Canadian timeshare owners

[chillz911]

Could you clarify what you're looking for regarding Canadian timeshare owners? Are you asking about ownership options, selling a timeshare, exchange programs, or something else? Happy to help!

Well I'm not currently an owner but wanted to see how Canadians are juggling or using their timeshare.

 

[PcflEZFlng]

We just got off a Panamá Canal cruise out of Fort Lauderdale with at least half the ship being Canadians. I found myself apologizing numerous times for the current situation. We are not all of the same mind.

I recently returned from a safari in Africa. There were 2 Canadians on it, with the remaining 9 from the US. I apologized to the Canadian couple, and I know I wasn't the only one who apologized. Not by a long shot.

 

[jthompson222]

Well we owned 2 timeshares one in Las Vegas and one in Smokey Mountains both are nice quality places. I would not say being Canadian has anything to do with the cost of a timeshare. The ones we selected were more about it trade ability. But truth is we found that trading on either Interval or RCA proved not that successful. Always had issues getting to places we wanted to visit. So the reason we bought the timeshare did not really work as we were told. Basically timeshare is not a great travel choice for your dollars. There is really not much money to be made and it limits your ability to enjoy the travel you may really want. We did sell our timeshare in Las Vegas...Paid $45,000 US and sold it for $1000 US. So my message is if you really like the spot you are vacationing in and can see yourself going there for many years then you could buy a timeshare there but, do not do it for the trade or world wide travel.

 

[byeloe]

From Ontario. Started out with some South African timeshares which were great value and decent traders in RCI. Sold them just before the World Cup. Rented Royal Resorts in Cancun from owners for many years then decided to buy around 2017. Purchased Lagunamar and Vistana Villages resale. We sold the Vistana a couple of years ago and bought Kierland.
We have accumulated enough Lagunamar contracts to spend the winter here for the last 4 years. Very pleased with the value we have received even though MF have gone from $1400 to $2100 per unit. We have also taken advantage of some II getaways for other travel. Could not have done it without TUG

 

[chillz911]

That makes sense! Many Canadian timeshare owners use exchange programs like RCI or Interval International to maximize their options, especially for warm destinations during winter. Others rent out their weeks if they can’t use them. Are you considering getting a timeshare, or just curious about how others manage theirs?

Considering getting a timeshare. We live in Ottawa Ontario. Something with reasonable MF would be best.

 

[Mymedid]

We live on the West Coast of BC. Our first timeshare was Banff Rocky Mountain Resort which we owned for about 30 yrs until we gave it back last year. We were able to get good trades with it, mostly through II, SFX and Diamond Resorts Select. We also own a deeded week in Diamond Resorts, now part of Hilton (HGV), and a small number of DRI points. Last year, we bought a Westin resale which we have used to trade into Hawaii.

We are happy that we started timesharing early in our marriage which allowed us to explore different places in the world. In Canada, I find that unlike in Hawaii, the resorts are not the destination but the location of the resort is the main attraction. These include Banff, Canmore and Whistler. Another timeshare of note is Bighorn Meadows Resort in Radium Hot Springs, BC. The view is scenic and the wildlife is amazing. From there, you can take easy daytrips to Lake Louise, Banff, Invermere, Panorama, Golden, Revelstoke, etc.

Has anyone have any feedback about Embarc Blue Mountain Resort near Toronto? That is one resort I would like to visit but it is not within driving distance from us.

Hello So I've done Blue Mountain in Ontario and Tremblant in quebec. Both in the summer time really enjoyed them. Those 2 are managed by Hilton Grand Vacations. Blue Mountain. You can actually walk to the hub where all the action and ski lifts are and Tremblant has a free bus that will take you to the hub. I also enjoyed Calabogie thru RCI near ottawa

 

[barto]

Also started with Banff Rocky Mountain Resort (BRMR) after an owner-friend let us stay there a few times on the "Bonus Days" deal ($50/night at the time, about 30 years ago). Bought our own (resale) but the fixed week wasn't a good match with our schedule so we always exchanged through DAE (now 7Across).

Came across some timeshare auctions on Yahoo so I bid on three not expecting to win, but $25 won them all! Oops... Bahamas, Royal Harbour Resort in Ontario and one I managed to escape since the listing was incorrect. Still have the Royal Harbour one - pretty low maintenance fees. Now $955 CAD for our 2-bedroom.

We picked up more BRMR weeks but in the summer, which matches our schedule.

