All,
It is a pleasure to read these posts and see the different views. Especially interesting to see the perspective of others who may not like a property that is a favorite of mine -- interesting to read! I hope people who have visited Vistana properties include those as well, as I believe we will have some level of access to those properties in the future.
My favorites are:
- Marriott Maui Ocean Club -- beautiful grounds, beautiful view of adjacent islands, good (not great) beach, walkable to shops/restaurants, grassy beach front, cabanas, excellent units. And Maui is a spectacular island
- Ritz Carlton St. Thomas -- Great Bay is the best ocean access of any timeshare I have visited -- beautiful view and warm clear water, St. John is beautiful in the distance, timeshare has adjacent access to the 5-star Ritz hotel, unit appointments that are a step above our Marriott timeshares, if we lived on the east coast, this would be our #1
- Marriott Ko Olina -- we love the sunset view and the great grills by Naia tower, we like the lagoon as it is a safer ocean access for children, we like the Longboard's restaurant and its elevated view towards the lagoon, the reflection pool provides a serene location, and the property isn't crowded like other properties (like Hyatt Kaanapali, Aulani, Nanea -- the properties built 20 years ago are very different than properties being built now)
- Hilton Hawaiian Village -- I know it's not Marriott, but this is where I would have put HHV
- Westin Princeville -- we love being on the north shore of Kauai -- we only go in Summer, so the rain is manageable. Hanalei Bay is fantastic and there are many hikes on the north side that we love. Beautiful grounds and property and striking view over the bluff.
- Marriott Grande Ocean - beautiful property and grounds, right on the beach -- great access to Sea Pines and great restaurants on the island
- HGVC Kings Land -- I know it's not Marriott, but this is where I would have put Kings Land
- Marriott Summit Watch -- units are comfortable, property is very well located by the Town Lift, easy walk to great shops/restaurants, a lovely ski property
- Custom House -- very charming property, different from any other timeshare we've visited -- unique room layout, very well located, beautiful view from the top of the property, a great way to visit Boston
- Marriott Aruba Ocean Club -- great property with good pool infastructure and swim-up bar. Didn't feel crowded and wonderful beach right on-site. The unit itself showed some wear and tear and there were little maintenance items that we noticed.
- Marriott Kauai Lagoons -- beautiful units, consistent with being a property built for fractional sales, incredible balcony with beautiful ocean view and waves crashing onto the mountain in the distance, pool was a disappointment considering pool infrastructure at other properties. Lots of frogs that pee on you when you pick them up.
- Marriott Imperial/Sabal Palms -- Sabal has the best rooms and is easiest walk to the adjacent to the Orlando World Center. We love the OWC and spent all of our pool time there versus at the timeshare. The third bedroom at Imperial was necessary when we had the grandparents with us, but otherwise it was a little too far to OWC, making the shuttle more of a requirement. We will return to Sabal when we go to Orlando.
Others: I love all of the properties above and can see myself returning to any/all both because I like the property and I like the location. I also like the properties below but returning there would be more because of an opportunistic II trade or because there is something about the location I want to return to, and the timeshare merely facilitates the location.
- Marriott Shadow Ridge/Marriott Canyon Villas/Sheraton Desert Oasis -- these are all the same property -- functional unit that doesn't disappoint but doesn't inspire -- desert property with on-site pool to cool you down, grills for cooking and some cactus. Shadow Ridge has the best pool infrastructure, but that is because of it's much larger overall size. SDO and MCV have Spring Training and therefore I will definitely return, but I'm coming for Padres spring training and the timeshare is just along for the ride. Will be back to Shadow Ridge because of the easy access from SD.
- Westin Kaanapali/Kaanapali North/Nanea -- I've always preferred MOC to Kaanapali, probably just because I found it first. I think MOC has superior views (less trees/shrubs) and I love that you can sit on a cabana that is both ocean-front, and on grass. WKORVN has a much better beach and snorkel option off-property which is a Major plus and others prefer the "modern" furnishings of Westin properties. So there are definitely advantages that WKORV has over MOC and I only list it this far down because MOC is my go-to for Maui. However, I would take an II trade into WKORV over a points reservation at MOC in a heartbeat.
- Harborside Resort at Atlantis -- good timeshare property entirely because of it's access to Atlantis waterpark. Harborside has it's own pool facility that is good -- similar to Shadow Ridge -- just a really big pool with some basic water features. Atlantis is the talent. The rooms themselves are bigger than the typical timeshare (at least the 2BR Lockoff was) but the unit showed wear and tear, similar to Aruba Ocean Club.
- Marriott Kauai Beach Club -- loved the pool and the waves crashing onto the beach, but the rooms feel like a hotel room. Beautiful ocean-front location and great access to on-site restaurants.
- Westin Lagunamar -- big property, beautiful view of the ocean from most units, huge pool with great swim-up bar options, big beach right on-site, rough ocean waves make it less accessible than we expected, didn't love the restaurants in Cancun. Xplor is a great excursion though from the property -- very rare and great for families.
- Marriott Cypress Harbour -- standard timeshare rooms, but property, nice pool infrastructure which is great for the children. Centrally located for Disney. I liked CH but prefer Sabal because big room and access to OWC
- Worldmark Elysian Beach -- okay now I'm really off the reservation but I want to put this little property on the radar -- they are only Studio units but they are on the east side of St. Thomas right next to the Ritz. Terrific beach and on-site restaurant and this is a very cost-effective vacation destination. We can foresee a scenario where we book a 2BR unit at the Ritz and book a number of overflow units at the Elysian to invite friends. Good timeshare gem and one of my favorite timeshare days was when Worldmark added it to their portfolio (it is a Wyndham property).
Others where I am less eager to return for a stay:
- HGVC Flamingo -- I guess this is more of a reality that I'm not a Vegas guy than an accurate statement on the timeshare. The property has access to the Flamingo's Go Pool (because the hotel needed the land that the timeshare had) so if you want a Vegas pool experience, you will like Flamingo. The room smelled like smoke, the city smelled like Vegas and everybody at the pool was 30 years younger than me.
- Marriott Lakeshore Reserve -- we had high expectations for this property because of its rating and reputation. We were underwhelmed by the pool infrastructure and while the units were superior to other timeshares, I never got the hype on this property. To be fair, I didn't go to the JW Marriott (or Ritz?), whichever one it has access to, which always influences my experience, but I wouldn't return to Lakeshore Return, preferring CH or Sabal
- Aulani -- the waterpark is terrific and we reserve a Studio unit there when we are staying at Marriott Ko Olina, just so we can use the waterpark. But it is a really crowded property and getting a chaise lounge is very very difficult. I think it's a great short stay addition to a longer Hawaii trip but don't see this as a 7 day vacation for my family.
Resorts to come:
I have my first trip at Waiohai next month and I'm very excited for it. I hope to add Mountainside and Frenchman's Cove to the list in the future, but don't have trips planned. It was interesting to me as I was created the list as I realized that how I booked the reservation was important to me. Hence the comment about an II trade versus DC Points. I am very cautious about spending precious DC points and only use them when I've exhausted pretty much every other way to access a property. I think my note is way beyond the original intent of the OP and I apologize for the long and rambling message. My thanks to those of you with the fortitude to have read the entire message -- you have shown great perseverance! Interesting stuff.
Best,
Greg
