Silverdollar
TUG Member
Yes, the discount and upgrades to larger units are within the 60-day booking window that comes with VIP. But, to clarify, VIP Platinum gets a 50% discount, VIP Gold gets 35% discount, and VIP Silver gets 25% discount in the 60-day window. And, VIP Platinum gets unit size upgrades within 60 days of check-in, VIP Gold gets upgrades within 45 days of check-in, and VIP Silver gets upgrades within 30 days of check-in.Got it thanks! So when you say you used more than half your points at a 50% discount I’m assuming you mean within the 60 day booking window that comes with VIP? And these were all for your own vacations as opposed to points used for rentals? How do VIP Platinum folks typically transact rentals? Do you advertise somewhere? Do you advertise the points to others or actual weeks of booked vacations that you book beforehand? Just trying to better understand the specific process used to use points for rentals to cover MFs here.
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Most all my points used for rentals were 50% discount and upgrades to larger units. Points used for vacations were a mix of discounts/upgrades and bookings well in advance in order to get what I wanted, where I wanted, and to book specific unit numbers, which is a benefit available to VIP Gold and Platinum.
I don't know how other VIP Platinum owners typically transact rentals. Personally, I list my rentals on a well known timeshare rental site. I advertise actual weeks that I book beforehand. When booking, I use a simple six step process that works for me.
It is almost impossible for non-VIP owners to compete on rental prices with VIP Platinum owners. Let's consider a week at a particular Wyndham resort in prime season in a 2 BR unit for 224,000 points. A VIP Platinum owner can book a 1 BR unit at that same resort (in the 60-day window) that would normally be 166,000 points at a 50% discount or 83,000 points and then upgrade it to a 2 BR unit for no additional points.
If the VIP Platinum owner has CWA, those points are worth about $6 per 1000. So, 83,000 points x $6 = $498. That 2 BR unit can be rented for $900-$1,200 (sometimes more). That same 2 BR unit would cost a non-VIP owner with CWA 224,000 points x $6 = $1,344, or almost triple what it costs VIP Platinum.
Not only can the Platinum owner rent (or vacation at) the 2 BR unit for 83k points, it leaves them with 141k points (which is the difference between the 224k and 83k) they can use to rent or vacation elsewhere.
Is inventory and upgrades always available? No. Can you always get your asking price. No. But, if you don't receive any offers, or the price you want, you can always cancel more than 15 days from check-in and get your points back. And since VIP Platinum has unlimited housekeeping credits, unlimited reservation transactions, and plenty of guest certificates, it doesn't cost anything to cancel. Further, with the Points deposit feature, VIP Platinum has until the last day of the year to decide whether to deposit leftover points into the next year, or the following year.
You might ask, what about availability within the 60-day window? And, is it worth anything? All I can say is I've been able to rent enough units this year to pay all my MFs (and more) within the first three months of the year, and still have plenty of points left over to vacation. The key is to know the resorts and seasons to look for. This is something you learn over time.