Newbie Questions on where to start

[cdndog]

Hi there! Been lurking around here for awhile and there is tons of great information, which also makes it confusing. Looking for some help on best way to get started with a timeshare...

I've been kicking around the idea of starting with a TS in Las Vegas, NV such as the Grandview, or Gatlinburg Town Square in TN, Orange Lake or Summer Bay resort in FL, whichever ones I get I want to make sure I also get it setup in RCI so I can bank points if some years I don't want to travel there, or trade it for something else. I think the ones above are all available to get setup in RCI.

Also, not looking to buy direct from a resort but looking for something on the resale market, preferably taking over a TS with minimal cost.

Any suggestions on where to start, or a good starter resort? I think the Grandview in Vegas seems to have low maintenance fees, some are offering their TS for free and might be good for me to start with to learn the ropes with RCI and with the low MF it would be a lower exposure, I'm not dedicated to any specific resort or vacation club so open to suggestions on what's best and most flexible.

Also answered the newbie questions below!

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where? Gatlingburg, Orlando, Las Vegas

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time? Visit home resort half the time, trade it other times

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
Gatlingburg, TN, Orlando, FL, Las Vegas, NV, San Francisco, California, Hawaii

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
5 people

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
School schedule but also flexible

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
3-4

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
Minimal as possible, plan to utilize resale market


10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
$5k

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
Yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
Yes

 

[jp10558]

Hi there! Been lurking around here for awhile and there is tons of great information, which also makes it confusing. Looking for some help on best way to get started with a timeshare...

I've been kicking around the idea of starting with a TS in Las Vegas, NV such as the Grandview, or Gatlinburg Town Square in TN, Orange Lake or Summer Bay resort in FL, whichever ones I get I want to make sure I also get it setup in RCI so I can bank points if some years I don't want to travel there, or trade it for something else. I think the ones above are all available to get setup in RCI.

So with RCI I think Grandview is pretty simple, you can get the points you want for trade values. I know Gatlinburg Town Square (I just got a unit there, but for hopeful use in II) doesn't transfer the RCI points resale, it transfers as a float week. Which means it's probably weeks vs points based...

Also, not looking to buy direct from a resort but looking for something on the resale market, preferably taking over a TS with minimal cost.

Any suggestions on where to start, or a good starter resort? I think the Grandview in Vegas seems to have low maintenance fees, some are offering their TS for free and might be good for me to start with to learn the ropes with RCI and with the low MF it would be a lower exposure, I'm not dedicated to any specific resort or vacation club so open to suggestions on what's best and most flexible.

Personally I started with the bigger chains - I think the mini systems are easier to understand and cheaper to exchange within than RCI exchange fees. In fact, Wyndham for instance doesn't have many fees for instance, and HGVC is $79 vs $299 for RCI exchange and resort fees. So lets say you were going to get Gaitlinburg 2BR, their MF is about $1,000. Sounds good right? But unless you stay at the home resort - to trade that for say Massanutten (not that you should, but I know their resort fees off the top of my head) that's going to be $1,000 MF, $300 exchange fee, and $125 resort fee. So the cost is $1,425. I'm not sure RCI is a good deal for exchanges really given the high exchange fee and resort fees on top.

Also answered the newbie questions below!

1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where? Gatlingburg, Orlando, Las Vegas

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time? Visit home resort half the time, trade it other times

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?
Gatlingburg, TN, Orlando, FL, Las Vegas, NV, San Francisco, California, Hawaii

4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
5 people

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
School schedule but also flexible

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?
Yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
Yes

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
3-4

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
Minimal as possible, plan to utilize resale market


10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
$5k

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
Yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
Yes

The rest of your replies sound reasonable - most places for 5 people will require a 2BR so that's what you want to price. $5k is plenty in MFs in any system for a single week, and probably enough for 2-3 weeks depending on other factors. I think it'll be harder to trade an independent resort and way more variable year to year vs points in a minisystem. The really good news is except for San Francisco, you should be able to pretty easily use cash stays for non "home resort" in RCI - which IMHO it's much better for. Gatlingburg to stay there, and then just for cash access to RCI may be an OK play... But I don't know how well it would trade for fancy places in RCI.

