• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Question about Club Wyndham Access

vt88mike

newbie
Joined
Feb 23, 2021
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Resorts Owned
MSW
So, I'm thinking about purchasing points in Club Wyndham Access. Is there any downside from purchasing resale vs. developer? Do resale owners still get the early reservation window for access resorts?

Thanks,
Mike
 

bnoble

TUG Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2006
Messages
11,628
Reaction score
5,364
Points
798
Location
The People's Republic of Ann Arbor
Is there any downside from purchasing resale vs. developer?

You cannot use resale points for Club Pass reservations of WorldMark inventory. Arguably, that is not a major downside, because Club Pass only opens a month or three after WorldMark owners can book, so the most in-demand things are gone anyway.

There is a loyalty program (VIP) that resale points cannot count towards. I think most would say that the cost to achieve the various loyalty tiers is not repaid by the benefits in those tiers.

Do resale owners still get the early reservation window for access resorts?
Yes.
 

dgalati

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2015
Messages
3,393
Reaction score
1,327
Points
298
So, I'm thinking about purchasing points in Club Wyndham Access. Is there any downside from purchasing resale vs. developer? Do resale owners still get the early reservation window for access resorts?

Thanks,
Mike
IMHO there is no downside buying resale unless you want or need VIP status. The upside is the thousands of dollars you save buying resale. Is there a reason you are looking to buy ACCESS vs a lower cost maintenance fee deeded ownership?
 

Sandy VDH

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
9,848
Reaction score
4,227
Points
648
Location
Houston, TX
Resorts Owned
Wynd VIP Plat GF, HGVC Elite, WM, HICV, +
Doesn't count toward VIP perks but at pennies on the dollar, it is an easy choice to make resale OVER developer.
 

jwalk03

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
May 3, 2016
Messages
3,486
Reaction score
2,584
Points
348
Location
Ohio
Buy resale! The thousands of dollars you would save are more valuable than any VIP perks they offer, especially with the loss of unlimited Housekeeping credits as a VIP perk for new owners.

Also personally I would not buy CWA, I would buy a resale contract with low maintenance fees like Panama City or Bali Hai or Canterbury. You will save a lot of money over the long term with the lower maintenance fees than with CWA.
 

Jan M.

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2010
Messages
4,486
Reaction score
5,844
Points
548
Location
Tamarac, FL
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Presidential Reserve at Panama City Beach
Club Wyndham Access
Grandview Las Vegas and Discovery Beach Resort - Both in RCI Points
Woodstone and Summit at Massanutten - Both in RCI weeks used as Wyndham PICs
You get ARP, Advance Reservation Priority, where you're deeded. Sometimes you may have a second resort, a reciprocal resort. Example: We have two deeds at National Harbor. One has Old Town Alexandria as a reciprocal resort and the other doesn't.

We own some Club Wyndham Access points because why not. However it's just a small amount. If you don't need the three and four bedroom units at the most popular resorts in prime high demand times you can usually find what you want at 10 months or less.

A few days ago I used this example to explain to someone how important maintenance fees are.

Bonnet Creek maintenance fees in 2017 were $5.63 per thousand points. $5.87 in 2018. $6.16 in 2019. $6.22 in 2020. $6.30 in 2021. The increases at Bonnet Creek aren't nearly as high as they were for CWA points. CWA points from 2017-2021 were $5.60, $5.76, $5.99, $6.28 and $6.61. Grand Desert buildings 1 and 2 were $4.10 in 2012 and now nine years later are only $4.97.
If you bought directly from Wyndham the minimum program fee is $185 or $0.66 per thousand points if you have enough points to be over the minimum program fee. Resale is $165 or $0.64.

Your maintenance fees determine what a stay costs you. Say you wanted to book a 3 bedroom deluxe in a prime week in 2021 at Bonnet Creek which is 308,000 points. I'm going to use the resale program fee of $0.64 per thousand points. So if you owned at Bonnet Creek that reservation would cost you $2137.52 in maintenance fees. With CWA points it would cost $2233. With Grand Desert buildings 1 and 2 it would cost $1727.88. If you owned at National Harbor that week in the 3 bedroom deluxe prime week at Bonnet Creek would cost you $1629.32.

