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How hard to get a RCI Exchange into Glacier Park

I

Icc5

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Joined
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Location
Los Altos, California (Northern Ca.)
Is Glacier Park always hard to get an exchange into it? We are trying to go the week of Sept. 11th. We put in a few months ago but nothing comes up. Is it so popular? There seems to be plenty of resorts there and school should be back in session so why should it be totally booked up?
 
Icc5 said:
Is Glacier Park always hard to get an exchange into it? We are trying to go the week of Sept. 11th. We put in a few months ago but nothing comes up. Is it so popular? There seems to be plenty of resorts there and school should be back in session so why should it be totally booked up?
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You're trying to exchange into an area with a very short travel season. Chances are good everything for this year was reserved last year. When i got my exchange to Glacier Wilderness Resort, it was done two years out. So you may be too late for this year.

Dave
 
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Thanks

Thank you Dave. Didn't realize the season was such a short one. It seemed like there were several resorts so I had figured, no problem. We already had a week booked in Idaho so we had figured just adding Glacier to it. We usually go for at least two weeks when we fly somewhere just to make it more worth the trip.
Bart
 
People who own those few weeks, cherish them. You're very unlikely to find one in inventory. With luck and an ongoing request you might find one.

Jim
 
Alot of the inventory there is managed by GPX show shows up in the RCI points and not in the RCI weeks side. It starts appearing about 9 months out. My Worlmark (RCI Weeks) didn't find anything but my HGVC (RCI weeks & points) did. I got my July dates at Meadow Lake about 9 months out. Someone else I know got her OGS for September filled about 9 months out. So you have probably to late except for cancellations. Put in an OGS for as many resorts as possible and hope for a cancellation.

Ian
 
Icc5 said:
Thank you Dave. Didn't realize the season was such a short one. It seemed like there were several resorts so I had figured, no problem. We already had a week booked in Idaho so we had figured just adding Glacier to it. We usually go for at least two weeks when we fly somewhere just to make it more worth the trip.
Bart
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Bart, the key to seeing the Glacier National Park area is the weather, and snow accumulation. Elevation is pretty high up, and it's all mountainous country. It can (and often does) snow into June. Then it can start up again around the first part of September, and snow until the following June. Snow in July and August are not unknown. Obviously, snowfall seriously impacts the ability to get around in the park. There is only one main road through the park, and if it's closed, well, it's closed. It's all well and good to see the perimeter area, but the best parts of the park may be inaccessible because of the snowpack.

The "Going to the Sun Road" is the part of the one road through the park that goes up and over the Continental Divide, connecting the West and East sides of the park. It is an incredible drive, and is the main reason many go to Glacier. Plowing it to get it open to traffic is often interrupted by snowfalls, snow slides, and such. The road often isn't fully cleared until well in July, and by late August, the snow starts up again, and the road closes for the rest of the year.

There are a number of timeshares in the area, that's true. But to reserve a week during the prime visiting season is a premium. Early September is still considered good travel time, (although the GTTS Road may be closed by then.)

If you're locked into that week, my suggestion is to try and rent directly from one of the resorts or a hotel, rent from an owner at one of the resorts, or see if a mega renter on Tug can help you out. (Ron Parise is highly recommended; there may be others.)

Glacier is incredible, and is well worth seeing. My reservation was made two years out, and the first week of June was as good as I could get. There was a lot of snow on the sides of the road, the GTTS road was still closed, and parts of the park were not yet open. In spite of that, I'd go again anytime. it's THAT nice there. :)

Good luck!
Dave
 
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Icc5 said:
Is Glacier Park always hard to get an exchange into it? We are trying to go the week of Sept. 11th. We put in a few months ago but nothing comes up. Is it so popular? There seems to be plenty of resorts there and school should be back in session so why should it be totally booked up?
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RCI weeks currently shows Meadow Lake available for check in Sep 20 & 27 (16 and 20 TPU). Most of the facilities generally start closing around labor day. We've been there several times and every time has been amazing.

Last year I had a last minute 2 bedroom booked at Edelweiss in Whitefish. It is a 45 minute drive to the park but it was still worth it. You may want to watch out for last minute availability, you may get lucky.

Here is a website that will give you more information on the park

http://www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm
 
My Education

Thank you everyone for the replies and information. Never did any research on the area because my wife picked this area after we had booked another week on this trip and wanted to see a place we hadn't been before. You have really opened my eyes to the area and the reasons why it is hard to get.
Very much appreciated.
Bart
 
LisaH said:
Which resorts are good for visiting Glacier National Park?
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Hi Lisa

We own at Meadow Lake and love it there. The closest resort would be Glacier Wilderness but it is very remote. Meadow Lake is very close and the others would be further away. GPR is no longer managing Meadow Lake as they didn't renew the contract. I don't know why but will find out in May when we go there. Sept is usually very nice weather and should be easier to get especially if you have RCI Points.

