- Joined
- Oct 27, 2005
- Messages
- 877
- Reaction score
- 107
- Points
- 403
- Location
- Maryland
- Resorts Owned
- Wyndham Long Wharf, Wyndham points, Vistana Westin Kierland
Do you have to pay for these under the new program umbrella?
Transaction | 2023 Fees that will be eliminated with Abound |
---|---|
VSN Network Membership Fee | $170 to $235 |
Additional Housekeeping Fees | $38 to $105 per stay |
Convert to Marriott Bonvoy Points | $164 |
Banking StarOptions | $109 |
VSN Select | $145 |
Interval International Membership | $99 |
Internal Exchange with Interval* | $154 per week |
Cancellation Fee | $50 to $75 |
Guest Fee for VSN Reservations | $59 |
I just made a one-night reservation and added my daughter as a guest and was prompted to acknowledge that a $38 housekeeping fee would apply.
Does a Hyatt exchange count as Internal Exchange?Sort of; they are covered by the Club Dues. You won't have to pay any additional fees for those. Current version of the FAQ on that copied below.
- Depending on the annual usage options you choose and the type of vacations you reserve, Club Dues may be more or less than the VSN network membership fees plus the a la carte fees you paid in the past. Here is the consolidated chart for your reference.
* External exchange fees, which were $209 per week in 2022, will not be eliminated. Internal Exchanges are requests to use your VOI(s) exclusively to travel to a Marriott Vacation Club, Sheraton Vacation Club, or Westin Vacation Club resort in the Interval International external exchange network. Note that after electing to receive Club Points, they may not be used to place an Internal Exchange request with Interval. Note that Club Points may not be used to place an External exchange request (to resorts outside of the Abound by Marriott Vacations network) until 2023. If you wish to place an external exchange request with Interval in 2022, you must use your 2022 VOIs.
Transaction 2023 Fees that will be eliminated with Abound VSN Network Membership Fee $170 to $235 Additional Housekeeping Fees $38 to $105 per stay Convert to Marriott Bonvoy Points $164 Banking StarOptions $109 VSN Select $145 Interval International Membership $99 Internal Exchange with Interval* $154 per week Cancellation Fee $50 to $75 Guest Fee for VSN Reservations $59
I don’t think so.Does a Hyatt exchange count as Internal Exchange?
No it does not as Hyatt isn't part of Abound.Does a Hyatt exchange count as Internal Exchange?
If Interval exchanges are now free within Abound that would mean I have no reason to need to purchase E-Plus as long as I retrade into an Abound resort???Sort of; they are covered by the Club Dues. You won't have to pay any additional fees for those. Current version of the FAQ on that copied below.
- Depending on the annual usage options you choose and the type of vacations you reserve, Club Dues may be more or less than the VSN network membership fees plus the a la carte fees you paid in the past. Here is the consolidated chart for your reference.
* External exchange fees, which were $209 per week in 2022, will not be eliminated. Internal Exchanges are requests to use your VOI(s) exclusively to travel to a Marriott Vacation Club, Sheraton Vacation Club, or Westin Vacation Club resort in the Interval International external exchange network. Note that after electing to receive Club Points, they may not be used to place an Internal Exchange request with Interval. Note that Club Points may not be used to place an External exchange request (to resorts outside of the Abound by Marriott Vacations network) until 2023. If you wish to place an external exchange request with Interval in 2022, you must use your 2022 VOIs.
Transaction 2023 Fees that will be eliminated with Abound VSN Network Membership Fee $170 to $235 Additional Housekeeping Fees $38 to $105 per stay Convert to Marriott Bonvoy Points $164 Banking StarOptions $109 VSN Select $145 Interval International Membership $99 Internal Exchange with Interval* $154 per week Cancellation Fee $50 to $75 Guest Fee for VSN Reservations $59
For the most part, yes. There are still some situations where adding Eplus may be beneficial, like if you want to extend a deposit that is getting ready to expire.If Interval exchanges are now free within Abound that would mean I have no reason to need to purchase E-Plus as long as I retrade into an Abound resort???
I always leave tips $10-$20 for housekeeping. Vistana’s housekeeping charges are very low compare to Worldmark (over $100 for studio).
You could similarly comment on the line items for Front Desk in the two budgets - it does seem a bit expensive to have to pay $168.24 or $173.95 for what appears to be just two 5 minute interactions with an employee that is making somewhat more than minimum wage but not enough to justify the entire charge.I'd love to understand why it costs $420 to clean a 2BR lockoff unit at Harborside 1.25 times. The minumum wage in the Bahamas is about $6/hour so even if they paid housekeepers 10x that amount (which they don't) things still don't add up...
An extra housekeeping charge for a studio in WorldMark is $87 this year. My suspicion is that Vistana budgets higher amounts for the housekeeping in the individual HOAs based on an estimated annual cost divided by the number of units and was charging the additional housekeeping fee representing the marginal cost of the housekeeping time spent, which would be closer to the unweighted time and materials, while the WorldMark fees are not based on individual HOA costs but represent a weighted cost throughout the system divided by the estimated number of housekeeping events. (By weighted and unweighted I mean to differentiate between whether or not the cost includes indirect and overhead costs associated with the housekeeping service.)Vistana’s housekeeping charges are very low compare to Worldmark (over $100 for studio).
I could never pay online or see the bill, when the link I followed redirected me to Marriott site. I reported it to CS, and paid my Abound dues by phone.I still haven't gotten a bill for the Vistana dues.
You could similarly comment on the line items for Front Desk in the two budgets - it does seem a bit expensive to have to pay $168.24 or $173.95 for what appears to be just two 5 minute interactions with an employee that is making somewhat more than minimum wage but not enough to justify the entire charge.
On the other hand, there might be other things that go into those line items like the cost of space at the resort for storage of housekeeping materials and supplies or the actual front desk itself, cleaning of the common grounds not associated with a separately budgeted aspect, management and overhead for the housekeeping and front desk staff, supplies, vacation time if granted, etc. This might be an area to ask a resort BOD questions about if we really want to know the breakdown of the costs.
You might be right, but I would still find it difficult to believe that a business entity that takes on a contract to provide housekeeping services even if only for the weekends wouldn't have indirect and overhead costs. They would probably want to make a profit, too. At least I have never run into one that would do that, though most of my contracting experience has been with government contracts. I guess a large resort system like Vistana might be able to find individual housekeepers that are willing to come in over the weekend for a few hours with their own materials and supplies for just minimum wage; if they do it that way, it could be a major rip off of the owners at the resort based on the grossly excessive housekeeping charges in the HOA budgets....The housekeeping is probably mainly contractors who come mostly on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. There is much less of it going during other days of the week. It's easier to think of it as one task that takes 1 person 2-3 hours to do, literally like cleaning a 1-2BR condo.