Advice needed to understand use of StarOptions and Club Points

[letsgomets]

I've been an owner for a while at WSJ Bay Vista (fixed week) through a resale (so no access to StarOptions and Club Points) and am in the process of requalifying and getting access. But I have questions about StarOptions and Club Points and would love some guidance from this group.

1) Is it correct that each year that I don't want to use my unit, I can elect either StarOptions or Club Points during the middle of the year before and then am locked into that election and cannot switch currencies? If so, do people recommend one versus the other? It seems that Club Points have access to more resorts, but that only StarOptions will yield equivalent value (for example, my week at WSJ would be enough StarOptions to get an equivalent week in Hawaii, but not if they were Club Points).

2) How is availability using StarOptions at the premium resorts like WSJ and Hawaii (or Beaver Creek)? I don't want to give up my WSJ week more than a year in advance (my week is around year-end) and then when the reservation window opens, find that I can't get anything else I want. How about availability at desirable resorts within the broader Marriott network?

I like the idea of banking and even combining multiple weeks because while we have a premium week, our family has grown so I'd rather have a 3 BR less often than our 2 BR every year. But I don't want to regret depositing our week when it comes time to use it.

Thanks!

 

[vacationtime1]

How much money are you paying to requalify and enroll your units? Is it worth that much money just to increase your use options? And until you have answers to your well-posed questions above, how can you determine whether requalification/enrollment would work as intended?

Could you use the same money to buy a unit with StarOptions even if not enrolled in Abound -- think: Kierland plat+?

 

[dioxide45]

1) Is it correct that each year that I don't want to use my unit, I can elect either StarOptions or Club Points during the middle of the year before and then am locked into that election and cannot switch currencies? If so, do people recommend one versus the other? It seems that Club Points have access to more resorts, but that only StarOptions will yield equivalent value (for example, my week at WSJ would be enough StarOptions to get an equivalent week in Hawaii, but not if they were Club Points).

You don't really elect StarOptions in the same way you elect Club Points. You can make a reservation with StarOptions 8 months in advance of checkin. If you opt instead to take Club Points, you should be able to cancel the StarOption reservation and then elect your entire VOI for Club Points. Have you looked at the StarOption chart? It will show you how many points different reservations take.

 

[letsgomets]

How much money are you paying to requalify and enroll your units? Is it worth that much money just to increase your use options? And until you have answers to your well-posed questions above, how can you determine whether requalification/enrollment would work as intended?

Could you use the same money to buy a unit with StarOptions even if not enrolled in Abound -- think: Kierland plat+?

Thanks for the advice. Enrolling my units makes sense for me.

 

[letsgomets]

You don't really elect StarOptions in the same way you elect Club Points. You can make a reservation with StarOptions 8 months in advance of checkin. If you opt instead to take Club Points, you should be able to cancel the StarOption reservation and then elect your entire VOI for Club Points. Have you looked at the StarOption chart? It will show you how many points different reservations take.

So are you saying that I have my reservation at WSJ (which is automatically booked about 18 months out because it's a fixed week) and then if I want to change, I simply cancel it and will immediately have StarOptions to use for another reservation regardless of when that occurs?

I've seen the chart so I know how many points I have/need. WSJ would be 176,700 and Hawaii 2 BR is equal. But my key question for those who have tried to make reservations 8 months out or less is how you find availability to be at the better resorts?

 

[dioxide45]

So are you saying that I have my reservation at WSJ (which is automatically booked about 18 months out because it's a fixed week) and then if I want to change, I simply cancel it and will immediately have StarOptions to use for another reservation regardless of when that occurs?

I've seen the chart so I know how many points I have/need. WSJ would be 176,700 and Hawaii 2 BR is equal. But my key question for those who have tried to make reservations 8 months out or less is how you find availability to be at the better resorts?

I guess that WSJ works a little different with Fixed Weeks. I was aware but didn't conflate the two. Though I don't know if you are technically taking StarOptions when you cancel your 18 month reservation. I think you can still book other dates at WSJ with the HomeOptions assigned to your ownership. As I understand now you can use your home week, book some other time at WSJ Bay Vista using HomeOptions (based on the specific rules) or us II to exchange. With VSN enrollment you can still do those same things.

 

[jabberwocky]

I’m curious as to how many Club Points will the election value be for your weeks?

There isn’t much downside to having StarOptions as a reservation can be made/canceled easily within the use year.

I’m not certain about WSJ specifically, but we have a week that is fixed/float another Vistana resort. Basically the unit is automatically reserved to us each year (Christmas week). If we don’t want to use it that week we can make a home resort reservation for another week within the same season. At 8 months we can make a reservation anywhere within the VSN system using StarOptions, including our home resort.

