Free Fixed Week Conversions?

[pagosajim]

Just noticed the announcement of a special program to allow conversion of fixed weeks to points for "free". If anyone is interested in pursing this, I would love to hear if it's actually true.

They're calling the program "From Fixed To Flexible". I accidentally found the announcement on the new website when searching for "covid" as was suggested in another thread.

NOW THROUGH AUGUST 31, 2020

All conversion fees and incremental purchase requirements will be waived, so you can turn your fixed week into Club Wyndham points without paying the conversion fee — giving you more flexibility for future vacations. Please see the Offer Details below for eligibility requirements and additional information.*
When you convert your fixed week to Club Wyndham points, you can have the best of both worlds. When the time is right to travel again, you’ll have guaranteed access to your home resort during the Advance Reservation Priority booking window so you can enjoy your favorite vacation destination, plus access to 220+ additional resorts for a new adventure.

 

[harveyhaddixfan]

Please post the link to this!

 

[Eric B]

Club Wyndham Resort Locations

Explore Our Expansive Inventory of 240+ Club Wyndham Resort Locations Worldwide. See Where Club Wyndham Timeshare Can Take You For Your Next Vacation!

clubwyndham.wyndhamdestinations.com

You don't have to be signed in to get to it.

That page included the following info as well (might count towards VIP?):

Guaranteed Access to Your Home Resort – You’ll still have guaranteed access to the resort you know and love, in the same suite you're accustomed to when booking during your Advance Reservation Priority booking window. Plus, you’ll have more options for your length of stay. Want a quick 3-night getaway? Maybe stay a little longer? The choice is yours.

Ability to Save Your Points – The Points Deposit Feature allows you to save your points for future vacations when travel is not possible during the year. With double the points, you can take an even bigger, better vacation next year.

External Exchange Options – Receive a complementary RCI membership and get access to over 4,000 vacation possibilities across the globe. This is a perfect option when the location you’re looking for isn’t available through Club Wyndham, or when your points are expiring and you want to keep them alive for two more years.

VIP Benefits – Enjoy additional perks as a VIP when you have 400,000 points or more. You’ll receive discounted vacation options, an opt-in for free suite upgrades (subject to availability), Wyndham Rewards status match, plus so much more.

 

[CCdad]

Club Wyndham Resort Locations

Explore Our Expansive Inventory of 240+ Club Wyndham Resort Locations Worldwide. See Where Club Wyndham Timeshare Can Take You For Your Next Vacation!

clubwyndham.wyndhamdestinations.com

You don't have to be signed in to get to it.

That page included the following info as well (might count towards VIP?):

Guaranteed Access to Your Home Resort – You’ll still have guaranteed access to the resort you know and love, in the same suite you're accustomed to when booking during your Advance Reservation Priority booking window. Plus, you’ll have more options for your length of stay. Want a quick 3-night getaway? Maybe stay a little longer? The choice is yours.

Ability to Save Your Points – The Points Deposit Feature allows you to save your points for future vacations when travel is not possible during the year. With double the points, you can take an even bigger, better vacation next year.

External Exchange Options – Receive a complementary RCI membership and get access to over 4,000 vacation possibilities across the globe. This is a perfect option when the location you’re looking for isn’t available through Club Wyndham, or when your points are expiring and you want to keep them alive for two more years.

VIP Benefits – Enjoy additional perks as a VIP when you have 400,000 points or more. You’ll receive discounted vacation options, an opt-in for free suite upgrades (subject to availability), Wyndham Rewards status match, plus so much more.

They’re initially saying this particular offer is for a true Fixed Week, that it is not eligible for any “floating” fixed weeks.


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[Pathways]

The Rep said they will call me back next week to tell me the exact point value of each of my weeks should I convert. They also confirmed that they would be considered 'developer' points and count towards a higher VIP level.

Guess those recent ebay $1.00 fixed weeks at Bali Hai might have been a good deal had I purchased one!

 

[bendadin]

The Rep said they will call me back next week to tell me the exact point value of each of my weeks should I convert. They also confirmed that they would be considered 'developer' points and count towards a higher VIP level.

