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Newbie .... Just bought n sdo

Quadmaniac said:
I called the Westin after my trade went through to see what view and they had indicated it was OV. When I traded into a 1 br in May as I was getting on a plane that morning, I didn't check and when I arrived there, I was assigned one of the worst "island view" units - first floor facing the other building with trees in front of the balcony so the unit was dark. We did end up moving to another unit, again with trees but at least not in front of the the other building so you didn't get any light.
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What does 'calling the Westin' mean? Calling the resort directly? For Sept? Villa locations are not set that far in advance (at least they didn't use to be...)
 
DeniseM said:
Yes, but they do not honor the unit on the reservation - they can and do put you anywhere they want. There is a pecking order and exchangers come after owners and Elite Owners, when they assign the units.
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So even though I have an OV now, they can change it before I get there ? That is crap!
 
No, you don't have a specific unit, you just have an exchange for a specific TYPE of unit. The unit number is basically just for inventory control. If you check with II they will tell you that on an exchange the specific location of the unit is NEVER guaranteed - it's been that way forever...

Now it's possible that you could get an ocean view, but all of the owners at the resort, and Elite Owners, etc., will have higher priority than you do to get an ocean view. Why? - because they paid a LOT of $$$$ ;)
 
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DavidnRobin said:
What does 'calling the Westin' mean? Calling the resort directly? For Sept? Villa locations are not set that far in advance (at least they didn't use to be...)
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You are right, the unit is not assigned but according to the front desk, it is OV that is on the reservation for now.
 
sptung said:
I won't call it crap, just give priority to the folks who paid big bucks to the developer... :)
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Still CRAP! Then they shouldn't have it in their file then if they aren't going to necessarily honor it.
 
Quadmaniac said:
Still CRAP! Then they shouldn't have it in their file then if they aren't going to necessarily honor it.
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Again - with II exchanges, the specific unit is never guaranteed. I bet it says that on your confirmation.
 
Starwood is not alone in changing views. Views are never guaranteed when exchanging. For resorts without fixed weeks and fixed units exchangers almost always get the worst views.

There is a reason people often say buy where you want to go and it is not always to save money but to ensure the availability and the view that you want. When exchanging I always assume I am going to get the worst view/unit possible and ask for something more and if I get it I am pleasantly surprised. If the worst possible view is unacceptable you should not trade into that resort. There is also a reason that people prefer to exchange into wkorv-n so that when an island view is assigned it won't be the "dreaded parking lot view" at wkorv. For some people it is all about the view. For others it is about being on the trip at a resort with great amenities. If they want a view they will have to skip the lanai and go to another part of the resort.
 
DeniseM said:
No, you don't have a specific unit, you just have an exchange for a specific TYPE of unit. The unit number is basically just for inventory control. If you check with II they will tell you that on an exchange the specific location of the unit is NEVER guaranteed - it's been that way forever...

Now it's possible that you could get an ocean view, but all of the owners at the resort, and Elite Owners, etc., will have higher priority than you do to get an ocean view. Why? - because they paid a LOT of $$$$ ;)
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I did see that on II that there is no guarantee and I understand that but when the Westin resort itself is telling you that you have an OV, I would have assumed that to be what I would be assigned.
 
tschwa2 said:
Starwood is not alone in changing views. Views are never guaranteed when exchanging. For resorts without fixed weeks and fixed units exchangers almost always get the worst views.

There is a reason people often say buy where you want to go and it is not always to save money but to ensure the availability and the view that you want. When exchanging I always assume I am going to get the worst view/unit possible and ask for something more and if I get it I am pleasantly surprised. If the worst possible view is unacceptable you should not trade into that resort. There is also a reason that people prefer to exchange into wkorv-n so that when an island view is assigned it won't be the "dreaded parking lot view" at wkorv. For some people it is all about the view. For others it is about being on the trip at a resort with great amenities. If they want a view they will have to skip the lanai and go to another part of the resort.
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That is reasonable enough. Maybe I was just lucky getting a great oceanfront view last time at the MOC, but I did not expect the view of the next building and trees in March. The view isn't everything, but when it looks like you are in a dungeon with no light, it does make a difference plus not having that much privacy as it was also right in front of the walkway between the buildings, thus the need for trees to give you a bit of privacy.

It was a nice unit inside though.
 
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Quadmaniac said:
I did see that on II that there is no guarantee and I understand that but when the Westin resort itself is telling you that you have an OV, I would have assumed that to be what I would be assigned.
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Did you tell them you have a II exchange, and ask them if you will get the number on your exchange confirmation?

Maybe I was just lucky getting a great oceanfront view last time at the MOC
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Marriott and Starwood have different policies - with Marriott it's not guaranteed either, but you do usually get the unit on the confirmation.
 
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DeniseM said:
Did you tell them you have a II exchange, and ask them if you will get the number on your exchange confirmation?



Marriott and Starwood have different policies - with Marriott it's not guaranteed either, but you do usually get the unit on the confirmation.
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They did know that it was an II exchange and it was confirmed twice that it was an OV, so hopefully they will keep with that.
 
