II not taking any Hawaii deposits through April 30th?

[dlpearson]

I spoke to a Marriott rep earlier this afternoon (used the call back feature--it worked well, only had to wait about 45 minutes for a call back, and it was after 5:00 ET when they called). She told me II recently told Marriott they are no longer taking deposits (for a weeks reservation) for Hawaii with a check in date through April 30th. Everything I had read (and was told on the phone from II last week) was that you could "late" deposit (the only option at this point, since you can't cancel or rebook the reservation to a later date with Marriott), the late deposit would be good for two years, with a 60 day window to manually search (goes down to a 30 day advance search if the check in is 14 days or less away).

The MVC rep told me any Hawaii weeks reservations with a check in between now and April 30th will be an II voucher that has to be used by Dec 17, 2020. Anyone else who has a Hawaii reservation in April been told this?

 

[dioxide45]

Since the Hawaii now requires a 14 day quarantine for incoming travelers, they know they can't unload the weeks that get deposited. Seems that they did the same thing with Aruba.

 

[Steve Fatula]

Wow, have they ever done this in the past that you are aware of? I can see this issue as one they definitely need to handle as a special case.

 

[dioxide45]

Wow, have they ever done this in the past that you are aware of? I can see this issue as one they definitely need to handle as a special case.

I have never seen it before. I agree that Marriott needs to do something here. They are telling people to deposit and then II is coming back saying we won't take it. In reality, I don't know why II would take any deposit that is for any time in the next 30 days. No one out there is wanting to travel at this time.

 

[Steve Fatula]

I have never seen it before. I agree that Marriott needs to do something here. They are telling people to deposit and then II is coming back saying we won't take it. In reality, I don't know why II would take any deposit that is for any time in the next 30 days. No one out there is wanting to travel at this time.

Yes, totally agreed. No idea why they are taking any, there is pretty much 0 chance anyone will take a week being deposited. An exchange is you give up something someone else wants, for something you want from someone else. No one wants those deposits! Ok, there might be a person somewhere.

 

[Theiggy]

I’m glad I retraded my MFC week for April already bc today I got an email from MFC that they cancelled my reservation. I’m guessing II won’t take St. Thomas weeks now either.


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[hangloose]

What are the rules and restrictions on how this II voucher works?

Looks like it has less than 1 yr expiration..vs normal 2 yrs?
Does it have the same 30 day or 60 day reservation restriction?
Does it keep the villa size...to prevent size upgrade fees in future?

 

[hangloose]

– – –​

Dear Owners, In response to the unprecedented situation surrounding the spread of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), the Governor of the State of Hawaii has issued an emergency proclamation announcing enhanced travel restrictions for all persons entering the State of Hawaii in an attempt to limit the health impacts and mitigate the spread of COVID-19. These restrictions include the implementation of a mandatory fourteen-day quarantine for all persons arriving to the State of Hawaii, effective March 26, 2020, and includes criminal penalties for failure to comply with the quarantine order. Further, several Hawaii counties have already implemented shelter-in-place orders that severely limit the ability of individuals in those counties from leaving their place of occupancy. Additionally, there is a very strong likelihood of limited or disrupted air travel to/from the State of Hawaii beginning immediately, as a result of the Governor’s emergency proclamation. Please also note that we continue to make changes to our resort amenities and services that, while critical under the current circumstances, result in a situation in which we are no longer able to provide the resort experience that you’ve come to expect from Marriott Vacation Club®. Based on the above, and in continued support of federal, state, and local efforts to curtail the spread of COVID-19, we are writing today to strongly encourage you to consider cancelling your upcoming reservation if you have a reservation that is arriving within the next 30-days. Due to the unprecedented circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 situation, if you cancel your upcoming reservation, your Vacation Club Points will be returned to a Holding Account and can be used for a future reservation or for select Explorer Collection offerings within 120 days of date of travel, subject to the use rules. Due to extremely high call volume, we ask that you please refrain from contacting Owner Services to cancel at this time. Rather, we encourage you to visit Marriott Vacation Club website where you may submit a request for cancellation online and view additional information on reservation cancellation policies and procedures. We thank you for being part of the Marriott Vacation Club family and appreciate your patience and understanding as we work with all Owners to navigate this unprecedented situation. Sincerely, Bill Countryman General Manager Marriott's Maui Ocean Club

 

[dlpearson]

Yep, just got the same email a few minutes ago. So it's bad enough weeks owners with reservations within 60 days couldn't cancel or reschedule a later date (not even for a fee), and we were told to specifically deposit it with II as a late deposit. Which I called II to do last week, but realized I never added my MOC week to my II account, so I paid the $39 and had to wait for them to get around to adding it to my account before I could deposit. Today, when I still didn't see it in my account, I finally got ahold of Marriott, and now they're saying:

"We just screwed you. We (because we own both Marriott and II) just decided you can't even late deposit your week with II, even though that's what we've been promoting recently. Instead, we just decided you'll get a voucher that has to be used within 8 months (instead of a two year window as promoted), but gosh, we worked such a great deal for you--it will only cost you $99 to lose 14 months flexibility to exchange it, instead of the regular $159."

Wow, thanks Marriott--you've shown tremendous care! I love you more than I ever have (he said sarcastically)!

The whole concept of timeshare exchanging, and the premise of II is it doesn't matter if someone wants, or uses what you deposit. II still gets an exchange fee on an eventual trade by that owner who deposited. But now you just unilaterally changed the rules of your existence to screw the owners yet again.

Marriott: from what I've observed on TUG, you have treated your owners the worst of any of the other major timeshare companies throughout this situation.

I'm not asking for a "free" week, or to be given back my full value week with no restrictions. I realize I will never get the value of my ocean front week during a prime holiday week. That's the risk of owning a timeshare and an unexpected global pandemic that's never been experienced in the industry before. But I do expect you to honor your word and give me my late deposit that's good for 2 years with a 60 day search restriction.

 

[Kapolei]

Yes, totally agreed. No idea why they are taking any, there is pretty much 0 chance anyone will take a week being deposited. An exchange is you give up something someone else wants, for something you want from someone else. No one wants those deposits! Ok, there might be a person somewhere.

Things change daily, but as a non-Marriott owner, II member, I had been thinking about taking a unit at a resort nearby my home. Never saw any availability. Not sure I would take it now. But definitely was looking in recent days. So I don’t think there is zero chance a non-Marriott, II member would not take the week. I think it would depend on local restrictions and how curtailed the resort is. The week itself could possibly be used as a “home” for someone that needs extra space away from their regular home. Everyone is going to have different situations. There might be more than few takers as long as the resort is open to owners. At the time of this posting, II had a MKO getaway for sale for last week in April by the way.

Apr 24 2020 - May 01 2020 268		$1,127.00​	$1,102.00​	$1,077.00​
Apr 25 2020 - May 02 2020 268		$1,127.00​	$1,102.00​	$1,077.00​
Apr 26 2020 - May 03 2020 024		$797.00​	$772.00​	$747.00​
Apr 26 2020 - May 03 2020 268		$1,127.00​	$1,102.00​	$1,077.0​

 

[Dean]

Wow, have they ever done this in the past that you are aware of? I can see this issue as one they definitely need to handle as a special case.

Not like this specifically but they've routinely not allowed deposits for resorts that were not open where the week could not be used. I'm not sure but I even think some people's deposits were voided later when the resort and week became unavailable.