Guess those recent ebay $1.00 fixed weeks at Bali Hai might have been a good deal had I purchased one!

Did you tell her that they were resale?

 

[Pathways]

Did you tell her that they were resale?

They looked up my account and said they were 'eligible'. But until the 'specialist' calls me back during the week and gives me a formal proposal, who knows.

 

[CCdad]

They looked up my account and said they were 'eligible'. But until the 'specialist' calls me back during the week and gives me a formal proposal, who knows.

Here’s the fine print to the offer on the web page link above:


Need Help?

For more information or to convert your fixed week to Club Wyndham points today, call 855-934-0688 .

*Offer Details: To be eligible for the conversion offer, owners must have fixed or float week(s) managed by Club Wyndham at eligible resorts. Owner accounts must be paid in full, current, and in good standing. Owners that convert to Club Wyndham Plus will be responsible for payment of Club Wyndham Plus program fees and will be subject to the Club Wyndham Plus program rules. Additional eligibility requirements and terms and conditions apply. Please call for details.


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[Braindead]

Remember sales to existing owners is what Wyndham is relying on during this time??
My bet you’ll have to buy an equal number of points from Wyndham for around $200-$250 per 1k points.
Maybe they’ll do something to qualify resales

Remember the big discount on buying points a few months ago?? It ended up being the same price from telesales before the announced sale

 

[R1964]

It's to bad that Club Wyndham has to manage the resort. Fairfield Harbour in New Bern, NC is listed on the resorts available to make reservation at but the resort isn't managed by Wyndham. I my have taken advantage of this if they were.

 

[Eric B]

Remember sales to existing owners is what Wyndham is relying on during this time??
My bet you’ll have to buy an equal number of points from Wyndham for around $200-$250 per 1k points.
Maybe they’ll do something to qualify resales

Remember the big discount on buying points a few months ago?? It ended up being the same price from telesales before the announced sale

OP included the initial portion of the terms of the program, which included the statement I put in bold and large text. I believe the incremental purchase requirement waiver would mean no need to buy additional points.

This could be a sign of WYND taking some action to improve their cash flow; doing this would get them the $.64 in program fees for every 1,000 points they convert on an ongoing basis. They're only offering this through August, which is likely when they are estimating they will start getting sales revenue again.

Just noticed the announcement of a special program to allow conversion of fixed weeks to points for "free". If anyone is interested in pursing this, I would love to hear if it's actually true.

They're calling the program "From Fixed To Flexible". I accidentally found the announcement on the new website when searching for "covid" as was suggested in another thread.

NOW THROUGH AUGUST 31, 2020

All conversion fees and incremental purchase requirements will be waived, so you can turn your fixed week into Club Wyndham points without paying the conversion fee — giving you more flexibility for future vacations. Please see the Offer Details below for eligibility requirements and additional information.*
When you convert your fixed week to Club Wyndham points, you can have the best of both worlds. When the time is right to travel again, you’ll have guaranteed access to your home resort during the Advance Reservation Priority booking window so you can enjoy your favorite vacation destination, plus access to 220+ additional resorts for a new adventure.

 

[antjmar]

They are probably doing this so they don’t have to compensate the fixed week owners that weren’t able to use the week due to virus. It also helps them since more club fees.

 

[comicbookman]

If they convert resale fixed weeks into VIP eligible points, there are going to be a lot of pissed off VIP owners. I would expect that might be corrected in the "Additional eligibility requirements and terms and conditions apply. " It is possible Hawaii might be an exception.

 

[spackler]

The Rep said they will call me back next week to tell me the exact point value of each of my weeks should I convert. They also confirmed that they would be considered 'developer' points and count towards a higher VIP level.

You should be able to determine the exact point value now by checking out the points chart for each week you own.

 

[dgalati]

If they convert resale fixed weeks into VIP eligible points, there are going to be a lot of pissed off VIP owners. I would expect that might be corrected in the "Additional eligibility requirements and terms and conditions apply. " It is possible Hawaii might be an exception.

