# Interval International Sign Up



## badbeatjackpot (Dec 7, 2010)

Hello fellow Tuggers.  I found this forum last year and got some great knowledge from some of the experts here.  As a result ,I just signed up for Interval International.

2 Questions.


Firstly, 
How long does the enrollment process take? (It's been a week so far and my account in II still states that my membership is not complete to take part in the exchange)

"As of today's date, your membership file does not indicate eligibility to place an exchange request. Please review your relinquishment/deposit history and contact our Membership Services Department if your membership file requires revision"


Secondly, I have points for Club Intrawest that expire in July.  Once everything is set up, if I use those points to book a room in March or April and deposit into II, Can I take my exchange AFTER July or do I have to do it before July because my points would have expired then.

Thanks again everyone.


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## frenchieinme (Dec 7, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> Hello fellow Tuggers.  I found this forum last year and got some great knowledge from some of the experts here.  As a result ,I just signed up for Interval International.
> 
> 2 Questions.
> 
> ...



For your first question, they have been experiencing technical difficulty with their new system.  If I were you, I would give them a call.  Many Tuggers have voiced concerns with them as of late both internet and telephones.

Secondly, once your timeshares are set up on II, it will show the range of time you have to make an exchange and you can exchange within that period of time.

Good luck,

frenchieinme


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## tashamen (Dec 8, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> Secondly, I have points for Club Intrawest that expire in July.  Once everything is set up, if I use those points to book a room in March or April and deposit into II, Can I take my exchange AFTER July or do I have to do it before July because my points would have expired then.



It doesn't matter when your CI points expire - that is totally meaningless to II and they won't even know that.  You will have two years after the date of the CI week that you deposit to make an exchange and travel.

I would not recommend depositing a March or April week.  You will do just as well with the cheapest CI week (in terms of points) in II as with a more expensive week.  I usually deposit a May Whistler week or an October Tremblant week.  The May Whistler week will pull just as well as a week from March or April, and will cost you much less in CI points.  Also, I've found that a 1BR and 2BR will pull the same exchanges in II, though if you must have a 2BR in exchange and need to put in an ongoing request, then you should reserve a 2BR CI week so that you can request a 2BR.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 8, 2010)

tashamen said:


> It doesn't matter when your CI points expire - that is totally meaningless to II and they won't even know that.  You will have two years after the date of the CI week that you deposit to make an exchange and travel.
> 
> I would not recommend depositing a March or April week.  You will do just as well with the cheapest CI week (in terms of points) in II as with a more expensive week.  I usually deposit a May Whistler week or an October Tremblant week.  The May Whistler week will pull just as well as a week from March or April, and will cost you much less in CI points.  Also, I've found that a 1BR and 2BR will pull the same exchanges in II, though if you must have a 2BR in exchange and need to put in an ongoing request, then you should reserve a 2BR CI week so that you can request a 2BR.



Thanks for your help Tasha.  You and Bill have been very helpful to me.  My EE just expired so I am super excited about using II now.

I called II and they said that they have sent off the request for verification to CI and I called CI to rush them along so I can deposit my week and start searching.

However, during my initial enrollment, it asked me to pick my home resort and I only picked Whistler as my resort.  Should I have added ALL CI locations that are affiliated with II?  (If so, I probably should have done that from the beginning as this will take another few weeks for verification)


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## hjtug (Dec 8, 2010)

tashamen said:


> if you must have a 2BR in exchange and need to put in an ongoing request, then you should reserve a 2BR CI week so that you can request a 2BR.



Note that you can use a smaller unit to put in an ongoing request for a 2BR at resorts that have only 2BR or larger units.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 8, 2010)

Ok to understand correctly, if I NEED to put in an ongoing search for a 2 bedroom at resorts that have studio, 1 bed and 2 bedrooms, I MUST deposit a 2 bedroom BUT, if the resort only has 2 bedrooms and up, I can deposit a 1 bedroom?