 

[cdndog]

So with RCI I think Grandview is pretty simple, you can get the points you want for trade values. I know Gatlinburg Town Square (I just got a unit there, but for hopeful use in II) doesn't transfer the RCI points resale, it transfers as a float week. Which means it's probably weeks vs points based...

Personally I started with the bigger chains - I think the mini systems are easier to understand and cheaper to exchange within than RCI exchange fees. In fact, Wyndham for instance doesn't have many fees for instance, and HGVC is $79 vs $299 for RCI exchange and resort fees. So lets say you were going to get Gaitlinburg 2BR, their MF is about $1,000. Sounds good right? But unless you stay at the home resort - to trade that for say Massanutten (not that you should, but I know their resort fees off the top of my head) that's going to be $1,000 MF, $300 exchange fee, and $125 resort fee. So the cost is $1,425. I'm not sure RCI is a good deal for exchanges really given the high exchange fee and resort fees on top.

The rest of your replies sound reasonable - most places for 5 people will require a 2BR so that's what you want to price. $5k is plenty in MFs in any system for a single week, and probably enough for 2-3 weeks depending on other factors. I think it'll be harder to trade an independent resort and way more variable year to year vs points in a minisystem. The really good news is except for San Francisco, you should be able to pretty easily use cash stays for non "home resort" in RCI - which IMHO it's much better for. Gatlingburg to stay there, and then just for cash access to RCI may be an OK play... But I don't know how well it would trade for fancy places in RCI.

Thanks for the information, very helpful! I have been looking at the HGVC Seaworld in Orlando as one of the ones we like in Orlando that we'll use on a regular basis for the next few years, then more than likely exchange it for something different in future years which is where I think RCI comes in, and I think that is more points based like you mentioned.

For RCI, am I correct in understanding you can't join that unless you are an owner of something and have it in the exchange, but once you are a member, even if you don't have enough points you can use cash to purchase a week at a different resort? I thought this where the inexpensive Grandview Las Vegas could be beneficial, I would expect if I purchased one there, I would trade it in the exchange more often than I would stay there, but I think Orlando and Gatlingburg would be a regular vacation.

Thanks again for your help!

 

[Calendar21]

Hi, has anyone gone through and made a spreadsheet of the elite, premier and select resorts with codes, info, etc. (I did see the chart created for comparing companies but I do not have points). I have it all in PDF format but it would be so much quicker to have an excel for sorting and if someone has already created that wheel and was willing to share it would be much appreciated, even if just some version of what I am seeking. If not, well then it may take a bit but I will get on it and share with others - can't only be a "taker" as a newbie ;-). Thx

 

[austdav]

Magic Tree is a gold crown resort in kissimmee about 1 mile from disney. They sell floating weeks and you can purchase them from the resort. You would need a 2bd. and they go for about 1k. 1bd's are usually free but only sleep 4. mf's on a 2bd are only $625. They don't care what trading co. you belong to. I belong to both II & rci but not limited to just those either. Im in the process of selling my hilton seaworld. 3 prime weeks at Magic for the price of 1 at most point systems. Plus they have more to do for free than the point systems in my opinion. Sometimes 2bd's are not always available though, and you have to be on a list to get one. Of coarse you can buy a point system any day of the year.

 

[sponger76]

For RCI, am I correct in understanding you can't join that unless you are an owner of something and have it in the exchange, but once you are a member, even if you don't have enough points you can use cash to purchase a week at a different resort?

Keep in mind the RCI cash stays are not available for every stay that's available for exchanging. They are usually the leftovers that nobody wanted to use their exchange deposits for and have sat unclaimed for a long time.

 

[jp10558]

Thanks for the information, very helpful! I have been looking at the HGVC Seaworld in Orlando as one of the ones we like in Orlando that we'll use on a regular basis for the next few years, then more than likely exchange it for something different in future years which is where I think RCI comes in, and I think that is more points based like you mentioned.

