Today only at 1:00 pm EST, you can buy a 5-night stay at select Diamond Resorts from Daily Getaways.
But I will NOT try to get today’s Getaway. I’ll explain what to look out for!
From May 19, 2014 to June 20, 2014, a new travel deal will be available every weekday at 1:00 pm EST. But you have to be quick to get in on the deals, because they usually sell out very fast!
Daily Getaways is a promotion sponsored by the US Travel Association and American Express. You can buy discounted hotel and car rental points, and get cheap tickets to theme parks and other events.
And you’ll save an additional 10% if you use your American Express card.
Deal for May 29, 2014 – A 5-Night Stay at Select Diamond Resorts
Link: Daily Getaways Calendar
Link: A 5-Night Stay at Select Diamond Resorts for $600 ($540 With AMEX Card)
Today’s deal is for a 5-night stay at certain Diamond Resorts hotels. You’ll pay $600 for a 5 (consecutive) night, 6-day stay at hotels which include:
- Ka’anapali Beach Club, Maui
- Cedar Breaks Lodge and Spa, Utah
- La Résidence Normande, France
- Flamingo Beach Resort, St. Maarten
This deal works out to $120 a night ($600 for the package / 5 nights). If you use your American Express card, you’ll save 10% and pay $108 per night ($540 for the package / 5 nights).
You have to travel by July 4, 2015. There may be blackout dates depending on destination.
The deal goes live today at 1:00 pm EST, so you’ll need to have the site loaded on your browser and ready to click on the deal just prior to that time. There are only 200 deals available, so they might sell out quickly.
But read on before you decide to book!
Is This a Good Deal?
I don’t know much about Diamond Resorts. They’re a time-share management company that operates a vacation club of sorts. Members purchase points (and presumably pay a membership fee) which can be used toward stays at over 300 hotels worldwide.
However, for this deal, there are only 63 participating hotels on the list.
I tried searching for more information on their website regarding hotel pricing and membership terms, but any links I clicked on directed me to enter my name and phone number and a representative would get back to me. The fine print seems to authorize them or their affiliate companies to call you regarding promotional offers.
I didn’t want to give my personal information (though I should have done it as a test!)
In any case, there was no way I could search their website for prices to compare to the Daily Getaways deal. And I wasn’t about to give them my phone number!
1. Ka’anapali Beach Club, Maui
I checked Kayak for Ka’anapali Beach Club. It’s listed, but doesn’t give a price. They want a phone call too! And they don’t have their own website, except for their listing on Diamond Resorts.
2. Cedar Breaks Lodge, Utah
Kayak did list Cedar Breaks Lodge in Utah for ~$117 per night including tax. The booking was through HotelClub.
This is $3 cheaper than the $120 per night through the Daily Getaways deal. But if you use your American Express card, the deal would be cheaper by ~$9 ($117 Kayak rate – $108 Daily Getaways rate).
3. La Résidence Normande, France
La Résidence Normande is also listed on Kayak, but they want a phone call too. The only website I could find for the hotel is the Diamond Resorts page, and they don’t list prices.
4. Flamingo Beach Resort, St. Maarten
I found the Flamingo Beach Resort on Kayak. You can book it through HotelClub for a rate of ~$137 per night.
In this case, it costs ~$17 more to pay cash for the room. But it might not be that way for all dates.
Be Careful With This Deal
You may be able to find hotels that are cheaper using Daily Getaways. But this deal makes me nervous.
The fine print says:
Diamond Resorts reserves the right to select alternative accommodations, such as hotel, motel or condominium.
I would NOT be happy if I booked a resort and ended up in a motel instead!
I checked Trip Advisor for reviews on Diamond Resorts and found a lot of negative information. And I strongly suspect that if you bought into this deal, at some point you would be subjected to a time-share sales pitch.
And you’ll be staying in a timeshare owned by others. If it’s high season, you might have a hard time finding a room to book!
So my suggestion is that you avoid this deal. It’s NOT worth the aggravation, just to save a few dollars. I’m looking for Big Travel, not a Big Hassle!
That said, if you’re flexible and don’t mind a sales pitch, this deal might save you some money, depending on location and season.
Bottom Line
You can get 5 consecutive nights in selected Diamond Resorts hotels for $600 ($540 if you use your American Express card for the 10% discount) which works out to $108 to $120 per night.
It’s difficult to tell if this is a good value because many of their hotels don’t list prices online. And calling might result in being put on a telemarketing sales list, because this is a time-share company!
You might also be put into a motel instead of a resort, and Diamond Resorts is not terribly well-reviewed company.
I’m curious to learn your experience with Diamond Resorts!
I agree with Ash. I bought the Daily Getaways deal last year and wanted the Maui property (same one offered this year). After tracking down the right person, it was no problem booking the dates I wanted. The property was very nice, the staff extremely friendly and the one bedroom suite (with kitchen) was very spacious. They also have a proprietary Serta sofabed which honest to goodness is the same as a comfy bed (you have to see the design to believe it). Hard to find a regular room in Maui for under $200/night so the $108 with a separate bedroom and kitchen is a steal. Also, no pressure to attend the time share presentations (offered but declined, no follow-up).
Thanks for the feedback, folks! And good to know that you can decline the timeshare presentation.
I disagree with your assessment of this offer. I have purchased this deal the past two years and plan to do it again this year. Diamond Resorts was easy to work with and we always got the dates and property we requested. Even at the height of spring break this year it was no problem. There has never been a sales offer for a time share! The only issue we had was getting to the correct person to helps us make the reservation. Once you get her email/phone number the process is very easy. They were also very accommodating to help us extend the reservation for an extra day for the same price we paid per night. We didn’t need to pay upfront for extra day. The properties we have stayed in were very nice. The only draw back this year is that they have reduced number of properties. Last year they had a property in Kauai (which is right next to the Grand Hyatt Kauai) which is now off the list. They also had two properties in Saint Martin and this year there is only one. I don’t know what it will be like this year, but if history repeats itself this is a decent offer.
A friend stayed at one of the Diamond Resorts and attended their presentation. The resort itself was pretty nice, but the presentation was much longer than the 90 minutes that she was told.
Last year, there were quite a few compelling deals and values via the Amex daily getaways. Alas, as DrewM caught early, very few this year. Several of the returning offerings are significantly inferior to last year — take for a striking example the non-sales of the Universal theme parks. Last year, they were great deals, if you could get one. This year, they’re essentially the same prices as the discounts already on the Universal web sites…. (and really lousy valuations too)
I guess he bothered posting about it in case people might be tempted to buy it.
My father-in-law is a Diamond owner and I have used his timeshare a few times. Some properties are better than others. I have access to log in, so I may look into this and see if it’s really as bad of a deal as I think it probably is. And yes I would guess if you buy this, you might be asked to go to a presentation. They may not force you to do it, but they will certainly ask you to.