Thanks for your replies. You all make good points and I appreciate the tips. As for MF's, I have HGVC TS units in both Vegas and Orlando. The Waikola unit is an EOY. This would give us a toehold on the Big Island without the big MF hit. We wouldn't go to Hawaii every year anyway. The airfares to Hawaii from the Midwest are high, $800-$900 and up. I did read the beach at the Hilton Hotel does get crowded. Did any of you have a problem with that? What is the best time of the year to visit...as far as weather goes?
A few points:
- There is no benefit to buying the Hawaii unit versus comparable units (vegas/Orlando) with lower m&t. With 3 HGVC's next door to each other on the big island, there is almost certainly always inventory available at the 9 month mark. Buying there will only give you limited additional access in the 9-12 month time frame, which is nice but completely unnecessary in most cases.
- There is no beach at any of the 3 HGVC nor at the neighboring Hilton. The closest thing to a beach is "A-bay", which is the beach in front of the neighboring Marriott. For a beach experience, though, there are multiple beautiful beaches within a 5-15 minute drive.
- The weather is almost unchanging throughout the entire year. We like to go in September/October, but only because those are the slowest times of the year (schools back in session, etc).
- airfares: set up a travelocity fare watch from your closest major airports to Kona and Honolulu. It's amazing how super cheap airfares pop up. We are on the east coast and usually see rates in the $700-$1000 range, but recently booked $400 Kona flights and have seen as low as $280 Honolulu. You just have to be flexible and jump when you get the alerts.
my advice: buy vegas/orlando platinum resale if you plan to add to your points.