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HGVC Resorts in Japan

Tamaradarann

Tamaradarann

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
3,637
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1,497
Location
Honolulu, HI
Resorts Owned
HGVC Las Vegas, HGVC Las Vegas on the Strip, HGVC Sea World, Misner Place
Does anyone have any information or recommendation about HGVC resorts in Japan. While we are very experienced about staying at the HHV in Honolulu and love to share our experince we have no clue about Japan. We understand that Japan has excellent public transportation so we wouldn't expect to need a car to be able to get around. While we don't expect there to be a HHV there we would like a location that is in a nice city near good public transporation like the HHV. A location in or near Tokyo or Kyoto would be preferred.
 
I can't speak to the HGVC aspect but, having been to Japan a number of times, I can confirm that transport options are really good. Within Tokyo, the metro system is extensive and quite good. Travel between cities (Tokyo and Kyoto, for example) is very easy on the rail system with a variety of speed and price options. Definitely do not need a car in Japan unless you plan to go further into the hinterlands. And, even then, trains are often still a good option.

Cheers.
 
AFAIK the HGVC resorts are in the countryside. May want to convert to HHonors points to use hotels in Tokyo and Kyoto. We took the high-speed train to Kyoto from Tokyo. Agree that you don't need a car to get around.
 
Tamaradarann said:
Does anyone have any information or recommendation about HGVC resorts in Japan. While we are very experienced about staying at the HHV in Honolulu and love to share our experince we have no clue about Japan. We understand that Japan has excellent public transportation so we wouldn't expect to need a car to be able to get around. While we don't expect there to be a HHV there we would like a location that is in a nice city near good public transporation like the HHV. A location in or near Tokyo or Kyoto would be preferred.
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There are two in Japan that I could find.

The Bay Forest Odawara is at least a couple of hours by train from downtown Tokyo.

The Beach Resort Sesoko is on a small island connected to Okinawa by a bridge. Downtown Naha is also at least a couple hours by train.
 
sponger76 said:
There are two in Japan that I could find.

The Bay Forest Odawara is at least a couple of hours by train from downtown Tokyo.

The Beach Resort Sesoko is on a small island connected to Okinawa by a bridge. Downtown Naha is also at least a couple hours by train.
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Basically, these seem like the HGVC properties in Europe (Scotland, Italy, Portugal)- somewhat in the boonies and not near cities. All depends upon what one is looking for, of course.

Cheers.
 
brp said:
Basically, these seem like the HGVC properties in Europe (Scotland, Italy, Portugal)- somewhat in the boonies and not near cities. All depends upon what one is looking for, of course.

Cheers.
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From what I am reading here about travelling to Japan with HGVC is that the public transportation system is excellent and you don't need a car. However, the HGVC resorts are not in cities so that one would need to travel hours to get to things you would want to see and visit. While the recommendation to convert HGVC points to HHonors points has merit, we all know that the conversion rate is not friendly to the timeshare owner. I usually figure that a weeks worth of points from a standard one bedroom timeshare gives you 2 nights in a low priced Hilton brand hotel. Would that hold true in Japan or is the conversion actually worst?
 
That is a US rule of thumb..You will have to look on Hilton.com and compare to decide if it is worth it. Sometimes better in foreign countries.
 
CalGalTraveler said:
That is a US rule of thumb..You will have to look on Hilton.com and compare to decide if it is worth it. Sometimes better in foreign countries.
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Well the Tokyo Hilton is 80,000 HHonors points so that I believe that we would get about 1 night for exchanging the HGVC points for a standard 1 BR Timeshare. The maintenance cost on the standard 1 BR is about $1,000/year. That would be an expensive night in a hotel. The cost is only about $350/night if you pay with cash.

I would rather use my timeshare points for a week on Hawaii Island. Much shorter flight also.
 
@Tamaradarann I don't blame you for not opting that. Check also countryside such as Kyoto and suburbs. Sometimes you can get a deal. Japan is expensive.

We used our chase sapphire points to stay at the Hyatt Regency in Tokyo. It also included lounge access with breakfast buffet so we had a view of Mt Fuji and could watch the Tai Chi group exercising in the park below every morning Those points translated very well into Hyatt at the time. However that was pre-Covid and hotel rates have risen.
 
I don't really understand the HGVC Japan resorts, the points requirements are very very high and they're not in onvious areas that would appeal to Americans. I don't know the history of their acquisition but it seems like they are there to offer more to Japanese buyers who might have first met the HGVC brand during a trip to Hawaii. Hey we even have timeshares close to home! Like the European locations I can't see myself ever making a trip with any of those locations as my primary destination.
 
The listing for Japan has 17 external exchange resorts listed as well as the 2 bHC ones. None of them seem like timeshares and most are out of the big cities - they all seem to be in the Hotel Harvest chain, though I couldn't see any further info on that.

When I go to Tokyo, I try to stay at the New Sanno, which has eligibility rules that include military, military retirees, and some civilian Federal employees. If you're in any of those categories, the room rates are reasonable.

For Kyoto, there is one of the Hotels, Hotel Harvest Kyoto Takagamine. The resort listing shows a cost of 6,420 points per night Sunday-Friday, and 7,840 points for Saturday plus a reservation window that only runs from 60 days in advance to 16 days in advance. They also claim not to have any English speaking staff. I would try finding a different way to book a stay if it were me.
 
Eric B said:
When I go to Tokyo, I try to stay at the New Sanno, which has eligibility rules that include military, military retirees, and some civilian Federal employees. If you're in any of those categories, the room rates are reasonable.
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That's my go-to for Tokyo as well.

