(9/6 - Still can't send a confirmation) The Vistana/Marriott Reservation System is a disaster.

[rickandcindy23]

The lack of Westin Maui inventory in II has been going on for the past 5 years, so it has nothing to do with Marriott. I suspect most owners rent their weeks out for beaucoup bucks.

With all that we know todate, owning a lower MF per SO is the most cost effective way to book through VSN. Seeing the MVC charts for Westin Maui properties, as shared by TUGgers, no way I will use DC to book a stay at Westin Maui.

I was able to get many weeks for this year at Westins on Maui via exchange through II. I turned down a bunch that didn't quite work for our stays. I was able to get two weeks for our kids as well. Last year it was easy to get Westins because of Covid. Marriott was easy too.

Ongoing searches used to work great. I decided we should go to Maui in August-September and haven't gotten a single hit. It's just obvious that things have changed, and not for the better for my preference with my SBP and SDO. I realize that I was lucky all of those years. My luck has run out.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Very difficult booking my home week at WKORV. Granted I own OFD, which is limited inventory, but it is consistently gone or otherwise unavailable by the time I can ever complete a search.

OFD? or Ocean Front Center?

 

[10spro]

OFD? or Ocean Front Center?

OFD

 

[rickandcindy23]

What's OFD? That was my question. Oceanfront Deluxe, I think. So you have the 176,000 SO's one that I am wanting to buy.

Searching for SBP:

 

[10spro]

What's OFD? That was my question. Oceanfront Deluxe, I think. So you have the 176,000 SO's one that I am wanting to buy.

Sorry, yes I have Oceanfront Deluxe. Love, love, love it! Nothing better IMO. I'm just becoming increasingly concerned how difficult it is as an owner to book my home week, and I'm not even looking for any prime time dates. I did a search the other day for end of March, which I expected to be not a very popular time, and I mean I searched for many hours and over several days, with absolutely no luck. Most times I got errors or timeout or no inventory, which I find very difficult to believe. I then randomly changed my dates going backwards through March into February, and sure enough I landed President's Day week. I don't even want to go on President's Day week, but I grabbed it anyway.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

@10spro FYI end of March is Spring Break for many schools. Does the OFD have a full balcony on the studio? One thing we like about North is that both sides of the lockoff have a balcony and a Washer/Dryer. Essential if we lockoff the unit into a 2 week stay. We would have loved to buy a South OF but EOYs are rare and expensive.

 

[ragdoll]

I'm just becoming increasingly concerned how difficult it is as an owner to book my home week, and I'm not even looking for any prime time dates. I did a search the other day for end of March, which I expected to be not a very popular time, and I mean I searched for many hours and over several days, with absolutely no luck. Most times I got errors or timeout or no inventory, which I find very difficult to believe. I then randomly changed my dates going backwards through March into February, and sure enough I landed President's Day week. I don't even want to go on President's Day week, but I grabbed it anyway.

This has me wondering if they are holding back inventory for the 13-month booking window so that we Vistana owners are second in line.

 

[vacation dreaming]

@10spro FYI end of March is Spring Break for many schools. Does the OFD have a full balcony on the studio? One thing we like about North is that both sides of the lockoff have a balcony and a Washer/Dryer. Essential if we lockoff the unit into a 2 week stay. We would have loved to buy a South OF but EOYs are rare and expensive.

Yes, OFD has a full balcony on the studio.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Sorry, yes I have Oceanfront Deluxe. Love, love, love it! Nothing better IMO. I'm just becoming increasingly concerned how difficult it is as an owner to book my home week, and I'm not even looking for any prime time dates. I did a search the other day for end of March, which I expected to be not a very popular time, and I mean I searched for many hours and over several days, with absolutely no luck. Most times I got errors or timeout or no inventory, which I find very difficult to believe. I then randomly changed my dates going backwards through March into February, and sure enough I landed President's Day week. I don't even want to go on President's Day week, but I grabbed it anyway.

President's week is one of the ones I would take as an owner. The studio would rent well for most of the fees you pay for the two bedroom.

We wanted to be at Hono Koa at the end of our trip next year to celebrate our 50th anniversary. We booked our 3 weeks at Hono Koa for the three full weeks of March starting 3/4. Our fees for that ordinary resort are quite high now because owners are not paying. I still value the unit size: 2 bedrooms with full kitchen and lots of space and 40 feet to the water in our oceanfront view. But the fees are now $2,350 for each week. I don't think I will be buying more of them, not that they are easy to find, since only 4 units are oceanfront. That is 200 owners. I believe that people are walking away in droves, and of course the management company is overpricing these units for sale. I do not know the future of Hono Koa and there may not be a future for it as a timeshare with so few people paying.

This is why I am thinking of Westin. We can stay in the one bedroom and rent the studio for most of the MF's. We like to be on Maui for five weeks. Rick is even onboard with the idea, and he is one tough cookie to deal with.

 

[10spro]

We like to be on Maui for five weeks.

That sounds like heaven. Congrats on #50.

 

[10spro]

@10spro Does the OFD have a full balcony on the studio?