I’ve booked into Maui many times using StarOptions - often for high-demand weeks (March Spring Break, July etc). As long as I was on at the midnight mark 8 months out I’ve been able to get something without any issues.

If you do decide to elect into Abound, the decision has to be done the year before and cannot be reversed. This conversion can make sense if you get a good number of Abound points relative to the maintenance fee - but for Maui you’re better off using SO.

 

[dioxide45]

I’m curious as to how many Club Points will the election value be for your weeks?

I don't know if they convert on a fixed ratio or if it matters based on unit size and/or season. The points structure of the WSJ phases that have points always confuse me. There is one Bay Vista Platinum Plus 3BR entry on the conversion spreadsheet I have that indicates 257,700 Options and 6,600 Club Points.

 

[jabberwocky]

I don't know if they convert on a fixed ratio or if it matters based on unit size and/or season. The points structure of the WSJ phases that have points always confuse me. There is one Bay Vista Platinum Plus 3BR entry on the conversion spreadsheet I have that indicates 257,700 Options and 6,600 Club Points.

Then it's likely going to be 6600, but I'd be interested if the OP can share as it will be another datapoint (which we don't have much of).

For me, doing a retro here makes sense for what they are wanting to do, but I would only use the SO to book into Hawaii, not Abound.

As an aside, it doesn't look like we have a definitive answer on what the conversion ratio is for Nanea (if I'm reading the spreadsheet correctly). If we use WFlex as a rough approximateion (1:29) then that means a 257,700 Nanea HO would convert to around 8900 abound. One would think that a 3BR OF shoudl get much more than a 2BR OF at WKORV though (8325), and the fact it's 11k+ Abound to book would indicate so (unless the skim is horrible). I suspect they are using a combination of unit size/view and relative resort demand to set the Abound levels rather than a straight HomeOption conversion ratio like the other Flex programs (even though the salespeople make it sound this way).

 

[dioxide45]

Westin Nanea, which is also HomeOption based, is indicated to be 22.25:1 for Oceanfront and 23.26:1 for Resort View. If the chart for WSJ Bay Vista is right, the Abound valuation is terrible at 39:1.

 

[letsgomets]

WSJ Bay Vista (2 bedroom) week is 176,700 StarOptions and a bit more than 5,000 club points. So 35:1.

 

[GrayFal]

I guess that WSJ works a little different with Fixed Weeks. I was aware but didn't conflate the two. Though I don't know if you are technically taking StarOptions when you cancel your 18 month reservation. I think you can still book other dates at WSJ with the HomeOptions assigned to your ownership. As I understand now you can use your home week, book some other time at WSJ Bay Vista using HomeOptions (based on the specific rules) or us II to exchange. With VSN enrollment you can still do those same things.

Bay vista does not have HomeOptions, it is a float ( or fixed) week system. If you decided to give up your fixed week/unit, you can reserve a week in your season only, at 12 months out as a resale owner. Most owners own a float week.
Retail owners would also have the choice to use SO at 8 months out at any SVN resort.

Coral Vista and Sunset Bay have HomeOptions and can reserve any number of days in any unit size 12 months out in your season.
Virgin Grand is all fixed week/fixed units but you can float in your season at 10 months.

 

[kozykritter]

1) Is it correct that each year that I don't want to use my unit, I can elect either StarOptions or Club Points during the middle of the year before and then am locked into that election and cannot switch currencies?

Yes. You can only convert the form of a year's usage one time. Once you exchange it for StarOptions, Club Points or Bonvoy points, there is no ability to change the form of that usage again.

 

[dioxide45]

Yes. You can only convert the form of a year's usage one time. Once you exchange it for StarOptions, Club Points or Bonvoy points, there is no ability to change the form of that usage again.

But I understand that if one makes a StarOption reservation with a VOI they can cancel that reservation and still take Club Points or Bonvoy points if it is prior to their respective election deadline? Once they elect Club Points or Bonvoy Points, that decision is final.

 

[GrayFal]

But I understand that if one makes a StarOption reservation with a VOI they can cancel that reservation and still take Club Points or Bonvoy points if it is prior to their respective election deadline? Once they elect Club Points or Bonvoy Points, that decision is final.

This is my understanding also.

 

[dioxide45]

Bay vista does not have HomeOptions, it is a float ( or fixed) week system. If you decided to give up your fixed week/unit, you can reserve a week in your season only, at 12 months out as a resale owner. Most owners own a float week.
Retail owners would also have the choice to use SO at 8 months out at any SVN resort.

