How do Worldmark points convert to RCI points

[bekachan]

Hello all and thank you for bearing with me. First, I am relatively new to Tugbbs and I love this site! Everyone is so, so helpful!

Here are my questions:
-I was thinking about purchasing an RCI points week but then realized I didn't know much about Worldmark. I see that their maintenence fees are cheaper.
Q: If I wanted to obtain an RCI week (more options available), how many Worldmark points would I have to use and what additional fees would their be?
Q: Would you recommend Worldmark over RCI

Thanks!

 

[bekachan]

Okay... I am confused between the weeks and points issue. I have been reading numerous posts and it says that you can deposit your Worldmark week into RCI. If I were to purchase 6000 Worldmark points, would that translate into a Worldmark week? I am so confused? How may Worldmark points would convert into an RCI week? Thanks again.

 

[Judy]

Worldmark is a vacation club. RCI is a timeshare exchange and rental company. Worldmark owners can book any of the resorts within the Worldmark system without additional costs beyond the yearly dues and sometime housekeeping fees. They can also exchange through RCI or II. To learn about the Worldmark RCI exchange system, go to http://www.worldmarktheclub.com/education/ , click on "Basic Owner Education Handbook" and then "RCI Exchange Partnership" in the contents list on the left of the window that will open.

 

[bekachan]

Thanks Judy. So is there a chart of what 6000 points for example can get you within the system?

 

[Bill4728]

RCI is WorldMark's primary worldwide exchange provider. Through this affiliation, WorldMark owners have access to more than 3,700 resorts in over 100 countries around the world.

WorldMark Credit Exchange Values

RED season
Studio - 8,000 credits
1 bd - 9,000 "
2 bd - 10,000 "
3 bd -- 12,000 "

White season
Studio - 6,000 credits
1 bd - 7,000 "
2 bd - 8,000 "
3 bd -- 9,000 "

Within 45 days of check in
All sizes & seasons are 4,000 credits

 

[Bill4728]

I can't seem to find the credit requirements for II exchanges, are they the same? I thought I saw that they were lower.

 

[melschey]

I can't seem to find the credit requirements for II exchanges, are they the same? I thought I saw that they were lower.

With II all exchanges within 59 days(RCI 45days) of check in are 4000 points. If the exchange is made on-line it is $139 which is considerably cheaper than RCI.
WM members can also get a 2 year for the price of 1 membership with II.

Check www.wmowners.com for more information.

 

[LLW]

I can't seem to find the credit requirements for II exchanges, are they the same? I thought I saw that they were lower.

They are the same. Here's where they are on wmowners, including blue season:

http://www.wmowners.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10111

 

[LLW]

Thanks Judy. So is there a chart of what 6000 points for example can get you within the system?

To see what an WM week can exchange into in Interval International or RCI, see the following:
http://www.wmowners.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=33

The points charged will depend on what season and size, whether you use Request First/Confirm First, and how many days before check-in.

But most importantly, RCI is only an exchange company and not a timeshare resort. It does not have weeks of its own. A week has to be deposited by an owner (or developer in certain situations) who does not want to use or rent it out before RCI has it for exchange. Also somebody else may be in line before you. And your week must have enough trade power to pull the week you want.

 

[cotraveller]

I'll add that if you are looking at a time period near the transition between seasons, be aware that the II and RCI seasons are not necessarily the same as the WorldMark Red, White, and Blue seasons. For example, WorldMark Branson shows Red, White, and Blue seasons while the Branson resorts I looked at on RCI show only Red and White seasons. The season you pay for is the RCI season.

And as long as we are plugging outside web sites, you can find much of the same information here.

 

[Judy]

Thanks Judy. So is there a chart of what 6000 points for example can get you within the system?

To see what 6,000 credits can get you within the Worldmark system, again go to www.worldmarktheclub.com Click on "Resort Gallery". Then choose any Worldmark resort that interests you. Each has its own chart indicating how many credits would be required to stay there by season, unit size and days of the week. The resorts have different credit requirements and different seasons. Just as an example, some charge 6,000 for a one-bedroom during white season or 3,000 for a studio during blue season or 6,000 for Monday thru Thursday in a 3-bedroom. Credits can be carried over for two years, and its possible to rent more from other owners once you have a Worldmark account. I don't think there's one chart that covers all the Worldmark resorts.

 

[thinze3]

I'm going to jump in here and ask a couple of questions as well.


Do WM owners have to pay RCI's annual fee or is it included in the MF's?

Can Worldmark also trade with II?

Do all points of equal ammounts pay the same MF's regardless of location?

Are reservation dates the same for everyone regardless of the resort your points come from?

Can a WM owner rent out any location he/she reserves with their points?

Are the points versatile? i.e. Can they be used for air or hotel?

 

[drguy]

Deleted due to duplication

 

[drguy]

I'm going to jump in here and ask a couple of questions as well.


Do WM owners have to pay RCI's annual fee or is it included in the MF's? Included if they are TravelShare owners.

Can Worldmark also trade with II?

Do all points of equal ammounts pay the same MF's regardless of location? Yes

Are reservation dates the same for everyone regardless of the resort your points come from? Credits are credits within the WorldMark system. There is no home resort.

Can a WM owner rent out any location he/she reserves with their points? Yes they can rent out any WorldMark reservation if they choose to do so.

Are the points versatile? i.e. Can they be used for air or hotel? Yes, though that use is not necessarily a cost effective choice.

I've answered above in the quoted area.


Guy

 

[thinze3]

Do WM owners have to pay RCI's annual fee or is it included in the MF's? Inc luded if they are TravelShare owners.