Along the way I got in on the Dikhololo deal where for $1500 USD (I think) you got a 2-bedroom unit in that South African resort plus a 10-year membership in RCI. Like others, we didn't find much value in the RCI membership and let it lapse.

Decided we needed to be in RCI Points so I bought a Grandview-Vegas resale (actually 2... one is an every third year). Coming up to retirement I hope to be able to use that more than we have so far (schedule again, mostly). Thanks to TUGgers who pointed out it was one of the best points-per-mf-dollar values.

Tacoma was kind enough to book us into the Worldmark Victoria a couple of times, and we liked it enough to join that, too (super cheap lucky deal).

The BRMR uncertainty about continuing past 2025 had us score a few weeks at the Grand Canadian in Canmore, and we like that much better than BRMR so we've just been renting out our summer weeks at BRMR and staying in Canmore.

Crazy stuff when you type it all out like this, but it has been over 30 years to accumulate and experience all this.

Unfortunately couldn't convince our friends to buy resale in Fairmont (not sure if they got embroiled in the troubles there) or other friends who went for Vidanta in Mexico for $40K or so. Sigh. I did try!

Like most TUGgers, I would suggest getting into timeshares only on the resale market. There are seemingly very few that make sense for most people to buy from the developer at top dollar.

Good luck with your decision, chillz911!

 

[Coach Boon]

New Brunswick.

We own a deeded week in Hilton Head. We really like HH. It is well designed and all the malls are hidden behind trees. lots of golf and they're now into pickleball. We've only been twice and only once to our home resort. We took it over from my wife's parents who could no longer travel. We used it for exchanges before we became empty nesters. We still like having a bedroom or more with a full kitchen. it beats a hotel.

Our maintenance fee for a 2 bedroom, fully equipped kitchen is ~$920 USD. You can't get a hotel for that price. It's only drawback is that it's dated. It is very well maintained as many owners live there with an active board. It does have a great location. Lately, we've rented out our week through the timeshare despite its heavy commission fee. It covers the maintenance cost and then some - all without hassle.

The biggest issue for those of us on the East Coast is flights. We either have to fly to Montreal or Toronto or drive to Halifax or into Maine. Every Canadian who travels knows how expensive it is to fly in Canada. Yes, you can get last-minute special prices out of the main hubs but that doesn't work if you want to book a timeshare.

Despite our low maintenance fees, I find the RCI costs to be expensive - search fee, exchange fee etc. Plus, we're in the week exchange not points, which has limited and in most cases very average timeshare options. We are considering cancelling our RCI membership, renting our timeshare, and booking timeshares through RedWeek.

To answer the question, is it worth it being a Canadian with a timeshare - no. We can see how it works for Americans who can fly cheaply or drive to the numerous resorts available to them. That's not an option for Canadians who still work. If you're retired and already down in the U.S, it's a good option.

 

[Ski-Dad]

New Brunswick.

We own a deeded week in Hilton Head. We really like HH. It is well designed and all the malls are hidden behind trees. lots of golf and they're now into pickleball. We've only been twice and only once to our home resort. We took it over from my wife's parents who could no longer travel. We used it for exchanges before we became empty nesters. We still like having a bedroom or more with a full kitchen. it beats a hotel.

Our maintenance fee for a 2 bedroom, fully equipped kitchen is ~$920 USD. You can't get a hotel for that price. It's only drawback is that it's dated. It is very well maintained as many owners live there with an active board. It does have a great location. Lately, we've rented out our week through the timeshare despite its heavy commission fee. It covers the maintenance cost and then some - all without hassle.

The biggest issue for those of us on the East Coast is flights. We either have to fly to Montreal or Toronto or drive to Halifax or into Maine. Every Canadian who travels knows how expensive it is to fly in Canada. Yes, you can get last-minute special prices out of the main hubs but that doesn't work if you want to book a timeshare.

Despite our low maintenance fees, I find the RCI costs to be expensive - search fee, exchange fee etc. Plus, we're in the week exchange not points, which has limited and in most cases very average timeshare options. We are considering cancelling our RCI membership, renting our timeshare, and booking timeshares through RedWeek.

To answer the question, is it worth it being a Canadian with a timeshare - no. We can see how it works for Americans who can fly cheaply or drive to the numerous resorts available to them. That's not an option for Canadians who still work. If you're retired and already down in the U.S, it's a good option.

