# Hilton hotel reservation using HGVC points



## biswassb (Sep 5, 2006)

I just wanted to let all HGVC owners know that if you use your HGVC points to book a Hilton hotel, HGVC gives you only *20* HHONORS points per HGVC points.  It is no longer 23 HHONORS points per HGVC point for direct Hilton hotel reservation.


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## bentlew (Sep 5, 2006)

*Hotel Points*

It is 23 hotel points per HGVC point if you convert all of your HGVC points  by 12/31 in the previous year.  If you use some of the points during the year to convert to hotel points, it is 20.  It has been this way for years.


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## Bourne (Sep 5, 2006)

I used one for the Labor day weekend and it was 23 HH pts per clubpoint.


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## CaliDave (Sep 9, 2006)

Biswassb is right..

If you use the club points to book hotel rooms you get 20-1, if you convert by 12/31 you get 23-1 ...
neither is a very good deal.. unless you are booking one of the few hotels that are top dollar. Rome, etc..


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## Seth Nock (Sep 9, 2006)

If you book for one of the 6 night going global awards, it is 23 for 1.  It can be worth trading for points depending on what hotels you plan to book.  With the value of the $, it can make sense to book many of the European hotels for the 6 nights, many of which would cost you between $2000 and $8000 for the 6 nights (about 7600 timeshare points).  I have also used it for level 1 hotels (about 440 timeshare points).  The hotels I stayed at would have been about $139 + tax per night.  This would allow 11 nights for a 5000 point unit or 16 nights for a 7000 point unit.


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## biswassb (Sep 10, 2006)

Seth Nock said:
			
		

> If you book for one of the 6 night going global awards, it is 23 for 1.  It can be worth trading for points depending on what hotels you plan to book.  With the value of the $, it can make sense to book many of the European hotels for the 6 nights, many of which would cost you between $2000 and $8000 for the 6 nights (about 7600 timeshare points).  I have also used it for level 1 hotels (about 440 timeshare points).  The hotels I stayed at would have been about $139 + tax per night.  This would allow 11 nights for a 5000 point unit or 16 nights for a 7000 point unit.




First, you cannot book anything less than level four.  In many hot areas like Manhattan, they could not find me a level four.  Like many HGVC rules, in theory many things are possible, but in reality these are not.  HGVC agent specifically told me that her computer does not show anything less than level four Hilton. That said, once the HGVC points are converted to HHONORS points, you can book lower levels.  However, that requires conversion of the points one year in advance or you can convert 2007 points now but not 2006 points. Second, in Manhattan, HGVC could only find me two nights in Hilton for 4400 HGVC points. At London Heathrow stopover,  I could get one night in Hilton-Heathrow for 40000 hhonors points or 2000 HGVC points.  I could get a comparable Premier Travel Inn-Heathrow for about 50 pounds or $100 or Marriott-Heathrow for $150.  they are all in Bath road close to each other.  

If there is a special category called "global awards",  HGVC desk should have offered me that.  I never heard that one before. No where in printed material or website, HGVC makes the owners aware that if you use clubpoints for hotel reservation you get 20:1 conversion rate in addition to $49 reservation fee for even one night or the point that only level four or higher hotel reservation using club points has to be done.  Over the years, I heard so many wonderful things about the HHONORS points option for HGVC owners and get 23:1 conversion rate.  Even when I mad ethe reservation I was not told that I was getting 20:1 conversion rate.  It is after I got the reservation confirmation, I noticed something.  I called and asked them then they said: well that is the way it works.   There could be rules that we may not like.  But it needs to be stated upfront in the website or printed material.

In summary, if you have leftover points that is about to expire, one has very little choice.  At least, HGVC should have given owners 23:1 conversion because owners are paying $49 fee for the reservation any way.  It is simply penny pinching low-class corporate greed.

I would also like to make it clear that I believe TUG is the forum to make owners aware of hidden rules and regulations involving time sharing and my goal is simply to do so about HGVC.


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## alwysonvac (Sep 10, 2006)

Yikes, let's not kill the messenger that shares helpful tips...It's great to know that you can still get the 23 to1 conversion rate for the HHONORS VIP Rewards booking directly thru HGVClub.

I agree, I can't find where the HGVC conversion rules are stated for Hilton hotel reservation made via HGVClub. HGVC should provide this information in the Member's Guide and online at the member's only site.

I also agree, if you have leftover points that are about to expire, one will have very limited options. That's why it pays to plan ahead. If one is not sure before the end of 2006, how they're going to use all of their 2007 points, it might make sense to pay the extra fee to bank their 2007 points to 2008 (Note: you have to do this before the end of 2006). HGVC doesn't prevent anyone from using banked 2008 points for the a 2007 reservation. I actually do this all of the time just in case I need to cancel for some unexpected reason, the points are returned to the future year.

Hilton's reward system is no different than any other reward hotel system. It costs more reward points for better hotels and/or popular destinations. There is limited reward availability which is why HGVC states to book hotel stays on points earlier in the year. Hilton.com has made updates this year making online reward search a little easier (need to login into your HHONORS account to see this new feature)

To learn about the Hotel Reward program you need to go to the Hilton HHonors website (www.hhonors.com) 

The VIP Only Reward Program is where you can find information about the Going Global Award -  see http://hhonors.hilton.com/en/hhonors/rewards/vip.jhtml  The VIP rewards are available to all HGVC member since we're given Silver VIP status. 

What is very frustating is that HHONORS doesn't provide an easy method of viewing all hotel categories in a given location. The folks on the flyertalk boards try to maintain a list - see http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=462405 (click on listing by redemption category).


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## biswassb (Sep 10, 2006)

alwysonvac said:
			
		

> Yikes, let's not kill the messenger that shares helpful tips...It's great to know that you can still get the 23 to1 conversion rate for the HHONORS VIP Rewards booking directly thru HGVClub.
> 
> What is very frustating is that HHONORS doesn't provide an easy method of viewing all hotel categories in a given location. The folks on the flyertalk boards try to maintain a list - see http://flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=462405 (click on listing by redemption category).




Again, this is partly misinformation.  You cannot do "HHONORS VIP rewards" booking directly through HGVClub at all.  You have to first convert your HGVC points to HHONORS points one year ahead through HGVclub; then you have to migrate to hhonors.com to get any rewards.  But you will not have that option with current year HGVC points like 2006 points that will expire this year.  Only choice will be to use the HGVC points to book hotel by paying $49 and receiving 20:1 conversion rate.  HGVC is not going to tell that upfront except that is going to happen to you.

When I was hotel searching,  hhonors.com gave me detailed information on each Hilton hotel in Manhattan as well as hotels around Heathrow airport and the number of hhonors points needed per night.