Coral Vista and Sunset Bay have HomeOptions and can reserve any number of days in any unit size 12 months out in your season.
Virgin Grand is all fixed week/fixed units but you can float in your season at 10 months.

Thanks for clarifying on that. I always forget which phases are HomeOption based. I'm going to make note of this. Do both phases work the same with 12 months reservations in your season and then 8-months with StarOptions or do they have an additional float within their WSJ phase at some other month?

 

[dioxide45]

WSJ Bay Vista (2 bedroom) week is 176,700 StarOptions and a bit more than 5,000 club points. So 35:1.

Do you happen to know the exact number of Club Points? I would like to update the conversion chart with that information.

Vistana_DC_ConversionRates

docs.google.com

 

[letsgomets]

Do you happen to know the exact number of Club Points? I would like to update the conversion chart with that information.

Vistana_DC_ConversionRates

docs.google.com

5,075

 

[Henry M.]

I own WSJ Bay Vista 2BR Platinum float, and it provides 148,100 Staroptions. I've used them in Maui many times to stay longer than the weeks I own there at both WKORV and WKORV-N. I have not had any issues reserving in Maui at exactly 8 months out and sometimes even last minute, if it isn't a high demand week. I've also used Club Points once to extend a stay in Maui, and it worked out well, though availability was touch and go for a while. It changed almost daily.

I was flexible with the type of room. 176,100 will get you an ocean front reservation in Maui, but those rooms have less availability than ocean view, Mountain View (WKORV) or Island View (WKORV-N). I was very flexible. I wouldn't count on availability for OV or OF units, though.

I find Club Points add a lot of flexibility to my ownership. This was the first year that I converted one of my Maui weeks, and I decided to convert one of next year's weeks because of my success this year. I get 6,200 Club Points. With that, I stayed about two weeks in Colorado, added a week to my Maui stay, and reserved 10 days in a 2BR in Marbella, Spain, next year. So about a month of stays for my 2BR unit in Hawaii. Part of the reason I got so much time is that the Colorado and Maui reservations were made within 60 days of arrival and that results in a 30% savings of Club Points.

In terms of the currencies you have, Staroptions or Club Points, here's how they work for me:

1.) Staroptions are what your unit is worth this use year. You can either use what you own, for example your 2BR Bay Vista, or you can go to another Vistana property using the Staroptions to reserve it within 8 months of arrival. If you don't want to vacation this year, you a bank your Staroptions for future use. You bank your Staroptions sometime during your use year. The deadline depends on your Elite level in MVC. I can choose to bank my Staroptions all the way up to October 31 with my Elite level. This means I can either use my Staroptions somewhere this year or bank them into the future sometime before October 31.

2.) Club Points are alternative use for what you own. You have to decide the prior year whether you will use your Vistana ownership, or whether you want to have Club Points to reserve at any MVC property, including Vistana units. I think the declines are similar to the declines for banking your Staroptions. The difference is that you have to decide this year what you want to do next year. You decide whether you want to use your Vistana ownership, Staroptions and all, or use Abound to reserve in a variety of additional locations. At MVC properties, if you own more than one week, you can reserve 13 months in advance, anywhere. Vistana properties become available to reserve with Club Points 12 months in advance. The thing is that availability in the different currencies changes and varies a lot.

I would not say than one currency is always better than the other. Sometimes it can be better to reserve with Club Points even at a Vistana property. For example, during certain months, it costs less to reserve a 2BR unit in Maui or Kauai with Club Points than it costs with Staroptions. At other times, I can't get back into Maui, for example, with the 6,200 Club Points I get for my unit. Also, if you split the unit (in Maui I can stay in the 1BR or the Studio side of my units) it is more expensive to use the sides individually, than to reserve a 2BR. With Staroptions, it costs the same number of total Staroptions to reserve each side separately.

Bottom line for me is that I'm happy I have the option to convert to Club Points. I have been able to use them in a way that I've gotten good value from them. They work for me if I am flexible and don't fret about specific views and if I allow for some uncertainty during the planning of my vacations.

 

[DavidnRobin]

Thanks for the advice. Enrolling my units makes sense for me.

How much money are you paying to requalify and enroll your units? Is it worth that much money just to increase your use options? And until you have answers to your well-posed questions above, how can you determine whether requalification/enrollment would work as intended?

Could you use the same money to buy a unit with StarOptions even if not enrolled in Abound -- think: Kierland plat+?

I agree with @vacationtime1, but you have appeared to have your mind.

