For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for March 07, 2025

Sounds like a time share scam?

Oddly enough, in 1996 when this comic strip was originally published, is about the time I attended my first time share sales pitch. Typically, you don’t go to a time share hotel without the understanding that you are going to have to endure a sales pitch at some point, so it does make me wonder if John and Elly already knew this was coming when they booked a time share for their hotel.

Time share. My mother in law had that. It was actually useful when we planned vacations. Hers was not limited to one place but all over the world. We stayed at a time share condo on a golf course in Del Rey, CA, at a penthouse at Wynn hotel in Las Vegas, one in Orlando where we went to Epcot and Disney World, and my mother in law got a cabin on a cruise to the Bahamas and a beach house on Bahamas. But the membership fees kept going up so my mother in law sold her time share. Too bad

Just pesos—mucho pesos!

There is no such thing as a free lunch or free beer.

We each got a shell necklace, and years later, after my husband passed, it took me 2 Years and $1300 to get rid of the time share. Sure we loved going every year, but now I wasn’t going alone. What a mess.

Which means there are ropes attached!

I never went to a free meal where there weren’t strings attached. Well, except at my church.

Time shares turned into nightmares for so many people. Hope that doesn’t happen here…

The secret to a time share spiel is to plug in your ear pods and ignore them

This is one of the few times you can alssy no, it’s time share

Just say no. Who wants to listen to some dopey presentation when you can be out on the beach? Even if the food is free?

You always hear those words from the puppeteer…

Soooooooo reassuring!

“How about…. NO… okay?”

TANSTAAFL!

There’s No Such Thing as a Free Lunch (Especially when a time share pitch is involved).(Hat tip, Heinlein: The Moon is a Harsh Mistress)

I don’t get it. “To learn more about our fine facilities”? Why’d you go there? That doesn’t sound like something people would do for entertainment. Lunch, you can buy.

Can somebody explain in the first panel there are no stairs beside John in the concrete prison beach wall behind them. So where did the stairs right beside John’s chair come from in the fourth panel?

RUN!

My friend had a time share and used it a lot. Stayed with him and his wife in Las Vegas. Nice place just off the strip.

word of advice…don’t go…you’ll only be entering their 7 circles of hell…waisting 3-4 hours of your valuable vacation time

I don’t go on vacation to listen to a marketing pitch.

Wanna bet?

I booked a room at a Hilton Hotel. Doing so they offered me an extreme discounted trip to Hawaii. I thought it a great deal to take Mrs for our anniversary. Yes, it was a time share. Going to the presentation the first thing the guy asked is “what is your income?” We told him and he promptly replied that the program was intended for folks with at least twice what our income was. “Please enjoy the rest of your stay!” For less than a 5 minute presentation we enjoyed the stay that was another 5 days, with fun and sun and no worries.

Just a couple of steel rings.

Buy a timeshare in Mexico?!? Let me think about it. Hmmmm NO!

Run!

Worse…a kidnapping for 4 hours

I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to our good friends to the North. I know it is not enough to say only that I did not vote for him. I hope after he is gone the U.S can salvage its reputation

When my family went to Disney World in Florida, the first day we were there it rained. My parents were “invited” to a condo presentation, but since they offered to pay for an extra day, they went for it. My brother & I were with all of the other kids of parents who attended. As the oldest “kid” (I was 17), I ended up entertaining the littles by drawing little animals & creatures (I still have the paper). Thankfully, the next 2 days were bright & sunny, so we still got our 2 days at Disney.

so of course there are…roped him into that one

“special dining room” i.e. Locked from the outside.

So that’s how my brother bought his timeshare in Cancún!

The Pattersons get free healthcare. Why shouldn’t they get free food?

Ah yes, John and Ellie, future characters in a Get Out Of Your Time Share commercial.

Danger Will Robertson, Danger!

Guessing there are strings attached.

Nice touch, Lynn, with that last panel.

When they say “no strings attached”, they mean there ARE strings attached. TIME SHARE. I once was given the same invitation. They said there was a free gift after the “talk”. I said I was NOT buying anything. After the “presentation” I said " I am STILL not buying, and where if my free gift?" They conveniently ran out of free gifts. lol

uh huh… and what he really means is… there is strings attached, somewhere along the lines. :p

Yeah, right…

Just a small ANNUAL MAINTENANCE FEE…

JUST ROPES THEY USE 2 TIE U DOWN!

Liar, liar, pants on fire.

John can always threaten to start pulling out teeth if they don’t let him leave

And, if you don’t stay for the entire lunch and presentation, they add the cost of the lunch to your hotel bill…

You’d think John & Elly would know better…

TANSTAAFL

This is two days in a row that they’re sitting on the beach minding their business and some huckster has come up to them out of nowhere with an unwanted solicitation. Today it’s by a resort employee. Yesterday it was by someone who, at best, was able to take advantage of the resort’s inadequate efforts to keep solicitors off the beach, but more likely got on with the resort’s blessing.

The Pattersons are paying guests and should be able to expect the resort to let them enjoy some peace and quiet.

Scam. And getting out of one of these is a nightmare.

“It’s free? It’s gotta be good!”

Wow, these 2 are truly dense, here comes the time share pitch. ;-(

Something like 8 years later and I’m still in trouble for saying yes to something like that…(probably justifiably in trouble).

Like public school and public housing, you get what you pay for.

“No Strings Attached” as long as you purchase.

You can’t go anywhere in Mexico without getting hustled for something. Not worth it. I go to Hawaii instead. It’s more expensive but it’s worth it.

Oh no! The timeshare pitch!

Don’t fall for it!

I had that happen at a resort near Los Cabos…I knew it was coming and played along as long as I could for the freebies.

Ropes, cables, chains, lanyards, hawsers, but trust me, no strings!

No strings attached until you want to leave without buying a timeshare.

We got a really great trip to Xcaret to listen to those guys…back in 1990 lol

Famous last words, did that once and got sucked into a 3 hour hard sale on why I needed to be there. Never again.