# Are there timeshares that rotate locations?



## avpwed (Feb 21, 2016)

Hello we have been thinking about investing in a timeshare, but I was curious if there is a type that rotates to new locations if you want to stay in different places each year? What's the pro/con of doing that if there is one? What is the best place to find out more info on them if they exist? Thanks so much for any help! 


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## Passepartout (Feb 21, 2016)

Never heard of such a thing. Probably the closest would be a system like Wyndham with many resorts that owners can choose to  book stays at different ones. It takes a bit of planning's, because you would have to book as early as possible while the desired location has availability.

There are other point based systems that do this. It's called 'exchanging'.

Jim

Btw, you don't 'invest' in a timeshare. You invest in your family's vacations. Timeshares are a major expense.


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## HudsHut (Feb 21, 2016)

Welcome to TUG, the best resource for all your timeshare questions.

WorldMark accounts have a set number of points (determined by the initial account size you purchase) - for example 10,000 points. These points can be used to directly reserve any of the 70+ WorldMark resorts, without having to "exchange". There is no requirement to return to the same resort each year, or ever.

You may reserve as early as 13 months in advance, or as late as day of check-in, as long as a unit is available.

Here are the locations of WorldMark resorts. Click on a state, and focus on the red dots:
https://www.worldmarktheclub.com/resorts/

If none of those resorts are in the area in which you wish to travel, then you may also use an "exchange company" or do a "direct exchange" with owners of other resorts.


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## JudyS (Feb 21, 2016)

There may be one older system that has owners rotate between locations under certain circumstances. However, that system (MROP) is small and not particularly cheap, so it probably wouldn't meet your needs. 

Instead, there are two ways of accomplishing what you are trying to do:

1) Buy in a resort system that has multiple locations. Typically, such systems give owners a certain number of "points" each year, which then can be "spent" on vacations in various locations. The locations don't rotate. Instead, the owner gets to choose the location, staying at the same one or picking a  different one for each vacation. 

2) Join an exchange company, such as RCI or II. These companies let you deposit your week into their pool of weeks, and then choose a different week as a trade. There is always a fee for this. 

If you own at a resort that has multiple locations, you can still use an exchange company. You might do this if your resort system had, say, 40 locations and you wanted to go somewhere that wasn't one of the 40 places in the system. 

Worldmark, mentioned by hudshut, is a system with multiple locations, of the type I described in option 1. I own Worldmark and like it, but it works best for people who vacation in the Western part of the US. Also, Worldmark costs several thousand dollars to buy resale, and there are plenty of nice timeshares under $500 resale. 

I also agree with Passepartout that timeshares should be regarded as an expenditure on vacations, not an investment.


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## bogey21 (Feb 21, 2016)

At one time I owned a MROP Week.  Every year they had an annual "scheduling" event where you picked your Resort and Week.  Although the system worked fine and they had Resorts in decent places like Jackson Hole, the problem was the quality of the Resorts.  Although they were clean, livable and in great locations,  most were second rate.  One nice thing though was if you selected well, you could get good trades with your Week through RCI.  I bought my MROP Week for $100 and later sold it for the same amount.  Mine was all Red,  however some rotated seasons.

George


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## pedro47 (Feb 22, 2016)

Welcome to the TUG website.  I feel that the OP is asking came you exchange into different resorts each year. Yes you can.


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## csxjohn (Feb 22, 2016)

There are some small systems out there that let you go to their different resorts when you want for a small exchange fee.

Exploria

Crown Resorts

Amber vacation club- you buy into a points system with them.

Then there are larger systems like Bluegreen where you can stay at all their resorts for no extra fee or at your deeded resort.


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## theo (Feb 22, 2016)

Not too many years ago, we had a membership in Perennial Vacation Club, with about 6 different (wholly owned) facilities in various locations within the U.S. and one in the Dominican Republic. This provided options (albeit limited) to "rotate locations" if so desired.  

There was a standardized and reasonable annual maintenance fee, reservations were booked through a single internal source, for whichever place you chose (contingent upon date and space availability, of course). 
I believe we may have stayed at 4 out of the 6 places , but not in Texas nor at one located at somewhere inland within Florida. Members could also deposit a reserved week with RCI for an "exchange" within the broader RCI-affiliated universe, but we never did so. Our membership preceded RCI "TPU's", so I have no idea at all how PVC weeks would fare in "TPU valuation" by RCI today if / when deposited for exchange.

We paid next to nothing (resale) for that PVC membership and later sold the membership for next to nothing after 4-5 years of use --- an entirely appropriate price in both instances . With the possible exception of Lake Tahoe (on the Nevada line, at Heavenly ski area), we would not have been interested in a second visit to any of the PVC properties. It was an affordable and fun experiment, but despite the "location rotation" option, it was ultimately quite limited in   choices and in property quality, at least IMnsHO.


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## TedWater (Feb 25, 2016)

Thank you for starting this thread. This is a question me and my wife have been debating for quite some time. We are very interested in getting a timeshare, but have never really like the idea of being stuck to one place to go on holiday. Previously we have really enjoyed going on caravaning trips using a rented caravan from https://www.campanda.com/. So as you can probably imagine we are used to quite a bit of freedom when it comes to our holidays. But, we feel it may be time to invest in something a little more stable, although we will certainly always keep that website handy. I have a feeling our camping days are not quite over yet . Anyway, there is already some quite useful information in this thread I will be telling my wife about. She is a little more hesitant than I am about investing in a timeshare, so perhaps the idea of a timeshare with a flexible location will sway her!