Marriott is also moving toward not assigning the better view to exchangers even at the resorts where in the past they have. Part of the reason is the destination club and also paid reservations. They would rather take more money or more points and assign guaranteed views to these customers because they know they haven't guaranteed views to exchangers they can take the good views and reassign them.

Unfortunately telling you that final assignments haven't been made and you have the view "for now" really means nothing. What is on the confirmation is what was put in the exchange pool for your confirmation. Most Starwood resorts make the final room assignments less than a week in advance. Some take general request before hand, some don't. Even the ones that do have a pecking order based on ownership and time of request.

edit: change exchange pull to exchange pool. I am doing a unit on homophones with my son and all of the sudden I keep coming up with the wrong word. Earlier today I was writing an email and wrote not your fought instead of not your fault.
 
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I've had great luck in obtaining OV units at WKORV in the past, with only one or two real IV units (at North). There is absolutely no way SVN, II or the resort will guarantee any type of view unit on an II trade. Don't be disappointed if you don't get a good location... Even calling the resort before arrival won't help. I have found being extremely courteous during checking occasionally results in a positive experience, though...
 
Some rude posts, and responses to the posts have been deleted.

Let's get back on topic, K? :hi:
 
DeniseM said:
Some rude posts, and responses to the posts have been deleted.

Let's get back on topic, K? :hi:
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Fair enough. I apologize for my response, as it just rubbed me the wrong way at the right time.

I appreciate the responses that have enlightened me on what to anticipate.
 
Denise,

Thank you for all the helpful posts and for the clarification on the weeks.

Can you explain how to tell by the week/unit whether or not a week is Gold Plus/Red? I have a friend looking to buy SDO and would like to try to help them through the process.

Thank you,
James
 
nokaoi9 said:
Denise,

Thank you for all the helpful posts and for the clarification on the weeks.

Can you explain how to tell by the week/unit whether or not a week is Gold Plus/Red? I have a friend looking to buy SDO and would like to try to help them through the process.

Thank you,
James
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A Gold Plus will be a 1-52 float (Starwood does not use the term Red). These were sold by the original developer before Starwood bought them and changed to the Platinum/Gold/Silver seasons. They should look for that or a Platinum 1-21, 51-52.
 
scootr5 said:
A Gold Plus will be a 1-52 float (Starwood does not use the term Red). .
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When you deposit a 1-52 week with II, it shows up at Gold Plus/Red in your II Acct.
 
I got an II exchange into Wkorv last month. My confirmation said building 2 oceanview. When I checked in, I got island view building 4 which looked directly into the side of another building with no view at all.
 
lily28 said:
I got an II exchange into Wkorv last month. My confirmation said building 2 oceanview. When I checked in, I got island view building 4 which looked directly into the side of another building with no view at all.
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That sounds like the building I was in. Mine was right in the centre of the other building and we were on the main floor that made it worse, other than that the accommodations were fantastic and certainly for what I paid to trade into it, well worth it.
 
lily28 said:
I got an II exchange into Wkorv last month. My confirmation said building 2 oceanview. When I checked in, I got island view building 4 which looked directly into the side of another building with no view at all.
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What makes you think that II traders should come before Starwood owners on room assigments at a Starwood resort?

Your confirmation is issued by II, not Starwood. The above posts tell you what the general pecking order is - all based upon availability at the resort for the week reserved.

WKORV and WKORV-N owners first.
Starwood owners and Starwood Elites from other resorts next.
II traders and resort rentals at the bottom.

I happen to like the Starwood pecking order since I own 6 Starwood weeks. If I ever deposit my weeks in II and trade, for example, into a Marriott timeshare, I would not expect to be assigned a room until all the Marriott owners staying at that resort are assigned rooms. Would you like it if II assigned me a better room than you had at your own resort when I traded in?

If you have a complaint about what's placed on the II confirmation, bring it up with II. Starwood does not generate the II confirmations. Salty
 
jarta said:
What makes you think that II traders should come before Starwood owners on room assigments at a Starwood resort?

Your confirmation is issued by II, not Starwood. The above posts tell you what the general pecking order is - all based upon availability at the resort for the week reserved.

WKORV and WKORV-N owners first.
Starwood owners and Starwood Elites from other resorts next.
II traders and resort rentals at the bottom.

I happen to like the Starwood pecking order since I own 6 Starwood weeks. If I ever deposit my weeks in II and trade, for example, into a Marriott timeshare, I would not expect to be assigned a room until all the Marriott owners staying at that resort are assigned rooms. Would you like it if II assigned me a better room than you had at your own resort when I traded in?

If you have a complaint about what's placed on the II confirmation, bring it up with II. Starwood does not generate the II confirmations. Salty
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Salty, did you run out of meds today or something? Geez, please calm down...All Lily28 did was to report that whatever states on the II confirmation may not be what you get assigned at the time of check-in. I do not sense complaint from her post.
 
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