Here's a link to the maintenance fee history spreadsheet. Go to the bottom of the spreadsheet and click on Master UDI. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RUiHuxPdShXWp3OM2PiXf1_WDzHiv3Ickz1_o5ssiv4/edit?usp=sharing
 

dgalati

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2015
Messages
3,393
Reaction score
1,327
Points
298
[
Your maintenance fees determine what a stay costs you. Say you wanted to book a 3 bedroom deluxe in a prime week in 2021 at Bonnet Creek which is 308,000 points. I'm going to use the resale program fee of $0.64 per thousand points. So if you owned at Bonnet Creek that reservation would cost you $2137.52 in maintenance fees. With CWA points it would cost $2233. With Grand Desert buildings 1 and 2 it would cost $1727.88. If you owned at National Harbor that week in the 3 bedroom deluxe prime week at Bonnet Creek would cost you $1629.32.

Here's a link to the maintenance fee history spreadsheet. Go to the bottom of the spreadsheet and click on Master UDI. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RUiHuxPdShXWp3OM2PiXf1_WDzHiv3Ickz1_o5ssiv4/edit?usp=sharing
The average cost on a nightly basis for that week stay $232 per night with National Harbor or $319 a night owning CWA. The extra $90 per night to own CWA can be expensive if you travel 3-4 weeks a year. Also keep in mind the limited availability of CWA inventory at the 13 month APR.
 

cbyrne1174

TUG Member
Joined
Sep 1, 2018
Messages
1,916
Reaction score
1,598
Points
274
Location
Tampa, FL
Resorts Owned
Club Wyndham, Marriott, DVC
100% resale!!
So, I'm thinking about purchasing points in Club Wyndham Access. Is there any downside from purchasing resale vs. developer? Do resale owners still get the early reservation window for access resorts?

Thanks,
Mike

I own 100% resale points. No way in hell would I EVER buy Access points. I don't use 13 month ARP since most rooms are still available 10 months out using deeded Select resale points. Maybeeeeeeeeeeee (big maybe) if my habits change and I need the ARP at 13 months, then I will consider adding the exact amount that I need. I highly doubt it though. My advice would be to just pick up a low maintenance fee deed resale and NOT Access points. The % increase year over year is higher in Access than most Select deeds, meaning Access MF grows exponentially FASTER than most deeded locations. Most of my deeds are at Grand Desert and I save $551.67 a year vs someone who owns the same number of Access points (497,000). I only paid a few hundred for my membership.

Take that extra $551 of savings NOT owning Access and throw it into and IRA account instead and watch it triple within a decade <3
 

vt88mike

newbie
Joined
Feb 23, 2021
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Points
1
Resorts Owned
MSW
Thanks, all. The reason I thought CWA would be good is because I might want to get into a high demand place like Park City during ski season. Any thoughts?
 

dgalati

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2015
Messages
3,393
Reaction score
1,327
Points
298
Thanks, all. The reason I thought CWA would be good is because I might want to get into a high demand place like Park City during ski season. Any thoughts?
I would try to find out how much if any inventory Access has at Park city. Like others have stated at 10 months availability is no problem . The additional cost of $90 per night to book other resorts owning Access can be costly.
 

bnoble

TUG Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2006
Messages
11,628
Reaction score
5,364
Points
798
Location
The People's Republic of Ann Arbor
Thanks, all. The reason I thought CWA would be good is because I might want to get into a high demand place like Park City during ski season. Any thoughts?
It might be helpful to know more. Do you need a large unit (3 or 4BR)? Are you thinking of one specific holiday week (e.g. Christmas/New Years?) If those are true, then having ARP at this resort might be important. However, if you are good with a 2BR or smaller, and somewhat flexible about when you go during the season, then you may well not need ARP.

There are very few resorts that have entire seasons that are hard to book. The low-point resorts in Myrtle Beach in the summer are hard and might require ARP, but the more point-expensive resorts are often available. Wisconsin's Glacier Canyon can be tough to get on the weekends with the included water park, but the other Dells resort is much easier. Park City might be one of those because it is ski in/ski out. But, I doubt it. Right now, Christmas week has days missing, but Week 50 is wide open in 1BR and 2BR units, and those have been bookable for more than a week in the Standard period. Granted, Week 50 is generally a lower-demand week for travel, and it might not be smart to generalize from this year's booking patterns. But Week 50 is a good month into the ski season at Park City, and I suspect most people are imagining that by Winter 21-21 they will be vaccinated (or they aren't worried in the first place).

