties now. What about those of us who helped build all those units with our maintenance fees from 20 years ago? And I really resent being told, "Your best bet would be to book a full week at the beginning of the year." If I wanted to take a full week, I would have kept the fixed week we had to start with. There is a REASON we switched to the points system, so we would not have to be gone a full week at a time. We own a farm, and it is not often possible to be gone for a full seven days.

Earlier this month, we paid a Special Assessment as a result of the hurricane damage to the Atlantic Beach resort in addition to the maintenance fee. This resort was actually condemned a few years ago and several of the buildings were demolished. The remaining buildings required extensive repair work. We finally got a reservation and stayed there last week since the reopening. Let me say this complaint has nothing to do with the local staff at Atlantic Beach. They are doing the best they can to accommodate everyone with what little they have to work with. I do not know what Festiva did with the money you received as a result of the Special Assessment from all of your members, but here are the issues I found after one week in Unit 33-B:

- Immediately upon getting off of the elevator last Saturday, a racoon was sitting on the grass next to it. In case you're not aware, Animal Control in Carteret County has captured and destroyed several rabid racoons this summer. I know this because I retired from local government and I know the Animal Control Director personally. I immediately reported this to the office and asked to be moved from the first-floor unit to a higher floor, which was useless, because, of course, "there was nothing available". I saw another or the same racoon again on Thursday. So we were not able to sit outside on our first floor unit the entire week. I'll tell you now, had I been bitten, I would have sued Festiva for every possible dime.

You've obviously pared down housekeeping items in each unit to save money:

oWe had a broom, but no dustpan.

o No iron or ironing board (there are those of us who do not like wrinkled clothing).

o No longer have baking pans for pizza, cookies, etc.

oYou FINALLY removed those obnoxious hot tubs and replaced them with showers large enough to fit the exact footprint of the hot tub, but even though the majority of owners are in their 50s, 60s and 70s, you did not both to put even ONE handicapped bar inside the shower. Not one.

o There was no toilet brush to clean the toilet. Perhaps in your homes, you don't clean your toilets more than once a week. I do. Or would have.

o There is absolutely no counter space in the renovated one-bedroom units. NONE. The rim of the bathroom sink is 2 inches all around with the exception of the back of the sink where the faucets are located. There is enough room for toothbrushes and toothpaste. No other toiletries. The bathroom renovation was POORLY EXECUTED. So, I rationalized I can do my hair and/or makeup in the bedroom, but alas, there is NO MIRROR in the bedroom.

o There is no longer a chair in the bedroom.

o There is no longer a vacuum cleaner in the unit for the area rugs in the bedroom or living area, so if we track in sand, we just have to sweep it up. But wait! There's no dustpan! So we just live with it for a week.

o There are no bar stools at the kitchen counter, and the nice dining table and chairs have been replaced with the cheapest furnishing you could buy. Metal chairs with rubber seats.

o The elevator and lobby to Building 32-33 were absolutely filthy. I don't think those floors have been mopped this year.

So please explain to me exactly what this Special Assessment was supposed to cover, in addition to the annual maintenance fee?

As owners, we are acutely aware that you make more money from your outside rentals than you do from your owners. Which is why your current complaints have gone from 84 in 2013 to 252 in 2019. And these are only the recorded complaints online with Pissed Consumer. This does not include complaints filed with every Office of the Attorney General in every state in which Festiva is located, or individual owners who are using private realtors to dispose of their units, often for less than half the price they paid.

Get your act together, Festiva. You already have class action lawsuits filed against you on state levels. I imaging the federal level is next. Your members are thoroughly disgusted with the mismanagement of Festiva properties and your feeble attempt to keep your owners satisfied. I certainly am.

Mrs. Jerilyn Lee