HGVC... join now or wait (new external Bay Club owner)

[JEPASVC]

I just purchased a 2 bedroom annual week at the Bay Club via ebay. Our plan is to use it annually, at least for a few years. We are Marriott weeks/point owners and normally spend 4 weeks at Ko Olina on Ohau. The Bay Club usage would be at either before or after our Oahu visit.

The deed was just recorded for the Bay Club (or so I am told) and I am awaiting confirmation that the transfer is complete.

My question is do, I have to join HGVC now ? I do see some benefits to joining if I'm not going to use it as a home resort, but I'm not sure it is worth joining unless I plan on trading. Although we only need a 1 bedroom but my wife doesn't like the fact that all the 1 bedrooms seem to face the parking lot. Is it possible to trade down from a 2 to a 1 and then use the leftover points for other HGVC options ?

What are the other positives and negatives of joining now ?

 

[Mosescan]

I don't believe you have a choice about joining HGVC but someone else will have to speak to that. As far as your points go, you can use them however you want. How many points did you get? A 2 BR gold is 5000 and a 2 BR platinum is 7000 for a week. You could use your points to get a 1 BR during platinum season for 4800 points. You can use this years and next years points and stay for 2 weeks every other year if you wanted to. There is a lot of flexibility with this system. If you want to stay at some of the newer resorts then it's going to cost you a lot more points for a week. I think the newer Hawaiian properties are 10500-14400 points for a week in a 2 BR. The older properties maintain the lower point values. You must book a minimum of 3 nights when using points, otherwise not a lot of restrictions. daily points are doubled for fri, sat and sun nights, so less points if you short stay from Mon to Thurs.

Lots of info in the FAQs.

Enjoy

 

[Talent312]

At affiliates (like Bay Club), you are not required to join HGVC.
If all I wanted to do was use my deeded week, I'd wait to join so as to avoid club dues.
But while you wait, HGVC may raise "activation" fees. Voluntary activation is now $399.

I enrolled my HGVC-affiliate only becuz I wanted the points, not the week I bought.

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[JEPASVC]

At affiliates (like Bay Club), you are not required to join HGVC.
If all I wanted to do was use my deeded week, I'd wait to join so as to avoid club dues.
But while you wait, HGVC may raise "activation" fees. Voluntary activation is now $399.

I enrolled my HGVC-affiliate only becuz I wanted the points, not the week I bought.

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Thanks for that information. Is it 399 per week ? If I wait to join but acquire another week and then want to join is it 399 per week? What if the week in biennial..still 399 ?

 

[Panina]

I join hgvc with my affiliated week even though I plan to use it. I already own a week in the hgvc system.

I paid to enroll it with the one time fee as future joining fees will probably increase.

It keeps me in an instant position to deposit and trade within hgvc.

If I didn't own another hgvc, not sure I would have enrolled the week as then I would have annual dues. With owning an additional week already I am paying those dues anyway.

 

[Talent312]

Thanks for that information. Is it 399 per week? If I wait to join but acquire another week and then want to join, is it 399 per week? What if the week in biennial...still 399?

The answer to each Q is "yes." It's per unit, per week, even if biennial (but it's one-time only).
But if your second week is at a "true" HGVC (mandatory) resort, you'll have to pay more fees.

BTW, when I enrolled my affiliate-unit ~2 years ago, the voluntary fee was $315.

 

[Frasier]

Thanks for that information. Is it 399 per week ? If I wait to join but acquire another week and then want to join is it 399 per week? What if the week in biennial..still 399 ?

I own a Bay Club week in the Villas 8,400 Pts. I just decided to add it to my HGVC account. I had to pay $349.00 times two or $698.00 per week because my deed is listed as an even and odd years. I believe the fee is now $399.00 per interval. I couldn’t seem to get around the double fee as they said I owned one week but two intervals (even & odd). So the fee is per week but could be double depending how your week is listed in your deed as annual or two contracts with even and odd years. I didn’t realize this until I was trying to register it and I thought about not doing it for that amount but went ahead anyway. I was wondering if you can only register the even or the odd but not both? Not sure that is practical or not for point availability only every other year.

My reason for enrolling it was to have access to the points for other properties and room sizes if I choose but I do plan to use the Bay Club as much as I can. Even though I am enrolled in the Club I still have to call the Bay Club directly to book my “Home” week (>276 days) otherwise I can book time through the club within the normal club booking windows.

 

[JEPASVC]

Mine is also an even/odd so I guess I'm looking at $698 to join plus the annual due and probably other "fees".. That is hard to justify If I plan on just using it myself. I think I'll take a raincheck on joining.. Thanks all for your get input.