More commonly, resorts have specific weeks or unit sizes that are hard to get, but pretty easy otherwise. New Orleans resorts for Mardi Gras and Jazz Fest, Daytona during the 500 and Bike Week, etc. Bonnet Creek's larger units can be hard in busy seasons, but 2BRs are plentiful. And so on. I suspect Park City is probably more in this category---mostly because nearly everything else in the system is. As an example, I was able to get a 2BR at Old Town Alexandria for Easter, right at the beginning of Cherry Blossom season with a Standard reservation. I had to book that right when inventory opened, but rooms were available.

The next question is: how long are you going to be doing this as your primary use of Wyndham points? Is this a thing you want to do every year for the next ten years because it is already a family tradition? Or, are you thinking this might be nice but you will stay elsewhere too? One of the strengths of Wyndham is that there are many resorts in compelling locations, and if you plan to mix things up, ARP becomes less and less important.

Despite the fact that it is a bit higher than average, I don't think CWA is a bad thing to own---we here on TUG can sometimes get caught up in squeezing every last dime out of a stay. So, maybe you don't need the absolute rock-bottom fee ratio. But there might be plenty of other ways that are a little more affordable to accomplish what you are looking for.
 

alexadeparis

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2008
Messages
1,765
Reaction score
514
Points
474
Location
Phoenix, AZ
Resorts Owned
Points: Hilton EVEN, Hyatt ODD Annual: WSJ, HRA
For the most part the access points are built with the trimmings of inventory, hence the higher maintenance fees. I would not expect that there would be a lot of prime inventory for peak weeks in the trust, I would assume there’s more inventory for peak times tied up in the select deeds.
 

dgalati

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2015
Messages
3,393
Reaction score
1,327
Points
298
For the most part the access points are built with the trimmings of inventory, hence the higher maintenance fees. I would not expect that there would be a lot of prime inventory for peak weeks in the trust, I would assume there’s more inventory for peak times tied up in the select deeds.
Exactly why I posted to check if Park City had any inventory available to even book 13 ARP with Access.
 

markb53

TUG Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2011
Messages
930
Reaction score
253
Points
274
Location
Northern California
Resorts Owned
CWA
Panama City Beach
Worldmark
Exactly why I posted to check if Park City had any inventory available to even book 13 ARP with Access.
I see plenty of inventory to book at park city with access. I’m looking at March 25, 2022 checkin and I see everything from a 1 BR deluxe to a 4BR pres.
 

richardjc

newbie
Joined
Aug 31, 2018
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Points
13
You get ARP, Advance Reservation Priority, where you're deeded. Sometimes you may have a second resort, a reciprocal resort. Example: We have two deeds at National Harbor. One has Old Town Alexandria as a reciprocal resort and the other doesn't.

We own some Club Wyndham Access points because why not. However it's just a small amount. If you don't need the three and four bedroom units at the most popular resorts in prime high demand times you can usually find what you want at 10 months or less.

A few days ago I used this example to explain to someone how important maintenance fees are.

Bonnet Creek maintenance fees in 2017 were $5.63 per thousand points. $5.87 in 2018. $6.16 in 2019. $6.22 in 2020. $6.30 in 2021. The increases at Bonnet Creek aren't nearly as high as they were for CWA points. CWA points from 2017-2021 were $5.60, $5.76, $5.99, $6.28 and $6.61. Grand Desert buildings 1 and 2 were $4.10 in 2012 and now nine years later are only $4.97.
If you bought directly from Wyndham the minimum program fee is $185 or $0.66 per thousand points if you have enough points to be over the minimum program fee. Resale is $165 or $0.64.

Your maintenance fees determine what a stay costs you. Say you wanted to book a 3 bedroom deluxe in a prime week in 2021 at Bonnet Creek which is 308,000 points. I'm going to use the resale program fee of $0.64 per thousand points. So if you owned at Bonnet Creek that reservation would cost you $2137.52 in maintenance fees. With CWA points it would cost $2233. With Grand Desert buildings 1 and 2 it would cost $1727.88. If you owned at National Harbor that week in the 3 bedroom deluxe prime week at Bonnet Creek would cost you $1629.32.

Here's a link to the maintenance fee history spreadsheet. Go to the bottom of the spreadsheet and click on Master UDI. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RUiHuxPdShXWp3OM2PiXf1_WDzHiv3Ickz1_o5ssiv4/edit?usp=sharing


If I was to purchase a deed at Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert am I only able to use them on their use weeks or can I exchange them for points as well? If I can exchange them for points how do I find out what the point conversion is? A little confused because the ads that I see only advertise weeks only or points only but I would think you should be able to convert your week into points.
 