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## alwysonvac (Sep 10, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> Again, this is partly misinformation.  You cannot do "HHONORS VIP rewards" booking directly through HGVClub at all.  You have to first convert your HGVC points to HHONORS points one year ahead through HGVclub; then you have to migrate to hhonors.com to get any rewards.  But you will not have that option with current year HGVC points like 2006 points that will expire this year.  Only choice will be to use the HGVC points to book hotel by paying $49 and receiving 20:1 conversion rate.  HGVC is not going to tell that upfront except that is going to happen to you.


 
Members have always been able to book VIP hotel rewards directly through the HGVClub. I don't think this has changed.
According to my records, I used my 2005 points for a 2005 Going Global VIP reward and I received the 23:1 conversion without converting the points a year ahead. I'm guessing you probably got the 20:1 conversion rate since you chose the standard hotel reward options vs the VIP hotel reward options. I could be wrong but I think the 23:1 conversion rate only applies to VIP hotel reward bookings.


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## gshipley (Sep 10, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> Again, this is partly misinformation.  You cannot do "HHONORS VIP rewards" booking directly through HGVClub at all.



I had a quck chuckle over this as you just provided some misinformation.  You can absolutely book VIP rewards through HGVC.  I did it 6 months ago.


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## korndoc (Sep 11, 2006)

I just went to the sales talk for the new facility on the Big Island yesterday.  This was my first introduction to Hilton and the Hilton points program, having spent most of my time learning about the Marriott system.  If you bought Marriott at retail and traded your unit in for Marriott points, you would need to trade your ts twice to equal a top flight hotel in Paris or Rome.  

On the other hand, I was intrigued by the salesperson's explanation that if I bought an 8400 point ts in Hawaii, I could trade 1:1 for a grade 6 hotel in Paris or Rome and have some points left over.  He multiplied the 8400 points by 23 to equal 193,200 Hilton Honors points, which would equal MORE than enough for a category 6 hotel, which he told me would cost 175,000 Hilton Honors Points.  I was impressed by the flexibility and the liberal exchange for the Hilton Points. Of course, he also told me it was very easy to use the Hilton Honors points to get into some of these expensive hotels.

However, I just got off the Hilton.com web site where I looked up several hotels in New York and Paris (such as the Hilton Arc de Triomphe Paris hotel).  These were all category 6 Hilton Honors Points hotels and the web site listed them as requiring 40,000 Hilton Honors points per night.  This would equal 280,000 points for the week.  This is far more than the 175,000 points the salesman said I would need for a category 6 hotel.  

What gives?

Jeff


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## CaliDave (Sep 11, 2006)

Hilton Honors has VIP rewards.. which as an HGVC owner you would be. For a  6 night stay they are
 150K points for cat 5 hotel and 175K points for a Cat 6.  If you have the  Hitlon Amex, you can get 4 nights in a Cat 6 for 125K points.


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## biswassb (Sep 11, 2006)

gshipley said:
			
		

> I had a quck chuckle over this as you just provided some misinformation.  You can absolutely book VIP rewards through HGVC.  I did it 6 months ago.



gshipley:  Didn't you also have lunch with King Elvis yesterday?  Your above statement is not misinformation, it is pure bologna.  I called HGVC and talked to Paula and asked about booking VIP rewards.  She told me that it is with HHONORS system, so I have to call and talk to them.  She also added that I should ask them whether they can use HGVC points directly for making VIP reward booking.

caliDave:  I have Hilton American Express.  I will call and try to book Hilton Heathrow through them.  Thanks.


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## biswassb (Sep 11, 2006)

I checked HHONORS by telephone.  The choices for category 6 are as follows:

1.  one to four nights: 40000 points per night with or without Hilton Amex.
2.  six nights consecutively in the same hotel: 175,000 points.


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## alwysonvac (Sep 11, 2006)

korndoc said:
			
		

> I just went to the sales talk for the new facility on the Big Island yesterday.  This was my first introduction to Hilton and the Hilton points program, having spent most of my time learning about the Marriott system.  If you bought Marriott at retail and traded your unit in for Marriott points, you would need to trade your ts twice to equal a top flight hotel in Paris or Rome.
> 
> On the other hand, I was intrigued by the salesperson's explanation that if I bought an 8400 point ts in Hawaii, I could trade 1:1 for a grade 6 hotel in Paris or Rome and have some points left over.  He multiplied the 8400 points by 23 to equal 193,200 Hilton Honors points, which would equal MORE than enough for a category 6 hotel, which he told me would cost 175,000 Hilton Honors Points.  I was impressed by the flexibility and the liberal exchange for the Hilton Points. Of course, he also told me it was very easy to use the Hilton Honors points to get into some of these expensive hotels.
> 
> ...



Just find 6 consecutive nights then call either HHONORS or HGVClub to reserve the nights using the VIP reward. I normally reserve the reward stay via the HHONORS desk since they have more experience in booking this type of reward request. If all of your points are in your HHONORS account then request the award certificate from the HHONORS desk at no charge. However if you are using HGVClub points or a combination of both, then you must call the HGVClub desk to obtain the award certificate and pay their service charge fee.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 12, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> First, you cannot book anything less than level four.



I have done this many times.  I have often booked level 1 hotels in the US as well as abroad.  Why are you saying I cannot book something?  Do you want me to post my reservation confirmations on TUG so you can verify them?  Please don't post things if your information is incorrect.  You can email me privately before posting and ask me when or where I have done this if you don't believe it possible.


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## korndoc (Sep 12, 2006)

Thank you, alwysonvac, biswassb and CaliDave.  I thought they were trying to pull one over on me.  However, I did leave the sales presentation with the feeling that the 175,000 points would equal a full week in a category 6 hotel, but I obviously misunderstood.  

However, the more typical 7000 Club points will not give enough points to get 6  consecutive days at a category 6 hotel.  You would have to buy a  ts valued at 8400 points to cover the 175000 points.  A bargain purchase at Bay Club would not be enough.

Jeff


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## biswassb (Sep 12, 2006)

Seth Nock said:
			
		

> I have done this many times.  I have often booked level 1 hotels in the US as well as abroad.  Why are you saying I cannot book something?  Do you want me to post my reservation confirmations on TUG so you can verify them?  Please don't post things if your information is incorrect.  You can email me privately before posting and ask me when or where I have done this if you don't believe it possible.




You could not have done that throgh HGVClub desk.  I tried that and they told me that their computers do not display hotels which are lower than level four.    You could have done it through HHONORS desk. 

korndoc, you are right.  With only 7000 HGVC points and nothing else, you will get approximately *four* nights in a category six hotel if you convert your points year before. But, if you use your HGVC points and book through HGVC desk, it will be 140,000 points or *3-1/2*(hummm) nights.  What a great deal.  

