HGV Max - Diamond Integration Discussion in Owner Update

[Mongoose]

That's absurd. In my experience, many of the DRI resorts can be had for discounted cash nights on the hotel room market. I can't imagine who would jump for that. Even if you price a week at $3K, it would take 55 weeks (potentially decades based on your points) to break even and that does not include their high MFs.

I once had a very nice 3BR lockoff at Mystic Dunes from the resale market ($1). They offered to convert it for me for $40K. This was a number of years back. Then they insulted us and tried to keep us from leaving. I couldn't believe the mafia tactics. Ruined our stay and forever discolored my impression of DRI. We gave it back just to get away from them.

 

[Mongoose]

So we may be facing 4-subsystems: bHC, HGVC, HVC and DRI-remnants.
Maybe they could give 'em identifiers like roman numerals - I, II, III & IV.

"Fasten your seatbelts; it's going to be a bumpy night."
-- Bette Davis in "All About Eve" (1950)
.

The question is, will HGVC get any of these new resorts or have access to them without a hefty cost. I'd like to think so, at least in some key markets where they don't have market share, but....

 

[dayooper]

Not unlike modern politics.

Yes, it is.

 

[ocdb8r]

I really wish people would stop going to sales presentations until everything is announced. The crap coming out of these is as bad as I can remember. Is there truth to these sales discussions? Who knows, but we, nor the sales weasels don’t know anything of how this will work. HGVC is supposed to release the merger info on April 1st, but we may get a glimpse of what is to come on March 1st when HGVC has their investor call. Until then, everything out there is just speculation from one group to another.

The ownership base has soooooo much drama right now. I never was super involved in the Facebook groups, but the anger echo chamber is getting to the point where many of those groups are unreadable. The misinformation is at a all time high and people are so angry they are convinced they are right. Not a healthy way and sales weasels are taking advantage.

Agreed - not only is all the speculation unhealthy, it only serves to make the ACTUAL rollout more confusing. In the end it only benefits HGVC who can portray themselves as the "hero" when things are inevitably not as bad as predicted. People, need to remember, no matter what salespeople say, as a Company HGVC wants to keep owners engaged and not marginalize them. A report that it would cost 165k to switch to HGV Max is absurd given you could make a brand new developer purchase of the same number of points for MUCH less.

 

[Cyberc]

….. As owners make the switch then DR Club inventory will be move to HGV Max. This will leave less inventory to choose from as a DR member. But the maintenance fees will not go down, they will go up because there are now less DR members to fund the left over inventory.

IMO this is incorrect. If you own at a resort you pay MF to that resort regardless of how your ownership is used ie HGV Max.

the sales scum might try to convince you otherwise just to get you to sign.

IF it was true then you could actually own a timeshare but not pay MF, in theory that Sounds great but not so much as who should cover tax, upkeep etc?

in theory HGV would make you pay an extra fee to be part of HGV Max and DRI. The extra fee might just be included in the a new club fee.

Remember HGV have paid a lot of money to buy DRI and who is better to pay them back? Member…..

 

[dougp26364]

I really wish people would stop going to sales presentations until everything is announced. The crap coming out of these is as bad as I can remember. Is there truth to these sales discussions? Who knows, but we, nor the sales weasels don’t know anything of how this will work. HGVC is supposed to release the merger info on April 1st, but we may get a glimpse of what is to come on March 1st when HGVC has their investor call. Until then, everything out there is just speculation from one group to another.

The ownership base has soooooo much drama right now. I never was super involved in the Facebook groups, but the anger echo chamber is getting to the point where many of those groups are unreadable. The misinformation is at a all time high and people are so angry they are convinced they are right. Not a healthy way and sales weasels are taking advantage.

i was thinking something similar, but more along the lines of how can people be so stupid as to believe the lies coming out of the sales staff’s mouths.

We use to complain about the Westgate sales experience. What Hilton and DRI are shoveling makes Westgate look like a walk in the park.

 

[dayooper]

i was thinking something similar, but more along the lines of how can people be so stupid as to believe the lies coming out of the sales staff’s mouths.

We use to complain about the Westgate sales experience. What Hilton and DRI are shoveling makes Westgate look like a walk in the park.

I am very disappointed in the HGVC Sales staff for their tactics (and HGVC in general for allowing or encouraging the behavior). I normally say that HGVC is a stand up company, but the way sales staff is handling this is concerning. Maybe they have always been like this and it's just there's more talk due to everybody wants to know what's going on. We shall see.

 

[jeffox]

This sounds similar to when DRI tried to get me to join the club, everyone is doing it and once they are all on points there won't be any weeks available to trade into and only for $10k, an increased maintenance fee and club dues. I gave back my unit to DRI when it only costs $250 and am more happy everyday that I did. On this very day you can rent the same unit for less then my maintenance fees from years ago and now I just rent when needed.

 

[elaine]

I normally say that HGVC is a stand up company, but the way sales staff is handling this is concerning. Maybe they have always been like this and it's just there's more talk due to everybody wants to know what's going on. We shall see.

Is it legacy HGVC sales staff or DRI staff?

 

[dayooper]

Is it legacy HGVC sales staff or DRI staff?

From the reports, it's both at HGVC and DRI resorts. Mind you it's not all salesman, but the reports seem to be more than usual.

 

[geist1223]

There is no DRI Sales Staff. They are all Hilton Employees.

 

[dioxide45]

There is no DRI Sales Staff. They are all Hilton Employees.

Perhaps, but I suspect those that came from the Diamond still sell DRI properties and those working at Hilton properties sell HGV. I suspect there is still a distinct separation within the sales teams?

