HGVC and Cruises

[mtm65]

We traded into a St Thomas resort using our HGVC points for a Feb 2018 trip. However, with the hurricane damage, we decided to postpone our trip and take our first cruise instead.

My first thought was to use the 2400 points for the St Thomas resort toward a cruise. I knew this was a poor use of points but didn't know how bad until I investigated! Our points would have saved us $148.20 ($247.20 savings less $99 fee to use the points) on a $1,900 cruise. So not worth it, based on maintenance fees we paid about three times that for the points!

What I did learn that surprised me is that the HGVC Royal Caribbean cruise price was the most competitive price I saw by about $200. Is this normal or am I shopping for a cruise in the wrong places? I've tried cruise critic, cruise one, expedia, and last minute cruises to name a few. Would welcome any suggestions!

 

[Talent312]

Pricing for a specific ship+sail date is typically not competitive. I'm told that they threaten to commissions to any agency that undercuts their authorized "discounts" or "promos." I use "Vacations to Go" to screen for cruises and pricing. Then, I'll check with an agency I like ("Best Price Cruises").

But I usually book directly with the cruise line itself to have a more direct control. Once, I tried to change the dining-time in advance, and RCI told me that the agency would have to do it for me. Needless hoop jumping.

 

[hurnik]

The current cruise partner is "cruises only". It seems the HGVC points "value" is now static-based (the old cruise partner it would vary on the cruise line, dates, etc.)

Personally?

I try cruisesonly.com (not via the HGVC partner site, as it invalidates many of the goodies).
and
cruisecompete.com

Then go with whomever gets me the best deal.

As Talent312 mentioned, (depending on the cruise line), if you book outside the cruise line directly, sometimes you have to go through that booking agency to change anything.
I know with Royal Caribbean and Carnival, you can change *most* things online (once you get the booking #). But things like cabin changes would have go to through the booking agency.

But when you can save $300 or more by booking with an agency instead of direct, I'll go third party every time.

 

[losteeves]

I've booked our upcoming February cruise with Hgvc cruisesonly without a problem. They match any price you find elsewhere and have their own incentives as well. The price went down a few weeks ago and I called them and they made the adjustment. And I get Hilton points. I definitely recommend them.

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[escapeartist]

From the website, it looks as though there are bonus points associated with booking thru HGVC. It seems to center around “up to 2000 bonus points”. Experience with this?

 

[losteeves]

Depending upon the length of the cruise, you earn HGVC bonus points.

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[kckreardon]

We recently used the cruisesonly and received 2,000 HGVC bonus points shortly after the cruise was complete.

 

[tompalm]

I like Vacations to Go and have also used Costco and found the best price with those companies.

 

[terces]

Interesting perspectives here - some seem to be OK booking through HGVC. Doing it this way, does HGVC give you flexibility for changes or cancellations? Can you pay the $60+ cancellation fee similar to booking a land unit? I just hate to get tied in to hard bookings with no flexibility.

Also, we bought our HGVC on the resale market and I have no experience with the HGVC bonus points. Escapeartist mentioned getting 2000 bonus points after the cruise. What does 2000 bonus points typically get you in trading power?

 

[GT75]

What does 2000 bonus points typically get you in trading power?

bonus points = HGVC regular points. However, you can not combine bonus points and regular points in the same reservation. You can also use bonus points to pay for MFs at 10 bonus pts = $1.

 

[4Sunsets]

We traded into a St Thomas resort using our HGVC points for a Feb 2018 trip. However, with the hurricane damage, we decided to postpone our trip and take our first cruise instead.

My first thought was to use the 2400 points for the St Thomas resort toward a cruise. I knew this was a poor use of points but didn't know how bad until I investigated! Our points would have saved us $148.20 ($247.20 savings less $99 fee to use the points) on a $1,900 cruise. So not worth it, based on maintenance fees we paid about three times that for the points!

What I did learn that surprised me is that the HGVC Royal Caribbean cruise price was the most competitive price I saw by about $200. Is this normal or am I shopping for a cruise in the wrong places? I've tried cruise critic, cruise one, expedia, and last minute cruises to name a few. Would welcome any suggestions!

We discovered the same as well with our Marriott points. We wanted to take a cruise and it was over 12000 points (which is about $6k MF) and the cruise line had a 50% sale going on that would have significantly cost less for a large SUITE, instead of a small cabin.

I didn't know Hilton points could be used for other things, however. Is this for all Hilton owners (including resale) or only Elite owners?

 

[1Kflyerguy]

We discovered the same as well with our Marriott points. We wanted to take a cruise and it was over 12000 points (which is about $6k MF) and the cruise line had a 50% sale going on that would have significantly cost less for a large SUITE, instead of a small cabin.

I didn't know Hilton points could be used for other things, however. Is this for all Hilton owners (including resale) or only Elite owners?

Its for all owners, you can get details under Club Partner Perks on the website. They have other options as well such as RV travel, Houseboats, etc.

 

[4Sunsets]

Thank you!