I am posting what I have found.  I have every right to do that.  If you do not like my post just ignore it.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 12, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> You could not have done that throgh HGVClub desk.  I tried that and they told me that their computers do not display hotels which are lower than level four.    You could have done it through HHONORS desk.
> 
> korndoc, you are right.  With only 7000 HGVC points and nothing else, you will get approximately *four* nights in a category six hotel if you convert your points year before. But, if you use your HGVC points and book through HGVC desk, it will be 140,000 points or *3-1/2*(hummm) nights.  What a great deal.
> 
> I am posting what I have found.  I have every right to do that.  If you do not like my post just ignore it.



About 7610 points will get you 6 nights at a level 6.  6525 points will get you 6 nights in a level 5 or below. If you don't know how to do it, call me (212)677-7636.  I will 3 way the call with you and Hilton and help you make your reservation.


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## bentlew (Sep 12, 2006)

*My Experiences with HGVC Points Conversion*

I have used HGVC points two ways to use them for Hotel reservations, I have 7,000 annual points.  The first method is the annual conversion to Hotel points.  I have done this in the years that I was unable to use the timeshare for family reasons and knew this prior to the start of the next year.  In these instances I worked directly with honors reservations, the points were in my Honors account and I was able to use a global award to spend 6 nights in London for less than I had converted (23 honors points for each HGVC point).  In another year, I as was able stay with my wife in a nice category 1 Hampton near my wife's mother's house out of state, for 16 nights, so that my wife could be near her mother as she was dying from cancer (priceless).

Last year was a different example of how I used the hotel conversion.  In 2005, with my 7,000 points I gave a 1 week Honeymoon stay to my niece in a one bedroom in Cabo, spent 4 nights in Las Vegas in a two bedroom with my wife and sister in-law and used an Honors reservation for a stay at an Embassy suites for 4 nights to attend my nieces wedding.  I still had HGVC points left after the Cabo and Vegas reservations and called HGVC with my Honors reservation number and they converted the remaining HGVC points into my honors account for 20 honors points for each HGVC point, which covered three of my four nights.

These are real life examples of how I have used HGVC points for hotels.  Hopefully this real life example will help others understand how I have gone about using the program, along with Honors.


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## SallyMagoo (Sep 12, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> You could not have done that throgh HGVClub desk.  I tried that and they told me that their computers do not display hotels which are lower than level four.    You could have done it through HHONORS desk.
> 
> korndoc, you are right.  With only 7000 HGVC points and nothing else, you will get approximately *four* nights in a category six hotel if you convert your points year before. But, if you use your HGVC points and book through HGVC desk, it will be 140,000 points or *3-1/2*(hummm) nights.  What a great deal.
> 
> I am posting what I have found.  I have every right to do that.  If you do not like my post just ignore it.




Keep in mind that you can always top off your HHonors points by other methods; i.e., since 7000 HGVC points would convert to 161,000 HHonors points (23 to 1), you need 14,000 points for the GLONP2 award which gives you 6 nights in a Category 6 hotel if you own a HGVC timeshare and therefore qualify for the VIP awards;  If you sign up for the HHonors American Express credit card, I believe there is 20,000 points that you get upon your first use of the card.  You can also use the card for purchases, and you get 3 points for every dollar spent.  For a while it was accruing 5 points per dollar for some purchases, such as restaurants and gasoline, but I think that promotion is ending.  Also, you will get 5 Honors points per dollar spent for any money spent directly with Hilton, including timeshare maintenance fees.  There is also a Citibank HHonors card, but that card does not accrue 3 points to the dollar; I think it is only 2 points to the dollar, but there is also a promotion for acquiring points upon sign-up.  The American Express card does not have any annual fee at all.  

Another option is to purchase HHonors points to top off points needed for an award.  I believe they cost $.01 per point if at least 10,000 points are purchased ($100.00).

By employing these methods, in conjunction with our Silver HHonors membership by virtue of being HGVC owners, including signing up for both the AMEX and Citibank card, we have achieved enough points for a GLONP2 award.  We will use them for 6 nights booked at the Conrad Hilton in London next month ...without spending hardly anything for the HHonors points, including using any of our HGVC points.  (I believe we did pay a $60.00 membership fee for the Citibank card, but cancelled it after receiving the points for the initial promotion, and that is the only cost incurred to achieve this level of points).  This beats using the HGVC timeshare for a timeshare exchange to European major cities, which I have found is practically impossible through either RCI or SFX.  

To me the lesson reiterated in this thread, and which I have also learned by reading through many HGVC posts, is to plan ahead; i.e., before year-end regarding points that might expire;  go ahead and convert them to the HHonors points or push them to the next year for borrowing, which can always be done.


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## biswassb (Sep 13, 2006)

You are right in that there are many ways of getting HHONORS points and I did get 15000 points from Amex.  The question is what those points are really worth. Here is what I found. I was trying to find a hotel in Allentown PA for Sept 30th.  I searched first for Hilton hotels. My results are as follows:  There are mostly category 3 hotels in Allentown.  Hilton garden Inn (Cat 3) is 25000 points per night, Hampton Inn cat 3 is 25000 points and Hampton Inn category 2 is 20,000.  If you pay case using Hilton reservation systen without any points they are $89-99.  It boils down to 25000 points are worth about $99.00.  

In big cities, "Hilton" hotels are all mostly cat 6 and that is 40000 points per night, if you can find other Hilton brand hotels they are cat 4 or 5 and requires 30000 or 35000 points per night respectively.  In Manhattan, I (and HGVClub) could not find anything less than cat 6.  However, HGVClub found me a cat 4 Double tree near JFK airport for 30000 hhonors points and 1500 HGVClub points per night +$49 for club points reservation. Same situation is in London, but there are nothing less than Cat 6 near Heathorw.  

It definitely makes sense if you have leftover club points and cannot be used for anything else and that was my case.  Financially, it is a bit tough to use points like this.

P.S.  The reason I decided to put this unbiased information on this board is basically to inform the utility and the nitty gritty of club points and hhonors points involving HGVClub and hope it is helpful to other HGVClub owners.


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## korndoc (Sep 13, 2006)

SallyMagoo said:
			
		

> Keep in mind that you can always top off your HHonors points by other methods; .



Thank you.  Now I understand how easy it is to up my points so I can go for the 6 days to a category 6 hotel.

This BB thread leads me to 3 new questions

How cAN I find a list of the category 6 hotels before I purchase a Hilton timeshare?

Is there any risk Hilton might increase the points needed for category 6 hotels while not increasing the value of the timeshares accordingly?

