Does anyone sell weeks anymore?

[Mjasp]

Curious, does any timeshare resort sell weeks anymore?

Can anyone tell me the advantage of owning points over weeks.

Question is: If I purchase points instead of a fixed week, Of the points I purchase can I be guaranteed a week every year in any of that brands resort other than my own resort. Example: Will I be guaranteed a Marriott week, Sheraton week etc. If I buy in those resorts.

The lady yesterday said our week is worthless LOL We love Vistana resort and kept throwing her for a loop when we said we LOVE our home resort. She kept saying that we won't be able to trade for anything etc...we said we have pretty much gone anywhere we wanted to, and no we don't want to go to Hawaii, Aruba etc...If we do want to go there we will rent or cruise there.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Instant Exchnge (9,000 Points Maximum For A Full Week).

Can anyone tell me the advantage of owning points over weeks.

We got into points (RCI) so we could get partial-week reservations & so we could get Instant Exchange reservations -- no more than 9,000 points for a full week in a straight-weeks timeshare when the reservation is made within 45 days of check-in.

Since taking the points plunge in 2005, we've done Instant Exchange a bunch of times but have never mad a partial-week reservation.

Go figure.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[falmouth3]

You can still buy weeks resale. I don't know what resorts are selling, but all the sales presentations I've gone to are selling points.

I like my weeks because I know it will always be worth "a week". Points required to rent a week may go up. There have been many discussions about the benefit of weeks vs. points.

I also had a salesperson try to run down my resort, bought on eBay for $600. When I told her that it got me Maui on my first exchange, she told me I got lucky. Since then it has always exchanged for what I wanted so they can criticize all they want. It works for me. :whoopie:

 

[anne1125]

I have purchased my "weeks" resorts on Ebay and Bidshares. Maybe it's just me but points gives me a headache.

Anne

 

[dougp26364]

Curious, does any timeshare resort sell weeks anymore?

Can anyone tell me the advantage of owning points over weeks.

Question is: If I purchase points instead of a fixed week, Of the points I purchase can I be guaranteed a week every year in any of that brands resort other than my own resort. Example: Will I be guaranteed a Marriott week, Sheraton week etc. If I buy in those resorts.

The lady yesterday said our week is worthless LOL We love Vistana resort and kept throwing her for a loop when we said we LOVE our home resort. She kept saying that we won't be able to trade for anything etc...we said we have pretty much gone anywhere we wanted to, and no we don't want to go to Hawaii, Aruba etc...If we do want to go there we will rent or cruise there.

Marriott still sells weeks and I'm sure there are several others that do as well. Although Points based reserations systems seem to be all the rage. Rumor has it that Marriott will eventually go to a points based reservation system in the future. I believe that Westgate still sells weeks as well.

If it's a timeshare salesman telling you anything, take it with a grain of salt. They're selling something and have something to gain by putting the spin in favor of their product.

Not all points systems are created equal. Generally speaking, you can guarentee that you will get whatever was contracted for at your home resort. IOW, if you bought enough points to reserve a high season 2 bedroom 2 bath unit then you're points should always be enough to reserve that type of unit at your home resort.

Now, as far as exchanging goes, all bets are off. Wyndham routinely builds new resorts that have higher point values to reserve a similar unit than at their older resorts. Hilton, who's sales mantra several years back was they have never required more points to reserve a 2 bedroom unit has moved away from that program at some of their newer resorts. I believe RCI's points requirement is dynamic depending upon the demand/quality of resorts as time goes on (not certain, I don't care for RCI).

 

[vacationhopeful]

I have fixed weeks and 2 points systems - RCI, Wyndham.

All have their advantages and all have somewhat different rules. The salespeople do want to sell their product - so, everything else is old and just worthless. That is what "sales" is, spinning the new as the greatest thing next to sliced bread.

If I want minimum hassle for a winter Florida beach vacation, I better understand I will spend about double the dollars for that fixed weeks/unit than if I go for a points only system (RESALE, of course). If I want some flexibilty, I might look for a RCI points resort I want with an underlying winter week. There are only so many Florida winter beach weeks/time.

Same is true, if I want Las Vegas for New Years Eve Week 52). Or Fourth of July (usually week 26 or 27) in Myrtle Beach.

As for points either Wyndham or RCI, one MUST plan 10-13 months in advance for your vacations OR plan no more than 60 days before travel, using what might be still open. The discounts for this last minute travel (basicly to use up the unreserved beds/units) are very attractive. The preplanners get a variety of locations, but there is NO guarantee that you WILL get every/all weeks that you want when you want to vacation, esp. if you don't learn the rules and preplan.

But if you want to exchange your fixed week, there are those rules. Each points system has its rules. Don't learn the rules, you are using a small fraction of your TS worth.