Lynn
 
Wow, GPR lost Meadow lake. Maybe it was their mandatory resort fee that did them in. I wonder if they lost the other resorts right in the same area that they were managing as well. Can't wait to hear what happened.

I checked with Worldmark RCI Weeks and as TravelManiac said Sep 20 is showing at meadow lake. With RCI points Glacier Village, Marina Cay and Nenastako, has a few odd days in the beginning of Sep. Meadow lake is wide open from Sep 7 on. But for the dates you want only a studio is available.

Ian
 
LynnW said:
Hi Lisa

We own at Meadow Lake and love it there. The closest resort would be Glacier Wilderness but it is very remote. Meadow Lake is very close and the others would be further away. GPR is no longer managing Meadow Lake as they didn't renew the contract. I don't know why but will find out in May when we go there. Sept is usually very nice weather and should be easier to get especially if you have RCI Points.

Lynn
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Thanks Lynn! I will look into Meadow Lake for Sep 2016.
 
The RCI resort directory has dropped GPR from all their resorts

PassionForTravel said:
Wow, GPR lost Meadow lake. Maybe it was their mandatory resort fee that did them in. I wonder if they lost the other resorts right in the same area that they were managing as well. Can't wait to hear what happened.

I checked with Worldmark RCI Weeks and as TravelManiac said Sep 20 is showing at meadow lake. With RCI points Glacier Village, Marina Cay and Nenastako, has a few odd days in the beginning of Sep. Meadow lake is wide open from Sep 7 on. But for the dates you want only a studio is available.

Ian
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Previously the RCI directory listed the Montana GPR resorts as "GPR at . . .". Now none of them say GPR. So it's a fair guess that GPR doesn't manage any of them anymore.

I just checked the GPR website, and they don't list any of the Montana resorts there either.
 
LynnW said:
GPR is no longer managing Meadow Lake as they didn't renew the contract. I don't know why but will find out in May when we go there.
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We stayed there on exchange last August and at least a couple employees were openly bad-mouthing GPR to guests (at least to us anyway). Apparently they reduced staffing levels and cut back hours/wages. Disgruntled staff probably doesn't help guest experience.
 
It will be interesting to see what has changed when we go in May.

We stayed overnight in Helena MT on Thurs and heard on the radio that the Going to the Sun road will be open in a few days. I have never heard of it being open in April. The last time we drove it was the middle of June and that was the first day it opened.

Lynn
 
I just received an OGS match for Edelweiss - 4th of July week 2016. It wasn't my first choice resort but I'm thinking of keeping the match unless you think I should hold out for something else. How is this match? What's the chance of something at Meadow Lake or Glacier Wilderness in July 2016?
 
Do you have RCI points or only weeks? If points pretty good, we got meadow lake for this July using points. But point inventory doesn't become available until 9 months (or 10 can't remember) out. But that may change with the change in management company. When I looked and saw tons on inventory on the points side there was nothing in weeks. It's possible a weeks OGS might have matched.

Ian
 
This past January I noticed two Aug 2015 weeks for 1 bdrm Meadow Lake units available for 27 TPU's each. I was very surprised. At the time I did not have enough TPU's in my account so I had to hurry and deposit. I was so happy to snag one of those weeks. :banana:
 
This could change now, but when GPR was managing, they were bulk-depositing Meadow Lake at 8 months out. (I know this because I was checking every few days for months, for a September week myself.)
 
Wanted to book car/flight for rest of trip

We decided to book into a hotel for 3 days to add to the rest of our trip. We figure if we need more time we will try booking out 2 years in advance next time.
 
Icc5 said:
We decided to book into a hotel for 3 days to add to the rest of our trip. We figure if we need more time we will try booking out 2 years in advance next time.
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That's a good choice. If the weather is decent, you can see a lot in three days. Where did you book the hotel?

Dave
 
SO what or who is GPR..

this site is getting to be like a lot of the ford diesel truck sites with all the acronyms that only a hand full know.

By the way it sounds like this GPR is not a good management company with high fees and such..


Laurie said:
This could change now, but when GPR was managing, they were bulk-depositing Meadow Lake at 8 months out. (I know this because I was checking every few days for months, for a September week myself.)
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GPR (Grand Pacific Resorts) (GPX in my first post was a typo) it's a management company and Timeshare developer. Their most notable issue in the last number of years was getting in over their head when the economy tanked and having to sell rights to finish developing and selling Marbrisa in Carlsbad, CA to HGVC (Hilton Grand Vacations).

I don't have any first hand experience (other than knowing they change a resort fee for exchangers which I don't like) but they can't be all bad because last year they won won management rights for a number of Kauai resorts that were managed by Wyndham.

Ian
 
PassionForTravel said:
Wow, GPR lost Meadow lake. Maybe it was their mandatory resort fee that did them in.
Click to expand...
The mandatory resort fee was, and still is/will be, $12/day. I just called the desk to inquire.
 
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