What are the chances of pulling a 1 bedroom by depositing a studio?


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## DeniseM (Dec 8, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> Ok to understand correctly, if I NEED to put in an ongoing search for a 2 bedroom at resorts that have studio, 1 bed and 2 bedrooms, I MUST deposit a 2 bedroom


  YES



> BUT, if the resort only has 2 bedrooms and up, I can deposit a 1 bedroom?


  Yes - but that doesn't mean you will get it, because people who make the same request with a 2 bdm. will usually have more trading power than you do.



> What are the chances of pulling a 1 bedroom by depositing a studio?



It depends on the demand for the resort.  You can't put in an ongoing request with a studio for a 1 bdm.  You would have to do an instant online exchange.  The online inventory is the left-overs after all ongoing requests have been filled.  So you would be hoping for something leftover.


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## tashamen (Dec 8, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> However, during my initial enrollment, it asked me to pick my home resort and I only picked Whistler as my resort.  Should I have added ALL CI locations that are affiliated with II?  (If so, I probably should have done that from the beginning as this will take another few weeks for verification)



I've never heard of having to select a home resort for II purposes.  For me, all 3 of the CI locations that are affiliated with II automatically show up as available, and I can use any week from any of those 3 locations.  (It used to be 4 CI locations but the Kauai location was sold off.)


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 8, 2010)

The sign up procedure has been a big pain so far.  
I've called both CI and II 3 to 4 times each and it seems the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing.  II is saying they sent off request for verification while CI is saying they havent received anything request yet.  The fact that I'm calling both companies to try sorting this out multiple times is frustrating.  II is saying it normally takes less than a week but its been over a week now.  
Finally after a big run around, I spoke to someone at Intrawest who deals with contracts and he gave me his phone number as well as fax and email.  He said II can send him the info directly and he can action it right away.
I called II to ask them to resend the request to him specifically so that I can be up and running.  II is refusing to do that and tells me it has to be done automatically through the computer system and their computer system is down.  They changed their system end of Nov and they have been having problems with member verification tool.  So it seems the ball was dropped on the II part.

I dont understand why it would be so difficult for II to just email or fax Intrawest to verify my membership and then manually authorize/verify my account so that I can start using/exchanging. (But then again, I don't work there and don't know their system limitations)

Regardless, the customer experience with II has been dissapointing thus far and I hope it improves.


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## hjtug (Dec 8, 2010)

DeniseM said:


> It depends on the demand for the resort.  You can't put in an ongoing request with a studio for a 1 bdm.  You would have to do an instant online exchange.  The online inventory is the left-overs after all ongoing requests have been filled.  So you would be hoping for something leftover.



Denise,

I wonder if  badbeatjackpot's question concerning getting a 1 bdrm with a studio concerns when a resort has no studio units.  In such a case, I think an ongoing search with the studio is still possible.

In any case, as you already pointed out, it can be difficult to get a larger unit with a smaller unit via an ongoing search, especially during high-demand periods.

Henry


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## tashamen (Dec 9, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> The sign up procedure has been a big pain so far.
> 
> Regardless, the customer experience with II has been dissapointing thus far and I hope it improves.



To be fair, I would guess that most people at II don't have any clue of how to enroll someone with CI points since that option has not been generally available to CI members for many years (until Bill here did it).  Try calling the II Club Intrawest desk directly - that number is 800-622-8210, and get the name of the person there and have them deal with CI.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 9, 2010)

tashamen said:


> To be fair, I would guess that most people at II don't have any clue of how to enroll someone with CI points since that option has not been generally available to CI members for many years (until Bill here did it).  Try calling the II Club Intrawest desk directly - that number is 800-622-8210, and get the name of the person there and have them deal with CI.