 

[magmue]

I am a longtime lurker here and proud new owner of 2 platinum weeks per year also at Bay Club - 2 bdrm villa. We gleaned lots of good advice here - thanks Tuggers!
Anyway, my understanding of Hilton enrollment fees is somewhat different. Our unit's original contract was set up as 2 odd years plus 2 even years, so 2 weeks total per year but technically 4 contracts if I understand it correctly. The ebay seller said this in the listing about cost of joining HGVC: "Buyer will be billed directly by HGVC should they elect to convert to HGVC POINTS: $1596 Enrollment Fee; if buyer is a current HGVC points member. $399.00 Enrollment Fee + $170 Club Dues if the buyer is NOT a current HGVC Points owner."
That didn't seem logical and we questioned the agent by phone before deciding to buy. The way he explained it was that a new member could bring all the weeks they owned in at once for one enrollment fee of $399, but an existing member would have to enroll each of the 4 weeks separately to add them to their account, paying 4 x $399.
I'm going to be calling Hilton tomorrow to see about enrolling, so we shall see.

 

[Panina]

I am a longtime lurker here and proud new owner of 2 platinum weeks per year also at Bay Club - 2 bdrm villa. We gleaned lots of good advice here - thanks Tuggers!
Anyway, my understanding of Hilton enrollment fees is somewhat different. Our unit's original contract was set up as 2 odd years plus 2 even years, so 2 weeks total per year but technically 4 contracts if I understand it correctly. The ebay seller said this in the listing about cost of joining HGVC: "Buyer will be billed directly by HGVC should they elect to convert to HGVC POINTS: $1596 Enrollment Fee; if buyer is a current HGVC points member. $399.00 Enrollment Fee + $170 Club Dues if the buyer is NOT a current HGVC Points owner."
That didn't seem logical and we questioned the agent by phone before deciding to buy. The way he explained it was that a new member could bring all the weeks they owned in at once for one enrollment fee of $399, but an existing member would have to enroll each of the 4 weeks separately to add them to their account, paying 4 x $399.
I'm going to be calling Hilton tomorrow to see about enrolling, so we shall see.

Please let us know what you find out.

 

[frank808]

I am a longtime lurker here and proud new owner of 2 platinum weeks per year also at Bay Club - 2 bdrm villa. We gleaned lots of good advice here - thanks Tuggers!
Anyway, my understanding of Hilton enrollment fees is somewhat different. Our unit's original contract was set up as 2 odd years plus 2 even years, so 2 weeks total per year but technically 4 contracts if I understand it correctly. The ebay seller said this in the listing about cost of joining HGVC: "Buyer will be billed directly by HGVC should they elect to convert to HGVC POINTS: $1596 Enrollment Fee; if buyer is a current HGVC points member. $399.00 Enrollment Fee + $170 Club Dues if the buyer is NOT a current HGVC Points owner."
That didn't seem logical and we questioned the agent by phone before deciding to buy. The way he explained it was that a new member could bring all the weeks they owned in at once for one enrollment fee of $399, but an existing member would have to enroll each of the 4 weeks separately to add them to their account, paying 4 x $399.
I'm going to be calling Hilton tomorrow to see about enrolling, so we shall see.

I believe that to enroll both annual units it would be $1596. I think the broker meant if you are already an hgvc club owner you would not have to pay the $170 club fee only. Hgvc charges $399 per interval to enroll (annual is two intervals as it compromises an odd and even component).

Wow prices have sure gone up for enrollment of bayclub weeks. The last bay club unit I enrolled was many years ago. If I remember correctly, originally it was one price for any number of units (about $350). This must have been over 8 years ago. Then it was $250 per interval (back in 2011). Meaning if you wanted to enroll an annual it was $500 or you could enroll just the even or odd year for $250. This was possible with an annual as at that time I didn't want to pay the full $500 for enrollment of odd year week when we were in even year.

I believe you can still enroll either odd or even with hgvc.

I had the email for the lady that used to do all the hgvc activations for bay club. If you want I can pm you her email address. Now I do not know if she still works at hgvc. But she was great to work with and THE person that did ALL the bay club enrollments. Got it done fast, efficient and was a pleasure to work with.

To all recent bay club buyers, what did you pay for your 1br (4800 hgvc points), 2br (7000 hgvc points) and 2br townhouse units (8400 hgvc points) if you don't mind sharing?

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[klpca]

To all recent bay club buyers, what did you pay for your 1br (4800 hgvc points), 2br (7000 hgvc points) and 2br townhouse units (8400 hgvc points) if you don't mind sharing?

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I found a 2 bedroom penthouse unit (eoy) on Sumday for ~ $800 that included a year of free use. This was about a year ago.

 

[JEPASVC]

To all recent bay club buyers, what did you pay for your 1br (4800 hgvc points), 2br (7000 hgvc points) and 2br townhouse units (8400 hgvc points) if you don't mind sharing?

