I recently enjoyed 3 complimentary nights (and a 4th discounted night) at MVC Phuket Beach Club. I initially went into the presentation partly expecting to turn the offer down but ended up buying into the scheme I was initially worried by the reputation of timeshare scams but was actually quite reassured by the Marriott brand name and the fact that it was quite a modern and flexible points scheme, not completely unlike spending hotel points. I've since found this site and am worried I may have made a bad decision.
We bought 33,000 Vacation Club points at USD1.30 per point (apparently currently valued at $1.45 per point).
Also included was 12 months Platinum Elite Marriott Rewards status, 260,000 MRP and the Marriott Elite credit card. It retrospect, even if we had made the right choice by going ahead, perhaps we should have negotiated for more freebies
We put down 10% deposit on credit card and have 90 days to pay the balance (which we will settle without financing). This happened on Nov 3rd and we have 5 days from that date to cancel. I need to double check if this is window is 5 "working days" but either way it doesn't leave long to cancel if we've made a bad decision
Reasons why we purchased:
1. We have young children and really enjoyed having a well equipped apartment and family friendly facilities
2. We like the idea of having pre-paid and not having to deal-hunt for future holidays
3. We like the tie in with Marriott points as I occasionally have intense periods of business travel so wanted a complimentary scheme with points. I normally stay with IHG and SPG but I'm happy to switch given they matched my platinum status and provided some MRPs.
4. The club points/non-location specific mechanism sounded very flexible (e.g. ability to roll-over upto 3 years, convert to MRP if necessary, use anytime of year etc) versus what I had previously understood timeshare to be e.g. x weeks in a specific property that had to be exchanged to go elsewhere
I realise that to some extent we may be paying slightly over the odds for the reduced hassle of no longer hunting for normal hotel/villa deals. I didn't realise the timeshare rental market existed (although it sounds like there may be a time versus money element here too).
What I would like to understand is (very roughly) how much we may be paying over the odds and if we just got a bit carried away before we lose the opportunity to cancel.
Thanks for any advice!! I will continue to read the newbie forums in the meantime
We bought 33,000 Vacation Club points at USD1.30 per point (apparently currently valued at $1.45 per point).
Also included was 12 months Platinum Elite Marriott Rewards status, 260,000 MRP and the Marriott Elite credit card. It retrospect, even if we had made the right choice by going ahead, perhaps we should have negotiated for more freebies
We put down 10% deposit on credit card and have 90 days to pay the balance (which we will settle without financing). This happened on Nov 3rd and we have 5 days from that date to cancel. I need to double check if this is window is 5 "working days" but either way it doesn't leave long to cancel if we've made a bad decision
Reasons why we purchased:
1. We have young children and really enjoyed having a well equipped apartment and family friendly facilities
2. We like the idea of having pre-paid and not having to deal-hunt for future holidays
3. We like the tie in with Marriott points as I occasionally have intense periods of business travel so wanted a complimentary scheme with points. I normally stay with IHG and SPG but I'm happy to switch given they matched my platinum status and provided some MRPs.
4. The club points/non-location specific mechanism sounded very flexible (e.g. ability to roll-over upto 3 years, convert to MRP if necessary, use anytime of year etc) versus what I had previously understood timeshare to be e.g. x weeks in a specific property that had to be exchanged to go elsewhere
I realise that to some extent we may be paying slightly over the odds for the reduced hassle of no longer hunting for normal hotel/villa deals. I didn't realise the timeshare rental market existed (although it sounds like there may be a time versus money element here too).
What I would like to understand is (very roughly) how much we may be paying over the odds and if we just got a bit carried away before we lose the opportunity to cancel.
Thanks for any advice!! I will continue to read the newbie forums in the meantime