# Grand Desert Last minute specials



## Fireitup (Jun 6, 2012)

Hey All,

  Just got back from a 3 night trip at the Grand Desert and absolutely loved it. We live in California and this is a resort we would love to visit multiple times a year. I have a family of 6 and we are trying to figure out how many points we will need to get to enjoy 3-4 vacations a year 2 of them being 4 night trips in a 2bedroom (for the whole family) and 2 of them in a 1bedroom suite for 3 nights for just my husband and I.

The 2 bedroom points would be 131k each trip for a total of 262k
and the 1 bedroom 69k each trip for a total of 138k for a grand total of 400k points.

Now this is where I need some more information, We rented this last trip for approx $400 and this seems to be less than maintenance fees and it appears there are a ton of listings all the time on ebay. So I am assuming these mega owners that are renting are getting last minute specials with a big discount. Can anyone kind wyndham owners check and give me some examples of point discounts so I can more accurately calculate the amount I'll need?

Thanks,
J


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## pacodemountainside (Jun 6, 2012)

The so called "mega renters" are generally Platinum owners and get 50%  discount and free unit size upgrade at 60 days. Generally they do cancel and rebook to insure they get what they want.

Unfortunately,  VIP benefits  are  forfeited on resales so you cannot get.  Fortunateley this and Plus Partners  are only difference on resale and Developer.

So, you need the full 400K. Should not have a problem with  RTs and HKs.

It might be cheaper to keep renting from them.

Wyndham does make limited discounts  available to all owners  at selected resorts when they have excess inventory, but hit or miss.

If you want to get the VIP from Developer   will probably be $150K+. However,  RR  who is regular poster here can probably show you some "tips" on how to do for  a lot less with repos, conversions  and PICs!


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## rrlongwell (Jun 6, 2012)

pacodemountainside said:


> ... RR  who is regular poster here can probably show you some "tips" on how to do for  a lot less with repos, conversions  and PICs!



Here is what is currently showing for Wyndham last minute discounts on their site for the location you want.  It appears you are heavly influenced by price.  Unless you want the VIP status you might want to stay with rentals since you have a very specific resort in mind.  Grand Dessert, from my limited following of it, does not appear to be very difficult to get into year round.  The problem I see with the VIP program is two fold.  First, VIP discount benifits of 25% are heavily undermined by the Wyndham discount program that the following was extracted from.  The VIP Gold discount level of 35% is also significantly undermined.  Second, the lack of Wyndham Managed resorts consistantly delivering the morning Newspaper to VIP Platium Members is a major issue to some like me (Hey, what can I say?) (for example, my son got back recently from a trip to this resort, he is on the account, however, Grand Dessert did not reconize his VIP Platium level and would not provide the morning newspaper, their position is that only me and my wife are being reconized.  On earlier complaints to Wyndham on related issues at a number of resorts, their position is that at Wyndham Managed Resorts, reconizing VIP resort level benifits is a resort option).  If you do not want to be responsable for the maintance fees forever more or longer, you may just want to line up with a Platium Member and enter into a multi-year understanding/agreement to use their points.  It might not be as low as you received on the last trip but it would give you a multi-year arrangement that does what you want.  If it a Platium Owner that rents for profit, it would be a little higher to cover the profit aspect.  If it were a Platium Owner that just needs to cover maintance fees, then it could actually be a great rate.  Some of our friendly Platium Owners that post might want to consider sending you a privet message with their proposals.  

June 1 – 7               20%
June 8 - 14              20%
June 15 - 21            20%
June 22 - 28            25%
June 29 - July 5       20%
July 6 - 12              25%
July 13 - 19            25%
July 20 - 26            25%

Never been to Vegas myself, however, I did live in Tucson Arizona for awhile.  There is a rumor out there that it can get to be a little warm in the Summer.

UPDATE:

07/30/2012   4 nights  2 Bedroom Deluxe  32,000  non-VIP rate - 96,000 points

I think a fair rate for this reservation would be $ 7.00 per thousand points or $224 dollars.


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## ronparise (Jun 6, 2012)

Grand Desert points chart


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## am1 (Jun 6, 2012)

It is a great resort.  Just wait till you stay in a 4 bedroom presidential.  You will never want to go back to smaller units.


