Cinders54 what do I want survey.

[Cinders54]

) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where? No

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time? No

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations? Nevada, Mexico, Great Britain, Panama, Brazil

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself? 2

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule? Any time

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance? Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time? Yes. Usually I go for 14 days.

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars? 4

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing? $5000.

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year? $2000.

11) Are you a detail oriented planner? YES

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do? Yes

 

[StarSailer]

International globe trotting probably means RCI or Interval International. I'm not aware of any single system that covers even 4 of your 5 top destinations.

By 4-diamond accommodation are you thinking more 3-4 diamonds or 4-5 diamonds?

RCI-points is good for 3-4 diamond travelers and is more flexible system, but the best Gold Crown resorts top out at about 4-diamond. Is Las Vegas part of your Nevada wish-list? If so you might consider buying an RCI-Point enrolled deed or two at GrandView if you live in the US. Search for the RCI Point Grid as a starting point to estimate points needed.

For 4-5 diamond travel look at Interval International. The match making seems to make exchanging finickier and it might be harder getting a 2-week stay but that system includes more of the higher end resorts. Since the system tries to match like to like you may need to own a 4-diamond resort yourself for trading, so narrow your home resort search to locations with Select/Premier recognition. That's about all I know on II.

 

[Cinders54]

International globe trotting probably means RCI or Interval International. I'm not aware of any single system that covers even 4 of your 5 top destinations.

By 4-diamond accommodation are you thinking more 3-4 diamonds or 4-5 diamonds?

RCI-points is good for 3-4 diamond travelers and is more flexible system, but the best Gold Crown resorts top out at about 4-diamond. Is Las Vegas part of your Nevada wish-list? If so you might consider buying an RCI-Point enrolled deed or two at GrandView if you live in the US. Search for the RCI Point Grid as a starting point to estimate points needed.

For 4-5 diamond travel look at Interval International. The match making seems to make exchanging finickier and it might be harder getting a 2-week stay but that system includes more of the higher end resorts. Since the system tries to match like to like you may need to own a 4-diamond resort yourself for trading, so narrow your home resort search to locations with Select/Premier recognition. That's about all I know on II.

The star rating is my lowest priority since my interest is the destination not the resort. I agree RCI and II offer a great variety of destinations. I need points or weeks to deposit into RCI or II so that I can find a place I'd like to visit. I'm not interested in a home resort anywhere or home week anywhere. The more I learn the more I'm leaning back to just finding hotels.

 

[SmithOp]

The more I learn the more I'm leaning back to just finding hotels.

This is another consideration, some people prefer condo style accomodations with cooking facilities to prepare their own meals, some would rather eat at restaurants.

There are clubs that are free to join where you can find RCI extra weeks.

I picked up a free week here that included Interval and RCI (Vistana), then I passed it on but kept access to the exchanges for extra weeks and getaways.

 

[BJRSanDiego]

@Cinders54 , you may want to look at the Interval resort directory that can be accessed without login credentials: https://www.intervalworld.com/web/cs?a=1500 That will give you an idea of what may be available in your primary target areas.

I know that you can also access the RCI website by doing a google search....

RCI has more resorts than Interval but Interval has better/nicer resorts in general (including Marriott, Westin, Hyatt, Disney, etc.). RCI has a bunch of Worldmark and Wyndham resorts.

Both exchange companies have a whole bunch of Las Vegas and Mexican resorts (generally an easy trade). I own a bunch of Marriott 2 BR lock-off timeshares, so I exchange through Interval. I always "split" and book my home resort as an efficiency and a 1 BR, which I deposit individually into Interval. That gives me two weeks a year rather than just one. I "could" stay in my own home resort with the reservations but I prefer to deposit them and then get a unit size upgrade to a 2 BR unit for each deposit. Yes, there is a slight cost of doing the split and 2 exchanges but for me, it is worth it. Also, owning a Marriott - - I pay around $2100 or so a year in MF per week that I own. But by splitting the unit I get 2 weeks of usage for about $1050 to $1100 per week.

My advice, which seems to be supported by a lot of others is to buy resale (secondary market) and buy the high season (Platinum or Red) because it trades better and the maintenance fees are the same. Yes, you'll pay a bit more initially but I think that the extra trading power is worth it. Also, when you eventually go to get rid of (sell or give away), the high season will be easier to dispose of.