Braindead

TUG Member
Joined
May 23, 2016
Messages
2,504
Reaction score
1,243
Points
298
If I was to purchase a deed at Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert am I only able to use them on their use weeks or can I exchange them for points as well? If I can exchange them for points how do I find out what the point conversion is? A little confused because the ads that I see only advertise weeks only or points only but I would think you should be able to convert your week into points.
I think you’re confusing rentals with UDI Points contracts. The weeks you’re seeing are rentals.
I’ve never seen a Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert week ownership contract for sale.

You only want to buy a UDI Points contract at Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert.
 

richardjc

newbie
Joined
Aug 31, 2018
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Points
13
I think you’re confusing rentals with UDI Points contracts. The weeks you’re seeing are rentals.
I’ve never seen a Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert week ownership contract for sale.

You only want to buy a UDI Points contract at Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert.

I was just using those locations as an example since that's what was referenced by the person I replied to. Look at this listing in the attached pic for example. It doesn't state a specific week or points. Would this have an equivalent point value or is it only for use at Kona? I'm asking because I've been looking at several timeshares and other systems will have a use week along with a point equivalent and to me it is looking like Wyndham does not. Not necessarily a big deal to me but just wanted to get that clarified.
 

Attachments

  • Capture.PNG
    Capture.PNG
    242.6 KB · Views: 47

paxsarah

TUG Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2010
Messages
3,771
Reaction score
2,915
Points
448
Location
Athens, GA
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Ocean Boulevard, Flagstaff, Grand Desert
When purchasing Wyndham timeshares, you might run across (A) straight points contracts, which can be Club Wyndham Access or deeded at a particular resort, or (B) converted fixed weeks, which may refer to a particular week and unit but also reference a points value - the underlying deed is a fixed week, but a previous owner converted the week with Wyndham to points, and then there are (C) fixed or float weeks that haven't been converted to points. It looks like the example you posted is a float week not converted to points, but I'm not very familiar with the Hawaiian resorts and how they were originally sold.

Those fixed or float weeks can be converted to points, but it's not without a hassle. Last year sometime Wyndham came out with a promo to convert fixed/float weeks to points for free, though it seemed the process was lengthy. Prior to that promo, if I recall correctly the consensus was that Wyndham wouldn't really do a conversion without an accompanying direct purchase. Without that conversion, the fixed/float weeks don't really interact with the Wyndham points system at all.
 

richardjc

newbie
Joined
Aug 31, 2018
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Points
13
When purchasing Wyndham timeshares, you might run across (A) straight points contracts, which can be Club Wyndham Access or deeded at a particular resort, or (B) converted fixed weeks, which may refer to a particular week and unit but also reference a points value - the underlying deed is a fixed week, but a previous owner converted the week with Wyndham to points, and then there are (C) fixed or float weeks that haven't been converted to points. It looks like the example you posted is a float week not converted to points, but I'm not very familiar with the Hawaiian resorts and how they were originally sold.

Those fixed or float weeks can be converted to points, but it's not without a hassle. Last year sometime Wyndham came out with a promo to convert fixed/float weeks to points for free, though it seemed the process was lengthy. Prior to that promo, if I recall correctly the consensus was that Wyndham wouldn't really do a conversion without an accompanying direct purchase. Without that conversion, the fixed/float weeks don't really interact with the Wyndham points system at all.

That makes sense! Thanks for clarifying.
 

cbyrne1174

TUG Member
Joined
Sep 1, 2018
Messages
1,916
Reaction score
1,598
Points
274
Location
Tampa, FL
Resorts Owned
Club Wyndham, Marriott, DVC
100% resale!!
Here is a good Grand Desert deed from a reputable seller on Ebay:
 

trele6

newbie
Joined
Feb 25, 2021
Messages
6
Reaction score
2
Points
3
Resorts Owned
Wyndham CWA
Here is a good Grand Desert deed from a reputable seller on Ebay:


Man I wish i would have seen this earlier.. I just bought 129,000 points from Ebay but this looks like a better deal. Hmmm. do I need 249,000 more....
 

Jan M.

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2010
Messages
4,486
Reaction score
5,844
Points
548
Location
Tamarac, FL
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Presidential Reserve at Panama City Beach
Club Wyndham Access
Grandview Las Vegas and Discovery Beach Resort - Both in RCI Points
Woodstone and Summit at Massanutten - Both in RCI weeks used as Wyndham PICs
If I was to purchase a deed at Bonnet Creek or Grand Desert am I only able to use them on their use weeks or can I exchange them for points as well? If I can exchange them for points how do I find out what the point conversion is? A little confused because the ads that I see only advertise weeks only or points only but I would think you should be able to convert your week into points.