That is what is so good about TUGs. Answering/asking questions and learning from others is the key to best use of your TS for you. If you "like" deeded fixed weeks, great. If you like the "XYZ" points system, good for you. Even buying direct may be something that "fits" your TS needs; although the "RESALE" option has a great $$$$$ advantage for most people.

 

[tombo]

Developers can (and do) change the points requirements needed to stay in a high demand week or keep increasing the points required to stay at new resorts they build. They are always trying to sell you more points, or even worse they start a new program with upgraded points which devalue the current points you own. With a fixed week you know that you own that fixed week no matter what changes the developer decides to implement.

With points, the high demand weeks (summer beach, winter ski) require being on the phone within the first few minutes you can call to reserve at the 12 or 13 month advance reservation window, or you will probably never get a high demand week. Floating weeks also have this same problem. It is very nerve racking trying to reserve a particular week that you really need, and you have to go through the same stress every year. With a fixed week pay your MF's and you know whate dates will be yours 5 or 10 years from now with no stress.

Points are designed to be flexible allowing you to take long weekends. From what I have seen it is very hard if not impossible to get a Friday, Saturday reservation at the beach in June or July as most whole weeks are booked 12 or 13 months in advance. If you decide last minute that you can get away there will probably not be any availability.

The final problem with points is that with many developers you don't sell you a deed to anything, you just have points. Several resorts I own fixed weeks at try to get me to swap to points constantly and I never will. I know what week and unit I own. After swapping to points I will own points with them. If they go broke, file bankruptcy, or decide that regular points aren't good anymore you are out of luck because all you own is their points. With Festiva resorts if you own their points, you don't even have a vote on assessments, MF increases, or anything else because the developer owns the actual resort and they control all the votes. All you own is Festiva points which are worth nothing except on paper. If you own a week you actually own part of the resort and you get to vote on the direction your resort takes.

I recommend buying a fixed week (RESALE) at a location you can drive to and which you would like to visit each and every year. If you want to exchange your week that is always an option, but no matter how high air fares go or how poor your exchanging luck is, you will always have a place to vacation that you enjoy during a time of year that is good for you.

 

[Patri]

I also like weeks and think points are more complicated than they need to be. I imagine points benefit developers in the long run, as they expire, go unused etc. more than weeks. Hence, the resort gets the money for the maintenance fees but doesn't have to provide services for all of the points.

 

[Mjasp]

I also like weeks and think points are more complicated than they need to be. I imagine points benefit developers in the long run, as they expire, go unused etc. more than weeks. Hence, the resort gets the money for the maintenance fees but doesn't have to provide services for all of the points.

True, but unless a resort rents it out they still should want the owners to use it as they lose revenue.

 

[tombo]

True, but unless a resort rents it out they still should want the owners to use it as they lose revenue.

If the resort gets the MF's and owners don't show up, they have saved on cleaning expenses, electricity, water, customer service obligations, and they have been payed in full for a no show. The developers love empty rooms which were payed for in full by owners because it increases their profitability. If the week was payed for in full and they rent the empty week, they got paid twice.

 

[DEROS]

Can anyone tell me the advantage of owning points over weeks.

I bought a points system because of the flexibility. Unless the week has some significance to me, I would not knowingly book the same week over and over again every year. I don't think I would ever have troubles getting a reservation at my home resort for a particular week 12 months out, unless the week was a different season than what I own.

As for the developer changing pts for stay, I guess it could happen. However, no matter how many points HGVC increase my home resort to, I am still allotted a weeks stay. According to my deed I purchased a floating week, during a designated season, for a certain type of room at HGVC Waikoloa. I didn't buy 9600pts. It doesn't even state points on the deed other than being members of HGVCClub. The points allows me to exchange with another resort withing the HGVC. So, in theory HGVC can tell owners of other HGVC resort that it cost 10,000pts to stay at Waikoloa but it will always cost me 9600pts because I am deeded a week, not points.

Question is: If I purchase points instead of a fixed week, Of the points I purchase can I be guaranteed a week every year in any of that brands resort other than my own resort. Example: Will I be guaranteed a Marriott week, Sheraton week etc. If I buy in those resorts.

What I have seen HGVC do to increase point cost is build a new TS next to an old one and increase the points needed to stay at the new TS. i.e Grand Waikikian and Kingsland. It cost 14400 points to stay in a 2 bdrm Kingsland but only 9600pts to stay at a 2 bdrm at Waikoloa. (Platinum Season)

Curious, does any timeshare resort sell weeks anymore?

As for fix week, HGVC sell them. You don't have to do anything to reserve your time, it is done automatically. The salesperson told me that most people do that for special weeks, like X'mas or New Years.