Westgate Smoky Mountain Resort, Gatlinburg, TN - Reviews and Hotel Information

This resort actually looks very nice and has some average amenities. So I might be willing to recommend staying there. However, please please don't ever buy a timeshare from this company! The customer service is terrible, starting with the Web site. You will call their phone number and they'll tell you that all the answers to your questions can be found on at the Web site. Not true! Lots of generalizations but no mention of the fees, fees, fees. There's the yearly fee, the name change fee, the transfer fee, the booking fee, ad infinitum. You also can't perform any actions on the Web site, like changing a week, or transferring to another resort. Then when you call customer service back and insist on talking to a human being, you can be put on hold for 10-20 minutes at a time. Also note that they don't volunteer information. For example, "Can I transfer my week to another Westgate resort?" Answer: "Yes" instead of Answer: "Yes you can and it will cost you a booking fee of $150 to change a week plus $200 to change a location plus a membership fee of $495 per year plus you must call us X weeks beforehand plus there must be availability, etc etc." Its like pulling teeth to get information, and then once you get the whole picture you think, "Man, this is hard!"

Specific note: I bought the timeshare from my brother and therefore needed a name change. After 3 phone calls [no joke] I was finally told that I needed to fax them particular information with signatures. I did so. This was in January. I called in February, March and April and was told to "wait, they're working on it". Today [November] I called again. First I was told that it would be $150 to make the change. In a year of calling this was the first mention of ANOTHER fee. Then I was told that I needed to call another number, the "Name Change Dept." This number went to voicemail and I have never received a follow up call from them. Almost a year to change the name on a deed?! You've got to be kidding me! The customer service representative I was on the phone with told me that there are people who have waited *5* years to get a name changed. Can you believe it!

I'm going to the press and the Better Business Bureau next, and anyone else who will listen. These people have to be stopped, these kinds of practices are certainly unethical and must border on the illegal.

Westgate Smoky Mountain Resort, Gatlinburg

Westgate Smoky Mountain Resort

Gatlinburg Hotels