Family Vacation at WorldMark Long Beach

Summer means family reunions and family vacations. This year, the Livingston side of the family combined the two. I know, some people would rather go to the dentist than attend their family reunion, but honestly, everyone in our family actually enjoys this annual event.

So this year, nearly the entire family headed to Long Beach, WA and stayed at the WorldMark Long Beach. Getting together for a week-long family reunion that includes six separate families and nearly 30 people is not an easy task, especially when 17 of those people are 16 or younger.

It takes a lot of planning and a lot of organization. But we pulled it off. We enjoyed the trip, saw some great beaches, shared some good laughs, and most importantly, we discovered that all you really need to make the kids happy is a big swimming pool that’s open from 9 am to 10 pm.

Honestly, that’s all the kids really wanted to do.

Anyways, the Washington and Oregon coasts are unique. You won’t get a lot of sunshine, or 90-degree temps. Heck, we didn’t even get close to 70-degrees the entire week and we never saw any blue sky. But there is a lot to see and do, and again all you really need is a pool. However, let me first offer some opinions on the whole WorldMark thing.

WorldMark did not sponsor this post in any way and these opinions are completely my own.

WorldMark, if you don’t know, is a timeshare company. They have properties all over the world. Essentially when you join WorldMark you are buying vacation time for the rest of your life, but in most cases, you pay for that life’s worth of vacations up front, in one lump sum.

We’re not “owners” but my parents are and we enjoy the benefits of their membership. We’ve sat down for the company’s sales pitch a couple of times and they make it sound really good. It’s a sales pitch so what else would you expect?

I will say that their pitch makes sense, and if you vacation a lot then it could very well be worth it. However, there are some things that I just can’t get past.

First, it seems almost impossible to get a room when you want to take a vacation. In order to secure a spot exactly when and where you want to go, you better plan ahead; like 13 months ahead. That’s as early as you can reserve a room in advance.

Of course, it’s much more difficult to get multiple rooms, which our family often tries to do, but even trying to find a single 3-bedroom unit seems nearly impossible in our experience.

There’s more. WorldMark doesn’t offer free WiFi. Can you believe that? Every other hotel on earth offers free Wifi. Come on WorldMark! Seriously?

You also have to pay monthly maintenance fees, which increase with the more shares you own. Then there’s the housekeeping fee, which is about $90 a room each time you stay. It’s a flat fee no matter how many nights you stay.

I don’t know that I’ll ever buy into the whole WorldMark experience but there are some plus sides, as well. For starters, these are no ordinary hotel rooms. These are apartments. We stayed in a 3-bedroom unit in Anaheim that was bigger than our first home.

Each room comes with a full kitchen, as well as a washer and dryer that are free to use. They even have laundry soap. These are fantastic for a large family on a budget that is away from home for an extended time.

We always bring groceries with us or buy them when we get there, but having a full kitchen with all the kitchenware you’ll need to prepare and eat your meals is a lifesaver.

We always save a ton of money. Just imagine a family of eight eating three meals a day for five days at Disneyland. The $$$ just keep adding up.

One more thing. As I mentioned earlier, the pool experience is amazing. The pool in Long Beach was big and it was heated, and the kids really couldn’t get enough of it. Overall, we enjoy staying at WorldMark but we’re still not ready to become owners.

As for our adventures along the coasts of Oregon and Washington, we saw some interesting things in or nearby Astoria, Long Beach, and Cannon Beach. We also played at some really cool beaches and discovered that Cape Disappointment really needs a name change.

This lighthouse and lookout area in Ilwaco, WA is located right at the mouth of the Columbia River. And it was anything but disappointing.

We did a cool hike, took in some great views, found a secluded beach, and of course smelled the very appropriately named “Poop Island.” This large rock is a favorite landing pad for birds in the area and they have no qualms making it their toilet.

We also visited Short Sands Beach, which is a few miles south of Cannon Beach. The hike in was fun and easy and the trees and roots along the path were an awesome sight to behold.

Once we reached the beach there were rocks, logs, sand, and waves. If you get there during low tide there are even some cool tide pools to explore, as well. It’s also a popular spot for surfers and boogie boarders. This is definitely a great place to experience the Oregon Coast.