SallyMagoo says "This beats using the HGVC timeshare for a timeshare exchange to European major cities, which I have found is practically impossible through either RCI or SFX".  Have others found this to be true?  Is this worse because you own a HGVC timeshare compared to other timeshares, or just the nature of owning timeshares in general?  Of course, being able to stay in a category 6 timeshare while traveling in Europe gives you wonderful flexibility that most other "normal" timeshares don't give you.  A real attraction to me while I consider this purchase.

Thank you,

Jeff


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## Bxian (Sep 13, 2006)

If you have the Hilton AMEX, you can get a 4 night stay at any Hilton affiliated hotel (including category 6) for 125,000 points.  In addition to normal retail purchases, recurring monthly expenses such as your cell phone and cable bills can also be put on the AMEX.  If you sign up for e-mail via MyPoints, you can also earn points that convert to HiltonHonors points. If you have kids in college, you can sometimes pay the tuition using the card (we  do that and then pay off the balance in full when it is due using the funds that we would have otherwise used to pay the tuition). While I am holding off on a timeshare purchase (because I think I need to learn a bit more from all of you wonderful TUGGERS), I would think that someone who combines their Hilton credit card usage with their HGVC ownership could earn Honors points fairly easily.  In addition, if you have a Hilton Honors Gold or Diamond status, you get bonus points every time you have a paid stay in a Hilton affiliated hotel.


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## bentlew (Sep 13, 2006)

Jeff,

Question 1 - On the HiltonHonors website, you can search via reservations for award codes that will give you a listing of category 5 (C501), category 6 (C601) for a particular location such as United Kingdom.  Remember that a VIP award for Category 1 - 5 is 150k Honors points.  For example, Hilton Metrople in London is where I stayed and it is a category 5 and right across from a Tube station.

Question 2 - This is a risk.  A few years back, they increased the VIP award from 100k points to 150k points for Category 1 - 5.  HGVC did not change their conversion rate.  This is why I carry the no fee AMEX and Visa to add points to my account.

Question 3 - In metropolitan areas there are limited timeshares to trade into.  For me it is a matter of location and availability that drives me to use Hotels in these occasions instead of trying to exchange into a timeshare.  This is the real plus of Hilton in terms of flexibility.

Hope this helps,

Rich


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## SallyMagoo (Sep 13, 2006)

korndoc said:
			
		

> SallyMagoo says "This beats using the HGVC timeshare for a timeshare exchange to European major cities, which I have found is practically impossible through either RCI or SFX".  Have others found this to be true?  Is this worse because you own a HGVC timeshare compared to other timeshares, or just the nature of owning timeshares in general?  Of course, being able to stay in a category 6 timeshare while traveling in Europe gives you wonderful flexibility that most other "normal" timeshares don't give you.  A real attraction to me while I consider this purchase.
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> Jeff



Jeff, I would like to comment:  more than a year out, I put HGVC points into an ongoing search for a London timeshare for October 2006, and within a few months, nothing had happened.  I am told that HGVC points will pull very well, so the problem apparently was not with trading power.  I have also learned from TUG posts that I probably should have started the search about 2 years out; in addition, RCI also seems to be putting more timeshare deposits into the rental pool, and who knows how much this affects timeshare availability.  I gave up on the RCI search (maybe I shouldn't have), and put a HGVC deposit into SFX exchange company to search for Paris and London timeshares, thinking my chances would be better.  Mark from SFX posted on Timeshare Forums that seeking a London/Paris exchange is very difficult because there are so few timeshares avaiable, and demand far outstrips the supply.  So at this point I am not very optimistic about obtaining a Paris or London timeshare exchange with the Hilton points (with SFX you have to actually obtain a HGVC week and deposit it directly into SFX-a July 4 Las Vegas Flamingo was deposited).  We have made alternative plans in hotels; I would say it is true that exchanges into major European cities are difficult, no matter what you are trading with; however, exchanges into timeshares in outlying areas in Europe may be more possible.  

Another way to accrue Hilton HHonors points is to sign up for e-mails from Erewards; by taking some easy surveys, you can earn erewards dollars, which exchange at $50.00 (erewards) per 3,000 HHonors points.  I've done this twice and am working on the third set.  

For our upcoming trip, we could not stay in a Category 5 hotel because we are taking our child with us, and only the Category 6's seemed to have rooms that would accommodate 3; this is something to consider if you are planning on traveling with a family.  I did find one lower category Hilton in London that would accommodate 3, but it wasn't in a very convenient location and didn't sound as nice as the Conrad.  

Another theme I've noticed in this thread is that HHonors points don't give as much value outside a VIP award (available to HGVC members); I've also looked into exchanging our HGVC points for a cruise, and did not find that a very good value at all; the credit to be given for the cruise did come near equaling the amount of maintenance fees paid for the points.


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## Sooby (Sep 14, 2006)

*Leftover pts to HHonors?*

Do I understand this right that if you have left over points at the end of the year you can have them converted to HHonor pts?  I had pts left over and the club counselor asked if I wanted to use the next years pts to make a reservation but never told me that I could convert to HHonors and I lost the pts. 

I also did not know that you can combine HGVC pts and HHonor pts. How does this work.  With all the owner updates they have you would think this would be expained better!!   Sooby


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## biswassb (Sep 15, 2006)

Sooby said:
			
		

> Do I understand this right that if you have left over points at the end of the year you can have them converted to HHonor pts?  I had pts left over and the club counselor asked if I wanted to use the next years pts to make a reservation but never told me that I could convert to HHonors and I lost the pts.
> 
> I also did not know that you can combine HGVC pts and HHonor pts. How does this work.  With all the owner updates they have you would think this would be expained better!!   Sooby




You are absolutely right.  Cunselors would rarely give you good advice and I felt that they (HGVC folks) want you to loose your leftover clubpoints.  You have to know exactly what you are doing.  

Now, that said, you cannot convert leftover HGVC points directly to HHonors points but you can use the leftover points to book hotel at 1:20 conversion rate and you have to pay $49 fee for each separate reservation.  If you already have HHonors points, they can combine that with your HGVC points to make the hotel reservation.


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## SallyMagoo (Sep 15, 2006)

Sooby said:
			
		

> Do I understand this right that if you have left over points at the end of the year you can have them converted to HHonor pts?  I had pts left over and the club counselor asked if I wanted to use the next years pts to make a reservation but never told me that I could convert to HHonors and I lost the pts.
> 
> I also did not know that you can combine HGVC pts and HHonor pts. How does this work.  With all the owner updates they have you would think this would be expained better!!   Sooby




My understanding is that you can convert HGVC points into HHonors points but that has to be done a year ahead.  (See CaliDave's previous post.) You can't wait until they're "left over".  For example, I would have to convert my 2007 points to HHonors points by December 31, 2006.  There is a fee for this.  Likewise, if I want to push the 2007 points into 2008, I would have to do it by 12/31/06.  If you wanted to convert some, and push some ahead, I would assume you'd pay 2 fees. If I am wrong about this, I hope someone will correct me.