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## Renny30 (Jun 6, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> 07/30/2012   4 nights  2 Bedroom Deluxe  32,000  non-VIP rate - 96,000 points
> 
> I think a fair rate for this reservation would be $ 7.00 per thousand points or $224 dollars.



I hope you don't mind me jumping in with a question. 

I rented 3 nights from an ebayer at SmokyMtns. The points should be 24K  per night or 72k total for a 3 bedroom. When I received my confirmation it listed 18K points used. I was/am baffled because all I could think was how could it be 18K points??? Are you saying this guy could be a Mega owner who reserved a smaller unit, gotten a 50% discount and gotten bumped up to a larger unit? I've done the math and if he reserved a 1 bdrm for 3 nights, gotten 50% off and bumped up to a 3 bedroom the 18K points makes sense. This would put my mind at ease.  I need it to be eased. 

TIA


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## Fireitup (Jun 6, 2012)

Tia,
  Sounds like the same question I have since my confirmation showed 34.5k points. Since I can always plan my trips last minute and it seems like, if I understand this correctly, I can get about 20% discount without even having VIP. I may not need as many points as I was planning on buying or I may be able to get more trips out of it.

@RR - I would like to also travel to other wyndham locations but since I know we will be using the vegas one the most and it seems to be a location with reasonable MF's, I figured it would be a good place to start.


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## ronparise (Jun 6, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> UPDATE:
> 
> 07/30/2012   4 nights  2 Bedroom Deluxe  32,000  non-VIP rate - 96,000 points
> 
> I think a fair rate for this reservation would be $ 7.00 per thousand points or $224 dollars.



Whats that 32000 you have in there?  even your platinum discount would only bring it to 48000 

 4 nights at 24000 points per night is 96000, 
96 x 7 = $672 fair rent

But you cant set rent by some arbitrary formula.. I just finished a project where I rented over a million points at $4/thousand plus $100...we pretty much broke even on the deal....Today I rentes a  126000 point reservation for $15/1000...It all depends on the market and the owners needs. Supply and demand


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## jjmanthei05 (Jun 6, 2012)

Renny30 said:


> I hope you don't mind me jumping in with a question.
> 
> I rented 3 nights from an ebayer at SmokyMtns. The points should be 24K  per night or 72k total for a 3 bedroom. When I received my confirmation it listed 18K points used. I was/am baffled because all I could think was how could it be 18K points??? Are you saying this guy could be a Mega owner who reserved a smaller unit, gotten a 50% discount and gotten bumped up to a larger unit? I've done the math and if he reserved a 1 bdrm for 3 nights, gotten 50% off and bumped up to a 3 bedroom the 18K points makes sense. This would put my mind at ease.  I need it to be eased.
> 
> TIA



You may want to hold off on the "mega renter" title. Because they only needed 108,000 points to hold both units. not really "mega renter" level. Just an owner that probably paid $100,000+ trying to make some of that money back. 

Jason


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## pacodemountainside (Jun 6, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> Second, the lack of Wyndham Managed resorts consistantly delivering the morning Newspaper to VIP Platium Members is a major issue to some like me (Hey, what can I say?) (for example, my son got back recently from a trip to this resort, he is on the account, however, Grand Dessert did not reconize his VIP Platium level and would not provide the morning newspaper, their position is that only me and my wife are being reconized.  On earlier complaints to Wyndham on related issues at a number of resorts, their position is that at Wyndham Managed Resorts, reconizing VIP resort level benifits is a resort option).
> 
> Never been to Vegas myself, however, I did live in Tucson Arizona for awhile.  There is a rumor out there that it can get to be a little warm in the Summer.
> 
> ...


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## rrlongwell (Jun 6, 2012)

ronparise said:


> Whats that 32000 you have in there?  even your platinum discount would only bring it to 48000
> 
> 4 nights at 24000 points per night is 96000,
> 96 x 7 = $672 fair rent
> ...



Copy and pasted the actual numbers from the Wyndham Reservation cite, I just went in and went through the process, just did not complete it.

Just looked at your new site.  Looks great.  Not clutered, short, sweet, and to the point.  Do not see any reference to pay before closing, that is a good thing.


