Best for Trading

[TravelingMom77]

Hello--We are interested in getting a timeshare that will have decent trading power because we aren't interested in going to the same place every year. One option was to try to get the 4 Seasons Aviara as a resale property and use II or Elite Alliance to trade. Does anyone have a sense of how hard trading is with this property? Would we be better off doing something like the Westin in Maui (although the buy-in for this would be much higher)?

Any insights would be awesome!

 

[VacationForever]

You are naming resorts that have very high MF which are not cost effective to use as traders. People buy these high MF timeshare to either stay there or rent them out.

If your intention is to have variety of locations that you want to visit, you should look at a point system timeshare as it gives flexibiliy, ease of booking and avoid ever escalating exchange fees. Trading is a crapshoot and can be frustrating. It works if you are flexible with what you can trade into and in shoulder season.

 

[DeniseM]

I agree with VacationForever - depositing the Westin or Aviara with an exchange company is like depositing your Mercedes into a pool of Chevys. In other words, you will almost never get equal value for your trade. This isn't because these resorts don't have high trading power - it's because the availability of the top resorts is very limited to exchange into.

First, we need to know where you want to go:

-What region?

-What resorts?

-What exchange company?

I recommend that you complete this survey: https://www.tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?threads/what-to-buy-questions-for-newbies.208742/

 

[bnoble]

This isn't the question you asked, but: I would not buy something intending to exchange it. If I wanted to have a variety of destinations, I would instead buy into a points-based system with several destinations of interest. The exchange game is complicated, ever-changing, and not nearly as leveraged as it once was.

 

[TravelingMom77]

So in answer to your questions: I think that we would generally want to be staying at Westin-type properties (so generally 4* or higher). We're particularly interested in going to Hawaii but probably not on a regular basis--maybe every 3 years or so. We also love going to Disney, but we have young children right now, and so we wondered if it made sense to buy there because we might not want it in the long-term.

My sense is that II gives more resorts that fit our categories than RCI, but you all probably know better than I do.

I agree with VacationForever - depositing the Westin or Aviara with an exchange company is like depositing your Mercedes into a pool of Chevys. In other words, you will almost never get equal value for your trade. This isn't because these resorts don't have high trading power - it's because the availability of the top resorts is very limited to exchange into.

First, we need to know where you want to go:

-What region?

-What resorts?

-What exchange company?

I recommend that you complete this survey: https://www.tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?threads/what-to-buy-questions-for-newbies.208742/

 

[TravelingMom77]

This isn't the question you asked, but: I would not buy something intending to exchange it. If I wanted to have a variety of destinations, I would instead buy into a points-based system with several destinations of interest. The exchange game is complicated, ever-changing, and not nearly as leveraged as it once was.

Thanks for this! What do you think the most flexible point-based systems are?

 

[VacationForever]

Thanks for this! What do you think the most flexible point-based systems are?

Since you are looking at high end resorts, Marriott's point system has the most 4-5 timeshare locations. You can buy in the resale market, usually going around $4 per point + another $3 per point payable to Marriott to make the resale point "whole", i.e. with the same booking privileges as a developer purchased point. There is ROFR for Marriott points.

You should look under the Marriott sub-forum and look at the sticky that says Destination Club points.

https://tugbbs.com/forums/index.php?threads/faq-mvc-destinations-points-program.197346/

 

[TravelingMom77]

Awesome--and are there any particular resorts you would recommend?

 

[VacationForever]

Awesome--and are there any particular resorts you would recommend?

Points.... No specific resort. Points can be used to book any resort within the point system. Resort agnostic.

 

[DeniseM]

Why not buy a Westin/Sheraton/Vistana Resort with Staroptions (timeshare points) on the resale market? Then you can use it for Hawaii, and a variety of other places, without using an exchange company. You can just use your Staroptions to make reservations within the Westin/Vistana System. If you like Disney, then Sheraton Vistana Villages may be the best re-sale option for you, and you can use the Staroptions at all of the resorts in the sytem.

Westin/Vistana FAQ (#9 and 19 discussing buying resale) - https://tugbbs.com/forums/index.php...-to-timesharing-or-starwood-start-here.63224/

 

[TravelingMom77]

Thank you so much for all of this help! I started looking at the Westin resorts--how hard is it to use Staroptions? And do you have feelings about the Hyatt brand as opposed to Vistana?

 

[LisaH]

They are both top notch, plus Marriott. By one of each

 

[TravelingMom77]

Love the positive energy! Okay--spoke with spouse last night. We've stayed at the Westin Kierland Villas, the Westin Ka'anapali and Sheraton Vistana, and have positive experiences at all three. I know the maintenance fees in Hawaii are highest--am I correct that we probably want to just choose the property with the lowest maintenance fees because we can go to other properties so long as we have the correct number of points? (We live in Texas and a trip to Hawaii is probably too much for us to manage every year, but every third might be nice!)

 

[taterhed]

You're close:

Home bookings on VSE are at 12 mos and location is based on timestamp for the reservation. Tough weeks/locations can book-out in minutes.
SO bookings on VSE are at 8 mos and can only be made if available. High demand weeks/locations may/will be unavailable for booking via SO's or only smaller units might be available etc...

If you could travel off-season and/or be flexible, you might be able to book via SO's in Hawaii. No guarantees. Lot's of good reading and experience in the VSE thread.
Westins do show up on Interval (including good weeks in Hi @ Nanea) but the success of trading into good resorts is directly related to the diligence of the owner in monitoring availability. There are frequently good resorts in HI available on Interval with Marriot; KoOlina and Maui are there as well as Waiohai and Kauai Beach. Again, it's not easy, it's possible.

I bought Marriotts and Worldmark with the express desire to trade and have had good success. If you're interested in buying a trader--not for the feint of heart--Marriott has preference in trades with other Marriot properties in II. I believe VSE also has some trade preference in Interval with other VSE resorts.....

 

[GT75]

What do you think the most flexible point-based systems are?

I think that you should also consider HGVC (Hilton Grand Vacation Club). IMO, it is a very flexible point-based system. It doesn’t have as many resorts as MVC. If you wanted to trade outside of the club then it uses RCI. I wouldn’t recommend purchases, if your intent was to normally trade via an exchange company. I personnally have never used RCI, but I traveled via the resorts in the club.