So, I also own at HGVC Seaworld and it's... well it's easyish to get but the MFs aren't great especially now with the new Florida fees. If I could do over, I'd probably save up a bit more money and have kept looking for Vegas or bought in Scotland. Seaworld is easy easy to book if you got HGVC points, and I've seen it in RCI for extra vacations too at least sometimes. Going for about 45% off MFs too.

How wedded are you to Gatlingburg vs Severvile? There's a lot more options there with cash stays for instance in my looking. Gatlingburg you might be locked into the town square TBH, but if you're going every year and call early to book you'll get the week you want easy enough I think. So that could be worth it if that's something you want to do each year.

I'm with most TUGgers who wouldn't buy in Florida with the new reserve requirements, it put already meh MFs up quite a bit in the systems. IDK how Magic Tree is avoiding it - it might all jump up next year IDK.

The thing about anything that isn't a fixed week ownership - nothing is guaranteed, but there's commonly seen percentages. Here's my take - others will disagree potentially.

If you own in the system, and go online at the opening of the booking window I'd say just about any Orlando booking is 99.9999% possible and seems likely to continue into the future. If you just need "somewhere in Orlando", just about any dates you can book a cash stay for $1,100 or less 95% of the time or better. Same for Vegas IMHO.

Gatlingburg also seems pretty available in the various systems, I'd say with no real research you're probably 75% able to grab an exchange throughout the year. Cash stays IDK would have to look.

Hawaii is harder with independent exchanges - I'm struggling to take Gatlingburg or Fox Run and see 2BR Marriott etc. There is Kona Coast that shows up all the time - so if you're not picky I'd say right now my very limited experience would put that at a 50% if trading an independent. If you have HGVC points or Wyndham points and you book out at the open time, I'd say you're back to 95% able to book.

For RCI, am I correct in understanding you can't join that unless you are an owner of something and have it in the exchange, but once you are a member, even if you don't have enough points you can use cash to purchase a week at a different resort?

This is true, but you only need one RCI account for that. So if you did happen to get HGVC or Wyndham for instance they give you an RCI account as part of the dues. However, you can't combine an independent with that RCI account, so it probably would limit the usefulness of Grandview IMHO unless you did see it really gave you exchanges worth the added cost of the RCI membership fee on top of exchange fee and resort fees. That said, there are some available weeks that are only exchanges and not in the cash offers, so ... it'll depend on if you really want to go there I guess.

I thought this where the inexpensive Grandview Las Vegas could be beneficial, I would expect if I purchased one there, I would trade it in the exchange more often than I would stay there,

If the math works out for you great, but I feel like the odds are kind of against it unless you're ALL IN on RCI points as a system. I know the exchange fees / rules are different for RCIs "point system" so others need to comment on that.

 

[andre10056]

Hi there! Been lurking around here for awhile and there is tons of great information, which also makes it confusing. Looking for some help on best way to get started with a timeshare...

I've been kicking around the idea of starting with a TS in Las Vegas, NV such as the Grandview, or Gatlinburg Town Square in TN, Orange Lake or Summer Bay resort in FL, whichever ones I get I want to make sure I also get it setup in RCI so I can bank points if some years I don't want to travel there, or trade it for something else. I think the ones above are all available to get setup in RCI.

Also, not looking to buy direct from a resort but looking for something on the resale market, preferably taking over a TS with minimal cost.

Any suggestions on where to start...

My suggestion as to "where to start" would be to compare prices of non-timeshare rentals in your target travel locations to whatever maintenance fees you might potentially obligate yourself to having to pay annually.

In Orlando, for example, there are ample opportunities to pay sometimes far less than annual maintenance fees for similar lodging opportunities, or oftentimes for even the same timeshare lodging. Check out trivago hotel listings that will not only include hundreds of hotel units, including those with full kitchen suites, but also invariably include units at timeshare resorts. Also, of course, check out airbnb for amazingly low cost full 3 bedroom house rentals.

Someone mentioned Magic Tree. If you go to Platinum Interchange and go to "rentals", you'll see a 2 BR for 4/13 to 4/20 (Easter week!) for $799 and a 1 BR for March 16 to March 23 for $599. There are also low cost listings at that site for Vacation Village at Parkway.