I think your HHonors account is maintained separately and the converted HHonors points go into that. I am not sure how combining works, but it appears trading HGVC points directly for hotels gives only a 20/1 conversion rate.


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## Bill4728 (Sep 15, 2006)

Sooby said:
			
		

> Do I understand this right that if you have left over points at the end of the year you can have them converted to HHonor pts?  I had pts left over and the club counselor asked if I wanted to use the next years pts to make a reservation but never told me that I could convert to HHonors and I lost the pts.



*You can't convert this years left over points to HHonors*. But, if you want to use this years points for a Hilton hotel reservation this year, you can convert and use the points for that reservation. 

Hope that helps


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## StuckinChicago (Sep 15, 2006)

Bill4728 said:
			
		

> *You can't convert this years left over points to HHonors*. But, if you want to use this years points for a Hilton hotel reservation this year, you can convert and use the points for that reservation.
> 
> Hope that helps



Does the hotel reservation have to be within that calendar year? In other words, let's say I have 1000 HGVC points leftover at the beginning of December 2006. I can call (HHonors or HGVC??) and have that converted at the 20:1 ratio as long as I am making a reservation at the same time, correct? I can't just convert the points to HH points and let them sit in my HH account, right? And then, does that hotel reservation have to occur BEFORE 12/31/06 or can it be for sometime in 2007?


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## alwysonvac (Sep 15, 2006)

Sooby said:
			
		

> Do I understand this right that if you have left over points at the end of the year you can have them converted to HHonor pts?  I had pts left over and the club counselor asked if I wanted to use the next years pts to make a reservation but never told me that I could convert to HHonors and I lost the pts.


You can't convert points left over points at the end of the year to HHonors points but you can use left over points for a HHonors reservation within the same year that the points are set to expire.



> I also did not know that you can combine HGVC pts and HHonor pts. How does this work.  With all the owner updates they have you would think this would be expained better!!   Sooby


You call HGVC to issue the HHonors certificate for your stay. They told me that I had to apply all of my HHONORS points towards the reservation first and then the remaining balance can be taken from my HGVC points. I'm not sure why I had to use all of HHONORS points first. Of course, it didn't help that I had nothing in writing from HGVC to dispute what I was being told.  
I really think HGVC members should have a choice amd all of these rules should be included in the Annual Member's Guide.


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## CaliDave (Sep 15, 2006)

alwysonvac said:
			
		

> You can't convert points left over points at the end of the year to HHonors points but you can use left over points for a HHonors reservation within the same year that the points are set to expire.
> 
> 
> You call HGVC to issue the HHonors certificate for your stay. They told me that I had to apply all of my HHONORS points towards the reservation first and then the remaining balance can be taken from my HGVC points. I'm not sure why I had to use all of HHONORS points first. Of course, it didn't help that I had nothing in writing from HGVC to dispute what I was being told.
> I really think HGVC members should have a choice amd all of these rules should be included in the Annual Member's Guide.



This was wrong.. I have 800K honors points and I made a reservation with my left over points .. at a 20-1 conversion.. 
However.. my plans changed a few days later and I had to cancel that reservation and all the points stayed in hilton honors. Which have no expiration date


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## biswassb (Sep 16, 2006)

CaliDave said:
			
		

> This was wrong.. I have 800K honors points and I made a reservation with my left over points .. at a 20-1 conversion..
> However.. my plans changed a few days later and I had to cancel that reservation and all the points stayed in hilton honors. Which have no expiration date




Well, calidave, you know the TRICKS well and that's why you ahve 800K hhonors points.  That is very important.  Most HGVC counselors appear to be somewhat ignorant, particularly the HGVC- hhonors points and other finer issues.  I guess good help is hard to find.  

HGVC needs to put it down in black and white in the owners guide or in the website.  Otherwise, owners will find out these rules after loosing their points.


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## sb1070 (Sep 16, 2006)

biswassb

HGVC would have to care about being fair in it's practices before they would consider putting anything in black and white.


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## CaliDave (Sep 16, 2006)

A problem I had the other day...

I'm going to Vegas early next month. I really wanted to stay at Flamingo.
It wasn't avaliable with open season. 
So I checked on  Hilton.com  It was avaliable for $300/night. 
I checked the rewards chart and it says Flamingo is 40K honors points per night for a 1bd. 
I am a Diamond member and I am not supposed to have any blackout days.
So I call the Diamond desk to use my honoros points and I'm told "Flamingo is a property that you have to book directly through HGVC" 

So they transfer me.. the HGVC person says.. NO.. we cannot touch your honors points, you have to go through Hilton.

SO they transfer me back and I get a different person.. they say " ohhh this room is only avaliable for cash stays" I said .. I thought Diamond members can always use points. .. he said "not at the HGVC's these are week owned by owners.. I said they why are they renting it for $300/night
I own at Flamingo and I can;t rent my week through Hilton.

So anyway.. I was pretty frustracted with the answer and I ended up booking at the Karen property. 

Open season is still a fantastic deal.

When I checked most regular Vegas hotels.. they were in the $300/night range.


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## sb1070 (Sep 16, 2006)

Dave
  I will not debate whether or not you believe Open Season is a fantastic deal, but on several different occasions I've seen Seaworld, Vegas Strip and one of the south FLA locations available through RCI extra vacations for 350 a week for a 2 bedroom.  
So if I was looking to book, I'd book 6 nights for 350 @58 a night before I'd book open season for 720 @120 a night.  Doesn't seem like a "Fantastic Deal" to me.

Scott


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## CaliDave (Sep 16, 2006)

sb1070 said:
			
		

> Dave
> I will not debate whether or not you believe Open Season is a fantastic deal, but on several different occasions I've seen Seaworld, Vegas Strip and one of the south FLA locations available through RCI extra vacations for 350 a week for a 2 bedroom.
> So if I was looking to book, I'd book 6 nights for 350 @58 a night before I'd book open season for 720 @120 a night. Doesn't seem like a "Fantastic Deal" to me.
> 
> Scott



Yeah, you are right .. actually we are both right.. You are comparing it against extra vacations.  I am comparing it against nice hotel accomadations.

I would never book a week using open season. I would find a last minute deal if I needed a wek. 
I drive to Vegas for the weekends and typically I can't be too flexible and wait for an extra vacation.  

So I guess for my particular use, open season is great. For others it might not work out as well. 

I wish we could book only two nights during club season. I "almost" never stay 3 nights and inventory goes really fast for weekends at Flamingo.