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## vacationhopeful (Feb 25, 2016)

TedWater said:


> .... She is a little more hesitant than I am about *investing in a timeshare*, so perhaps the idea of a timeshare with a flexible location will sway her!



Investing is NOT what you are doing with timeshare ownership.

I invested in a 2nd home ... I upgraded both homes with newer features ... both of which I KNOW increased their net worth. My benefits for each home included the appreciation in value, a place to live and increased joy ... the money can be measured easily and realized by the sale of the units.

In many locations and at many resorts, you can RENT the timeshare for close to MFs (over less than MFs) ... way better payback than buying from the developer ... or even on the resale market. Yes, there MIGHT be the odd tale of sums of GAINS when buying a timeshare...but it is really RARE (as the market is NOT perfect).

But I can tell you, about 100% of the time ... you will see a rise in the annual cost of the Maintenance Fees for the fixed week, points system, float week where you buy. 

Buy a timeshare for your family's happiness and time together ... then learn to use it ... no matter what 'new fad vacation' options comes along. You are only investing in family time ... not investing in a piece of real estate or other capital instrument,


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## artringwald (Feb 25, 2016)

I tell my friends that buying a timeshare is a lifetime commitment to ever increasing maintenance fees. Once you buy it, if your circumstances ever change and you're unable to travel, timeshares can be difficult to rent or sell. Having said that, as many TUG members will tell you, owners can really enjoy timesharing. Diamond Resorts is another company that sells points that you can use at a variety of resorts.


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## WinniWoman (Feb 25, 2016)

pedro47 said:


> Welcome to the TUG website.  I feel that the OP is asking came you exchange into different resorts each year. Yes you can.



Exactly. Just by virtue of the fact that you can belong to an exchange system and trade your week to go somewhere else is "rotation".

Another example is a system like Innseason- on the east coast- where you can be an Innseason points owner and trade into other Innseason resorts.

But, you can belong to any exchange company and trade a week you own anywhere into Innseason resorts if available.


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## csxjohn (Feb 25, 2016)

TedWater said:


> ... We are very interested in getting a timeshare, but have never really like the idea of being stuck to one place to go on holiday. ...we are used to quite a bit of freedom when it comes to our holidays. But, we feel it may be time to invest in something a little more stable, although we will certainly always keep that website handy. I have a feeling our camping days are not quite over yet ...., so perhaps the idea of a timeshare with a flexible location will sway her!



I suggest you look into the Bluegreen Resort system.  They even have campsites at some resorts that you can use your points for.  You can book as few as two nights and be as flexible as your number of points will allow.


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## TedWater (Feb 26, 2016)

vacationhopeful said:


> Investing is NOT what you are doing with timeshare ownership.
> 
> Buy a timeshare for your family's happiness and time together ... then learn to use it ... no matter what 'new fad vacation' options comes along. You are only investing in family time ... not investing in a piece of real estate or other capital instrument,



Thank you for this input. Perhaps investing was not the right work to use there. The growing maintenance costs are certainly a consideration and also my wifes biggest concern. 

I tend to think more of the value it will add to our lives. Like you said, an investment in spending quality time with your family.


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## TedWater (Feb 26, 2016)

csxjohn said:


> I suggest you look into the Bluegreen Resort system.  They even have campsites at some resorts that you can use your points for.  You can book as few as two nights and be as flexible as your number of points will allow.



Thank you for pointing me towards the Bluegreen Resort system. I have given it a quick look and it seems to tick all our boxes when it comes to freedom and flexibilty. Will have to examine it closer later on. 

Have you used it yourself?


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## geekette (Feb 26, 2016)

TedWater said:


> Thank you for pointing me towards the Bluegreen Resort system. I have given it a quick look and it seems to tick all our boxes when it comes to freedom and flexibilty. Will have to examine it closer later on.
> 
> Have you used it yourself?


I am a happy Bluegreen owner for over 15 years.  However, I have not used the campground portions.   

Bluegreen is an owner-friendly system that doesn't nickel and dime you.  If you find yourself unable to use all your points, you can rent them out with no hassle.  Absolutely flexible, you can stay 2 nights or 7, a studio or 4 bedroom Presidential.  Bringing friends and family?  book 3 condos for the same weekend.  Once you've paid your maint fees and owner dues (~$130 annually that includes RCI membership), use your points however you see fit, and while you stay in-network, no extra fees.      

I believe my rail buddy John is indeed also a BG owner.


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## csxjohn (Feb 26, 2016)

TedWater said:


> Thank you for pointing me towards the Bluegreen Resort system. I have given it a quick look and it seems to tick all our boxes when it comes to freedom and flexibilty. Will have to examine it closer later on.
> 
> Have you used it yourself?



Yes, I bought in last Aug.  I researched it for about 10 months or so and was given a tremendous amount of help from the geekette and others on this forum.


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## DeniseM (Feb 26, 2016)

avowed - I recommend that you complete the "What Should I Buy?" Survey:

--->>> http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=208742


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## csxjohn (Feb 28, 2016)

avpwed said:


> ... I was curious if there is a type that rotates to new locations if you want to stay in different places each year? ...



This is exactly why I bought into timesharing to begin with.  I bought a lockoff unit in Orland and used it only three times in about 15 yrs and trading it through Dial an Exchange the other years.


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