[ 2022 ] Club Wyndham vs Hilton Grand Vacation Club vs Marriott Vacation Club (CW vs HGVC vs MVC)

[dayooper]

Actually, Club Wyndham charges a "program fee" of $0.66 or $0.68 per 1,000 points (depending on whether you have any retail points in the account) with minimum amounts of around $185 for an account IIRC. That is the equivalent of the HGVC club dues and pays for the ability to book within the system using points and a few other things. If you own the equivalent deed at a Club Wyndham managed resort but don't have it in the system, for example a 2 BR Deluxe at Bali Hai that would yield 325,000 points, the program fee would be $214.50 (for resale points) while both would have the same underlying maintenance fee.

One thing HGVC has is a club booking fee of $59 (unless you purchase a Hilton Club deed and pay for unlimited booking). Still not a bad deal, though.

 

[cbyrne1174]

Why do you feel like you HAVE to choose between them? I have Wyndham and Marriott and if anything they work the best when you own both. Marriott points have pretty high maintenance fees, but the resorts are nicer so I prefer to do II exchanges to get into them. That said, I can only stay exactly 7 nights at a property. What do I do if I want more nights? Stay at the Wyndham nearby....

I'm in St Thomas right now enjoying the 2 bedroom Marriott room I got for $1150/week that retails for $800/night online. If I were to book with Marriott points, it would have costed me twice as much. I just left the Wyndham Limetree that is only 5 mins away from the Marriott and it was about $50/night cheaper than the Marriott. I did 5 nights there in a studio loft because I like doing 12 nights to save a lot on points (10 weeknight and 2 weekend nights). The Marriott was obviously the better deal when you look at room size and amenities, but I can only book exactly 7 nights so Wyndham points are an amazing addon because they're a lot cheaper than Marriott points.

 

[goaliedave]

For me it's all about location and ease of booking, all the USA ones are equal to me. Four Seasons and the Asian timeshares like Anantara are higher quality if you travel Asia primarily. Diamond has the best monthly sales and unique tricks for cheap bookings.

 

[yoprabhat1]

I think 15000 would be more than enough for most locations, even 100% covering prime season. I would buy Las Vegas, where maintenance fees are very reasonable, especially for larger contracts. For example, this is only $75 more than my 5440 point timeshare, with double the points:

Thanks. I hope one can mix and match points from any number of deeds and use them together as though i had a big consolidated pool.
Does it matter how you get points - which type of season bronze/silver/gold/platinum, 1BR/2BR/3BR and which property? At the end does it simply boil down to how many points does each deed gets you or you have to consider other factors while buying a deed? HGVC deed and point system are more complex than CW. CW is very straight forward with no complications arising from seasons attached to a deed/contract; they all just convert to a set number of points

Also, are you easily able to find resorts to book within 2-4 months from your travel date or do you have to book much in advance? With CW folks said typically, 3 months is good enough (except around holidays or popular resorts). However HGVC has fewer properties and units (and perhaps fewer members), so not sure how far ahead do you have to plan.

 

[dayooper]

Thanks. I hope one can mix and match points from any number of deeds and use them together as though i had a big consolidated pool.
Does it matter how you get points - which type of season bronze/silver/gold/platinum, 1BR/2BR/3BR and which property? At the end does it simply boil down to how many points does each deed gets you or you have to consider other factors while buying a deed? HGVC deed and point system are more complex than CW. CW is very straight forward with no complications arising from seasons attached to a deed/contract; they all just convert to a set number of points

Also, are you easily able to find resorts to book within 2-4 months from your travel date or do you have to book much in advance? With CW folks said typically, 3 months is good enough (except around holidays or popular resorts). However HGVC has fewer properties and units (and perhaps fewer members), so not sure how far ahead do you have to plan.

It doesn’t matter the season except that the higher the season, the better the MF per point ratio is. HGVC pays the same MF regardless of season. It goes by room size. I own a platinum 2 bedroom at The Boulevard and my MF’s are $945. With that deed, I get 11200 points. Someone who owns a gold season deed would get 8000 points for the same $945 MF.

HGVC is a little harder to book short notice. The more popular locations with less resorts will fill up faster. Some places you have to book right at 9 months. Other places can be booked at 6-7 months. There are a few that can be booked 2-4 months, but you would be pushing it to use your points. If you are flexible, you can look for cancellations, but they aren’t always going to be there.