For Kyoto, I've only been once, and stayed at the Westin Miyako Kyoto. I loved it there.
 
I looked up Kyoto on the HHonors website and they do have some hotels with about 1/2-3/4 of the points of Tokyo. Therefore, converting a standard 1BR HGVC points to HHonors would give 1.5 to 2 nights. That still isn't a good deal but it is better than Tokyo. I guess if one doesn't have anything else to do with their HGVC points and one wants to go to Japan converting to HHonors maybe a possibility. We have 34,600 points a year so we are trying to sell some of our timeshares to save annual maintenance costs. Perhaps doing that and using the money to pay for Hotel stays maybe a solution for Japan in the short run and best for the long run for 73 year olds.
 
letsgobobby said:
...they are there to offer more to Japanese buyers who might have first met the HGVC brand during a trip to Hawaii.
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This is exactly the case. The early HGVC launches in Hawaii were very tied to the Japanese market (for example, the Bay Club was developed as full condos intended to be marketed and sold to the Japanese market, which suffered major economic distress shortly before launch - they pivoted this to a timeshare offering). As such, HGVC developed a large Japanese ownership base, which they have fostered with domestic developments in local holiday destinations. These locations are almost exclusively marketed to the Japanese, but there are some we'd like to visit one day.
 
ocdb8r said:
This is exactly the case. The early HGVC launches in Hawaii were very tied to the Japanese market (for example, the Bay Club was developed as full condos intended to be marketed and sold to the Japanese market, which suffered major economic distress shortly before launch - they pivoted this to a timeshare offering). As such, HGVC developed a large Japanese ownership base, which they have fostered with domestic developments in local holiday destinations. These locations are almost exclusively marketed to the Japanese, but there are some we'd like to visit one day.
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Very true, in fact when HGVC was first announcing the roll out of the first batch of location in Japan they stated they were targeted at the Japanese market, and to provide locations they could enjoy without international travel. I seem to recall initially they included a warning that English language would very limited or even non-existent at many of these locations.

HGV has several sales centers in Japan, including one at the Tokyo Hilton, at least the last time i stayed there.

We are going to the Tokyo and Hong Kong next spring, but staying with Honors points at Conrad locations in both cities. I did not even consider any of the HGV locations.
 
I lived and taught in Japan for several years. I also did my doctoral research in Japan. I still have a lot of friends in Japan. And I took my family (husband & 2 daughters) on a 3 week Japan vacation back in 2018. Been an HGVC member since 1999. I actually plotted the location of all the HGVC Japan timeshares. I believe almost all are located in the countryside (which could also include the seaside). They are ryokans with onsen. Ryokans are a type of traditional Japanese inn and the onsen is a like a hot springs public bath located indoors, outdoors or both. For Japanese, the whole point of traveling to an ryokan is to be at the ryokan and onsen and relax. Everyone who goes to Japan should spend at least one night in a Ryokan with an onsen.

That said, I believe most Americans who travel to Japan, including myself, want to spend the majority of time in the cities. We got a three week Japan rail pass, or JR pass, which is an excellent bargain. We stayed in and or traveled to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, Himeji, Hiroshima and Beppu.

We stayed exclusively at AirB&Bs, which were incredible deals. In Kyoto we stayed in a three story modern house for 7 nights for $800 total. It was a 7 minute walk from the train station. The neighbors were awesome. The rest of stays were in condos. Tokyo was the most expensive but still not bad.

I made sure that wherever we stayed it was no more than a 10 minute walk to a JR line rail station.

Also, double check. Ryokans often charge by the person not by the room. And if I’m correct, I think HGVC points might be by person not by room. Staying in a ryokan via HGVC was going to be really expensive. If you calculate the amount of points it would take to stay there.

oh, and the Ryokan I stayed in, a Japanese friend found it for me. I booked it myself. It wasn’t an HGVC ryokan.

Let me know if there is anything else I can help you with.
 
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CalGalTraveler said:
Japan is expensive.
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Yes, if you try to live and or travel as a westerner (ie. staying at western hotels, taking taxis, etc.). But it can be pretty reasonable. I did have to tell my daughters no grapes or peaches until we get back to the US
 
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jehb2 said:
I lived in Japan for several years. i Also did my doctoral research in Japan. I still have a lot of friends in Japan. And I took my family (husband & 2 daughters) on a 3 week Japan vacation back in 2018. Been an HGVC member since 1999. I actually plotted the location of all the HGVC Japan timeshares. I believe almost all are located in the countryside (which could also include the seaside). They are ryokans with onsen . Ryokans are a type of traditional Japanese hotel and the onsen is a like a hot springs public bath located indoors, outdoors or both. For Japanese, the whole point of traveling to an ryokan is to be at the ryokan and onsen and relax. Everyone who goes to Japan should spend at least one night in a Ryokan with an onsen.
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When traveling for work, we were staying at hotels. But we did have time to travel further afield and visit several ohnsen. Also worth, if in a smaller town, visiting an izakaya - bar/informal restaurant for snacks and drinks. In one we ordered eel. Guy comes out with a net and walks over to a tank to get one. Very fresh seafood :)

Cheers.
 
How to stay at a Japanese Ryokan

Ryokan

A beginner's guide to ryokan, traditional Japanese inns.
www.japan-guide.com www.japan-guide.com
 
When we travel internationally, we use that nation's hotels. It gives a more authentic experience than U.S branded hotels.
 
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