@Coach Boon Your point about the cost of travel from the east coast of Canada is well made and 100% valid from my comparable experience.

With that said, these are costs we face if we are going to travel anywhere from our shared part of the world. I find timeshares work for us as we get premium accommodations for a very reasonable cost. My all in costs for a week in a two bedroom Marriott or Sheraton is usually in the $1100 to $1200 (USD) range. I was in Whistler two weeks back and had a 2 bedroom in the Village for about $1100 USD.

I am travelling either way. Timeshares allow me to travel more as it lowers my accommodation cost

 

[bizaro86]

@Coach Boon Your point about the cost of travel from the east coast of Canada is well made and 100% valid from my comparable experience.

With that said, these are costs we face if we are going to travel anywhere from our shared part of the world. I find timeshares work for us as we get premium accommodations for a very reasonable cost. My all in costs for a week in a two bedroom Marriott or Sheraton is usually in the $1100 to $1200 (USD) range. I was in Whistler two weeks back and had a 2 bedroom in the Village for about $1100 USD.

I am travelling either way. Timeshares allow me to travel more as it lowers my accommodation cost

Yeah. Timeshares lower the total cost of travelling because they lower your accommodation costs. Obviously if the cost of transportation itself is prohibitive they won't help with that.

Historically for us it has often been cheaper to fly south for vacations than to fly east and vacation within Canada. Although we often drive to Rockies and vacation there because it's close. We are re-evaluating that now - I think a Toronto city-break is coming up (vs San Francisco or New York) but no TS makes that more expensive.

 

[jabberwocky]

Citizen of Alberta here. After seeing my parents get swindled by a timeshare operator in Canmore back in the 1990s (essentially stole the property from them) I resolved to never buy a timeshare in Canada since our property laws are so weak. Variants of the same thing have happened more recently to others as documented in this forum.

We now own several US timeshares - mainly in Vistana, but also one HGVC. We’ve gone to Fairmont and Radium through II a couple of times (when the US border was closed), but in reality there aren’t that many TS in Canada with the quality level we desire. It’s also faster for us to fly to Scottsdale, Palm Desert or Colorado than it is to go to Ontario or drive to BC. We also love going to Hawaii - although flight availability has made it much more difficult to go.

Personally, we’ll plan on continuing to go to the US - although we don’t shop as much as we used to given the value of the dollar. The places we vacation are safe and the people we meet are friendly regardless of all the craziness in the world. Life is too short to be bitter about things you have no control over in my opinion.

 

[jbman]

Citizen of Alberta here. After seeing my parents get swindled by a timeshare operator in Canmore back in the 1990s (essentially stole the property from them) I resolved to never buy a timeshare in Canada since our property laws are so weak. Variants of the same thing have happened more recently to others as documented in this forum.

We now own several US timeshares - mainly in Vistana, but also one HGVC. We’ve gone to Fairmont and Radium through II a couple of times (when the US border was closed), but in reality there aren’t that many TS in Canada with the quality level we desire. It’s also faster for us to fly to Scottsdale, Palm Desert or Colorado than it is to go to Ontario or drive to BC. We also love going to Hawaii - although flight availability has made it much more difficult to go.

Personally, we’ll plan on continuing to go to the US - although we don’t shop as much as we used to given the value of the dollar. The places we vacation are safe and the people we meet are friendly regardless of all the craziness in the world. Life is too short to be bitter about things you have no control over in my opinion.

I don't think it is a matter of people being "bitter about things you have no control over".

While we cannot control the actions of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, we can control our own actions, for a lot of people it is a simple matter of voting with your wallet, and with the current situation a number of Canadians are going to choose to spend their money elsewhere.

For myself, I am not going to refuse to travel to the US on principal alone, our 2025 vacations are already booked and not realistic to change, but we are planning our 2026 vacations now and it is certainly a factor that is being taken into account. We had been thinking of three vacations, all US locations - Wisconsin Dells, Orlando, and Phoenix, that is going to change to at least some degree. We'll likely still go to Wisconsin Dells as we don't have a better use for our Wyndham points, but Orlando and Phoenix will likely be swapped for Cancun/Caribbean or combined into one longer trip to France.

 

[bizaro86]

I don't think it is a matter of people being "bitter about things you have no control over".

While we cannot control the actions of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, we can control our own actions, for a lot of people it is a simple matter of voting with your wallet, and with the current situation a number of Canadians are going to choose to spend their money elsewhere.

