Points vs Weeks

[TUGBrian]

grats on saving 10 grand!

 

[jp10558]

There are MANY ways to get multiple weeks out of one maintenance fee. And some ways (lock-offs with attractive trade programs) don't require trading down.

My wife and I bought ours specifically to trade down. 25 years of getting anywhere between three and five weeks on a single maintenance fee. For us, that's the main appeal of timeshares -- staying in resorts with kitchens and paying less than $100 per night for that.

What's going to work for you? No idea. You'll have to describe what "the perfect timeshare" looks like to you, and then someone will drop by and tell you if such a thing exists.

There will always be some kind of trade-off. It's just a question if you can live with whatever the trade-off happens to be.

Hey, I'm still learning various systems so I'm sure I'm not doing the maximum I could get. I want 2BR or 3BR depending, ideally within 1500 miles of upstate NY so within an "extreme" drive. I'm not adverse to flying, just don't want that to be the required method of travel due to costs usually.

So far I've only used available RCI exchanges or extra vacations or Wyndham or HGVC direct bookings. I'm starting to understand the "great deals" or higher demand times need OGS I think. I believe that's the next thing for me to try - setting up an OGS for next year I guess, though not really sure about the added complexity of Wyndham or HGVC (how do I know how much to deposit?).

 

[Mongoose]

There are MANY ways to get multiple weeks out of one maintenance fee. And some ways (lock-offs with attractive trade programs) don't require trading down.

My wife and I bought ours specifically to trade down. 25 years of getting anywhere between three and five weeks on a single maintenance fee. For us, that's the main appeal of timeshares -- staying in resorts with kitchens and paying less than $100 per night for that.

What's going to work for you? No idea. You'll have to describe what "the perfect timeshare" looks like to you, and then someone will drop by and tell you if such a thing exists.

There will always be some kind of trade-off. It's just a question if you can live with whatever the trade-off happens to be.

Scoop, you know all the tricks of the trade. I’ll list some, but I’m sure you no more.

1) Trade down to smaller sized units.
2) Avoid higher point Weekend stays.
3) Choose lower demand seasons.
4) Some brands like WM, have highly discounted stays internally and through RCI and II 30-60 days out.
5) Some brands like HGVC and WM have highly discounted cash options.
6) Some brands like WM let you “rent” discounted points from other owners.
7) Some brands provide a higher exchange value in RCI and II.

 

[Mongoose]

Hey, I'm still learning various systems so I'm sure I'm not doing the maximum I could get. I want 2BR or 3BR depending, ideally within 1500 miles of upstate NY so within an "extreme" drive. I'm not adverse to flying, just don't want that to be the required method of travel due to costs usually.

So far I've only used available RCI exchanges or extra vacations or Wyndham or HGVC direct bookings. I'm starting to understand the "great deals" or higher demand times need OGS I think. I believe that's the next thing for me to try - setting up an OGS for next year I guess, though not really sure about the added complexity of Wyndham or HGVC (how do I know how much to deposit?).

Do you have a request or confirm first option with Wyndham OGS for RCI? I have that with II and RCI for WM.

 

[ScoopKona]

ideally within 1500 miles of upstate NY

If you said, "the West Coast" instead of upstate NY, then I know a great fit. I'll have to defer to others -- I only know one timeshare system inside and out. It does what I want so I've never had to learn the others.

But I would definitely be open to other options besides "buy more RCI points." If you ask how to buy more, that's the answer you're going to get. If you ask "How do I take several vacations in the Northeast on one maintenance fee," you'll surely get more interesting answers.

There was a recent post by someone who owns a week in upstate Maine. He's getting two exchange weeks a year (plus the ability to score dirt-cheap bonus weeks) on a maintenance fee of around $400. Probably the best example of "timeshare math," I've ever seen.

There are many paths to the same mountaintop. Timeshare salespeople never mention this. They only talk about THEIR path to the mountaintop. That's their job. And in general, timeshare owners also only talk about whatever it is they happen to own. So you have to throw out a very wide net -- "I want to do this. Can it be done?" Google is useless because the top results are all paid advertising.