We enjoyed our stay at Westin Kierland Villas last year (2007), and purchased an "Explorer Package" because we were actually considering...
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We enjoyed our stay at Westin Kierland Villas last
year (2007), and purchased an "Explorer Package"
because we were actually considering purchasing,
but couldn't afford it last year. Unfortunately,
we were far less impressed this year. On the good
side, the front desk staff was friendly and
efficient. The 1-bedroom villa was clean (albeit
small) and everything was in working order. The
McDowell Restaurant/Store was well-stocked and
menu items were generous and tasty.
The negatives, however, outweighed the positives
this year. (1) The "activity pool" was very
crowded and very loud at all times (2) the
"relaxation pool" was fine during the day, but was
over-run with noisy teenagers and children after
8PM (when the "activity pool" closed). (3) There
were frequently no clean towels available at
either pool by mid-day (4) Only one computer
functioned in the business center, and waiting to
print boarding passes for our flight was
interminable (5) Barbecue facilities were
limited, and wait times to get a grill were long
(6) Charges for childrens' program activities were
very high ($50 per child for a 3-hour "kids night
out" are double what we've seen in Marriott and
other timeshares)
On a side note (which did not factor into my
3-star rating), I'd strongly advise AGAINST the
"Explorer Package." We bought it for $2,000 last
year - which included a return 4 night stay and a
promise to apply the full $2,000 to the purchase
price should we choose to buy during the 18 month
period of the "package." We were promised a large
one-bedroom ("Premium" one-bedroom) of the 2BR
lock-out (950 sq ft w/full kitchen). What we got
was the small 1BR (500 sq ft w/limited kitchen),
and we were told on-site that that's "all you get"
with the Explorer Package. I met people on-site
who were staying for other reduced-rate
promotional packages who were provided with the
large 1BR. It didn't make me feel too "special"
that I paid a lot more and wound up with very
close quarters for my wife, me and our 2
daughters. And this is OFF-SEASON time in the
height of August heat!!! Furthermore, during the
sales pitch, we discovered that only a percentage
of the $2,000 would be applied to a purchase.
Overall, we felt "duped" by the whole thing, and
decided not to purchase.