For myself, I am not going to refuse to travel to the US on principal alone, our 2025 vacations are already booked and not realistic to change, but we are planning our 2026 vacations now and it is certainly a factor that is being taken into account. We had been thinking of three vacations, all US locations - Wisconsin Dells, Orlando, and Phoenix, that is going to change to at least some degree. We'll likely still go to Wisconsin Dells as we don't have a better use for our Wyndham points, but Orlando and Phoenix will likely be swapped for Cancun/Caribbean or combined into one longer trip to France.

I'm definitely not bitter, but the situation definitely is affecting my purchasing (both travel and otherwise). I'm up for a new gas grill this year - previously "Made in the USA" options woulr have been under consideration, but now it will definitely be a "Made in Canada" Napoleon.

I don't think anyone here believes they have control over the situation, but collective action does make a difference, at least slightly.

 

[Laurie]

We've traded into Canadian resorts thrice, and all were wonderful summer trips: Banff Rocky Mt, Pacific Shores (too bad it's no longer, what a gorgeous spot), and a rarely mentioned one in Beaupre. Reviews were average to below-average, but I took a chance for location and it turned out to be an excellent choice for what we enjoy. Name was Club Vacances le Plateau, we had a 2-BR, with views of the St. Lawrence, it wasn't fancy but quite nice and seemed recently renovated -- this was 2019, and our last major road trip before COVID. Lots to do in the area, including easy day trips to Quebec City of course, but also many other nearby activities. It's mostly a winter ski resort, and we usually love places like that for summer trails etc. It was an easy trade. Some reviews complained about high resort fees for wifi or pool or something or other, but we were never assessed any. My only complaint would be there wasn't an elevator and we were a few flights up.

btw, many USA-ers understand very well the sentiments expressed here.

 

[Christina_Snape]

I don't think it is a matter of people being "bitter about things you have no control over".

While we cannot control the actions of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, we can control our own actions, for a lot of people it is a simple matter of voting with your wallet, and with the current situation a number of Canadians are going to choose to spend their money elsewhere.

I'm definitely not bitter, but the situation definitely is affecting my purchasing (both travel and otherwise). I'm up for a new gas grill this year - previously "Made in the USA" options woulr have been under consideration, but now it will definitely be a "Made in Canada" Napoleon.

I don't think anyone here believes they have control over the situation, but collective action does make a difference, at least slightly.

Exactly this.
I'm still debating if I want to just scrap my New Orleans plans this year.... nothing has been booked yet, so I could... but I also promised myself I would make this trip over 3 years ago. It's for a memorial/celebration of life. Not anyone I knew personally, (an author) but still important to me. And the date was just finally announced last October... It's unfortunate it wasn't earlier, or in a few more years, but I have no control over what date was picked. So now it's just a matter of deciding how important it really is. And so far it's winning. So provided I can actually get tickets to the event I will be very begrudgingly traveling to the US unless something even worse happens to change my mind. (Or if they happen to announce a virtual attendance option!)

And if we don't go, we'll definitely pivot to a Canadian resort instead. Maybe back to Sun Peaks since it's driveable, or somewhere new. I wish we had more East Coast Canada options.. PEI would be great. My dad was born there, and I've never been.

 

[Whitesand54]

We live in BC and have Vidanta Grand Bliss with a Kindom of the sun and entertainment package.. With our schedule it's hard to book far enough ahead to get the room we paid for but we will find RCI members in the suites we "own" Everything onsight is wildly expensive like high end . We just went for an update and we had to weigh our options given our age and the fact that the maitenance fees are just shy of 300 per night USD. We buy groceries and alcohol off site but adding a 30,000 investment seems awkward even if we get some fair perks.
Rejection of the upgrade will mean our priority room booking will go low after a year if we don't upgrade but there are lots of other lovely places regardless of the 40,000 we have sunk into something where you aren't valued but I do love the resort.

 

[jpsmit]

We have two contracts at Bonnet Creek (Wyndham) and love them. Got them resale. We tend to travel off season or shoulder season and drive (we are in Ontario) We average out at about $100 USD per night for a one bedroom deluxe. (a little higher now due to the exchange rate) BUT still a smoking deal considering that we typically pay more for the hotel on the way to and from than for the resort. We have been to Washington (both) Myrtle Beach, Cyprus Palms, Nashville, Newport, Fort Lauderdale. Bonnet Creek is our absolute favourite. Hoping to continue though currently reassessing whether we want USA travel. Sadly Wyndham doesn't have a lot of European options.