 

[yoprabhat1]

I see. Thanks for your reply @dayooper. Given the difficulty in booking within 2-3 months and the fewer resorts overall, it seems like HGVC may not be the right choice for me then. My use case would be travel with a spouse or solo. It would be more based on the desire to explore some place new, and relax rather than a few fixed resorts, and the travel dates would be determined by work. Unlike a family with kids where i can plan much in advance, certainly not 6 months in advance.

 

[yoprabhat1]

Why do you feel like you HAVE to choose between them? I have Wyndham and Marriott and if anything they work the best when you own both. Marriott points have pretty high maintenance fees, but the resorts are nicer so I prefer to do II exchanges to get into them. That said, I can only stay exactly 7 nights at a property. What do I do if I want more nights? Stay at the Wyndham nearby....

Both would be nice, but what is the total annual fee we are talking about even with a reasonable deal for both ? Perhaps around $4000.
From what i see in this thread, it seems Marriott DC points are not an option at all. The only option would be a fixed deed and then relying on exchanges to get into other resorts, which in itself is problematic due to limited availability vs booking anywhere using points. Does MVC even have a 1BR deed - all I see is lockoff units which can be exchanged for 2 weeks of 1BR at separate resorts? If that is the minimum, that already puts MVC vacation weeks at abt 2, and then gettting some points from CW would mean abt 2.5-3 weeks. I do not have use for that. My use case would be 1.5-2 weeks of 1BR.

Do you have to still pay even while exchanging? Your above comment seems to say, that you paid $1150 for a Marriott week. With RCI exchange using CW/HGVC points that I somewhat understand, you basically trade your points to get a week at another resort (in your case you would trade your home week) and just pay some small exchange fee of abt $259 or so. Seems like MVC and II exchanges are different

 

[VacationForever]

Both would be nice, but what is the total annual fee we are talking about even with a reasonable deal for both ? Perhaps around $4000.
From what i see in this thread, it seems Marriott DC points are not an option at all. The only option would be a fixed deed and then relying on exchanges to get into other resorts, which in itself is problematic due to limited availability vs booking anywhere using points. Does MVC even have a 1BR deed - all I see is lockoff units which can be exchanged for 2 weeks of 1BR at separate resorts? If that is the minimum, that already puts MVC vacation weeks at abt 2, and then gettting some points from CW would mean abt 2.5-3 weeks. I do not have use for that. My use case would be 1.5-2 weeks of 1BR.

Do you have to still pay even while exchanging? Your above comment seems to say, that you paid $1150 for a Marriott week. With RCI exchange using CW/HGVC points that I somewhat understand, you basically trade your points to get a week at another resort (in your case you would trade your home week) and just pay some small exchange fee of abt $259 or so. Seems like MVC and II exchanges are different

The $1150 comes from locking off into 2 sides, and exchanging them to another resort. Exchange fee Marriott to Marriott is $164 per trade. II membership is about $99 per year. "Upsize", i.e. room size upgrade is $99 per 1 bedroom size up. Assuming you buy Marriott's Grande Vista and maintenance fee is $1500, lock off, each side costs $750 (it is 1BR and 1 studio). Take one side, trade fees - $164 + $198 (say you use a studio to trade into a 2BR, it is only $99 to go 1 size), total is $1112. Throw in II membership for the 1 timeshare, comes up to around $50 per side, total is now $1162.

You do that all over again in trading the other side of the lockoff.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

Trading in II only works for planning well in advance. Not 2 - 4 months as the OP desires. II also is limited to week long stays and it would be difficult to get 2 weeks in a row unless you stayed at your home resort with MVC.

 

[VacationForever]

OP needs to understand that timeshare reservation is unlike hotel booking. Vacations need to be best planned 12 months ahead of time.

 

[yoprabhat1]

OP needs to understand that timeshare reservation is unlike hotel booking. Vacations need to be best planned 12 months ahead of time.