As another example, I may have to travel to San Antonio during early February. As a timeshare owner with plenty of II as well as RCI "points" in my accounts, I thought of Hyatt Wild Oak. Nothing came up as available to me with my 1880 II points. So, I thought to myself, how much would a Hyatt Wild Oak 2 BR, 7 nights cost if I were to rent via a booking site? And it turns out it would be about $2200 plus including all taxes and fees. But that resort's annual maintenance fees are almost $1900 and it costs multiple thousands upfront (even resale) to become an owner. Why would I want to become an owner at all if I can simply rent whenever I want spur-of-the-moment rather than being locked in to a certain week of the year when I might be unable to travel? Answer: I wouldn't even if I got it for free.

And, in my case, I don't need 2 BR and I don't need seven nights. So, as you can imagine, the weekly rate comes way down under those circumstances.

Moreover, I think the Hyatt Wild Oak is horribly overpriced for rental lodging. Hence, I decided to search for "sleeps six" hotel suites with a kitchen in San Antonio and I chose June 28 to July 5 since Koala has its only Wild Oak listing for those dates at a rental price of $2695. San Antonio is hot as Hades during that time period and I'd never willingly travel there then but Hyatt questionably rates that as that resort's peak peak Diamond time. And found a 2 queen bed, 1 sleeper sofa sleeps six with a beautiful resort-style pool, free breakfast, fitness center, business center at Marriott Bonvoy Towne Place Suites Northwest for $738 (apparently, 5 nights or more qualifies you for a big discount). So why would I choose to stay at Wild Oak for $2000 more than that when I would primarily want to explore the city?

So choose wisely but stop thinking that the universe of travel opportunities involves only timeshares. Timeshares don't expand your travel opportunities but limit them. If you don't believe that, you'll be waiting forever for a timeshare opportunity to visit a city like Boston. The Marriott Custom House is almost never available as an exchange opportunity and only for the highest exchange value. And yet, there are literally hundreds and hundreds of economical hotels, airbnbs, etc. in the Boston area.

 

[cdndog]

My suggestion as to "where to start" would be to compare prices of non-timeshare rentals in your target travel locations to whatever maintenance fees you might potentially obligate yourself to having to pay annually.

In Orlando, for example, there are ample opportunities to pay sometimes far less than annual maintenance fees for similar lodging opportunities, or oftentimes for even the same timeshare lodging. Check out trivago hotel listings that will not only include hundreds of hotel units, including those with full kitchen suites, but also invariably include units at timeshare resorts. Also, of course, check out airbnb for amazingly low cost full 3 bedroom house rentals.

Someone mentioned Magic Tree. If you go to Platinum Interchange and go to "rentals", you'll see a 2 BR for 4/13 to 4/20 (Easter week!) for $799 and a 1 BR for March 16 to March 23 for $599. There are also low cost listings at that site for Vacation Village at Parkway.

As another example, I may have to travel to San Antonio during early February. As a timeshare owner with plenty of II as well as RCI "points" in my accounts, I thought of Hyatt Wild Oak. Nothing came up as available to me with my 1880 II points. So, I thought to myself, how much would a Hyatt Wild Oak 2 BR, 7 nights cost if I were to rent via a booking site? And it turns out it would be about $2200 plus including all taxes and fees. But that resort's annual maintenance fees are almost $1900 and it costs multiple thousands upfront (even resale) to become an owner. Why would I want to become an owner at all if I can simply rent whenever I want spur-of-the-moment rather than being locked in to a certain week of the year when I might be unable to travel? Answer: I wouldn't even if I got it for free.

And, in my case, I don't need 2 BR and I don't need seven nights. So, as you can imagine, the weekly rate comes way down under those circumstances.