 

[Cinders54]

In the early 1990's a man that I worked with told me , regarding purchasing a timeshare, to buy big (at least 2 bedrooms) and a red week. You can always trade down to smaller or less desirable week. When I approached DVC to buy, I told them right up front , I need enough points to use a 2 bedroom, red week for a week. 275 points. Easiest sale the guy ever had. I went to them.

 

[davidvel]

In the early 1990's a man that I worked with told me , regarding purchasing a timeshare, to buy big (at least 2 bedrooms) and a red week. You can always trade down to smaller or less desirable week. When I approached DVC to buy, I told them right up front , I need enough points to use a 2 bedroom, red week for a week. 275 points. Easiest sale the guy ever had. I went to them.

So you own a DVC?

 

[Cinders54]

So you own a DVC?

No, sold it in 2010. I bought it so my sisters, all with children, could visit Disney and stay at a Disney for less. They would pay my maintenance fee. They never took up the offer. I used it twice- A visit to Kauai and a stay at a Frank Lloyd Wright designed hotel in Phoenix.

 

[CO skier]

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations? Nevada, Mexico, Great Britain, Panama, Brazil

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time? Yes. Usually I go for 14 days.

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars? 4

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing? $5000.

10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year? $2000.

The more I learn the more I'm leaning back to just finding hotels.

In your other thread, you mentioned wanting to exchange for a 2 bedroom. Where can you find 2 weeks at your destinations in just a hotel room for $2,000? Maybe up this amount, and a timeshare becomes very competitive, plus you would not have to eat out all the time when staying in a timeshare condo.

A Marriot timeshare might be worth a look. There is one in Costa Rica, instead of Panama, plus Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe in Nevada. Mexico would be easy to exchange into through Interval International. Use ongoing searches in II more than 12 months in advance to stay in Great Britain and Brazil.

You could start with just one week of ownership. See how easy it is to split and exchange/upgrade the 1 bedroom to a 2 bedroom in Interval International.

 

[Cinders54]

After more reading and recommendations, I think my question is:
What is the best trader (through RCI and II) to buy?
I've explored both Exchange companies resorts and membership options. Now I need something to deposit so I can travel. I think points are more flexible. My only certainty is I will only buy resale and that I don't want a big upfront payment. I lean toward Wyndham because I use there hotels and use a Wyndham branded credit card. I wish I could find a dictionary of the acronyms and timeshare industry words that are used in various posts.

 

[Passepartout]

After more reading and recommendations, I think my question is:
What is the best trader (through RCI and II) to buy?
I've explored both Exchange companies resorts and membership options. Now I need something to deposit so I can travel. I think points are more flexible. My only certainty is I will only buy resale and that I don't want a big upfront payment. I lean toward Wyndham because I use there hotels and use a Wyndham branded credit card. I wish I could find a dictionary of the acronyms and timeshare industry words that are used in various posts.

The best 'bang for the buck' is RCI, Grandvew Las Vegas that has already been converted to RCI Points. iirc a 2 bedroom there- which is really 2- one bedroom units with a shared entry. I haven't looked recently but it seems to me that it generates about 122,000 annually for under $2000 a year. These are in some demand on the resale market but can be bought for a few thousands.

Do a search in the window above here for 'timeshare acronyms. Or just ask what ______means?

Jim

 

[CO skier]

After more reading and recommendations, I think my question is:
What is the best trader (through RCI and II) to buy?
I've explored both Exchange companies resorts and membership options. Now I need something to deposit so I can travel. I think points are more flexible. My only certainty is I will only buy resale and that I don't want a big upfront payment. I lean toward Wyndham because I use there hotels and use a Wyndham branded credit card. I wish I could find a dictionary of the acronyms and timeshare industry words that are used in various posts.

For Interval International, it would be difficult to beat WorldMark. Use the search power of a 3 bedroom, but pay for only the size you exchange into. Enter multiple Request First searches -- just be sure to stay on top of them. After one exchange matches, cancel the others for a refund of the exchange fees.

The points cost of II exchanges

20,000 credits will get you 2 weeks in a 2 bedroom plus exchange fees. 2026 maintenance fees are $1,989 for 20k credits. It is easy to find a 20k account for just the $399 transfer costs, or a little more going through a broker.