I saw posts saying that with CW you can get a decent amount of resorts at 3-4 months. Even with HGVC, with much fewer resorts, previous posts say you can do that 6-7 months. CW should be better. I am not sure 12 months would be needed..... In fact the reservation window itself is 9-10 months at best for all resorts except home

 

[VacationForever]

I saw posts saying that with CW you can get a decent amount of resorts at 3-4 months. Even with HGVC, with much fewer resorts, previous posts say you can do that 6-7 months. CW should be better. I am not sure 12 months would be needed..... In fact the reservation window itself is 9-10 months at best for all resorts except home

Technically you can book within shorter window, but the issue becomes availability of high demand location and time period.

 

[90_Min_Sales_Pitch]

I saw posts saying that with CW you can get a decent amount of resorts at 3-4 months. Even with HGVC, with much fewer resorts, previous posts say you can do that 6-7 months. CW should be better. I am not sure 12 months would be needed..... In fact the reservation window itself is 9-10 months at best for all resorts except home

I have stayed at 5 Wyndham timeshares prior to becoming an owner, and would rate them pretty consistently at 3.5 stars. The beds have always been comfortable, the properties well maintained, and staff friendly. HGVC would be a step up, but not without a tradeoff.

I'm too new to really answer the availability question, but my impression is that you should still have multiple choices if you are flexible. The peak season/ high demand locations will be gone.

I just swapped an $800 booking at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, on 4th of July weekend, for a studio at HGVC for $330, 3 weeks before arrival. I got lucky I guess, someone must have cancelled!

 

[jwalk03]

In timeshare land you are ALWAYS going to have the most success planning ahead and booking as far in advance as allowed. You might find availability later of course and maybe even an occasional gem- but remember the availability shrinks everyday after booking starts. And the most popular resorts have the most competition! So don’t think you can book a beachfront resort during peak season at 3-4 months out- the inventory will be long gone.

 

[jwalk03]

I own Marriott weeks and love exchanging thru II. The buy-in was significantly less than the cost of Marriott points, and the annual costs are less too!! I own a 2BR Platinum at Harbour Lake in Orlando. My costs work out to about $165/nt when I lockoff and get 2 exchanges. But I’m very happy with the exchanges I have been able to get so far:

ocean pointe, 1BR, Memorial Day
Lakeshore Reserve, 2BR, MLK Day
Oceanwatch, 2BR, Spring Break
Aruba Surf, 2BR, Fall week
Summit Watch, 1BR, Presidents Week (Peak Ski week!)
Harborside at Atlantis, 1BR, Spring Break

If you always only need a 1BR or a studio that makes getting great exchanges even easier. Many want 2BRs which is more difficult. You still need to plan ahead though to get the best stuff!!

 

[jwalk03]

Sorry for the multiple posts. I keep thinking of more things I want to add.

I also have stayed at Wyndhams a ton. I got my in-laws resale Wyndham points that I manage for them to book vacations for them and all their adult kids and grandkids. i Do think Marriotts are a step above Wyndham for sure, but Wyndham still has some great resorts that I have really enjoyed!! They also have a wider variety of locations than Marriott. Wyndham points are certainly more flexible than owning Marriott weeks as well to be sure.
once my in-laws no longer want their points I will certainly take them over and use them to complement my Marriott stays. I agree with what another postered mentioned that Wyndham and Marriott work well together. They have many complementary locations where one has a resort and the other does not.

Wyndham-
smokey mountains
Wisconsin Dells
Puerto Rico
Pocanos
Daytona, Pompano, Clearwater
Avon, Steamboat
Many cities- Austin, Atlanta, Nashville, Portland, New Orleans, San Antonio

Marriott-
Hilton Head
Ft. Lauderdale, Macro Island, Palm Beach, Miami
Boston
Vail, Breckenridge
Many International- Spain, France, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia, Costa Rica, Aruba, St. Kitts

 

[cbyrne1174]

I saw posts saying that with CW you can get a decent amount of resorts at 3-4 months. Even with HGVC, with much fewer resorts, previous posts say you can do that 6-7 months. CW should be better. I am not sure 12 months would be needed..... In fact the reservation window itself is 9-10 months at best for all resorts except home

Just grab ~200,000 Wyndham points first and decide later whether or not you want to addon. Wyndham is the best one to start with.

If I had to choose between Wyndham or Marriott, I would choose Wyndham over Marriott because they have better studio/1 bedroom options. The studios in the Wyndham system actually have functional kitchens for the most part and most resorts have smaller room options. There are a lot of Marriott locations that require you to stay in a 2 bedroom. I'm here at Frenchmans cove in St Thomas and it's kind of rediculous that my 7 year old has her own bedroom, bathroom and ocean front balcony.

