# Can I convert Dikhololo from weeks to points?



## annetteterry (May 19, 2006)

I have little knowledge of Points and have always thought we'd avoid getting involved.

However, since it has been so hard to predict how well my DIK weeks will trade I was thinking of finding out whether I could switch to the points program.

Can this be done?  Is it a good idea?  How do you know how many points you will get?   How does the process work?

Any information would be appreciated.
Thanks!


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## aliikai2 (May 19, 2006)

*From the faq # 2" Can I convert my South African week to points? "


RCI is currently allowing their points members to deposit or temporarily cede any weeks-only resort to their points account for the generic value. This a great way to get extra RCI points for around 1/2 cent per point, making airline and car rental usable and affordable, not to mention getting those hard trades (like the Bay Club) 2 bedroom for 46,000 points. This can allow you to pool your low value units into those big trips,  but of course you must have an RCI points membership from one of the points resorts*. 





One warning, the "weeks to points deposit program" is not in the original RCI points program, so depending upon being able to cede any week for points is tenuous as it could be changed or discontinued at any time. 

-- Greg, TUG Member


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## annetteterry (May 19, 2006)

Thank you for your reply.   I am confused as I thought points were points but apparently not.  And it sounds like they you wouldn't know what you are getting or that your value would stay consistent, so I'd be in the same boat as I'm in with trade value with my weeks.


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## AwayWeGo (May 19, 2006)

*"Conversion" & "Points For Deposit" Are Not The Same.*

It took us a long time to figure out the basics of the RCI points program, & then more time after that before we took the points plunge in a smalltime kind of way. 

By then, we already owned some straight timeshare weeks at RCI resorts that were not part of the points program.  Yet the flexibility of points -- e.g., partial-week reservations, last-minute reservations for not many points -- had strong appeal. 

What threw us off was the idea of somehow "converting" non-points RCI timeshare weeks we already had into RCI Points. 

Eventually we caught on that it doesn't happen that way, at least not according to the terminology used within RCI's version of timeshare points. 

That is to say, when we joined up with RCI Points, we did so by purchasing a modest, standard-grade 1BR timeshare week at a resort which was already part of the RCI Points system & (more important) so was the particular week that we bought as our path into RCI Points.  In addition to the low purchase price of the "points" timeshare week we bought, we paid $199 to join RCI Points -- even though we already belong to regular, old-fashioned, plain-vanilla RCI (now sometimes referred to as RCI Weeks, just to distinguish it from RCI Points). 

For that, we get 15,000 points per year.  We pay our regular maintenance fees to the resort every year, in the regular way.  To stay RCI Points members, we also pay for renewal of our RCI Points membership annually. 

It turns out we can't do much with just 15,000 points per year.  So that's where the other USA & South African non-points timeshare weeks we own come into the picture.  Because those weeks are at regular old RCI Weeks resorts, RCI allows us to deposit the points-equivalent value of those straight timeshare weeks into our RCI Points account.  They don't call that process "conversion."   They refer to that process as _Points For Deposit_. 

Some TUG folks have expressed concern that RCI may some day quit allowing _Points For Deposit_.  Others have pointed out that with RCI now charging $26 every time anybody does _Points For Deposit_, that makes it less likely that they will want to end _Points For Deposit_ any time soon. 

So if _Points For Deposit_ is not the same as conversion, what's conversion? 

Conversion is what they call it when an RCI Weeks resort transforms itself into an RCI Points resort. 

Conversion is also what they call it when a newly converted RCI Points resort offers all its straight-weeks owners the opportunity to convert their straight weeks into RCI Points.  And -- wouldn't you know it? -- the resorts typically charge a little something for RCI Points conversion, anything from a few hundred dollars to several thousands. 

If I own a regular timeshare week at an RCI Weeks resort that goes over to RCI Points, it's up to me whether to spring for conversion.  If I don't, I just keep on using my timeshare week there the regular old way -- vacation there myself, rent it out, or deposit it just as before into RCI Weeks.  The only thing that changes is that I can no longer do _Points For Deposit_ with it.  _Points For Deposit_ is for regular timeshare weeks at weeks resorts.  The only way to get points for weeks at points resorts is to pay for conversion -- or buy weeks that are already converted. 