 

[bizaro86]

For Interval International, it would be difficult to beat WorldMark. Use the search power of a 3 bedroom, but pay for only the size you exchange into. Enter multiple Request First searches -- just be sure to stay on top of them. After one exchange matches, cancel the others for a refund of the exchange fees.

The points cost of II exchanges
View attachment 124525

20,000 credits will get you 2 weeks in a 2 bedroom plus exchange fees. 2026 maintenance fees are $1,989 for 20k credits. It is easy to find a 20k account for just the $399 transfer costs, or a little more going through a broker.

View attachment 124526

The other advantage of worldmark is that you can use it for both II and RCI. You'd have to pay two membership fees, but you could also switch back and forth. There are some destinations where one is better than the other.

 

[Cinders54]

For Interval International, it would be difficult to beat WorldMark. Use the search power of a 3 bedroom, but pay for only the size you exchange into. Enter multiple Request First searches -- just be sure to stay on top of them. After one exchange matches, cancel the others for a refund of the exchange fees.

The points cost of II exchanges
View attachment 124525

20,000 credits will get you 2 weeks in a 2 bedroom plus exchange fees. 2026 maintenance fees are $1,989 for 20k credits. It is easy to find a 20k account for just the $399 transfer costs, or a little more going through a broker.

View attachment 124526

Worldmark is part of Club Wyndham Vacation Club, right? Do I go to Worldmark to search for resales?

 

[Shiba]

The Grandview 122k points has been popular with Tuggers in the past for RCI trades. Just make sure its not a fixed week but the 122k points contract. Do a search should pull up on a lot of info.

If you go with Worldmark there are a lot of FREE contracts on Timeshare Nation. Look under Wyndham points.

 

[Cinders54]

The best 'bang for the buck' is RCI, Grandvew Las Vegas that has already been converted to RCI Points. iirc a 2 bedroom there- which is really 2- one bedroom units with a shared entry. I haven't looked recently but it seems to me that it generates about 122,000 annually for under $2000 a year. These are in some demand on the resale market but can be bought for a few thousands.

Do a search in the window above here for 'timeshare acronyms. Or just ask what ______means?

Jim

What does iirc mean? How do I resech for Grandview Las Vegas resales? What Vacation Club does it belong to?

 

[bizaro86]

What does iirc mean? How do I resech for Grandview Las Vegas resales? What Vacation Club does it belong to?

IIRC - general internet abbreviation meaning "if I recall correctly"

For grandview resales I'd check ebay, timeshare nation, and tug marketplace.

They are rci points units, so you'd be locked in to using that system.

 

[geist1223]

Wyndham is the Developer for Worldmark. They purchased this from Trendwest almost 30 years ago. The WM BOD retained Wyndham as the day to day Manager of the Resorts as a separate matter. But Wyndham does not own Worldmark. Worldmark has no employees. Worldmark consists of the Members, the Resorts, and the BOD. Checkout www.wmowners.com/forum for Memberships for sale. Resell has full access to the 90+ WM Resorts, Waitlists (4), BonusTime, Inventory Specials, and Monday Madness. These last 3 items are all Cash Options that include the Housekeeping Fee. Resell owners DO NOT have access to Wyndham Resorts through Club Pass or Wyndham South Pacific (New Zealand and Australia). They do through RCI. The number of no costs (well you do pay Maintenance Fees) Housekeeping are 1 from 5,000 Credits to 19,999 Credits. Then an additional at 20,000 Credits, 30,000 Credits, etc. The number of no costs Guest Certificates is 1 for every 10,000 Credits or part there of. Resell has to pay for RCI or II.

 

[Passepartout]

What does iirc mean? How do I resech for Grandview Las Vegas resales? What Vacation Club does it belong to?

RCI and Wyndham are both owned by Wyndham, so yes, you'd be locked into that system, but you said that was where you were leaning anyway. Start by looking in the TUG Marketplace in the blue stripe above here. eBay and Redweek also list resales.

 

[jp10558]

Grandview can be very cost effective. I got 98,000 for the transfer costs here on TUG. Probably not the absolute best deal, but works well enough for me. But the $299 exchange fee plus resort fees makes RCI exchanges cost a lot. With small enough points costs it's fine, but the worst case can be $600 in fees from what I can tell. That can work if you're OK with spending $1800 for a week on an exchange, or if the points costs are low enough then you might only use say $150 in MFs so that can also make sense. But keep that in mind.