Can Worldmark also trade with II? ??

Are reservation dates the same for everyone regardless of the resort your points come from? Credits are credits within the WorldMark system. There is no home resort

What is "Travel Share"?
The advertised sales on eBay, I guess only "attach" a resort to the sale of points for legal reasons?

Thanks.

 

[ecwinch]

Travelshare is a developer sponsored VIP program that provides some additional benefits to your WorldMark membership. It is a tiered program based on the number of Travelshare eligible credits you own, and the value of those benefits is subject to debate. They include things like a free DVD rental, and a credit rental program.

Credits purchased via resale loss their Travelshare status, so Travelshare eligible credits are only available from the developer. Given the premium paid for credits from the developer, many people feel that Travelshare does not offer a corresponding value.

E-bay requires that timeshare ads list a resort location. That is why you see a resort listed for WorldMark memberships, even though WorldMark does not have a home resort provision like other points based systems do. All owners have access to all available WorldMark resorts at the same time (13 months out).

 

[Charlie D.]

Guys, I think you’ve gotten me interested about this Worldmark TS. I’ve watched some of the posts over the past year or so but never actually went to the Worldmark site until today. I went to the site (thanks to the link posted) and looked up Branson because we go over there quite a bit with our Wyndham TS. I looked at the credit table and if I understand it right a 2-br red season would take 1,100 credits for M-TH in the red season. With a 6,000 pt TS ownership it looks like we could go over there M-TH 5 times. Now, that seems pretty good to me. Even with the 25% VIP discount we couldn’t do one of the Wyndham resorts in Branson nearly that much especially during red (prime) season.

I have not been too awful interested because most of their sites are beyond a day’s drive from Tulsa. After checking the resort map I see that there is one at Grand Lake and another one at Lake of the Ozarks besides Branson. I have checked e-bay and it looks like the initial cost is higher than a Wyndham but the annual fees may be cheaper than the MFs on the Wyndham properties. In a year or so this may be a good deal to try to buy into and looks like it could compliment our Wyndham TS pretty nicely. I will do some research on TUG concerning Worldmark. The availability of the units would be of great interest to me and there should be a thread or two about that. Thank you current owners for the links to the site.

Charlie D.

 

[cotraveller]

. . . I went to the site (thanks to the link posted) and looked up Branson because we go over there quite a bit with our Wyndham TS. I looked at the credit table and if I understand it right a 2-br red season would take 1,100 credits for M-TH in the red season. With a 6,000 pt TS ownership it looks like we could go over there M-TH 5 times. . .

Unfortunately you didn't read the chart quite right. The listing for WorldMark Branson 2-br unit, in red season, which shows 1,100 credits for M-TH is per night. For all four nights, M-TH, it would be 4,400 credits.

 

[LLW]

As mentioned above, you may only get TravelShare by buying from the Developer. Deveoper price is about $1.94 per credit right now, and market resale price is around $0.50-$0.55. TravelShare comes with separate maintenance dues, and the RCI due is included in the TS dues.

TS has other miscellaneous benefits. But most informed owners feel that they are not worth paying almost 4 times the price. In addition, one of the foremost TS program rules is that the Developer may change program benefits at any time.

Yes, WM owners may trade with II, which has had a 2-for-1 membership special in the last few years (since the time when Wyndham dropped them), for WM owners as an incentive.

 

[melschey]

Yes, WM owners may trade with II, which has had a 2-for-1 membership special in the last few years (since the time when Wyndham dropped them), for WM owners as an incentive.

We are both RCI and II members but have only traded with II for the last several years. The only thing we use RCI for is last call vacations and we will likely drop RCI when Our membership is up. Worldmark trades very well with II and you can search the II inventory online without having to deposit first, if you find what you want you can book it online and WM and II will finish the exchange. You can't do that with RCI and it seems everyhing cost more with RCI.

 

[LLW]

We are both RCI and II members but have only traded with II for the last several years. The only thing we use RCI for is last call vacations and we will likely drop RCI when Our membership is up. Worldmark trades very well with II and you can search the II inventory online without having to deposit first, if you find what you want you can book it online and WM and II will finish the exchange. You can't do that with RCI and it seems everyhing cost more with RCI.

Yes, I have had many great exchanges through II - Four Seasons, Westins, and Marriotts; domestic and international. Despite the temptation of Last Calls, I am not planning to join RCI.

 

[melschey]

Yes, I have had many great exchanges through II - Four Seasons, Westins, and Marriotts; domestic and international. Despite the temptation of Last Calls, I am not planning to join RCI.

And we are not planning on renewing!

 

[Charlie D.]

Cotraveller,

Thank you for pointing that out. That makes a big difference. We can do 8 Sun-Thurs nights in a 2-br deluxe at Wyndham Resort during prime season for 144k points. Using the correct method you have pointed out we could do 5 M-TH nights at the Worldmark resort for 5.5k points. I am not as excited now but it looks like Worldmark has some nicely located resorts especially west of us.

Charlie D.

 

[thinze3]

Do the points roll over or must they be borrowed in advance to be combined?

Is a 8,000 points per year sufficient if you only wanted to make an exchange every other year?

 

[LLW]

Do the points roll over or must they be borrowed in advance to be combined?

Is a 8,000 points per year sufficient if you only wanted to make an exchange every other year?

The points have a 2-year life, and you may book WM reservations 13 months in advance. So you may travel in 2 years + 13 months. You may borrow one year in advance.

What size exchange do you want? The exchange values are here:
http://www.wmowners.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10111

8000 credits should be more than enough for every other year.