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## hurnik (Sep 16, 2006)

sb1070 said:
			
		

> Dave
> I will not debate whether or not you believe Open Season is a fantastic deal, but on several different occasions I've seen Seaworld, Vegas Strip and one of the south FLA locations available through RCI extra vacations for 350 a week for a 2 bedroom.
> So if I was looking to book, I'd book 6 nights for 350 @58 a night before I'd book open season for 720 @120 a night.  Doesn't seem like a "Fantastic Deal" to me.
> 
> Scott



Pardon my ignorance, but what's an RCI Extra vacation?  Is this something available to HGVC members if they deposit with RCI?  Or only if you own RCI directly?


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## biswassb (Sep 17, 2006)

hurnik said:
			
		

> Pardon my ignorance, but what's an RCI Extra vacation?  Is this something available to HGVC members if they deposit with RCI?  Or only if you own RCI directly?





RCI has a large number of low demand weeks all over the world under the name of " Extra vacations".  They make them available to RCI members at low cost and it is a nice previlege of RCI membership and does not require an available week for exchnage or RCI points as well as any exchange fee.  I will give you an example.  I was looking for a week in Spain area for March 07.  I logged into my RCI account and checked for about 10 seconds, got about 50 available resorts in the area and two actual resorts are listed as follows:

Club la Costa at Marina del Rey  (#3733) 
Málaga, Spain 
*Price from: $ 296.99 
Available Unit Size: 1 - 1 
Check-in Date Range: 3/3/07 - 3/18/07	

Club la Costa at Benal Beach  (#1460) 
Málaga, Spain 
*Price Range: $ 263.99 - $ 285.99 
Available Unit Size: 1 - 1 
Check-in Date Range: 3/3/07 - 3/24/07

Club la Costa, is at least a four star and I stayed there (#3733) before.  All units overlook mediterranean and gorgeous.  One week in 1 BR for less than $300 is simply incredible.  Club la Costa is like HGVC of Europe and has some direct connection to HGVC as a matter of fact and comparable quality except that they provide room service every day not once a week.  HGVC owners can exchange their HGVC points to get Club la Costa quite easily.  HGVC would be great there.  If you run out of points, then you have problem.  If you 14000 HGVC points then you would not need extra vacations any way.  If you can afford 14000 or more points that may solve your vacation problems.  With only 7000 points, we were having problems.

For HGVC, in theory, you can get such weeks as Extra vacation without using HGVC points.  But you have to call the HGVC desk and talk to the counselors.  Some posters stated that they got extra vacations through HGVC desk but I never could. I got fed up with the HGVC desk.  I really got frustrated and so I bought a separate RCI week and that worked well so far with RCI online or by telephone.  They (RCI and operators) have been great and more than I expected.


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## alwysonvac (Sep 17, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> Club la Costa, is at least a four star and I stayed there (#3733) before.  All units overlook mediterranean and gorgeous.  One week in 1 BR for less than $300 is simply incredible.  Club la Costa is like HGVC of Europe and has some direct connection to HGVC as a matter of fact and comparable quality except that they provide room service every day not once a week.  HGVC owners can exchange their HGVC points to get Club la Costa quite easily.  HGVC would be great there.  If you run out of points, then you have problem.  If you 14000 HGVC points then you would not need extra vacations any way.  If you can afford 14000 or more points that may solve your vacation problems.  With only 7000 points, we were having problems.
> 
> For HGVC, in theory, you can get such weeks as Extra vacation without using HGVC points.  But you have to call the HGVC desk and talk to the counselors.  Some posters stated that they got extra vacations through HGVC desk but I never could. I got fed up with the HGVC desk.  I really got frustrated and so I bought a separate RCI week and that worked well so far with RCI online or by telephone.  They (RCI and operators) have been great and more than I expected.



Thanks for the info. I'll have to look at Club la Costa.
Have you found and/or stayed at other resorts in Europe via RCI that have comparable quality to HGVC?


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## alwysonvac (Sep 17, 2006)

CaliDave said:
			
		

> This was wrong.. I have 800K honors points and I made a reservation with my left over points .. at a 20-1 conversion..
> However.. my plans changed a few days later and I had to cancel that reservation and all the points stayed in hilton honors. Which have no expiration date



Thanks for the info. 

Thank goodness, I didn't have many HHONOR points in my account at the time but it still bothered me.


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## biswassb (Sep 17, 2006)

alwysonvac said:
			
		

> Thanks for the info. I'll have to look at Club la Costa.
> Have you found and/or stayed at other resorts in Europe via RCI that have comparable quality to HGVC?



Club la Costa has many resorts primarily in Spain, UK, Scotland and Austria.  In France and Italy, there is Residence Vacances, high quality.  Another nice resort that I only visited is Macdonald resorts from UK but they have several in Costa del Sol in Spain.  I visited Dona Lola and Leila Playa both are HGVC quality.  I might go to Leila Playa next March.


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## sb1070 (Sep 17, 2006)

FYI Dave

RCI Extra Vacations Are Available For Nightly Reservations The Nightly Rate I Quoted In My Last Post Was A General 2 BR Rate, And Even Though Rates Vary, Nightly Rates Are Never More Than 89 A Night With A 2 Night Min.


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## dvc_john (Sep 17, 2006)

sb1070 said:
			
		

> So if I was looking to book, I'd book 6 nights for 350 @58 a night before I'd book open season for 720 @120 a night.  Doesn't seem like a "Fantastic Deal" to me.



6 nights in a 2-br doesn't cost $720. $120 is only for Fri/Sat. Other nights are $100.
So 6 nights would be either $620 or $640 ($558 or $576 for elites).

I usually use open season to fill in gaps of 2, 3, or 4 days when I don't need a full week. If I want a full week, I usually do an I.I. getaway.


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## sb1070 (Sep 17, 2006)

John

  You're right, $100 and not $120 is a big difference when compared to RCI nightly rates of $58 to $89.  Thanks for setting the thread straight.

Scott


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## biswassb (Sep 20, 2006)

Scott  and CaliDave;  It will be helpful if you could share your experience with the following: 

 1.  Have you ever got a RCI Extra Vacation week or Last Call week through HGVC?  IF affirmative, which resort and year.
 2.  Have you ever got RCI week reservation through HGVC?  In 0-10 scale with 10 being the most difficult, what was the level of difficulty?  

I an having incredible amount of difficulty doing so with HGVC.  It could be just my bad luck!

Thanks.


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## ricoba (Sep 20, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> 2.  Have you ever got RCI week reservation through HGVC?  In 0-10 scale with 10 being the most difficult, what was the level of difficulty?
> 
> I an having incredible amount of difficulty doing so with HGVC.  It could be just my bad luck!
> 
> Thanks.