Thanks for the advice Tasha.  What an ordeal.  After an hour long talk, still no traction.  The rep I spoke to clearly didn't enjoy her job.  All she did was try passing the buck every which way possible.  No ownership or accountability at all.  Her name was Sue and wouldnt give me her employee number, email number, extension number.  She then said to call CI back as they have a II rep and get them to call II for verification.  I said there's no dedicated CI rep for II and she insisted there is, every resort does.  I said what does it really matter?  CI is saying they haven't received the fax requesting verification and II just needs to refax it.  What is so difficult about that?  But no, she wanted the dedicated CI rep to call II.  As a result, I conferenced the call between her and CI.  The CI rep that answers the phone ofcourse says there's no rep in CI that deals with II.  Goes on to say that its been RCI since 2001, etc.  I then ask II again, why can't they resend the fax.  She then says, membership takes up to 10 business days for verification.  Its been 8 business days.  Wait 2 more days and call back.  Left me fuming.  I said to her, obviously if its been 8 days, I JUST spoke to CI contracts dept and they say they havent received the fax, you think me hanging up and calling back in 2 days will change anything?  How long does a fax take to send, 5 minutes?  So 8 days goes by and no fax.  All of a sudden, the fax comes through in the last 2 days?  Does fax take longer than snail mail now?  Obviously whats going to happen is that I hang up, wait 2 more days and then see that my membership still isnt verified and call back to find out now that 2 weeks have passed and CI doesnt have the fax request.  Why dont you just send the fax or call them?
"Sorry, it's not in my power to do so".  I checked with my support and they said they'll resolve it in a couple of days so please just wait and call back.
Ok can I speak to your support?
Sure here's their number. Thank you and good bye

She gives me the number to the II Marriot desk where the hold time is over 20 minutes.

 

Not a happy camper.  Maybe its my fault for living in a NOW society and being too imaptient but 2 weeks to verify a membership?  COME ON!  If a simple procedue like validating a new account is this difficult, I'm afraid about when I will need their help during an actual vacation.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 13, 2010)

Ok so it's Monday. They told me on Wed to call Thurs to see if my membership has been veriified. And on Thurs they told me to call Monday.  Today they told me the whole process can take 6-8 weeks!!!

Has this happened to anyone else?

2 months to process a new membership?


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## Jaybee (Dec 13, 2010)

I guess this sort of frustrating hassle is why I deposited my DSVII unit with SFX...and no fee to deposit it.



badbeatjackpot said:


> Ok so it's Monday. They told me on Wed to call Thurs to see if my membership has been veriified. And on Thurs they told me to call Monday.  Today they told me the whole process can take 6-8 weeks!!!
> 
> Has this happened to anyone else?
> 
> 2 months to process a new membership?


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## lorenmd (Dec 14, 2010)

just a question about enrolling in II, should i do the basic or the gold?  i'm a sucker for a sales pitch and she had me convinced that the gold would get me these great 4-6 day vacations x 2 for my one week deposit.  thanks


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## DeniseM (Dec 14, 2010)

Yes, you can do split weeks, but the inventory is almost all off-season in areas with an over supply.  Have you looked at the split week inventory on their website?  You don't have to be a gold member to look.

More info. - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=123154


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 15, 2010)

So I called yesterday again about getting my account verified.  I finally spoke to the right person who actually did something and finally emailed my account manager.  Within 1.5 hours, I receive an email to say my account has been verified!  Are you kidding me? It took me 6 calls (each call at least 30 min in length including hold/wait time) to finally get the right person emailed so that they can fix an issue in 1.5 hours?

Anyway, after getting my verification email, I logged in to see that nothing has changed.  This is what is states on my account

"As of today's date, your membership file does not indicate eligibility to place an exchange request. Please review your relinquishment/deposit history and contact our Membership Services Department if your membership file requires revision."

So I called back yesterday and was told the department that deals with this is closed and to call back today.  Something about 2011 Calender not being loaded.

I called back today and am told that tech support is aware of this issues and are working to fix it which may take another week.
They said it has affected ALL CLUB INTRAWEST accounts.  Are any other members experiencing anything like this?