 

[dougp26364]

I am very disappointed in the HGVC Sales staff for their tactics (and HGVC in general for allowing or encouraging the behavior). I normally say that HGVC is a stand up company, but the way sales staff is handling this is concerning. Maybe they have always been like this and it's just there's more talk due to everybody wants to know what's going on. We shall see.

Hilton has been like this for some time now. We’ve attended three presentations over the last decade or so. I’ve been disappointed at the amount of lies they were trying to sell us.

I’m not sure we’ll attend another presentation with Hilton. I’m hoping they’ll offer a reasonably priced joiner fee to participate in the “MAX “ program that only requires a phone call to purchase. I’d like to bypass the BS of a presentation while on vacation. If memory serves me correctly, that’s what Marriott did for it’s owners when they came out with their points program. I’m pretty certain I simply called or joined online and paid the fee to enroll our weeks.

 

[brp]

I really wish people would stop going to sales presentations until everything is announced.

Well, I would amend this to "perhaps people should stop going to sales presentations for information until everything is announced." if the perks are good enough, no reason not to go. NYC for example.

We were just at Elara this past weekend. They called about attending an "information session." The perks were not good, so I declined. He mentioned that we'd get "information," so I asked a few pointed questions and he "didn't know." I mentioned a few things I'd read here. he indicated that he hadn't heard these things, and wondered where I had.

I told him that I read it on a website that knows more about the program than any of their staff. He then realized that we were not going to attend.

But, yeah, I'd not go to them for information. Just for acceptable perks.

Cheers.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

+1@brp Even when it is announced, why go to a presentation for info when you can find out here? Go for the perks...if you can tolerate the preso.

 

[GT75]

Even when it is announced, why go to a presentation for info when you can find out here?

I agree. I would also want to hear from the TUG collective wisdom/analysis.

 

[pedro47]

Hilton has been like this for some time now. We’ve attended three presentations over the last decade or so. I’ve been disappointed at the amount of lies they were trying to sell us.

I’m not sure we’ll attend another presentation with Hilton. I’m hoping they’ll offer a reasonably priced joiner fee to participate in the “MAX “ program that only requires a phone call to purchase. I’d like to bypass the BS of a presentation while on vacation. If memory serves me correctly, that’s what Marriott did for it’s owners when they came out with their points program. I’m pretty certain I simply called or joined online and paid the fee to enroll our weeks.

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

 

[dayooper]

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

Not @dougp26364 But I really don't know until we know what it will entail. If we get just 6 month or less availability into DRI resorts, I'm not sure how well that will work. I think we also have to look at how a new membership will change what we already own. Will I sacrifice a better chance of getting into the HGVC I like for DRI access? If so, than I'm not sure we will bite.

 

[PigsDad]

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

I'm not Doug, but my answer would be "I have no idea yet".

Since the program hasn't even been defined yet, there is no way to place a value on it yet. So many questions to be answered. What resorts will I get access to? How far in advance can I book, and how does that compare to what others (original DRI owners, etc.) can do? Will there be additional booking fees? Any limitations on how often you can book? Blackout dates? Additional annual fees or a one-time join fee? Do my rights transfer upon resale? Etc., etc.

I just can't see anyone making any kind of decision on a program that hasn't been defined.

Kurt

 

[NiteMaire]

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

Regardless of what it is, it'll be too much for me. I'll wait for resale memberships to pop up in a few years

 

[GT75]

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

At this point, I wouldn’t even join if it was free w/o any details. After all, without know the program details, you could be giving up more as a deeded owner than the benefits from the new program.

 

[dougp26364]

dougp26364, what do you feel is a reasonable joining fee for the 'MAX Program?"

At $295, I’m in. At $500 I’ll think about it. At $1,000 it’s doubtful.

From Hilton’s perspective the price will depend on their goals. If they want members to join to boost the number of owners participating, the cost will be inexpensive. I suspect they’ll believe they have something a lot of members will want and they won’t really care how many join, so it won’t surprise me to see a joiner fee we’ll over $1,000. If that’s the case it’s cheaper for me to stand pat and exchange thru Interval for destinations I want.

 

[Eileen A.]

At $295, I’m in. At $500 I’ll think about it. At $1,000 it’s doubtful.

From Hilton’s perspective the price will depend on their goals. If they want members to join to boost the number of owners participating, the cost will be inexpensive. I suspect they’ll believe they have something a lot of members will want and they won’t really care how many join, so it won’t surprise me to see a joiner fee we’ll over $1,000. If that’s the case it’s cheaper for me to stand pat and exchange thru Interval for destinations I want.

I'm on the other side - DRI Platinum member (51,500 pts). Just had an owner update in Las Vegas. I can join MAX for a mere $43,000. This includes having to buy an additional 10,000 points. If I don't "join" I was told my inventory choices will be less because Hilton members will have access to the Diamond resorts. I guess time will tell how this plays out.

 

[dougp26364]

I'm on the other side - DRI Platinum member (51,500 pts). Just had an owner update in Las Vegas. I can join MAX for a mere $43,000. This includes having to buy an additional 10,000 points. If I don't "join" I was told my inventory choices will be less because Hilton members will have access to the Diamond resorts. I guess time will tell how this plays out.

Don’t believe the lies the salesmen tell you. They use the fear of losing what you’ve already paid for to get you to buy more. It’s the most common sales trick.

I always send it back to them by telling them I won’t spend another penny with a company that would cheat me out of what I already spent thousands to own.

 

[geist1223]

Stop going to updates. Stop reading Facebook. Just wait.