# Gold Key Owners? II members?



## VA Beach Bum (Jan 2, 2010)

Hi all, we've been lurking since yesterday....great forum 
We purchased our TS in Virginia Beach through Gold Key last summer for cheap... week 46 1 BR but our week is floating? We weren't able to use our exchange week last year because it had already been used by previous owner(?) so this is the first year we can use/exchange it. Our maintainance fees are paid...... now what??? 

what are our chances of getting a beach destination in the summer months? And when can I book it? TIA


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## Egret1986 (Jan 2, 2010)

*In order to exchange, you'll have to become a member of an exchange company*

Week 46 is a low demand week in Virginia Beach.  I won't say it will be impossible to get a summer beach week, but it will be a bit more than extremely difficult.

I have a 2BR wk 26 and wk 27 in VA Beach.  I just checked for summer 2010 with these, which are prime summer weeks.  There were 2 resorts available in Myrtle Beach and a hotel unit available in Kitty Hawk.  It is doubtful that a wk 46 would see any of these.  Even with prime weeks, it takes proper planning (depositing early and being flexible) to get summer beach weeks. Most people want to be at a beach resort in summer, as opposed to the off-season.  If you are not tied to the summer, perhaps you could look for something in early September when it is still nice weather.


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## VA Beach Bum (Jan 2, 2010)

Egret1986 said:


> Week 46 is a low demand week in Virginia Beach.  I won't say it will be impossible to get a summer beach week, but it will be a bit more than extremely difficult.
> 
> I have a 2BR wk 26 and wk 27 in VA Beach.  I just checked for summer 2010 with these, which are prime summer weeks.  There were 2 resorts available in Myrtle Beach and a hotel unit available in Kitty Hawk.  It is doubtful that a wk 46 would see any of these.  Even with prime weeks, it takes proper planning (depositing early and being flexible) to get summer beach weeks. Most people want to be at a beach resort in summer, as opposed to the off-season.  If you are not tied to the summer, perhaps you could look for something in early September when it is still nice weather.



Thanks for responding! Right now since kids are still in school summer is the only option but they only have a few more years left and then we can travel whenever I kinda figured that wk 46 would be a bad thing but the price was great and the II getaways a bonus.... that seems to be the way to go. So you are saying I should deposit that week now for an exchange? The guy who sold us the TS said I could get back to VB at any time, was that a lie? Maybe I should try to get back there for the summer?


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## timeos2 (Jan 2, 2010)

*Timeshare sales persons lips moved - truth suffered fatal blows. More at 10*



VA Beach Bum said:


> Thanks for responding! Right now since kids are still in school summer is the only option but they only have a few more years left and then we can travel whenever I kinda figured that wk 46 would be a bad thing but the price was great and the II getaways a bonus.... that seems to be the way to go. So you are saying I should deposit that week now for an exchange? The guy who sold us the TS said I could get back to VB at any time, was that a lie? Maybe I should try to get back there for the summer?



It doesn't hurt to try. Was he lying? Well, at the very least stretching the truth. You COULD get a summer beach week but are you likely to? No.  So if he really said "anytime" he was flat out misrepresenting how well it can trade. Summer beach weeks are the cream of the crop. Even bad, unranked resorts that offer those times can pull top resorts and time in other areas. A well ranked resort practically gets a free choice of the best. A mid-range week just doesn't make the cut to grab those very limited times.


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## tschwa2 (Jan 2, 2010)

*Float or fixed*

Does your week float or is it a fixed week 46?  If it floats you can call the resort and see what the best week you can reserve at this point. Another trick for next year is to pay your MF early so you can reserve and/or deposit early.  Even though MF are not due until Dec/Jan (depending on resort) more and more require estimated payments of next years fees to reserve a floating week or even to deposit a fixed week with an exchange company.  

Also some resorts/developers/management companies give some priority to owners giving them a better chance to trade it a better week at the same resort group than someone outside of the group.  Marriott and Starwood have priority in II to their own resorts.  Wyndham does in RCI but I'm not sure about II.  VRI supposedly has it in RCI.  

I own a week 8 in OC,MD about as blue as it gets but I was able to trade into a week 20 after depositing about 10 months in advance, it matched in about 1 month.  If I had waited I possible could have gotten something even closer to summer but maybe not (but I have 2 weeks already booked in Virginia Beach through RCI points -one bedroom Ocean Front and 2 bedroom a block away for week 27 this summer).

If you have only one week, you are also looking at another $250 on top of MF between joining RCI or II and paying an exchange fee.  If you have to travel in the summer you may need to spend the next few years in Williamsburg, Orlando, Branson, and Gatlingburg as they are overbuilt areas that usually have summer availability with much less planning and nail biteing.


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## VA Beach Bum (Jan 2, 2010)

tschwa2 said:


> Does your week float or is it a fixed week 46?  If it floats you can call the resort and see what the best week you can reserve at this point. Another trick for next year is to pay your MF early so you can reserve and/or deposit early.  Even though MF are not due until Dec/Jan (depending on resort) more and more require estimated payments of next years fees to reserve a floating week or even to deposit a fixed week with an exchange company.
> 
> Also some resorts/developers/management companies give some priority to owners giving them a better chance to trade it a better week at the same resort group than someone outside of the group.  Marriott and Starwood have priority in II to their own resorts.  Wyndham does in RCI but I'm not sure about II.  VRI supposedly has it in RCI.
> 
> ...



I appreciate the advice, thank you. I went to  II website only to find most of what I can exchange is the very places you have mentioned.... at others usually an efficiency  I will suck it up and call Gold Key to see what my options really are my week is a float so I may be in luck. Your suggestion about paying the MF in advance is a great one, guess where my tax return is going  One other question; when I log in to II to check my units it lists 2011 there as well, do those MF fees have to be paid before I can utilize it?


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## tschwa2 (Jan 2, 2010)

VA Beach Bum said:


> I appreciate the advice, thank you. I went to  II website only to find most of what I can exchange is the very places you have mentioned.... at others usually an efficiency  I will suck it up and call Gold Key to see what my options really are my week is a float so I may be in luck. Your suggestion about paying the MF in advance is a great one, guess where my tax return is going  One other question; when I log in to II to check my units it lists 2011 there as well, do those MF fees have to be paid before I can utilize it?



I'm new to II too.  I have a couple of dual affiliated resorts and have been only using RCI until about 2 months ago.  In general it use to be that you could deposit and exchange at most resorts ahead of time without paying the MF first. Since the economy took a nose dive and defaults at many resorts are way up, more and more require you to prepay to exchange; check with your resort.  If they require you to you will need to pay before setting up an ongoing search for inventory not yet deposited.  The nice thing about II is you can search the current inventory even if you haven't prepaid and then if you see something you want you can put it on hold and then call up your resort and pay at that time.

It's interesting learning the ropes because there is a lot to learn but you have come to the right place.  There is a lot of knowlegable people on this site.


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## Egret1986 (Jan 2, 2010)

*Agreed.  You will get more out of your timeshare if you work all the angles.*



tschwa2 said:


> It's interesting learning the ropes because there is a lot to learn but you have come to the right place.  There is a lot of knowlegable people on this site.



Especially, when it comes to exchanging.  For most of my 25 years of timesharing, I only owned off-season beach weeks.  I no longer own anything but high season weeks.  But I always got great trades with those weeks and I also had to follow the school schedules.  Learn to work it to your best advantage.


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