 

[easyrider]

I wouldn't want to do what any authority figure says to do, if it's in conflict with my plans. I get it, but the way things change so fast, I would be reluctant to decide to forego a trip only to find out things are the same as they ever were, except for my trip.

I'm not Canadian but one of my Worldmark memberships I inherited is in the Canadian Trust.

Bill

 

[SDawn]

We don't need to discuss the reasons, but can discuss resorts outside of the US that are worth visiting.

I would be happy to go back to Aruba for every vacation. The only thing that would stop me from booking either St. Thomas or St. Kitts is there doesn't seem to be any affordable flights to either from Toronto. There is always Lagunamar though, at least studios and 1-BRs, and I've been looking at options in St. Maarten as well.

This might be the time to check out the MVC resorts in France and Spain.

But even better would be to stay in Canada, the Embarc/HGVC resorts all look really nice, anyone have recommendations for Canadian resorts?

Are you able to see decent Canadian resorts with your locked off MGC or VV?

We are DVC owners and have been researching and getting ready to buy either a lock off Marriott or VV at Williamsburg for trading and possibly Wyndham for WBC and Glacier Canyon (we can drive there). But our travels to USA have been put on hold, so we're at a standstill.

Either way, we would want to be able to exchange into Canada in case health reasons prevent us from travelling out of the country one day. I know my kids would be happy to use a ski exchange if we couldn't!

 

[easyrider]

I watched MP Angus giving a do not go travel advisory tonight. Wow. He claims ICE is messing with Canadians.

Are there new border crossing procedures ?

Bill

 

[jeanf]

Only thing changed is starting April 11th, anyone from any country staying in the U.S. for more than 30 days needs to fill out a form on the U.S. border website, or could lead to fines and/or apprehensions. There's a big push in Canada now to only travel in Canada, and only shop Canadian. I'm actually crossing into U.S. today at Niagara Falls crossing for 3 nights there from previous booking. Hopefully it will lead to smaller border crossing lines.

 

[moonstone]

Only thing changed is starting April 11th, anyone from any country staying in the U.S. for more than 30 days needs to fill out a form on the U.S. border website, or could lead to fines and/or apprehensions. There's a big push in Canada now to only travel in Canada, and only shop Canadian. I'm actually crossing into U.S. today at Niagara Falls crossing for 3 nights there from previous booking. Hopefully it will lead to smaller border crossing lines.

From my understanding, with the limited news about this in Canada and FL, or what is on FB, is that if a Canadian crossed by land they need the form. If one flew down, then they were automatically issued an I94 (& a B92 visa) and can stay for 180 (or is it 182?) days. We flew down in early March and our passports are stamped with a B92 (a tourism/vacation) visa saying we can stay for 6 months. We are driving home at the end of April and since we will only need to go through Canada Customs to get into Canada we are not filling out any forms. We will worry about what ever regulations are in place when we drive back down in late October.

A neighbour from home drove down March 10th for their semi-annual 2 month stay and told the US Customs agent they were staying in the Naples area for 2 months. They also drive down for 8 weeks from mid-Oct. to Mid-Dec. Our passports are not stamped for land entries. They went on the I94 website last week to make sure their entry is logged in the American computer system and saw that they must vacate the USA by April 10th, exactly 30 days from when they arrived. They have accommodations booked for 8 weeks and do not want to go home early. They only spend 4 months a year in the USA, so well below their allowable limit. They have been in contact with the Canadian Embassy in Miami, the Canadian Snowbird Association, as well as their Member of Parliament to try and get it sorted out. Just crazy!


~Diane

 

[Chrispee]

I watched MP Angus giving a do not go travel advisory tonight. Wow. He claims ICE is messing with Canadians.

Are there new border crossing procedures ?

Bill

To be clear, MP Angus was not giving an official travel advisory. Honestly it's a bit painful to watch civil liberties get pulled back from the outside and have a large portion of the population be oblivious to it since it does not directly affect them directly and immediately. Check out the story of a Canadian who was recently detained for two weeks by ICE with no option to contact her lawyer.

 

[jeanf]

We crossed just before noon at niagara land border, same procedure as always. Bonus was no one was in line so drove right up to border guard.

 

[jeanf]

It starts April 11th. So if you've been in the u.s. more than 30 days you just fill out the form on the u.s. border website.