II is a little better in that more resorts don't have resort fees so you just have the II Exchange fee of $250. But (aside from Worldmark I guess, or one with Gold Points which seems rare to me) you have to basically use a full week to trade. Now, if you have a lock-off you can split it, but the trade power does correspond to the unit size, and then there's extra size upgrade fees if you do see and want to go bigger. So probably no matter how you split it you're looking at around $1,300 for a week in a 2BR if using a cheaper independent MF option, or you can get it down a bit with a strong Marriott that you lock off, which I think runs around $1,700 / 2 get's you $850 plus the common $90 lock off fee I've seen reported, so that puts you at $940 and then if you do actually want a 2BR the one or two size upgrade fee of $89 unless you buy platnium membership for 2x a year in which case it's $59. You pay that once if trading the 1BR to a 2BR or twice if going from a studio to a 2BR. So you can potentially get it to $1,030 in MF plus basic fees, then plus $250 for exchange so $1,280 ish. This does let you get 2 trades though, so that's a bit cheaper. Also you can have better trade power.

 

[Cinders54]

The Grandview 122k points has been popular with Tuggers in the past for RCI trades. Just make sure its not a fixed week but the 122k points contract. Do a search should pull up on a lot of info.

If you go with Worldmark there are a lot of FREE contracts on Timeshare Nation. Look under Wyndham points.

There is a Grandview Las Vegas resale on TUG, 122,000 RCI points, 2 bd, but is says 'fixed week'

 

[StarSailer]

What does iirc mean? How do I resech for Grandview Las Vegas resales? What Vacation Club does it belong to?

Vacation Village by Vacatia? I don't know if they count as a vacation club or a management company.

Grandview deeds are for fixed weeks. Weeks that are enrolled with RCI-points can either be used at home resort or exchanged for points.

Grandview Weeks #38-45,52 that are enrolled with RCI-Points currently have an assigned value of 61,000 points per bedroom.

Grandview Weeks #9-37,51 are currently assigned 49,000 points per bedroom when enrolled.

Google AI tells me a non-point week can be enrolled to become a points week for ~$3000, but since they sell resell for less than $3K it is better to buy a week already enrolled in points if you can.

 

[Cinders54]

Vacation Village by Vacatia? I don't know if they count as a vacation club or a management company.

Grandview deeds are for fixed weeks. Weeks that are enrolled with RCI-points can either be used at home resort or exchanged for points.

Grandview Weeks #38-45,52 that are enrolled with RCI-Points currently have an assigned value of 61,000 points per bedroom.

Grandview Weeks #9-37,51 are currently assigned 49,000 points per bedroom when enrolled.

Google AI tells me a non-point week can be enrolled to become a points week for ~$3000, but since they sell resell for less than $3K it is better to buy a week already enrolled in points if you can.

The resale ad on TUG Grandview Las Vegas , 122k RCI points says fixed week , October 11-18, 2026. I can't find a timeshare calendar to find out if this is a high, red, premium, most desirable week.

 

[Cinders54]

The best 'bang for the buck' is RCI, Grandvew Las Vegas that has already been converted to RCI Points. iirc a 2 bedroom there- which is really 2- one bedroom units with a shared entry. I haven't looked recently but it seems to me that it generates about 122,000 annually for under $2000 a year. These are in some demand on the resale market but can be bought for a few thousands.

Do a search in the window above here for 'timeshare acronyms. Or just ask what ______means?

Jim

There is a 122k RCI points Grandview on TUG and Redweek. $2000 each. 2 bd lock off.

 

[StarSailer]

The resale ad on TUG Grandview Las Vegas , 122k RCI points says fixed week , October 11-18, 2026. I can't find a timeshare calendar to find out if this is a high, red, premium, most desirable week.

https://www.rci.com/static/docs/en_US/pow/help/rci-points-grids.html - search for 'GrandView.'
(61K RCI 1BR / 122K RCI 2BR is the best season)

https://www.rci.com/content/dam/panorama/docs/en_us/fixed-weeks/fixed-week-2025-2026.pdf