I paid 1500 for an annual 2 bedroom 7000 point unit.

 

[Ralph Sir Edward]

I'm an owner of Bay Club without joining HGVC (personal preference). Here are the limitations/rules.

You have an open period of week 1-50 (mostly) Weeks 51 and 52 were sold separately as extra value weeks. Your booking window starts in December, the year before. For example the 2019 booking window started last month. It is done on paper, and not online. (You are sent a paper form to fill out.) The entire window is open for booking at that time from week 1 to week 50. You will get notification back in a couple of months. (They juggle the pile of paper to try to get everybody what they want.) I usually go for January, as February is usually too high of a demand for my needs.

You can only book the type of room you purchased. There are 9 types. (There is a attachment with them somewhere on TUG but I have lost the link - I downloaded the file to keep handy a while back). So if you purchased an "A" Penthouse, you can only reserve an "A" Penthouse, and no other type.)

A. UNIT TYPES. The Units in this Program are currently divided into nine (9) types, as follows:
TYPE I UNITS. Deluxe one bedroom, with sleeping accommodations for up to four (4) persons.
TYPE II UNITS. Deluxe two bedrooms, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE III UNITS. Penthouse one bedroom, with sleeping accommodations for up to four (4) persons.
TYPE IV UNITS. Penthouse two bedrooms, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE V UNITS. Grand Villa two bedrooms, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE VI UNITS. Deluxe two bedrooms, A floor plan, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE VII UNITS. Deluxe two bedrooms, B floor plan, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE VIII UNITS. Penthouse two bedrooms, A floor plan, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.
TYPE IX UNITS. Penthouse two bedrooms, B floor plan, with sleeping accommodations for up to six (6) persons.

In addition, you can only book a week at a time. No individual days.

But it doesn't stop there! Weeks cannot be block booked. Each week is booked separately (its own piece of paper). You can request that your ressies be blocked together, and so far I haven't had a problem getting them together in January, but the booking process is different than Marriott's multi week process.

Finally, each room is assign a day of the week for it's start/stop period. Some start on Thursday, some Friday, some Saturday, and some Sunday. If you want a specific room, you have to adjust your stay period to match the room's availability. No flexibility on room/day of week assignment.

Those are the limitations. The advantage is you get first crack at the inventory, ahead of ALL points users. And you don't have to pay any extra fees, other than re-reservation fees if you are inside the 6 month use window.

So, if this is what you want, (and for me it is), you can't beat the space/cost MF ratio. This year I paid $1553 a week for an "A' penthouse. 1900+ sq feet (including the lanai). No ocean view on any of them, (except a distant peek-a-boo on some units), but I don't want to pay for a view. Just warm winds and peace. . . .

 

[SmithOp]

I will add that even though there is a cheaper gold season in HGVC, all units convert to the higher platinum point values.


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[magmue]

Frank808 said: "I believe that to enroll both annual units it would be $1596. I think the broker meant if you are already an hgvc club owner you would not have to pay the $170 club fee only. Hgvc charges $399 per interval to enroll (annual is two intervals as it compromises an odd and even component)."

Just finished filling out our Inventory Activation Agreement for HGVC and our agent was correct - $399 for "first time club enrollment" plus the $170 first year club dues = total of $569.
The form also confirms that if we were already HGVC club members, we would have to pay an enrollment fee "per interval" of $360 each. Seems backwards and punitive to charge current club members so differently for adding to their Hilton portfolio.

 

[frank808]

Frank808 said: "I believe that to enroll both annual units it would be $1596. I think the broker meant if you are already an hgvc club owner you would not have to pay the $170 club fee only. Hgvc charges $399 per interval to enroll (annual is two intervals as it compromises an odd and even component)."

Just finished filling out our Inventory Activation Agreement for HGVC and our agent was correct - $399 for "first time club enrollment" plus the $170 first year club dues = total of $569.
The form also confirms that if we were already HGVC club members, we would have to pay an enrollment fee "per interval" of $360 each. Seems backwards and punitive to charge current club members so differently for adding to their Hilton portfolio.

If that what the form says that must be the policy.

Would not enroll any bay club weeks until you have made sure that you have all the weeks you want to enroll. They you can enroll them all for one fee.

I would have saved a few thousand dollars if this was offered when I enrolled my weeks.

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[frank808]

Also my contact has retired from hgvc. Called her direct number and was told she retired a few years ago.

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[JEPASVC]

I'm an owner of Bay Club without joining HGVC (personal preference). Here are the limitations/rules.

You have an open period of week 1-50 (mostly) Weeks 51 and 52 were sold separately as extra value weeks. Your booking window starts in December, the year . . . .

Thank You!