# Holiday Inn Club / RCI points



## Biomac1 (Aug 29, 2012)

Hi !  I'm a newbie, so please be patient with me till I learn the ropes about posting / replying to threads etc.  

I have been having an ongoing problem with Holiday Inn Club ( HIC ) about joining their club and paying more fees, :annoyed:  for a service I already receive from RCI.
I have weeks & Points timeshares with RCI, I have been using them for years with little or no problem  
Since Orange Lake / HIC purchased South Beach Resort at Myrtle Beach SC.
they ( after a year of ownership ) are telling me I can not use my week or points through RCI unless I pay them an annual fee! 
I think this is unethical, and do not intend to join the HIC.  
I need some advice / help with this matter since I am no lawyer. I never signed any contract with HIC saying I would join their club. Can they legally hold the use of my property / points and force me to join.  

Or is there a way I can circumvent this annoying problem?
Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.  Thank you in advance.
Biomac1


----------



## roadtriper (Sep 16, 2012)

Biomac,  As I Understand it...    you do NOT have to Join HICV to use your existing unit.   we just went through the conversion at the las Vegas Desert Club and they are pushing the Club Membership hard!  so you may not always get the honest scoop if your dealing with anyone trying to upsell you!

if you do not join HICV  your existing RCI Points account stays just that, and you can still use it through RCI as you always have.
If you were to convert it to HICV  it would then be booked through HICV and you would also be able to use it through RCI as well.   BUT if you decided at a time down the road to exit HICV the unit would revert back to just a deeded week with no RCI points affiliation.
there is much discusion about this over on the Western board under the Desert Club
there was a lot of mis information about the conversion depending on who you talked to?   Keep asking questions, but I think you'll find that most of what you are hearing is just sales BS and not fact.   again I believe if you do nothing, then nothing changes.
In my situation...  I decided to join HICV with my 5 weeks at the Desert Club that were just deeded weeks. I feel while it may be a bit more of an expense depending on how I use the inventory.  it affords me greater flexability.  and if I don't like it after the 3 year commitment? no harm -no foul, I revert back to exactly what I had .  Unfortunatly that's not the case for folks like yourself who own  RCI Points weeks.
Bottom line it either works for folks or not, the $204 is a bargain if it works for you, and is really a Moot point in a timeshare world where folks make mistakes in the 10's of thousands $$$    
is there an owner controled HOA at your resort?  that may be where you can get straight answers.    RT


----------



## andex (Sep 26, 2012)

Looking forward to hear the final conclusion! Like RT lots of misinformation. when I converted I was told different stories! One person actually told me that they would not support RCI points going forward and that if I didn't join, I would go to straight week! Considering my purchase price I folded, but like you i found this unethical, if it is realy true?? 
I am curious to see your outcome. Good luck and keep us posted!


----------



## simpsontruckdriver (Sep 26, 2012)

As my wife's parents own at Orange Lake CC (Orlando), they converted. But, the only thing I know is, if their contract is transferred in any way, it reverts back to Week 20 Fixed (East Village). The downside is trying to get a straight answer from 2+ people there.

TS


----------



## andex (Sep 26, 2012)

simpsontruckdriver said:


> As my wife's parents own at Orange Lake CC (Orlando), they converted. But, the only thing I know is, if their contract is transferred in any way, it reverts back to Week 20 Fixed (East Village). The downside is trying to get a straight answer from 2+ people there.
> 
> TS



I am under the impression you can keep it within the family! Your wife could take it with the points intact. Or so I have been told. 
That said: Stripping points on resale is a move I don’t get on their part? It makes ownership with them worthless? Pity this isn’t explained when they sell there TS for the big buck as an investment. 
Imagine buying Porsche knowing that if you want to sell it someday for whatever reason it’s worthless because the company will never sell parts to the new owner? Not a good business model in my opinion. Personally I am not stressing over it, since I am fairly young with many years of ownership to go. 
Other than that, I think they have the best point system in the industry by far! I am getting great value out of it. Priority club works for me ($aving me $$ on hotel rooms), more points with RCI works for me, and less fees within network also works for me. bought resale couldn’t be happier with the turn of events!


----------

