- Joined
- Jul 8, 2012
- Messages
- 1,472
- Reaction score
- 1,287
- Points
- 374
- Location
- Living Aloha in Kaneohe, HI
- Resorts Owned
-
Marriott G. Château
HVC Sedona Summit
VVR The Colonies
In 2018, I'll have spent 4 weeks in Hawaii on 3 exchanges from 3 exchange companies and 1 Encore purchase. I exchanged 1 Marriott week and 3 Vacation Village weeks. My Encore package was a return to Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club. The 3 exchange companies I used were II, SFX, and RCI. I thought I'd share/document the cost for each. The $ will be slightly skewed based on the MF of the unit exchanged. My Marriott MF isn't exact, but it's close enough. In addition, the membership $ below doesn't account for multiple timeshares in an exchange company. For instance, I trade 3 weeks/yr through II so my membership cost (not exchange fee) for my unit is $29.67, but I based the below on 1 exchange/yr.
Summary: SFX was least expensive; RCI was most expensive. SFX exchange cost was $249; total cost including MF was $676.50! II exchange cost was $268; total cost for the week was $1178 (I used a Marriott to trade so MF is higher than my other exchange MF). RCI exchange fee was a whopping $423, total cost was $1278 since I had to use my entire 4BR to get into the 2BR I wanted. Details below.
SFX
Unit Exchanged: The Colonies at Williamsburg - 2BR portion of 4BR LO
Unit Received: 2BR Kohala Suites by Hilton Grand Vacations Club
When: August 2018
Exchange cost: $249
- SFX membership: $100
- SFX exchange fee: $149
MF: $427.50 (1/2 of 4BR total)
Total: $676.50!
II
Unit Exchanged: Marriott's Grand Chateau - 2BR portion of 3BR LO
Unit Received: 2BR Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club
When: April 2018
Exchange cost: $308
- II membership: $89
- II exchange fee: $179
- Marriott LO fee: $40 (1/2 total)
MF: $910 (1/2 of 3BR total)
Total: $1218
RCI
Unit Exchanged: The Colonies at Williamsburg - 4BR (locked off as 2 2BR to maximize TPU)
Unit Received: 2BR The Bay Club At Waikoloa Beach Resort
When: August 2018
Exchange cost: $423
- RCI membership: $50 (I had a special offer of $100 for 2 years)
- RCI exchange fee: $239
- RCI combine TPUs: $134
MF: $855
Total: $1278
As you can see, SFX and II are comparable in exchange fees and would have been comparable for total cost if I had used my VV unit for II. II exchange would have been only $695.5 (I have exchanged the VV 2BR unit for HI in the past). RCI exchange cost would have been comparable if I didn't have to combine my deposits to get to the required trading power.
Even though RCI was the most expensive, they were the only company with a 2BR exchange on the BI during the week I needed. I'm not defending their cost. I actually find they are too expensive for my liking so I'm not going to renew my membership when it expires in 1.5 years; and I probably won't do another trade again. That decision will add $50 to the price of my exchange.
I'm still happy with my overall cost for my 2 weeks on the Big Island next month. It's costing me $1954.50 for the 2 weeks in 2BR units!
Summary: SFX was least expensive; RCI was most expensive. SFX exchange cost was $249; total cost including MF was $676.50! II exchange cost was $268; total cost for the week was $1178 (I used a Marriott to trade so MF is higher than my other exchange MF). RCI exchange fee was a whopping $423, total cost was $1278 since I had to use my entire 4BR to get into the 2BR I wanted. Details below.
SFX
Unit Exchanged: The Colonies at Williamsburg - 2BR portion of 4BR LO
Unit Received: 2BR Kohala Suites by Hilton Grand Vacations Club
When: August 2018
Exchange cost: $249
- SFX membership: $100
- SFX exchange fee: $149
MF: $427.50 (1/2 of 4BR total)
Total: $676.50!
II
Unit Exchanged: Marriott's Grand Chateau - 2BR portion of 3BR LO
Unit Received: 2BR Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club
When: April 2018
Exchange cost: $308
- II membership: $89
- II exchange fee: $179
- Marriott LO fee: $40 (1/2 total)
MF: $910 (1/2 of 3BR total)
Total: $1218
RCI
Unit Exchanged: The Colonies at Williamsburg - 4BR (locked off as 2 2BR to maximize TPU)
Unit Received: 2BR The Bay Club At Waikoloa Beach Resort
When: August 2018
Exchange cost: $423
- RCI membership: $50 (I had a special offer of $100 for 2 years)
- RCI exchange fee: $239
- RCI combine TPUs: $134
MF: $855
Total: $1278
As you can see, SFX and II are comparable in exchange fees and would have been comparable for total cost if I had used my VV unit for II. II exchange would have been only $695.5 (I have exchanged the VV 2BR unit for HI in the past). RCI exchange cost would have been comparable if I didn't have to combine my deposits to get to the required trading power.
Even though RCI was the most expensive, they were the only company with a 2BR exchange on the BI during the week I needed. I'm not defending their cost. I actually find they are too expensive for my liking so I'm not going to renew my membership when it expires in 1.5 years; and I probably won't do another trade again. That decision will add $50 to the price of my exchange.
I'm still happy with my overall cost for my 2 weeks on the Big Island next month. It's costing me $1954.50 for the 2 weeks in 2BR units!
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