All that is so complicated that not even the folks you talk to when you call up RCI can keep it straight all the time -- particularly with South African timeshare weeks.  That's because RCI timeshare resorts in South Africa operate on 1 system for USA owners (regular weeks) & on a completely different system (points-based) for non-USA owners.  

When I called up RCI in January to do _Points For Deposit_ with my previously banked 2006 SA week, the RCI guy said, "Sorry.  That's an RCI Points resort, so you can't use your week there for _Points For Deposit_."

After a couple more calls, I got connected with another RCI person who understands that those South African "points" resorts aren't really "points" resorts, at least not for their USA owners.  Whatever points-based system they run on with regard to their non-USA owners apparently does not apply to USA owners -- & therefore we USA owners of South African RCI timeshare weeks can keep on using those weeks for _Points For Deposit_. 

If not, I'm sure somebody who knows better will chime in & straighten us all out. 

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.


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## aliikai2 (May 19, 2006)

There is the problem. SA resorts are week only resorts in the USA system. So you can't convert them to RCI points. 

If you have a points ownership, then you can deposit a week to the PFD program. When I wrote the original answer to this question the rand was 12 to a dollar making the annual levies on our DIK weeks $82, yielding 27500 RCI points, so for less than 2 red grass shacks we could grab a 2 bedroom Hawaii week at a non-points resort.
Well, the annual levy this year was $253, and if we still used RCI our cost with the $26 deposit fee, would be right a .01 per point. No longer the great bargain of the past.

Greg



			
				annetteterry said:
			
		

> Thank you for your reply.   I am confused as I thought points were points but apparently not.  And it sounds like they you wouldn't know what you are getting or that your value would stay consistent, so I'd be in the same boat as I'm in with trade value with my weeks.


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## grest (May 20, 2006)

Alan, that's the best explanation I've read....thanks.
Connie


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## annetteterry (May 21, 2006)

Alan - thank you.  I have learned alot!  I now know that I need to enter the Points World in some other way first before even being able to consider Points for Deposit, so I will look into that.


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## AwayWeGo (May 21, 2006)

*R.C.I. Points-Equivalent Tables*




			
				annetteterry said:
			
		

> How do you know how many points you will get?


Click here for the RCI tables that show the points-equivalent values of timeshare weeks in various locations. 

The charts show how many points it takes for reservations at RCI Weeks resorts.  As it happens, the number of points it takes to reserve those weeks is the same as the number of points you get for doing _Points For Deposit_ with them. 

That is, RCI gets paid a little something ($26) each time somebody does _Points For Deposit_, & a little something more (exchange fee) each time somebody makes a points-based reservation.  They don't need to augment that by charging more points for a week than they give when that week is deposited for points. 

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.


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## Dani (May 22, 2006)

I now convert my Dik weeks to Points through PFD.  I think that in many cases you will get more out of your standard SA weeks by doing this.  The 27,500 points that PFD gives me for my Dik 1-bedroom can go very far depending upon how I use them.   It's possible to get up to 3 last minute weeks as well as hard to obtain trades with these points and prime short term weeks such as stays at the Manhattan Club.

 On the other hand, if you are a person who uses your SA weeks for easy trades into 2 or 3 bedroom units you might want to keep your unit in Weeks.  Although we know that Orlando is an easy trade with a standard SA week, a prime Orlando week will cost you far more in Points than a conversion will likely give you. 

  Another caution, you can only convert your week to Points if you are at least 30 days from the use date of your week and even then, you will only get partial points credit. I beleive that you must convert within 90 days to receive full points credit.    In other words, while you may have SA weeks sitting in your account that have 1-2 years left of use, you may not be able to convert them.


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## annetteterry (May 24, 2006)

I took the great information I got here, made a couple calls to RCI, and then assessed how many PFD I would get.  I looked at the recent exchanges I have made and compared them to an RCI points chart I found linked here on TUG.   Based on this information, it looks like my best bet is to stay in the weeks program for now.   We usually need to plan our vacations ahead of time now due to school and work schedules so I would not benefit as much from the last minute discounted points offerings, but at some time this might be enough for me to consider switching.

Meanwhile, I am still dealing with 07 SA weeks that trade nowhere near as well as the 06 week I still have in my account.   If that trend continues next year, that may be another reason to consider PFD.

Thanks for everyone's help.  I believe I now have a much better understanding of my options.


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