I am not Scott or Dave, but I have successfully traded twice into two very nice resorts using HGVC phone reps. 

First was an almost last minute exchange into the Aviawest Rosedale on Robson in downtown Vancouver.  Great location, wonderful exchange for us.

Second we traded into Shell Legacy Golf Resort in Phoenix.  It was a very large and spacious suite and was as nice or nicer than our own unit at the HGVC at the LV Hilton.

RE: your question about last call...unfortunately those of us with ONLY HGVC can't get Last Call because we don't have a separate RCI identity.  This I will agree is a downside of HGVC.

Rick


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## CaliDave (Sep 20, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> Scott  and CaliDave;  It will be helpful if you could share your experience with the following:
> 
> 1.  Have you ever got a RCI Extra Vacation week or Last Call week through HGVC?  IF affirmative, which resort and year.
> 2.  Have you ever got RCI week reservation through HGVC?  In 0-10 scale with 10 being the most difficult, what was the level of difficulty?
> ...



I have never gotten an extra vacation or last call week thru HGVC. I have a seperate rCI account .. so online searching is much easier. I have never even tried.

I have done 3 exchanges
1) spring break Pueblo bonita Cabo .. came through 2 weeks after searching
2) Embassy Kauai .. came though after 3 months. but its because they dont deposit until 6 or 9 months.. I forget which
3) Direct exchange with a tugger - 2bd week at Marriott Waiohai in Kauai for next summer.. 

I wouldnt buy HGVC if I was mostly going to trade with RCI, but it does have good trade power.. one thing I dont like is the 300 resort limit.. or whatever it is.


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## sb1070 (Sep 20, 2006)

Biswassb

  For the first 3 years I was a member of HGVC I tried constantly to get extra vacations and RCI nightly reservations without success.  Everytime I called I heard NO!  I personally believe Hilton lies about availability to force you into their locations, because I tried all over the country at lots of different times, sometimes I would make bogus calls just to see if something was available and nothing ever was so I stopped giving them the satisfaction.

As far as RCI trades I never tried to trade my points because I decided I would use my other holdings to trade and roll my Hilton points into Honors.  I also booked several Last Call reservations using my RCI weeks membership, plus call me a control freak but I prefer to do my own searches and we all know Hilton doesn't allow that.

Scott


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## Seth Nock (Sep 22, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> Scott  and CaliDave;  It will be helpful if you could share your experience with the following:
> 
> 1.  Have you ever got a RCI Extra Vacation week or Last Call week through HGVC?  IF affirmative, which resort and year.
> 2.  Have you ever got RCI week reservation through HGVC?  In 0-10 scale with 10 being the most difficult, what was the level of difficulty?
> ...



1 I have only booked an extra vacation week once. I tend to book HGVC open season instead. There tends to be more availability and I like the locations better.

2 I have gotten RCI weeks through club MANY times.  I booked HGVC Craigendorff, Club Donotelo [in San Francisco(multiple times), Embassys in Hawaii, Embassy in Lake Taoe, Manhattan Club (more than 15 times), as well as many other resorts.

Where are you trying to book?


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## biswassb (Sep 22, 2006)

Seth Nock said:
			
		

> 1 I have only booked an extra vacation week once. I tend to book HGVC open season instead. There tends to be more availability and I like the locations better.
> 
> 2 I have gotten RCI weeks through club MANY times.  I booked HGVC Craigendorff, Club Donotelo [in San Francisco(multiple times), Embassys in Hawaii, Embassy in Lake Taoe, Manhattan Club (more than 15 times), as well as many other resorts.
> 
> Where are you trying to book?




I do understand.  You are involved with HGVC as an affiliate or whatever. You can get whatever you want through HGVC.   People like Scot, perhaps Dave, myself, and most others are ordinary folks and we simply do not have any extraordinary previleges like you do.  That's why I wanted to hear experiences from other ordinary folks like myself.


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## ricoba (Sep 22, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> I do understand.  You are involved with HGVC as an affiliate or whatever. You can get whatever you want through HGVC.   People like Scot, perhaps Dave, myself, and most others are ordinary folks and we simply do not have any extraordinary previleges like you do.  That's why I wanted to hear experiences from other ordinary folks like myself.



Dave & myself listed our HGVC trades.

I have a suggestion.  Why not start a new thread asking the same question regarding trades that people have had with HGVC?

I think you will get more responses from more people in a new thread instead of tacking it on to this this thread which is about hotel stays.  I know that there are HGVC owners here that will gladly answer that question, but they may not be reading this thread.

And btw, I think that Seth is an ordinary guy just like us.  But he has extrodinary experience in being helpful to those of us here on TUG! 

Rick


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## sb1070 (Sep 22, 2006)

Rick

  As I never traded HGVC I can't say about how it trades other than I have seen many people indicate that it trades well.  

I think the point isn't whether or not HGVC trades well.  It's why nightly or extra vacations are never available and Hilton lists them as if they are common and easy to get.  I say what good is a club benefit that's never available?  How does it combine with other benefits to make HGVC stronger as a product?

Also nice gloss over on biswassb's point about Seth.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 22, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> I do understand.  You are involved with HGVC as an affiliate or whatever. You can get whatever you want through HGVC.   People like Scot, perhaps Dave, myself, and most others are ordinary folks and we simply do not have any extraordinary previleges like you do.  That's why I wanted to hear experiences from other ordinary folks like myself.



I don't ask for any special treatment for my own reservations and don't get extraordinary treatment.  Sometimes I will ask to bend some rules for my buyers (as 1 time exceptions), but not for myself.  It would be unfair for me to explain to my buyers how something works if I asked for special treatment.    I put out ongoing searches and can help teach you how to better use the system the way it is intended to work.   Many of my reservations are the result of bulk spacebanks.  I tend to put my searches out about 7-8 months in advance, as there are alot of bulk spacebanks at the 6 month mark.  Almost all of my RCI bookings are the result of ongoing searches.


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## biswassb (Sep 23, 2006)

In HGVC system you can not put out your searches anonymously, online etc.  You have to call a HGVC counselor and ask to put out a search of anykind.  They don't know me.  But they certainly know Sethnock.  So you do not have to ask for a special favor, you will get it anyway.


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## myip (Sep 23, 2006)

I did use HGVC for RCI exchange.  I got into Maui 3 times (summer) but decide not to accept the exchange because we want to use the point for International Hotel Stays.


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## HGVClub (Sep 23, 2006)

*New Thread*

There is a new thread started about RCI/HGVC.