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## rrlongwell (Jun 6, 2012)

pacodemountainside said:


> rrlongwell said:
> 
> 
> > Second, the lack of Wyndham Managed resorts consistantly delivering the morning Newspaper to VIP Platium Members is a major issue to some like me (Hey, what can I say?) (for example, my son got back recently from a trip to this resort, he is on the account, however, Grand Dessert did not reconize his VIP Platium level and would not provide the morning newspaper, their position is that only me and my wife are being reconized.  On earlier complaints to Wyndham on related issues at a number of resorts, their position is that at Wyndham Managed Resorts, reconizing VIP resort level benifits is a resort option).
> ...


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## randyz (Jun 6, 2012)

Fireitup said:


> Hey All,
> 
> The 2 bedroom points would be 131k each trip for a total of 262k
> and the 1 bedroom 69k each trip for a total of 138k for a grand total of 400k points.
> ...



I have owned points at Grand Desert since 2003. Not near as close as you, but love the location and have stayed multiple times anywhere from 1 bedroom to 3 bedroom units. 

The major advantage of ownership for me has been using ARP to get 3 bedroom units at New Years. Most all year 1 and 2 bedroom units are available but had been sold out at New Years. I am VIP and have gotten upgrades once or twice from 1 bedroom to a 2, never had a 3 available.

When I bought rentals were not as cheap as currently. Back then maintenance fees were generally less than rentals. I can only guess rentals costs will vary depending on the time of year etc.. btw hard to compare your $400 not knowing which days of the week they are. 

Using the chart posted you can compare maintenance fees to rent by knowing current Grand Desert maintenance fees are $4.61 per thousand points annually so your 131K 2 bedroom would cost $604 in maintenance fees. 

Randy


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## rrlongwell (Jun 6, 2012)

Renny30 said:


> I hope you don't mind me jumping in with a question.
> 
> I rented 3 nights from an ebayer at SmokyMtns. The points should be 24K  per night or 72k total for a 3 bedroom. When I received my confirmation it listed 18K points used. I was/am baffled because all I could think was how could it be 18K points??? Are you saying this guy could be a Mega owner who reserved a smaller unit, gotten a 50% discount and gotten bumped up to a larger unit? I've done the math and if he reserved a 1 bdrm for 3 nights, gotten 50% off and bumped up to a 3 bedroom the 18K points makes sense. This would put my mind at ease.  I need it to be eased.
> 
> TIA



I could not redo your specific case with current availability at the same resort and the same unit size.  However, I did find the following.  Based on  this finding, I belive what you suspect could very well have happened.  However, it does not have to be a mega rentor, it could just be a poor lowely Platium Member.  It does not happen often, but I have seen/gotten a 1 bedroom upgraded to a 3 bedroom.  I felt so guilty by getting such a great deal from Wyndham.  Do not tell them that I think that, it might mess up my reputation with them.

Resort:Wyndham Smoky MountainsUnit type:2 Bedroom DeluxeCheck-In date:08/04/2012Length of stay:3 nights   Wyndham managed Unit is available for: 14m 42sHelp  This reservation is being made within the Express Reservation period.Help ... Total points required:18,750

Based on your confirmation number (that was nice of the rentor to provide that verision, there are two verisions I have seen, one with the points used and a guest verision without the points used) using $ 7.00 per thousand, that would be $ 126 dollars.  Using Ron's pricing system where the $15 dollars per thousand option is used, that would be $ 270 dollars.


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## Renny30 (Jun 7, 2012)

Thanks for the analysis. I admit to not getting out much, but I find all of this to be fascinating and I feel much better knowing the numbers make sense. 

BTW, I'm pleased as punch to have a three bedroom for $330. I won't have to listen to my mother snore. Thank goodness for lowly platinum members.


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## rrlongwell (Jun 7, 2012)

Renny30 said:


> Thanks for the analysis. I admit to not getting out much, but I find all of this to be fascinating and I feel much better knowing the numbers make sense.
> 
> BTW, I'm pleased as punch to have a three bedroom for $330. I won't have to listen to my mother snore. Thank goodness for lowly platinum members.



