Change to Redweek process and all those extra fees... And not in a good way....

[TUGBrian]

also, if anyone is aware of which broker is listing lots of marriott rentals (or if they lurk here)...feel free to reach out to me directly as Id like to ask them a few questions and make an offer!

 

[DanCali]

I was surprised (perhaps shouldn't have been) to see the number of rental listings for the one resort I looked at (Surf Club). Over 1,300 and that doesn't even include those that are grouped because of the same dates.

I wanted to book that resort for 2026 with points, but doesn't seem to ever show up at 13 months...

 

[jmhpsu93]

I've always used the full-service listings and I've had renters contact me directly with questions.

Just to clarify the questions received were AFTER the rental was booked.

 

[dioxide45]

I wanted to book that resort for 2026 with points, but doesn't seem to ever show up at 13 months...

Being an International property, point inventory is 100% dependent upon owners electing weeks for points. If you are looking for early in the year reservations, then 13 months is before a lot of owners have even considered electing points. Which for most is September 30th.

 

[dioxide45]

I've seen quite a few new startups showing up with websites to list and rent timeshares. The problem seems to be, is anyone of them big enough or get enough critical mass to disrupt Redweek in this space?

 

[montygz]

I've seen quite a few new startups showing up with websites to list and rent timeshares. The problem seems to be, is anyone of them big enough or get enough critical mass to disrupt Redweek in this space?

I think it is more likely that Redweek will die not from competition, but from being squeezed into an unprofitable situation.

This includes cities and states targeting them on tax collections for rentals; timeshare systems changing rules to prevent renting resulting in less inventory; some kind of incident of bad publicity if a scammer is found ripping off renters.

Dealing with these issues can end up costing more and more money until it isn't worth it to keep going.

When you get big you attract all kinds of attention, making it great to move or get rentals, but with it comes all the customer service, fraud, government regulation and other issues that drag you down.

The deck is stacked against these "gray market" companies, which is why it is hard to scale up a new one.

 

[rickandcindy23]

Redweek will be plenty healthy. I have just rented two with my V/P ads this past week. I can go weeks without getting a rental and then suddenly two within a few days of each other.

Redweek is a household name. TUG and Koala should be, but they aren't.

My only issue with Redweek is I have had to reduce my rental price just before my ad expires to get a rental. And when I do that, I am devaluing what we own. I don't like renting cheaply. The $59 lost fee really makes me crazy.

 

[jp10558]

Redweek is a household name. TUG and Koala should be, but they aren't.

With who? Because I can bet outside of TUG people it isn't. I never heard of Redweek till TUG told me about it. And thank goodness for TUG in general, because nothing about timeshares is household knowledge. AirB&B is household, but Redweek is only known to people at least adjacent to TS.

 

[rickandcindy23]

With who? Because I can bet outside of TUG people it isn't. I never heard of Redweek till TUG told me about it. And thank goodness for TUG in general, because nothing about timeshares is household knowledge. AirB&B is household, but Redweek is only known to people at least adjacent to TS.

Says all of the rentals I have gotten from RW over the last 15 years.

 

[jp10558]

Says all of the rentals I have gotten from RW over the last 15 years.

Maybe we just define "household name" differently. I'm not saying people haven't rented from you, I'm saying if I pinged a bunch of people I know, I would be surprised if they'd heard of Redweek.

 

[davidvel]

Maybe we just define "household name" differently. I'm not saying people haven't rented from you, I'm saying if I pinged a bunch of people I know, I would be surprised if they'd heard of Redweek.

I agree. I talk to a lot of people about our timeshares and other TS resorts we go to, and usually refer them to Redweek or TUG to look at rentals. None (of many dozens) had ever heard of Redweek or TUG.

I have never seen them advertise on TV, but think they would skyrocket if they did so. Though they can barely keep up as it is, so it could flop from negative feedback.

 

[TUGBrian]

doubt 95% of households know you can rent timeshares from owners, much less a company they can use to find rentals.

 

[DeniseM]

Now Redweek has this banner at the top of all of my Ads, regardless of the date:

1. None of my Ads are within 10 days.
2. I have never signed up for online booking.

 

[dioxide45]

I agree. I talk to a lot of people about our timeshares and other TS resorts we go to, and usually refer them to Redweek or TUG to look at rentals. None (of many dozens) had ever heard of Redweek or TUG.

I have never seen them advertise on TV, but think they would skyrocket if they did so. Though they can barely keep up as it is, so it could flop from negative feedback.