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## CaliDave (Sep 23, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> In HGVC system you can not put out your searches anonymously, online etc. You have to call a HGVC counselor and ask to put out a search of anykind. They don't know me. But they certainly know Sethnock. So you do not have to ask for a special favor, you will get it anyway.



When you call to put in the ongoing search.. there are 100's of  reservation employees. Something tells me not many (if any) of those people know Seth.. 
I'd assume he's only known by a few in upper management and maybe some sales agents who lose business to him.


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## biswassb (Sep 23, 2006)

CaliDave said:
			
		

> When you call to put in the ongoing search.. there are 100's of  reservation employees. Something tells me not many (if any) of those people know Seth..
> I'd assume he's only known by a few in upper management and maybe some sales agents who lose business to him.




You have a point.


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## biswassb (Sep 23, 2006)

It is interesting to note that although some (not all like Sethnock) HGVC members like myself having a little difficulty to exchange to RCI, RCI is listing HGVC sea world in Extra vacation for a phenomenal price.  2 BR Platinum for about 569.99 and 1 BR gold for 449.99. These are going very quickly, no wonder.  I was stunned.  I found several weeks for March 07 and also for Nov/Dec 06.  However, I did not find any for special weeks like Thanksgiving, Christmas etc.  I guess when Seth is exchanging his HGVC with RCI, it is somehow going into RCI extra vacation.  Who said life has to be fair as long as it is interesting?

PS: I think the exchange has once in four years rule.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 26, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> It is interesting to note that although some (not all like Sethnock) HGVC members like myself having a little difficulty to exchange to RCI, RCI is listing HGVC sea world in Extra vacation for a phenomenal price.  2 BR Platinum for about 569.99 and 1 BR gold for 449.99. These are going very quickly, no wonder.  I was stunned.  I found several weeks for March 07 and also for Nov/Dec 06.  However, I did not find any for special weeks like Thanksgiving, Christmas etc.  I guess when Seth is exchanging his HGVC with RCI, it is somehow going into RCI extra vacation.  Who said life has to be fair as long as it is interesting?
> 
> PS: I think the exchange has once in four years rule.



I don't know any of the people at HGVC Club desk.  I know the upper management and many of the people at Interval International, as many of the properties where my buyers ask for help reserving are Interval resorts, not RCI resorts.  Most of my buyers do just book Hiltons, and most of them book summer and school holidays, which are not available as extra vacation weeks.  I advise my buyers who are trading through RCI to put teir requests out a minimum of 8 months in advance, as many of the confirmations happen at the 6 month mark.  Try that when you are looking to make your next reservation, and I think you will be pleasantly surprised.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 26, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> I checked HHONORS by telephone.  The choices for category 6 are as follows:
> 
> 1.  one to four nights: 40000 points per night with or without Hilton Amex.
> 2.  six nights consecutively in the same hotel: 175,000 points.



4 nights is 125,000 with the AMEX, AXON is the reward code.


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## Seth Nock (Sep 26, 2006)

biswassb said:
			
		

> It is interesting to note that although some (not all like Sethnock) HGVC members like myself having a little difficulty to exchange to RCI, RCI is listing HGVC sea world in Extra vacation for a phenomenal price.  2 BR Platinum for about 569.99 and 1 BR gold for 449.99. These are going very quickly, no wonder.  I was stunned.  I found several weeks for March 07 and also for Nov/Dec 06.  However, I did not find any for special weeks like Thanksgiving, Christmas etc.  I guess when Seth is exchanging his HGVC with RCI, it is somehow going into RCI extra vacation.  Who said life has to be fair as long as it is interesting?
> 
> PS: I think the exchange has once in four years rule.



From a business standpoint, it makes sense to offer the extra vacations.  If someone buys an extra vacation, they know how timeshares work.  They tend not to have enough ownership usage.  They tend to buy additional weeks.  There is a 1 in 4 rule, so if they like the property, the only way to go back again within the next 4 years is to buy it.  Hilton knows what they are doing.


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## biswassb (Sep 26, 2006)

Seth Nock said:
			
		

> From a business standpoint, it makes sense to offer the extra vacations.  If someone buys an extra vacation, they know how timeshares work.  They tend not to have enough ownership usage.  They tend to buy additional weeks.  There is a 1 in 4 rule, so if they like the property, the only way to go back again within the next 4 years is to buy it.  Hilton knows what they are doing.



Absolutely, I fully agree with you.  It does make sense for HGVC to make HGVC Seaworld/Tuscany available to all RCI owners.  HGVC owners are supposedly rich, and they can afford Open season rental rates, they do not need Extra vacations at HGVC and anywhere else.  HGVC open season is like RCI Extra vacations and identical to Last Call except the price.  I am sure that is also the business logic/model for not making RCI website available to HGVC owners at all.  In addition HGVC owners do not have to pay the RCI annual membership fee of $89 or $99.  

Those of you interested, I also found HGVC-South Beach on Extra vacations at a very reasonable price.  More interesting part is, RCI is charging almost double for Vistana and Vistana Village ($1186 fro 2 BR Plat) in Extra vacations compared to HGVC.


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## alanraycole (Nov 22, 2007)

*What am I missing here... or did I just get ripped off with a bad HGVC purchase?*

Including all related fees, I pay roughly $900 for my 3500 points every other year. That means I pay 25.7 cents per point. It takes 7609 HGVC points for the Category 6 six night deal. That comes to $1956 for the six days or $326 per night. There aren't too many Hiltons that I would prefer to stay in that cost that much per night. If there is a Hilton that costs that much in the area where I want to stay, there is probably a cheaper hotel not too far away that would satisfy me just as much. What am I overlooking... or can it just be chalked up to different strokes for different folks... or am I paying a lot more per point than most. For what it is worth, I own a two bedroom, silver season at the Las Vegas Hilton.

One example... I want to stay in Carmel, California area... I can stay at the Embassy Suites using points for $326/night, pay cash for $299/night, or stay at the Hyatt not too far away (and closer to Carmel) for $138/night through Priceline. If I choose the Hyatt, I can stay somewhere else at some other time at a timeshare with my points and pay in effect $129/night. So... for those above who celebrate Hhonors conversion in this thread... what am I missing... sincerely asking...


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## PigsDad (Nov 22, 2007)

First off, using club points for hotel reservations has never been that great of a deal.  Just read this whole thread, as well as others to confirm that.

Second, you said you own in the silver season.  Since HGVC bases maintenance fees by unit size, not number of points, you are paying much more MF/point than owners of gold or platinum season.  For example, if you owned your same property in platinum season, your MF fees would be the same, but you would be getting 7000 points per EOY, instead of 3500.  That would cut your cost for the cat 6 hotel down to $163/night, using your calculations.

On the bright side, you probably paid much less for your silver property than people who bought platinum.

Kurt


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