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 21, 2010)

Update- 3 weeks and membership still not set up properly.  Cant search exchanges, etc
I called a couple more times yesterday to whoeever would listen and got someone really nice named Stephanie from customer relations who emailed my account manager who then put in a trouble ticket with the IT department to get my account fixed.  Why they couldnt do this 2 weeks ago is beyond me.

The strange thing is, they said that although my CI membership is points based, the rules now are that CI determines a set week that I must book and deposit with Interval.
Bill, Tasha is this true?

I said to her, points usage varies on season etc so if I wanted to deposit a May or Oct week rather than Feb, it should be my right as it would cost me considerably less points.

Stephanie said, she doesn't know but that's what she was told.  If any on the other Club Intrawest members can confirm this, that would be great.


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## tashamen (Dec 21, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> "As of today's date, your membership file does not indicate eligibility to place an exchange request. Please review your relinquishment/deposit history and contact our Membership Services Department if your membership file requires revision."
> 
> So I called back yesterday and was told the department that deals with this is closed and to call back today.  Something about 2011 Calender not being loaded.
> 
> ...



The 2011 calendar has been loaded since the beginning of this year.  The 2012 calendar will not be loaded until January 2011.  Right now I can see all 3 Intrawest properties for 2011 online in II as available for trading, so this is not a problem for me.


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## tashamen (Dec 21, 2010)

badbeatjackpot said:


> The strange thing is, they said that although my CI membership is points based, the rules now are that CI determines a set week that I must book and deposit with Interval.
> Bill, Tasha is this true?
> 
> I said to her, points usage varies on season etc so if I wanted to deposit a May or Oct week rather than Feb, it should be my right as it would cost me considerably less points.
> ...



How it works for me is not necessarily how it will work for you.  I joined II nearly 10 years ago when I bought Club Intrawest points, and have held the membership since then.  I can still choose which week to deposit - I book it first directly online with CI, and then after that log onto II and deposit the week.  CI never gets into the process.

However, the rules have changed for people who bought CI points later, and I don't know what they might be for you.  I'm even surprised that you were able to get an individual II membership at all at this point.  CI can change the rules and has done so for both II and RCI memberships over the years, so what I am able to do may not be what you get.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 21, 2010)

tashamen said:


> How it works for me is not necessarily how it will work for you.  I joined II nearly 10 years ago when I bought Club Intrawest points, and have held the membership since then.  I can still choose which week to deposit - I book it first directly online with CI, and then after that log onto II and deposit the week.  CI never gets into the process.
> 
> However, the rules have changed for people who bought CI points later, and I don't know what they might be for you.  I'm even surprised that you were able to get an individual II membership at all at this point.  CI can change the rules and has done so for both II and RCI memberships over the years, so what I am able to do may not be what you get.



We've been members at CI since 1994 so that's why we were allowed to get a II membership.  It was grandfathered into our account.
We just didn't know about this whole world of timeshare exchange until recently (after discovering TUG) and that's why I am signing up so late in the game now.

I really hope that I can deposit my week of choice or this membership would be obsolete.


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## badbeatjackpot (Dec 29, 2010)

Over a month has passed and my membership still isn't working. They keep blaming their system upgrade which occurred Nov 20th but their inability to fix a simple problem as membership enrollment is not very inspiring.
It took over 2 weeks to get my timeshare ownership verified and now, over 2 more weeks of BS

I would urge all new users from signing up until they fix all their issues. I am strongly  considering canceling my membership and buying RCI or re-enrolling with EE with Intrawest.


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## badbeatjackpot (Jan 4, 2011)

I just woke up this morning to find that after 5 weeks, my account is finally UP and RUNNING!!!
Spent all morning perusing the site and I am very excited,

Now I have some questions about the different methods for exchanges

1) Should I do a Request First or a Deposit First. (I have points expiring in Aug) and don't want to end up wasting it.  If I deposit a week in May , would I still be able to get good trades later on in the year even though my May week was already traded in?