Moreover, I think the Hyatt Wild Oak is horribly overpriced for rental lodging. Hence, I decided to search for "sleeps six" hotel suites with a kitchen in San Antonio and I chose June 28 to July 5 since Koala has its only Wild Oak listing for those dates at a rental price of $2695. San Antonio is hot as Hades during that time period and I'd never willingly travel there then but Hyatt questionably rates that as that resort's peak peak Diamond time. And found a 2 queen bed, 1 sleeper sofa sleeps six with a beautiful resort-style pool, free breakfast, fitness center, business center at Marriott Bonvoy Towne Place Suites Northwest for $738 (apparently, 5 nights or more qualifies you for a big discount). So why would I choose to stay at Wild Oak for $2000 more than that when I would primarily want to explore the city?

So choose wisely but stop thinking that the universe of travel opportunities involves only timeshares. Timeshares don't expand your travel opportunities but limit them. If you don't believe that, you'll be waiting forever for a timeshare opportunity to visit a city like Boston. The Marriott Custom House is almost never available as an exchange opportunity and only for the highest exchange value. And yet, there are literally hundreds and hundreds of economical hotels, airbnbs, etc. in the Boston area.

Thanks for everyones responses!

I've been researching and leaning toward HGVC and buying something in resale there, but the points seems to be a bit confusing. Are there any guides on how the points system works with HGVC, such as differences between gold and platinum?


From what I see, MF's run anywhere from $.11 to $.30 per point, and seem higher at the resorts in Florida. If I were to purchase a TS at a resort that has lower MF, and I may or may not ever visit it, but just purchase at the resort to get the points to use to book in Florida or where ever the plan is that year, or also bank the points for use in the following year to get a bigger/nicer unit? Seems like I can get in Orlando for around $.23+ per point, or $.18 per point in Las Vegas for 5440 points. Are there any disadvantages to this strategy?

 

[geist1223]

Many people purchase in LV to get the lower MF. Points are Points. MF are normally set by size of Unit (2 bedroom or 3 bedroom) not by Gold or Platinum. However you get more Points for a Platinum Week vice a Gold Week. So if you can afford to buy a Platinum Week on the resell market you will be better off in the long run.

 

[cdndog]

Many people purchase in LV to get the lower MF. Points are Points. MF are normally set by size of Unit (2 bedroom or 3 bedroom) not by Gold or Platinum. However you get more Points for a Platinum Week vice a Gold Week. So if you can afford to buy a Platinum Week on the resell market you will be better off in the long run.

So if you purchase a TS that is advertised as 1 bedroom for say 5000 points, you could when book it reserve a 2 bedroom, although that may cost more in points obviously.. am I correct in understanding that?


Thanks again!

 

[jp10558]

So if you purchase a TS that is advertised as 1 bedroom for say 5000 points, you could when book it reserve a 2 bedroom, although that may cost more in points obviously.. am I correct in understanding that?


Thanks again!

Yes, in HGVC - especially for Orlando - points are points. You can book anything at 9 months out club booking window. And what matters is the points for your stay. I have a platnium 2BR getting me 11,200pts a year. I can stay 2 weeks in the off season at say Ocean Oak (if I can book it) for 5,600pts for the week. Or I can stay one week in platinum season (assuming I could book it, Ocean Oak is hard to book). If you owned a 1BR that gave you 5440pts, you could borrow from the next year and book a 2BR as long as the total was under ~10,800pts.

 

[andre10056]

Yes, in HGVC - especially for Orlando - points are points. You can book anything at 9 months out club booking window. And what matters is the points for your stay. I have a platnium 2BR getting me 11,200pts a year. I can stay 2 weeks in the off season at say Ocean Oak (if I can book it) for 5,600pts for the week. Or I can stay one week in platinum season (assuming I could book it, Ocean Oak is hard to book). If you owned a 1BR that gave you 5440pts, you could borrow from the next year and book a 2BR as long as the total was under ~10,800pts.

Thanks jp for saying things that any newbie needs to hear. "If you can book it" is a key message. And desirable resorts are oftentimes "hard to book". And sometimes to POSSIBLY get something decent, you may have to borrow from next year (if the rules allow it) and thereby end up paying two years worth of maintenance fees for a one year's, single week's opportunity.

And let's not forget the $299 or $349 or whatever the "within the resort family" exchange fee might be.