I think Redweek gets exposure simply by having good SEO and paying for top billing/ranking in Google search.

 

[exyeh]

DeniseM:​

I have the same situcation as yours, the banner says my ad is check in within 10 days, but it is for the end of the year!
I only have 1 rental listing though!
BTW, earlier this month, I found out redweek deleted my ad description and put up their standard resort description!

 

[DanCali]

I'm looking at the new full service listing - I don't even see a way to edit it (except price) or deactivate it...!

So if you change your mind about the rental you have to email them and wait for a response. I guess you can always bump up the price to $10,000/night to make sure it doesn't rent...

Also no ability to insert any comments in the listing, like we had in the DIY listings. When creating the listing there was a box that looked like it would serve that function ("anything else we need to know") but that apparently was noted for the full service team because whatever I put in there was removed in the listing.

 

[JustynaC]

I have a listing for Marriott's Aruba Ocean Club on Redweek, unfortunately I listed before I was aware of the new fees. I have just also listed it here on TUG and I am very hopeful that it rents here. I'm curious to see if it will rent here for the same amount that I could rent it for on Redweek. I have always had good luck with Redweek, and will hopefully have the same success here. As we all know, Redweek has always had the majority of listings for rent and sale, but the new changes make it extremely difficult to even be able to recoup expenses. The public needs to be re-educated to focus on TUG rather than Redweek. It will be one step at a time, but there are many here that can make it happen. I have high hopes!

 

[TUGBrian]

few things you can do to improve visibility for your listings on TUG.

1. all listings have their own unique address that can be used/posted elsewhere to promote just your listing, for instance:


full link would display it like this: https://tug2.com/timesharemarketplace/search?KeyWord=279934

where the 6 digit number on the end is your ad id.


2. leave a review of TUG on google!

I wont support trustpilot due to the regular offers I get to buy trustpilot reviews....but google reviews are completely free! (that said if you want to leave a review on trustpilot as well, feel free...I just personally wont subscribe to their service given my experience with them.

noone likely has the monetary resources to outspend redweek on google...or if they have the money they lack the capability-- so they dominate the top spots across the board. but this site has always been about owners sharing with other owners, so heres your opportunity to make a difference!

 

[jp10558]

doubt 95% of households know you can rent timeshares from owners, much less a company they can use to find rentals.

I'm telling you - as I've gone on my journey over the last 2.5ish years from re-finding TUG to buying my first TS, through to now - I've brought my sister and mom and some friends along on TS trips. My sister always says TS are like some hidden other world - and it's true... IDK how (or why TBH) it's managed to stay so secretive but it has. People generally think TS are bad, and have basically no idea they can rent them. Even just look at Youtube - there are many channels dedicated to travel, many episodes of challenges like "stay at the worst rated hotels from tripadvisor" etc, but there's a very small number about TS and I think most of them you could find the people making them also on TUG.

It's hard to imagine that all the stuff you know isn't common knowledge (outside of your career I mean, obviously it's easier when you trained and practiced etc), but I went through this with photography as a hobby, with D&D, with various genres of books, with baking and cooking, and even some of the crafting stuff. When you're in a community who all are interested in the thing, you think things that they all know "everyone" knows, but that's the opposite of the truth. And we all have gaps too - I don't know anything about Facebook, never been a member, never been on it. Same with Twitter/X - they let me read one tweet and then try and get me to sign up. But I'd think those are far more household names and familiar to more people.

 

[rickandcindy23]

I get Redweek ads all of the time while playing Words with Friends, also on You Tube. I also saw a few Koala ads on both. I also see a lot of timeshare exit ads. Those ads are aimed at me, and it's rather ironic because I am already a customer of RW and Koala.

We have friends that rented through Redweek long before they knew I could rent to them.

 

[jp10558]

I get Redweek ads all of the time while playing Words with Friends, also on You Tube. I also saw a few Koala ads on both. I also see a lot of timeshare exit ads. Those ads are aimed at me, and it's rather ironic because I am already a customer of RW and Koala.

We have friends that rented through Redweek long before they knew I could rent to them.

What I think you're missing is a lot (maybe all) of these ads are targetted, and you're deep in the TS world so of course TS "stuff" would target you. Not the same for someone who's only into say baking. I'll ask and see if anyone I know who's never had their name near a TS are getting redweek ads. It might be a simple as them being friends with you that made them a target for the ads - really, these companies work this detailed.