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Explorer Collection

suzannesimon

suzannesimon

TUG Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2010
Messages
1,892
Reaction score
147
Location
Destin, FL & Bethany Beach, DE
Resorts Owned
Marriott Frenchman's Cove, Hyatt Sunset Harbor, Harborside at Atlantis, Marriott Aruba Surf Club, Marriott Grande Ocean, Westin Kierland Villas, Westin Lagunamar
I was just looking at cruises in the Explorer Collection. I checked the prices out on the cruise websites. It looks like Marriott is giving us about 31 to 36 cents credit per point. That seems like a much worse skim than we get on the timeshares, or am I missing something?
 
suzannesimon said:
I was just looking at cruises in the Explorer Collection. I checked the prices out on the cruise websites. It looks like Marriott is giving us about 31 to 36 cents credit per point. That seems like a much worse skim than we get on the timeshares, or am I missing something?
Click to expand...

It varies. I have seen some as high as 50 cents credit per DC point on a couple Celebrity cruises.

The question of value really depends on how much each point is costing you. If one's maintenance fees are $1380 and one gets 4325 points for that resort, the cost per point is 32 cents so the deal is pretty much a wash.

You do have to remember that taxes and port charges are not included, and that the DC points approach precludes the OBC that one can get by going through a travel agency.

All in all I, don't think that one can make a blanket statement about the goodness or badness of cruise prices booked with DC points.

Art
 
Was just checking on DC points usage for a cruise and found it was not a bad deal = 5000 VCP plus around $750 per cabin for an outside cabin on an 11 night RCCL cruise in November out of NY/NJ. It is great that we can go on the my-vacation club site and actually see some of the information now. Still had to call to see how much out of pocket though.
 
Cruise options have traditionally not been a very good deal when exchanging your TS for them. It seems if you do your homework you can come out ahead. IIs cruise option is very poor and even worse is that you have to pay up at least another $59 to upgrade to gold to use it.
 
luvmytimeshare said:
Was just checking on DC points usage for a cruise and found it was not a bad deal = 5000 VCP plus around $750 per cabin for an outside cabin on an 11 night RCCL cruise in November out of NY/NJ. It is great that we can go on the my-vacation club site and actually see some of the information now. Still had to call to see how much out of pocket though.
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Did anyone provide you with a listing of what exactly comprised the $750 per stateroom out of pocket? That seems rather high if it was just taxes.

If it included the "non-commissionable" portion of the advertised cruise fare, it is would be good to know for future reference.

Art
 
Art said:
Did anyone provide you with a listing of what exactly comprised the $750 per stateroom out of pocket? That seems rather high if it was just taxes.

If it included the "non-commissionable" portion of the advertised cruise fare, it is would be good to know for future reference.

Art
Click to expand...

When I called and priced a cruise with using points to see what out of pocket costs were, the total I was given included taxes and port fees. That fee could also include travel insurance, transfers, so that $750 price may include some of those options.

I still think the cruises are not a bad deal if you pick a cheap one and don't care about the view. Even at $750 total out of pocket, to me it's still a good deal. Where are you going to get a 11 day cruise for $750 total? Maybe I just don't get the math when people says its better to book through the discounts but how is that true when:

1. You are going to pay the MFs on your weeks/points anyway no matter how you plan to use them.

2. Even if I go the "discount" cruise site option, that money that I'm "saving" will be an additional expense on top of what I'm already going to pay for MFs for the year.

Now if you are comparing the exchange of your week for a cruise via II, then I'll agree that option is a total rip off.
 
The $750 is port taxes and "fees". We are really interested in the Fall of 2013 but wanted to get an idea of point usage and value of a cruise. I agree that it was never a good idea to go through II for a cruise, very bad value, but I feel it is much better to go through the Destination Club. I priced out the cruise and it came to $2700 a couple if paying cash, so 5000 pts and $750 is not bad.
 
luvmytimeshare said:
The $750 is port taxes and "fees". We are really interested in the Fall of 2013 but wanted to get an idea of point usage and value of a cruise. I agree that it was never a good idea to go through II for a cruise, very bad value, but I feel it is much better to go through the Destination Club. I priced out the cruise and it came to $2700 a couple if paying cash, so 5000 pts and $750 is not bad.
Click to expand...

Where is the cruise going? Caribbbean? Canada?
 
luvmytimeshare said:
The $750 is port taxes and "fees". We are really interested in the Fall of 2013 but wanted to get an idea of point usage and value of a cruise. I agree that it was never a good idea to go through II for a cruise, very bad value, but I feel it is much better to go through the Destination Club. I priced out the cruise and it came to $2700 a couple if paying cash, so 5000 pts and $750 is not bad.
Click to expand...

That is a lot better than the 7-day balcony that I priced. That is reasonable and a lot better than II. I called II about 2 years ago and they would only give me $1,000 certificate for my unit toward a cruise. I can't imagine many people will take that.
 
luvmytimeshare said:
The $750 is port taxes and "fees". We are really interested in the Fall of 2013 but wanted to get an idea of point usage and value of a cruise. I agree that it was never a good idea to go through II for a cruise, very bad value, but I feel it is much better to go through the Destination Club. I priced out the cruise and it came to $2700 a couple if paying cash, so 5000 pts and $750 is not bad.
Click to expand...

Presuming that the cruise being taken is the Explore of Seas on November 3, the $750 includes about $200 of taxes. The remainder is probably the "non-commissionables." That makes the deal neither good nor bad; it is just a reminder that the one needs to call in rather than making a decision based on the advertised price of the cruise.

Art
 
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