I am confused (just quickly perused) - was there no mention of what the Requal is going to cost upfront and in in long-term MFs? Considering a WSJ-BV 2Bd already has a high MF (and ever increasing) - what is the additional burden for the Requal?

Electing Abound for WSJ-BV is a poor exchange value, and an issue competing with others on tough reservations (need at least Chairman for 13 month availability). SO usage is neutral in exchange for the most part, but flexibility has value.

I have elected Abound multiple times but getting the CPs from WKV (Plat) at ~50c/CP and as Chairman (via Mandatory resales) an extra 30% discount for <60 day reservation. This is great value for me and my usage, but...
iirc, there was mention of needed a 3Bd for growing family. What 3Bds are available for SO usage? In Hawaii there is only Nanea OF.
So a requal of a 2Bd WSJ-BV in order to attempt to get a 3Bd Nanea using SOs, and buy MVC CPs at some additional cost (not mentioned)?
Is that right?

 

[letsgomets]

I own WSJ Bay Vista 2BR Platinum float, and it provides 148,100 Staroptions. I've used them in Maui many times to stay longer than the weeks I own there at both WKORV and WKORV-N. I have not had any issues reserving in Maui at exactly 8 months out and sometimes even last minute, if it isn't a high demand week. I've also used Club Points once to extend a stay in Maui, and it worked out well, though availability was touch and go for a while. It changed almost daily.

I was flexible with the type of room. 176,100 will get you an ocean front reservation in Maui, but those rooms have less availability than ocean view, Mountain View (WKORV) or Island View (WKORV-N). I was very flexible. I wouldn't count on availability for OV or OF units, though.

I find Club Points add a lot of flexibility to my ownership. This was the first year that I converted one of my Maui weeks, and I decided to convert one of next year's weeks because of my success this year. I get 6,200 Club Points. With that, I stayed about two weeks in Colorado, added a week to my Maui stay, and reserved 10 days in a 2BR in Marbella, Spain, next year. So about a month of stays for my 2BR unit in Hawaii. Part of the reason I got so much time is that the Colorado and Maui reservations were made within 60 days of arrival and that results in a 30% savings of Club Points.

In terms of the currencies you have, Staroptions or Club Points, here's how they work for me:

1.) Staroptions are what your unit is worth this use year. You can either use what you own, for example your 2BR Bay Vista, or you can go to another Vistana property using the Staroptions to reserve it within 8 months of arrival. If you don't want to vacation this year, you a bank your Staroptions for future use. You bank your Staroptions sometime during your use year. The deadline depends on your Elite level in MVC. I can choose to bank my Staroptions all the way up to October 31 with my Elite level. This means I can either use my Staroptions somewhere this year or bank them into the future sometime before October 31.

2.) Club Points are alternative use for what you own. You have to decide the prior year whether you will use your Vistana ownership, or whether you want to have Club Points to reserve at any MVC property, including Vistana units. I think the declines are similar to the declines for banking your Staroptions. The difference is that you have to decide this year what you want to do next year. You decide whether you want to use your Vistana ownership, Staroptions and all, or use Abound to reserve in a variety of additional locations. At MVC properties, if you own more than one week, you can reserve 13 months in advance, anywhere. Vistana properties become available to reserve with Club Points 12 months in advance. The thing is that availability in the different currencies changes and varies a lot.

I would not say than one currency is always better than the other. Sometimes it can be better to reserve with Club Points even at a Vistana property. For example, during certain months, it costs less to reserve a 2BR unit in Maui or Kauai with Club Points than it costs with Staroptions. At other times, I can't get back into Maui, for example, with the 6,200 Club Points I get for my unit. Also, if you split the unit (in Maui I can stay in the 1BR or the Studio side of my units) it is more expensive to use the sides individually, than to reserve a 2BR. With Staroptions, it costs the same number of total Staroptions to reserve each side separately.

Bottom line for me is that I'm happy I have the option to convert to Club Points. I have been able to use them in a way that I've gotten good value from them. They work for me if I am flexible and don't fret about specific views and if I allow for some uncertainty during the planning of my vacations.

This is a great explanation. Thanks so much.

 

[kozykritter]

But I understand that if one makes a StarOption reservation with a VOI they can cancel that reservation and still take Club Points or Bonvoy points if it is prior to their respective election deadline? Once they elect Club Points or Bonvoy Points, that decision is final.

I meant that they can't change it from the new form into another form of currency (SO's to Bonvoy points, etc). Yes, they can restore their week after they cancel a SO reservation that was made using it, assuming they haven't used any of those SO's for other transactions as well.