My wife and I decided to take this February’s vacation as outlaws. We posed as an ordinary couple with an infant son on a one-week getaway in Orlando, Florida. But unbeknownst to the throngs of NASCAR dads, trophy wives and whining toddlers on winter break, we were running amok as charlatans and grifters, a modernday Bonnie and Clyde, and Clyde, Jr.

OK, so maybe I’m exaggerating. We really are an ordinary couple with an infant son and, come to think of it, we didn’t actually perform any real felonious act, as long as speeding through North Carolina on our way down to Orlando doesn’t count.

But alas, our ruse was far more subtle; we had booked a week at a luxury Orlando timeshare resort for the incredibly low price of US$ 42 per night (travel not included), but with the agreement that we’d allow them to try and sell us one. The whole time, however, we really had no intention whatsoever of buying one. All we did was visit Mickey on the cheap!

Fellow timeshare resort-goers consult with their assigned sales drone.

Most of us have heard of this scheme. You sign a contract agreeing that during your stay you will attend a brief presentation (usually a brunch meeting) where it is presumed that you will be mercilessly solicited.

You are under no obligation to purchase anything however, and if you can make it through the presentation without inadvertently buying a timeshare, you’re home free.

My only concern was that I’ve been known to be taken in by a good sales ploy, as my closet full of Sports Illustrated sneaker phones, ab-tightening gizmos and George Foreman kitchen gear will attest to. My wife, Laura, on the other hand, is a career salesperson, having sold products ranging from cosmetics to pharmaceuticals, so with her at my side I’d be safe.

Even if she had to resort to hiding my checkbook, the equivalent of lashing Ulysses to the mast to safely bypass the Siren’s Coast, I felt fairly confident that we’d survive this ordeal financially unscathed.

Upon arrival at Westgate Vacation Villas (one of the largest resorts in the country and still growing), we found our surroundings to be very pleasant; swaying palms, lush gardens, green grass, a dozen different swimming pools, and tennis and basketball courts were among the many outdoor amenities, while our two-bedroom condo featured a marble bath with Jacuzzi, full kitchen, washer, dryer, DVD player — the works.

To ensure that you will attend the impending sales presentation, the resort has your credit card on file; failure to oblige the agreement would result in being charged an extra US$ 100 per night, multiplied by the number of days you had booked. Because of this constraint, I felt a curious absence of consumer empowerment.

Indeed, at US$ 42 a night, it was hard to pluck up the courage to complain about anything, short of maybe a bed bug infestation. Yet despite this penned-up feeling, we proceeded to have a good time. Four days passed, we came and went to the local attractions, and to our astonishment no one had hounded us, yet.

As scheduled, we arrived at the Sales Center, a low-slung, single-story building more reminiscent of a strip mall than the Spanish-roofed villas and townhouses that characterized this resort. We found ourselves in a large, high-ceilinged room which, at first glance, resembled a cafeteria with a buffet, and tables and chairs for dining.