Why would this piss off VIP owners? Very comparable to using a PIC to become VIP? Wyndham also has the right to change club rules when they deem it neccessary.

 

[Richelle]

Why would this piss off VIP owners? Very comparable to using a PIC to become VIP? Wyndham also has the right to change club rules when they deem it neccessary.

I personally do not care if they take advantage of the offer and get VIP, but I suspect some might be mad. With PIC, it still requires a purchase of points. Wonder if they will waive the limit to the number of PICs you may have if you buy points. Would also be another way to get program fee money because we pay a program fee on those PIC points. They may even allow you to enroll them for a fee instead of points. Doubt it, but one can dream.

 

[Eric B]

Why would this piss off VIP owners? Very comparable to using a PIC to become VIP? Wyndham also has the right to change club rules when they deem it neccessary.

Seems like a fairly simple conclusion for someone to come to. Generally, consumers became VIPs by purchasing enough points directly from the developer, which costs a lot. Alternatively, knowledgable consumers became VIPs by purchasing enough points directly from the developer and using the PIC Plus program to get additional points towards the VIP levels using other TS they own. There have been loopholes over the years, but the trend for the most part has been Wyndham closing those loopholes and raising the amount of points necessary to achieve the various VIP levels - this trend has accompanied a trend of rising prices for points, thus raising the cost in dollars to get VIP status. In the earlier years, it was possible to convert fixed or floating weeks without much limitation on whether the points counted towards VIP status; this was later limited to weeks one had purchased directly from the developer rather than resale weeks.

Bottom line is that the result of opening up conversion of resale weeks to points without any out of pocket cost or limitation to developer purchases for the owners can wind up essentially giving away VIP status for free, which would raise the level of competition for discounts and upgrades for the existing VIPs that were unable to achieve their status for free. The existing ones made personal choices that weighed their perception of the value of the privileges of VIP status as being worth the costs, which have historically been more than minimal. With this change, Wyndham is giving at least the perception that resale week converters will be able to achieve VIP status levels with no cost, potentially even considering the cost of obtaining the resale weeks they own. For someone that picked up a few Pahio Bali Hai Villas contracts on the resale market for free, this could net them VIP platinum status in exchange for just being willing to pay the extra $0.64 program fees for them in a Club Wyndham Select resort with very inexpensive HOA fees - unfortunately I'm not in that circumstance as I never would have expected Wyndham to do that. Over the years, I've seen quite a few 2 BR Pahio Bali Hai contracts on eBay for $1, many of them just don't sell for a variety of reasons such as not very desirable time of the year and the need to exchange via RCI, etc. In the Wyndham system, though, there is no seasonality for this resort and a 2 BR gets you either 308K or 325K points depending on whether it's upper or lower level. If someone has a couple of upper level 2 BR contracts and converts them, that could wind up being an additional 650K towards VIP status for free - three contracts gets you VIP Platinum.

I realize that there are some folks that swear by renting from VIPs, etc., but there are others that actually make value judgements and invest in things that provide a return that they want. When the rules are changed and the cost of they want is eliminated, it's a natural response to get upset. To think otherwise is plainly ridiculous or provocative.

 

[Eric B]

I personally do not care if they take advantage of the offer and get VIP, but I suspect some might be mad. With PIC, it still requires a purchase of points. Wonder if they will waive the limit to the number of PICs you may have if you buy points. Would also be another way to get program fee money because we pay a program fee on those PIC points. They may even allow you to enroll them for a fee instead of points. Doubt it, but one can dream.

I wouldn't be terribly offended either, but believe it's a natural response for some. The other thing we could dream about is letting us pay a fee to have resale points count towards VIP status - that would be nice and would likely wind up having some additional contracts that are out there avoid defaults.

 

[Roger830]

"You’ll still have guaranteed access to the resort you know and love, in the same suite you're accustomed to when booking during your Advance Reservation Priority booking window. "

I'll save a hard copy of this notice.