 

[GT75]

I've been researching and leaning toward HGVC and buying something in resale there

To add to the above advice, if you purchase HGVC resale, you won't be able to book Hilton Vacation Club (HVC) properties directly (these include the two HVC properties in the Gatlinburg area). You can exchange in via DEX, but then you will need to purchase an HGVC that trades in DEX, such as Craig Lodges.

 

[jp10558]

Thanks jp for saying things that any newbie needs to hear. "If you can book it" is a key message. And desirable resorts are oftentimes "hard to book". And sometimes to POSSIBLY get something decent, you may have to borrow from next year (if the rules allow it) and thereby end up paying two years worth of maintenance fees for a one year's, single week's opportunity.

And let's not forget the $299 or $349 or whatever the "within the resort family" exchange fee might be.

In legacy HGVC it's $79 right now. Wyndham it's free as long as you have housekeeping credits. If you have HGV Max (though this isn't available resale so far) it's free. The mini systems are significantly cheaper to exchange than via RCI or II, even Marriott via II is discounted from what I understand by about $100, though this would make it the most expensive so far (that I know of).

When newbies read my "if you can book it" you should look or ask in the appropriate forum for what's hard to book vs easy to book. One point I tried to make is for the OP, Orlando is pretty much easy to book. Many places aren't too hard to book in HGVC right at 9 months - I've been reasonably happy. But season also depends, and HGVC is def tighter than Wyndham for instance.

 

[cdndog]

To add to the above advice, if you purchase HGVC resale, you won't be able to book Hilton Vacation Club (HVC) properties directly (these include the two HVC properties in the Gatlinburg area). You can exchange in via DEX, but then you will need to purchase an HGVC that trades in DEX, such as Craig Lodges.

Ok, sorry now you just lost me. From everything I've read, points are points and you can book other resorts other than your home resort. I've never heard of DEX, I heard about and understand RCI which would be beneficial in those years where we may not visit home resort, but I did a quick search about DEX and couldn't find much of anything about that?

 

[cdndog]

In legacy HGVC it's $79 right now. Wyndham it's free as long as you have housekeeping credits. If you have HGV Max (though this isn't available resale so far) it's free. The mini systems are significantly cheaper to exchange than via RCI or II, even Marriott via II is discounted from what I understand by about $100, though this would make it the most expensive so far (that I know of).

When newbies read my "if you can book it" you should look or ask in the appropriate forum for what's hard to book vs easy to book. One point I tried to make is for the OP, Orlando is pretty much easy to book. Many places aren't too hard to book in HGVC right at 9 months - I've been reasonably happy. But season also depends, and HGVC is def tighter than Wyndham for instance.

Thanks, I'm not actually looking for a high end resort to book, just a decent place to crash, and Orlando or that area is the main destination for at least the next few years.

 

[andre10056]

Ok, sorry now you just lost me. From everything I've read, points are points and you can book other resorts other than your home resort. I've never heard of DEX, I heard about and understand RCI which would be beneficial in those years where we may not visit home resort, but I did a quick search about DEX and couldn't find much of anything about that?

I don't own a legacy HGVC or any HGVC so I may be wrong, but it appears that GT75 is telling you that, if you purchase a HGVC resale, you will be unable to directly trade for a Hilton Vacation Club timeshare. You might "indirectly" exchange for such Hilton Vacation Club timeshare by using exchange service Destination Exchange....but only if whichever timeshare you purchase is one that's among those timeshares in the Destination Exchange program. There's a 200 page pamphlet that I found on the Internet that lists all affiliated timeshares, the US pages start on page 33.

Don't know what a DEX exchange might cost, but any RCI exchange you make will cost you a $299 fee (and those fees have gone up significantly in recent years).

 

[andre10056]

Never heard about Destination Exchange although on page 34 my Palm Beach in Orange Beach, AL is listed. I'll have to check in to it.

chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://cmsprod.diamondresorts.com/sites/default/files/destination-xchange-guide_1.pdf

 

[SmithOp]

If you want to just dip your toes in the water and have any Military or DoD service you can get access to RCI Last Calls (leftover weeks in off season). No timeshare ownership required.

afvclub dot com

 

[GT75]

Ok, sorry now you just lost me. From everything I've read, points are points and you can book other resorts other than your home resort.

