II Resort Accommodation Certificate Varying Fees

[Panina]

I recently rejoined II and received a "Resort Accommodation Certificate" that is valid for 60 days. Additionally, a complimentary certificate that is valid for 90 days was in my account too.

It's been quite a while since I last used one, and I was surprised to see the fees vary; they are higher than a trade fee. They ranged from $329 to $399 plus tax depending on which certificate is used. The complimentary one was the higher amount.

Also, my complimentary certificate had resorts that were not in my rejoin certificate. I would have though that it would be the other way. For example the Vero/Treasure Coast Sheraton PGA Vacation Resort in Port Saint Lucie, Fl was available with my complimentary certificate but not my rejoin certificate.

One example, I compared the cost of a one-bedroom at a Marriott in Orlando, same dates, where my complimentary certificate was priced at $399 plus tax while the certificate I received for rejoining was $329 plus tax. Both were a bargain within RCI and much less than a Getaway week but another week in Pompano Beach was about the same as a Getaway week.

An additional note, within RCI a Last Call week, with a similar date range, is the same price range but you don't need a Certificate.

Does anyone know the fee when using a certificate obtained from depositing a week?

 

[gravityrules]

Suspect your $370.13 is actually $329 + tax, that's the rate I noticed on my deposit related AC. Not sure how many flavors of ACs are currently offered when variations in price, booking window, and inventory offered are taken into account.

 

[dioxide45]

The fee to use an AC from deposit is tiered. You pay a certain price for a studio, higher for a 1BR, higher still for a 2BR and so on. The freebie and promo ACs tend to be a fixed price regardless of the size. The fee may look like it varies because tax is added to the AC fee and the tax rate isn't the same for every state.

Unfortunately I don't have any current ones and can't find details from past ones of what those fees were for the tiered ACs for deposit.

 

[Panina]

Suspect your $370.13 is actually $329 + tax, that's the rate I noticed on my deposit related AC. Not sure how many flavors of ACs are currently offered when variations in price, booking window, and inventory offered are taken into account.

Yes it was. I changed the post to reflect the price without tax.

 

[jackio]

I have seen the same unit priced differently on different certificates.

 

[jp10558]

Wow, this makes the certificates quite less interesting to me. I thought it'd be the $239 exchange fee to use one. If I can always beat it with an RCI Last Call then I probably will never be able to use an AC as I have already struggled to find anything, and now it's going to cost $400?!

I think in general all this (and the getaway prices) increase my belief that II is for exchanges only, and RCI is much better for any cash stays.

 

[klpca]

As noted, the different AC's see different inventory and at different prices - usually between $300 and $400. The ones that are most valuable are those that allow you to add an OGS. You will pull some unexpectedly good inventory - things that never show up with a manual search. That said, I don't worry about using them too much because I can be pretty picky. I don't care how inexpensive it is, I won't be happy in a poorly maintained unit, and a lot of the AC inventory that I see is in poorly reviewed resorts in over developed locations (Vegas, Orlando etc - places that don't interest us). But the reason that I keep looking is that with enough patience, I will find a gem. They are just a marketing tool for II - bonus if it results in a nice week to use.

 

[iftravel]

As noted, the different AC's see different inventory and at different prices - usually between $300 and $400. The ones that are most valuable are those that allow you to add an OGS. You will pull some unexpectedly good inventory - things that never show up with a manual search. That said, I don't worry about using them too much because I can be pretty picky. I don't care how inexpensive it is, I won't be happy in a poorly maintained unit, and a lot of the AC inventory that I see is in poorly reviewed resorts in over developed locations (Vegas, Orlando etc - places that don't interest us). But the reason that I keep looking is that with enough patience, I will find a gem. They are just a marketing tool for II - bonus if it results in a nice week to use.

I never tried AC with OGS. It has so many restrictions for resorts you can book with and I always got tired of trying. Just curious for those ACs, do you prepay exchange fees when you set up OGS, and can you add e-plus like a regular exchange?

 

[sponger76]

I think in general all this (and the getaway prices) increase my belief that II is for exchanges only, and RCI is much better for any cash stays.

If the only consideration is cash price and you don't care which specific resort you stay in, the yes. But some people do look for specific resorts, and just as RCI has resorts that can't be found in II, there are many resorts in II that can't be found in RCI.

 

[Panina]

Wow, this makes the certificates quite less interesting to me. I thought it'd be the $239 exchange fee to use one. If I can always beat it with an RCI Last Call then I probably will never be able to use an AC as I have already struggled to find anything, and now it's going to cost $400?!

I think in general all this (and the getaway prices) increase my belief that II is for exchanges only, and RCI is much better for any cash stays.

For some better Resorts the additional fees are worth it in II but as a whole right now RCI is better with the Last Call. I can't believe I am saying that as I always preferred II to RCI. For me time will tell whether II or RCI works out better and I will eventually report on it.

 

[klpca]

I never tried AC with OGS. It has so many restrictions for resorts you can book with and I always got tired of trying. Just curious for those ACs, do you prepay exchange fees when you set up OGS, and can you add e-plus like a regular exchange?

Yes, you have to prepay now. It used to be that you paid if/when the exchange was fulfilled but that changed late last year or early this year. No eplus.

I download the T&C into excel then get it into a useful format for searching (time consuming). Then I peruse the AC sightings posts to get an idea of what has shown up in the past and check out the TUG reviews. Then I set up my OGS. Sometimes something that is restricted in the T&C has popped up in a sightings thread in the past, so you may not be able to add it to your search. The OGS ACs are usually good for a year so you can set up a search well in advance.