Wyndham is mainly a points based system now. There are still some fixed weeks owners out there but fewer and fewer these days. So for a new owner it's best to think of it as just points.
You can use whatever points you own to book any resort that has availability. At 10 months or less points are points as we say here on TUG so it doesn't matter where you own or if your points are deeded at a specific resort or you have CWA, Club Wyndham Access, points. Prior to the 10 month mark you need to have ARP, Advance Reservation Priority, to book a resort. You get that by owning at a specific resort or with CWA points. Your ARP with CWA is only good on the inventory that's in CWA and not all inventory is in it nor are all resorts.

Use this link to look at the maintenance fees for the different resort. Click on Master UDI at the bottom of the blank spreadsheet to see all the numbers. These figures are without the program fee which is at the bottom of the spreadsheet. Use the without Plus Partners program fee as you don't get Plus Partners with resale. Don't worry about having Plus Partners it's not that big of a deal to be worth spending the money to buy developer points compared to what you pay for resale points. Maintenance fees are important because they determine what a stay costs you.


Use this second link to the directory to see the point charts for the different resorts.


The attached picture is the weeks numbers for 2021 and will help you figure out the weeks when you're looking at the point charts for the different resorts.
 

Attachments

  • 2021 Weeks Calendar.jpg
    2021 Weeks Calendar.jpg
    72.2 KB · Views: 40

richardjc

newbie
Joined
Aug 31, 2018
Messages
13
Reaction score
11
Points
13
Wyndham is mainly a points based system now. There are still some fixed weeks owners out there but fewer and fewer these days. So for a new owner it's best to think of it as just points.
You can use whatever points you own to book any resort that has availability. At 10 months or less points are points as we say here on TUG so it doesn't matter where you own or if your points are deeded at a specific resort or you have CWA, Club Wyndham Access, points. Prior to the 10 month mark you need to have ARP, Advance Reservation Priority, to book a resort. You get that by owning at a specific resort or with CWA points. Your ARP with CWA is only good on the inventory that's in CWA and not all inventory is in it nor are all resorts.

Use this link to look at the maintenance fees for the different resort. Click on Master UDI at the bottom of the blank spreadsheet to see all the numbers. These figures are without the program fee which is at the bottom of the spreadsheet. Use the without Plus Partners program fee as you don't get Plus Partners with resale. Don't worry about having Plus Partners it's not that big of a deal to be worth spending the money to buy developer points compared to what you pay for resale points. Maintenance fees are important because they determine what a stay costs you.


Use this second link to the directory to see the point charts for the different resorts.


The attached picture is the weeks numbers for 2021 and will help you figure out the weeks when you're looking at the point charts for the different resorts.

You are amazing! This is so incredibly helpful! I put a bid on a listing with the lowest maintenance fees I could find. Hopefully I'll be enjoying timeshare ownership soon!
 

Jan M.

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2010
Messages
4,486
Reaction score
5,844
Points
548
Location
Tamarac, FL
Resorts Owned
Wyndham Presidential Reserve at Panama City Beach
Club Wyndham Access
Grandview Las Vegas and Discovery Beach Resort - Both in RCI Points
Woodstone and Summit at Massanutten - Both in RCI weeks used as Wyndham PICs
You are amazing! This is so incredibly helpful! I put a bid on a listing with the lowest maintenance fees I could find. Hopefully I'll be enjoying timeshare ownership soon!

If you're bidding on eBay here's a tip. Don't run up the price by putting in early bids. The winning bid happens in the last few seconds.
 

dgalati

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2015
Messages
3,393
Reaction score
1,327
Points
298
Here is a good Grand Desert deed from a reputable seller on Ebay:
You are amazing! This is so incredibly helpful! I put a bid on a listing with the lowest maintenance fees I could find. Hopefully I'll be enjoying timeshare ownership soon!
If you're bidding on eBay here's a tip. Don't run up the price by putting in early bids. The winning bid happens in the last few seconds.
Watch out for the low feedback bidders they are usually shills that run the price up. Private identity auctions I recommend staying away from as its always good to see feedback of who is bidding price up . The higher the bidders positive feedback is the better. Also look at how many other items the bidder has bid on. Shill bidders most of the time have 100% of their bidding on one auction or only one sellers item.
 
Last edited:
Top