 

[Eric B]

... it's kind of rdiculous that my 7 year old has her own bedroom, bathroom and ocean front balcony.

Hmmmm, what does she say about that...?

 

[yoprabhat1]

Thank you all. Indeed it seems TS may not be right thing for me to buy if one can't plan at least 6 months in advance. Good I realized it prior to buying in!!

Renting might be the only option to get resort accommodations for me vs hotels. Any rough idea if renting out from other TS owners costs considerably more than renting a hotel? I am wondering, with rent, if TS owner are just trying to recoup a part of their MF in the years when they themselves do not use the TS points and thus the rent options may not be that high compared to hotels. However, I also read a few posts from TS owner where they are able to draw profit from rent. So not sure, how the TS rent prices compare to say $150/night hotel option.

Owning just gives you the flexbility to go online and simply check whatever is available for your intended travel dates. Is that possible for renting as well (as in are people to ready to offer points and book you for wherever the availability exists and your travel interest using those points), or is it mostly from a list of fixed properties for a fixed week that you get to choose from?

 

[CalGalTraveler]

It depends on where you want to go. Supply and demand. Some places like Hawaii in peak season, or Arizona during baseball spring training, South Carolina coast in summer are profitable, other locations are recouping the maint fees. The owners are renting out based on market conditions. Don't knock them for profiting - they are taking all the risk by putting up capital. You can pick and choose with little risk.

Check out the rental pricing in Redweek, TUG Marketplace and Koala for the places you would like to visit. Also look at the last minute TUG rental forum for deals.

 

[chapjim]

Thank you all. Indeed it seems TS may not be right thing for me to buy if one can't plan at least 6 months in advance. Good I realized it prior to buying in!!

Renting might be the only option to get resort accommodations for me vs hotels. Any rough idea if renting out from other TS owners costs considerably more than renting a hotel? I am wondering, with rent, if TS owner are just trying to recoup a part of their MF in the years when they themselves do not use the TS points and thus the rent options may not be that high compared to hotels. However, I also read a few posts from TS owner where they are able to draw profit from rent. So not sure, how the TS rent prices compare to say $150/night hotel option.

Owning just gives you the flexbility to go online and simply check whatever is available for your intended travel dates. Is that possible for renting as well (as in are people to ready to offer points and book you for wherever the availability exists and your travel interest using those points), or is it mostly from a list of fixed properties for a fixed week that you get to choose from?

The timing thing isn't necessarily as severe as that. It could be that severe if you are only considering one resort or one destination (unless that destination is the Orlando area -- chances are better there of picking up a late reservation). If you identify a week you want to travel and don't have a specific destination or resort, your chances are pretty good. If you want an event week or other high demand period, then six months is way late. In that case, make the reservation early and cancel if you can't make it.

When I was renting Wyndham reservations, I always listed at a price that gave me a profit. (CalGalTraveler has it right as far as risk/reward is concerned.) Since Wyndham reservations can be canceled as late as fifteen days before check-in, the risk of total loss is next to zero and I tended to price accordingly. I had scores of listings on Last Minute Rentals. Some rented, some didn't, but the prices were awesomely low, so low that there were complaints on TUG that the market was being spoiled by all the low prices (not those words but exactly that sentiment).

The other factor for me (and many other owner-renters) is that I had a dozen or so fixed or floating non-Wyndham weeks. Once a reservation is made for a floating week, it is probably fixed in that there would be a charge for changing the reservation, if the reservation can be changed at all. The risk is much higher there, especially since some of my fixed weeks were very late in the year. Also, I hoped that the profit on Wyndham rentals would cover any losses on the fixed/floating weeks.

You can't do a direct comparison of timeshare and hotel prices. Timeshares and hotels are totally different and once you experience timesharing, it will be difficult to go back to a rather spartan hotel room.

Good luck in deciding!

 

[90_Min_Sales_Pitch]

You can't do a direct comparison of timeshare and hotel prices. Timeshares and hotels are totally different and once you experience timesharing, it will be difficult to go back to a rather spartan hotel room.

I agree, and find myself looking for timeshares to rent from Wyndham, Hilton, and IHG's hotel websites.