Do not feel to guilty on an unreal deal.


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## ronparise (Jun 7, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> pacodemountainside said:
> 
> 
> > Now, I have something else to research, I did not know I could get the Limo ride from the airport etc.  Maybe the reason is that I go to the resorts I can drive to.
> ...


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## ronparise (Jun 7, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> Using Ron's pricing system where the $15 dollars per thousand option is used, .....




There is not a $15 per 1000 point option in my business model, Thats just the way it worked out for the special event weekend I recently rented...Weeks like that,  where the market rate for a hotel room is over $300 a night are few and far between...I only posted this to make the point that you cant blindly apply some silly formula to arrive at the rents you are going to charge (or be willing to pay)...You have to look to the market to be your guide... I have a target that I want to reach, but any one deal may end up exceeding that or perhaps not....depends on how good I was predicting the demand


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## Renny30 (Jun 7, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> Do not feel to guilty on an unreal deal.



LOL, I didn't feel guilty. You're talking to an extreme couponer here. I hate paying full price. I was concerned because I was thinking I'd show up at the resort and have no room.  

He has excellent feedback on EBay and my neighbor has used him before. I just saw that 18k points and thought "What the French Toast!!!"


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## jjmanthei05 (Jun 7, 2012)

Renny30 said:


> LOL, I didn't feel guilty. You're talking to an extreme couponer here. I hate paying full price. I was concerned because I was thinking I'd show up at the resort and have no room.
> 
> He has excellent feedback on EBay and my neighbor has used him before. I just saw that 18k points and thought "What the French Toast!!!"



now that you have the guest confirmation you can always call the resort to verify the reservation...

Jason


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## Renny30 (Jun 7, 2012)

jjmanthei05 said:


> now that you have the guest confirmation you can always call the resort to verify the reservation...
> 
> Jason



I will, thanks.


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## jjmanthei05 (Jun 7, 2012)

As for your always wanting a deal. If you can rent for less than what you could get with resale points, then you are getting a deal no matter if the person is getting it for even cheaper and making some money because you can't get those prices without investing thousands of dollars. 

Jason


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## Fireitup (Jun 7, 2012)

@Jason,

  I know I dont mind someone making money if it means Im getting a deal too. If anyone is interested in discussing some options with me either post here or pm me. We travel to Vegas 3-4 times a year and usually stay Thursday-Sunday or Friday-Monday. Thats another reason I've been looking at Wyndham over other TS's, the ability to break up the week.

~J


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## rrlongwell (Jun 7, 2012)

Fireitup said:


> @Jason,
> 
> I know I dont mind someone making money if it means Im getting a deal too. If anyone is interested in discussing some options with me either post here or pm me. We travel to Vegas 3-4 times a year and usually stay Thursday-Sunday or Friday-Monday. Thats another reason I've been looking at Wyndham over other TS's, the ability to break up the week.
> 
> ~J



Your best option may be to just buy a low point contract if you do not already own a Wyndham contract, then, just rent points from Wyndham at $8 dollars per thousand points through the computer for reservations under 90 days.  That lets you go anywhere and get any Wyndham discounts that may apply for the location you are going to.  You can rent up to the number of points you own, I think.  If you need Friday or Saturday nights, thoughs tend to be more expensive at most locations.

What dollar figure per thousand points are you looking for?  If you are looking for $4 to $5 dollars per thousand points, you might want to talk to Ride and see how many he has found and who they were from.


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## jjmanthei05 (Jun 8, 2012)

rrlongwell said:


> Your best option may be to just buy a low point contract if you do not already own a Wyndham contract, then, just rent points from Wyndham at $8 dollars per thousand points through the computer for reservations under 90 days.  That lets you go anywhere and get any Wyndham discounts that may apply for the location you are going to.  You can rent up to the number of points you own, I think.  If you need Friday or Saturday nights, thoughs tend to be more expensive at most locations.
> 
> What dollar figure per thousand points are you looking for?  If you are looking for $4 to $5 dollars per thousand points, you might want to talk to Ride and see how many he has found and who they were from.



You would have to overshoot the points you needed by a significant margin to make renting points at $8/k more cost effective. 

Jason


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