2) If I deposit a studio, would I be able to do a search for a 1 bedroom Manhattan Club?  is preference given to people that deposit a 1 bedroom or 2 bedroom before me or does the strength of my resort help?


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## siesta (Jan 4, 2011)

just so you know, when I tried to sign up online, everything was good until the end I got an error. Called in, completed sign up and they said it would take 4 to 5 weeks to get membership up and running.  When given the sales pitch about gold membership, I said if they have my membership ready within 72 hours I'll buy gold right now. She said she couldnt, so I said basic was fine.


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## tashamen (Jan 4, 2011)

badbeatjackpot said:


> I just woke up this morning to find that after 5 weeks, my account is finally UP and RUNNING!!!
> Spent all morning perusing the site and I am very excited,
> 
> Now I have some questions about the different methods for exchanges
> ...



Congratulations - I've been following your saga with interest.  Have fun with it!

As to your questions, I've never done a Request first.  If you deposit a May 2011 week, you will have until May 2013 to exchange it with a Deposit first, whereas if you do the Request first you would have to use it by May 2011.  I generally put in an ongoing request and they've always been filled, but all of that depends on where you want to go and when.

As to question 2, yes you can put in search for a 1BR or larger with a studio when the resort only has larger units.  However, you will likely never get a Manhattan Club exchange from II so I would forget about that.  Hardly any units ever get deposited into II.  It's a different inventory than the regular MC that trades with RCI.

And the quality of your resort is a factor in the magic II exchanging formula, along with all kinds of other things.  But MC is deposited so seldom that I wouldn't count on exchanging there through II.


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## badbeatjackpot (Jan 4, 2011)

tashamen said:


> Congratulations - I've been following your saga with interest.  Have fun with it!
> 
> As to your questions, I've never done a Request first.  If you deposit a May 2011 week, you will have until May 2013 to exchange it with a Deposit first, whereas if you do the Request first you would have to use it by May 2011.  I generally put in an ongoing request and they've always been filled, but all of that depends on where you want to go and when.
> 
> ...



Thanks Tasha!  Yes, the sign-up process was ultra frustrating

I heard MC was a very difficult trade.  Has anyone had any luck with the other NYC properties that are listed in the directory?

While I was playing with the site, I've pulled some 2 bedrooms with my studio week such as the Manor Club in Williamsburg.  Now as far as I know, that resort also has studio as well as 1 Bedroom.  Did the 2 bedrooms also come up because its low season there? 

I was under the understanding that if I was to search using a studio, I would only be able to get a studio OR the lowest number of room a resort has.  I guess I'm curious because I dont want to deposit a 2 bedroom if a studio can pull off the same trades.


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## tashamen (Jan 5, 2011)

badbeatjackpot said:


> I heard MC was a very difficult trade.  Has anyone had any luck with the other NYC properties that are listed in the directory?
> 
> While I was playing with the site, I've pulled some 2 bedrooms with my studio week such as the Manor Club in Williamsburg.  Now as far as I know, that resort also has studio as well as 1 Bedroom.  Did the 2 bedrooms also come up because its low season there?
> 
> I was under the understanding that if I was to search using a studio, I would only be able to get a studio OR the lowest number of room a resort has.  I guess I'm curious because I dont want to deposit a 2 bedroom if a studio can pull off the same trades.



Hi again!  The other NYC properties are brand new to II, so I doubt anyone has any experience with trading into them yet.

As for the other questions - there are differences in how you can search vs. what you can actually get with a studio.  A studio can pull many larger units - it's all part of the II comparable methodology equation that considers many things besides unit size.  So if you search online with a studio and see larger units you can book them.

However, if you put in an ongoing search with a studio, you can only request a studio in exchange.  If you request resorts that only have larger units (and no studios), then you can get those larger units, again if your studio is considered a comparable exchange per II.  You may also get a larger unit if the other resorts have studios, but you could also end up with a studio.

Again much of this depends on where you want to go and when, so you can't always be assured of getting a larger unit with a studio.


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