I was told at Sea Gardens that I'm only guaranteed the week, not the unit, even though I always got my unit by telephone request.

A long time owner told me that retail conversions did grandfather the unit.

 

[Cyrus24]

Wonder if they will waive the limit to the number of PICs you may have if you buy points.

I was thinking about that just yesterday. I'd buy more points to get to the next level if I could use a 3rd PIC. They do need to set a rule, like 3rd PIC only good if it takes you above the 1.4MM point level. But, that could be very hard for them to manage.

 

[dgalati]

Seems like a fairly simple conclusion for someone to come to. Generally, consumers became VIPs by purchasing enough points directly from the developer, which costs a lot. Alternatively, knowledgable consumers became VIPs by purchasing enough points directly from the developer and using the PIC Plus program to get additional points towards the VIP levels using other TS they own. There have been loopholes over the years, but the trend for the most part has been Wyndham closing those loopholes and raising the amount of points necessary to achieve the various VIP levels - this trend has accompanied a trend of rising prices for points, thus raising the cost in dollars to get VIP status. In the earlier years, it was possible to convert fixed or floating weeks without much limitation on whether the points counted towards VIP status; this was later limited to weeks one had purchased directly from the developer rather than resale weeks.

Bottom line is that the result of opening up conversion of resale weeks to points without any out of pocket cost or limitation to developer purchases for the owners can wind up essentially giving away VIP status for free, which would raise the level of competition for discounts and upgrades for the existing VIPs that were unable to achieve their status for free. The existing ones made personal choices that weighed their perception of the value of the privileges of VIP status as being worth the costs, which have historically been more than minimal. With this change, Wyndham is giving at least the perception that resale week converters will be able to achieve VIP status levels with no cost, potentially even considering the cost of obtaining the resale weeks they own. For someone that picked up a few Pahio Bali Hai Villas contracts on the resale market for free, this could net them VIP platinum status in exchange for just being willing to pay the extra $0.64 program fees for them in a Club Wyndham Select resort with very inexpensive HOA fees - unfortunately I'm not in that circumstance as I never would have expected Wyndham to do that. Over the years, I've seen quite a few 2 BR Pahio Bali Hai contracts on eBay for $1, many of them just don't sell for a variety of reasons such as not very desirable time of the year and the need to exchange via RCI, etc. In the Wyndham system, though, there is no seasonality for this resort and a 2 BR gets you either 308K or 325K points depending on whether it's upper or lower level. If someone has a couple of upper level 2 BR contracts and converts them, that could wind up being an additional 650K towards VIP status for free - three contracts gets you VIP Platinum.

I realize that there are some folks that swear by renting from VIPs, etc., but there are others that actually make value judgements and invest in things that provide a return that they want. When the rules are changed and the cost of they want is eliminated, it's a natural response to get upset. To think otherwise is plainly ridiculous or provocative.

I would have to say it smells more like jealousy.

 

[antjmar]

They’re initially saying this particular offer is for a true Fixed Week, that it is not eligible for any “floating” fixed weeks.


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The details you quoted below say float weeks qualify. Did you speak to someone whom said they don’t? Perhaps call again if you are interested.

 

[steve_solo]

Does the conversion to points create UDI points, or does it create "Fix Weeks as Points" which Wyndham used to charge a fee for?
An owner I know with the Fix Weeks as Points told me they are not as desireable as UDI. Sort of a red headed stepchild.

 

[Braindead]

What about resale converted weeks??
I have over 1mil points of Bali Hai and Shearwater resale converted weeks that don’t count towards VIP.
So do you think I can drop those weeks out of the points and re-enroll them back in counting as direct purchase?
I’ll believe it when I can actually do it, until then I think we’re all dreaming if anyone thinks this will become a reality of free points that count towards VIP levels.

 

[Braindead]

For sale $30,000 converted week and I’ll drop it out of the points program ASAP ounce you pay in full. lol
I can guarantee it’s an annual contract!!
Mods please don’t delete, just making a point. It’s not a for sale listing or atleast until someone buys it! lol