Yes, you are correct, but you can only use your point as a resale owner in the HGVC system, which is the system I am in. I don't know if you have looked at which resorts are in the HGVC system but this map is fairly accurate.

HGVC Detailed Resort & Affiliated Information

Please limit this thread to only the detailed information on a HGVC specific resorts. This can include affiliate information, resort maps, room codes or other specific resort information which TUG members going to this resort will find useful. For discussion/commentary please use the to...

tugbbs.com

 

[austdav]

Thanks, I'm not actually looking for a high end resort to book, just a decent place to crash, and Orlando or that area is the main destination for at least the next few years.

Not sure why there was no consideration of Magic Tree above then. Hilton seaworld is a gold crown resort, a week in a 2bd. when school is out will be 11200 points. It will cost you around $1800 for them points and it will take every point. Magic Tree is a gold crown resort and mf's on a 2bd are $625. I'm scheduled to stay spring break, christmas, and new years in 2025 because of grandkids. Thats 3 weeks in a gold crown resort for the price of staying 1 of those weeks at HGVC. Further there is more free amenities at magic tree than most HGVC resorts. Hgvc will at times give point reductions. At black friday most times you can get an average of around 30% off, jan. through begining of may. Then it will say except for this week. Which is spring break when kids are out of school. So basically there discounting weeks that they have excess inventory. Even when you consider the 30% off you are around $1200, which if you go on rci will probably find as good a value or better. Better yet that is still 2 weeks at magic tree. You can call the resort and if they have what your looking for they will do a quick deed for around $100 bucks and your done. Like i said above they do not always have 2bd's. and they can be hard to find but worth the wait. If nothing else rent a week, or if your staying nearby just walk in to the resort and ask about it. Thats what i did in 2019 and now have 3 weeks. By the way the gold crown rating comes from the trading co. not the resort.

 

[jp10558]

Not sure why there was no consideration of Magic Tree above then. Hilton seaworld is a gold crown resort, a week in a 2bd. when school is out will be 11200 points. It will cost you around $1800 for them points and it will take every point. Magic Tree is a gold crown resort and mf's on a 2bd are $625. I'm scheduled to stay spring break, christmas, and new years in 2025 because of grandkids. Thats 3 weeks in a gold crown resort for the price of staying 1 of those weeks at HGVC. Further there is more free amenities at magic tree than most HGVC resorts. Hgvc will at times give point reductions. At black friday most times you can get an average of around 30% off, jan. through begining of may. Then it will say except for this week. Which is spring break when kids are out of school. So basically there discounting weeks that they have excess inventory. Even when you consider the 30% off you are around $1200, which if you go on rci will probably find as good a value or better. Better yet that is still 2 weeks at magic tree. You can call the resort and if they have what your looking for they will do a quick deed for around $100 bucks and your done. Like i said above they do not always have 2bd's. and they can be hard to find but worth the wait. If nothing else rent a week, or if your staying nearby just walk in to the resort and ask about it. Thats what i did in 2019 and now have 3 weeks. By the way the gold crown rating comes from the trading co. not the resort.

The resort ratings from RCI or II are... well... to be charitable, a broad category. Actually, after my various experiences (cough Villa Roma, Regal Vistas, Sheraton Vistana Villages) I can say that you should take most reviews / ratings with a large grain of salt for at least 2 reasons. The main one is variability in units. I'm sure SVV has very nice units. In fact, mine was nice except for a strong persistent mildew smell. My first Regal Vista stay had a frankly unacceptable dishwasher state that maintenance couldn't fix. My second was extremely nice with no real issues at all. (I think one outside lightbulb burned out).

The second one is such different standards of reviewers that I question the usefulness of reviews on x points out of y sites without significantly more details and pictures. Villa Roma is my go to - look on TUG, look on Trip Advisor, then watch my Youtube review and tell me which of us is crazy...

All of this is to say I need to see Magic Tree myself I guess at some point. HGVC Seaworld is already on my list eventually also. I just don't go to Orlando that often FWIW.