HGVC has last minute deals for owners this summer, 25-35% off Vegas and Hawaii. One could actually stretch out your points if they're open and flexible, vacationing on the fly.

 

[Arimaas]

I have both a HGVC deed and a Wyndham deed. I am actually dumping my HGVC deed to add another Wyndham deed. Living in NY, there aren't too many HGVC options for us on the East Coast and I'm getting tired of Orlando. Wyndham has a lot more options for us and I actually like the system better. HGVC is supposed to be a "luxury" brand, but there Orlando properties, to me, are nothing to write home about. I actually like Bonnet Creek better than most of the HGVC Orlando properties I've seen. We are going to an HGVC in Myrtle this summer, so maybe I will be pleasantly surprised, and my brother is using some of my points at a HGVC in Vegas in a few months, but honestly, I really haven't been that impressed with HGVC. My family tends to like the Wyndham properties just fine, and having the choices of locations on the East Coast (Newport, Poconos, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, etc.) is more important to me, than maybe a little fancier lobby. Honestly, how much time am I spending in the room anyway? All about location for me.

 

[Jan M.]

HGVC offers highly desirable locations in Florida where Wyndham doesn't have anything. Sanibel, Captiva, Marco Island, Fort Myers, Stuart. However I notice on the HGVC website that they're all listed as External Exchange Resorts. I thought Vanderbilt Beach Club in Naples used to be on the HGVC list but it's not there now.

For years Wyndham owners have wanted a resort or two on the southern Gulf coast of Florida. Clearwater is in the northern Gulf coast region. It's also north of Sarasota which is where the subtropical climate zone begins. That makes southeast and southwest Florida locations more desirable for their warmer winter months.

HGVC also has a resort on Hilton Head, SC. Another place Wyndham doesn't have anything.

Wyndham owners can book these locations/resorts through RCI. We've used our RCI points account that we have through our point weeks we own at Grandview at Las Vegas to book six different Florida HGVC beach resorts and another two resorts that I think used to be with HGVC. It helps that we live in southeast Florida so can drive to those resorts so don't need flights or a rental car. Also helps that we can travel whenever we want. Not everyone can make what they find on RCI work for them because they need specific times and only want certain resorts/locations.

You can set up ongoing searches through RCI. I've noticed that people get really excited when their ongoing search gets them what they wanted. However a lot of people post that their ongoing searches haven't turned up anything in up to two years. I've wondered if those people who never find anything with their OGS are looking for a unicorn. Something like Christmas week at Disney's Aulani resort in Hawaii. Disney owners would be thrilled to get that so forget thinking you'll get it through RCI. Yes, I know that Disney went back to II, Interval International, with this contract. I'm using it because it's a good example of a OGS for a unicorn..

 

[yoprabhat1]

I have both a HGVC deed and a Wyndham deed. I am actually dumping my HGVC deed to add another Wyndham deed. Living in NY, there aren't too many HGVC options for us on the East Coast and I'm getting tired of Orlando. Wyndham has a lot more options for us and I actually like the system better. HGVC is supposed to be a "luxury" brand, but there Orlando properties, to me, are nothing to write home about. I actually like Bonnet Creek better than most of the HGVC Orlando properties I've seen. We are going to an HGVC in Myrtle this summer, so maybe I will be pleasantly surprised, and my brother is using some of my points at a HGVC in Vegas in a few months, but honestly, I really haven't been that impressed with HGVC. My family tends to like the Wyndham properties just fine, and having the choices of locations on the East Coast (Newport, Poconos, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, etc.) is more important to me, than maybe a little fancier lobby. Honestly, how much time am I spending in the room anyway? All about location for me.

Yup, I agree and have a similar thinking. Just that when something is tagged luxurious you develop some fascination for it . Higher number of resorts with Wyndham is definitely a strong advantage they have over HGVC, at least for resale points because you do not have access to Diamond/HGVC MAX properties when you buy resale.
Other than the lobby, aren't the HGVC rooms and other resort amenities (whatever they are and folks typically use. I have not stayed at resorts a lot and am not so familiar, and mostly use the stay to visit attractions at the location rather than be in the resort, just like you) better than Wyndham that might make it attractive?

How much in advance do you (need to) end up booking with Wyndham in order to find decent availability beyond just 3 or 4 resorts? 6 months?