OFD studio does have a full balcony, and is supposedly a little larger than the standard studio, however, it is technically not oceanfront. It is around the corner on the side which I would put in the oceanview category.

 

[DeniseM]

It still sucks this morning:

 

[CPNY]

It still sucks this morning:

View attachment 50898

I’ve been going back and forth with them on twitter via messenger and have been assured it will be resolved within the next few days LOL. Been calling them out on all their lies.

 

[DeniseM]

Folks - Let's focus on the Vistana/Marriott reservation system, please.

 

[sox21]

It still sucks this morning:

View attachment 50898

I had read earlier that the timeout occurs after 30 seconds. Is this always the case? If so, this is more than likely a problem in their database. As a web/ database developer, I am familiar with the default query timeout of 30 seconds. This normally occurs when databases and or queries are not optimized, data is being queried from a database that is replicated and in a persistent state of being updated or bulk updates are occurring to data with poor locking strategies. I know this explanation doesn’t help resolve anything for owners but wanted to provide some IT insight. If the timeout occurs consistently at 30 seconds, there is a high level of probability that their issue is in their database. I can’t imagine that this Is occurring due to the amount of data, more than likely it’s IT staff that are not highly skilled working with data migration, they made an update which they cannot roll back and are stuck with this reality until it is fixed. Good IT shops fix this stuff in hours, not days, weeks or months.

 

[dioxide45]

I had read earlier that the timeout occurs after 30 seconds. Is this always the case? If so, this is more than likely a problem in their database. As a web/ database developer, I am familiar with the default query timeout of 30 seconds. This normally occurs when databases and or queries are not optimized, data is being queried from a database that is replicated and in a persistent state of being updated or bulk updates are occurring to data with poor locking strategies. I know this explanation doesn’t help resolve anything for owners but wanted to provide some IT insight. If the timeout occurs consistently at 30 seconds, there is a high level of probability that their issue is in their database. I can’t imagine that this Is occurring due to the amount of data, more than likely it’s IT staff that are not highly skilled working with data migration, they made an update which they cannot roll back and are stuck with this reality until it is fixed. Good IT shops fix this stuff in hours, not days, weeks or months.

Vistana IT got their certifications from a Cracker Jack box!

 

[Red elephant]

Folks - Let's focus on the Vistana/Marriott reservation system, please.

I just booked WLR for December and it took 1 hour the first time and 20 mins the second time to get thru.

 

[PamMo]

Like most of you, I've been consistently sent to TIMEOUT at every attempt to book for next year. Weirdly, on my third or fourth try today, I was able to book my WKORVN oceanfront for Valentine's week, followed up by another oceanfront for Easter week. It all seemed so random. Once I was "in" everything seemed to be working normally. I don't have an early timestamp for Valentine's week, but at least I can get out of winter weather!

I hope others have the same good luck today!

 

[DeniseM]

New day - same . Can't even pull up one resort, one date, one villa type at my home resort:

 

[10spro]

New day - same . Can't even pull up one resort, one date, one villa type at my home resort:

View attachment 50984

I've been timing out for 45 minutes now starting at 9:00am Pacific. Have not been able to complete even one search, actually the search doesn't even start, I click "Find" and times out every time. Did we decide this might be geographical? Or maybe time of day?

 

[vacationtime1]

I've been timing out for 45 minutes now starting at 9:00am Pacific. Have not been able to complete even one search, actually the search doesn't even start, I click "Find" and times out every time. Did we decide this might be geographical? Or maybe time of day?

I think it is geographical. I can search and reserve Kierland; I get timeouts when I search WKORV. This has been the pattern for a couple of weeks.

 

[10spro]

I think it is geographical. I can search and reserve Kierland; I get timeouts when I search WKORV. This has been the pattern for a couple of weeks.

Same for me...too bad I'm not looking to book Kierland. I actually have tested a couple other Westin properties and they all come up, but still getting timeout for anything in Hawaii.

 

[EnglishmanAbroad]

Same for me...too bad I'm not looking to book Kierland. I actually have tested a couple other Westin properties and they all come up, but still getting timeout for anything in Hawaii.

WKORV-N has always and continues to work fine for me albeit a little slower than it used to be.

 

[fasha39]

Anyone having success booking WLR?

 

[emeryjre]

I had read earlier that the timeout occurs after 30 seconds. Is this always the case? If so, this is more than likely a problem in their database. As a web/ database developer, I am familiar with the default query timeout of 30 seconds. This normally occurs when databases and or queries are not optimized, data is being queried from a database that is replicated and in a persistent state of being updated or bulk updates are occurring to data with poor locking strategies. I know this explanation doesn’t help resolve anything for owners but wanted to provide some IT insight. If the timeout occurs consistently at 30 seconds, there is a high level of probability that their issue is in their database. I can’t imagine that this Is occurring due to the amount of data, more than likely it’s IT staff that are not highly skilled working with data migration, they made an update which they cannot roll back and are stuck with this reality until it is fixed. Good IT shops fix this stuff in hours, not days, weeks or months.

I guess the high school senior class project didn't cover that issue for the current IT people.