SVN, Event/Holiday Week -- benefit?

49ners1_2_3 · Sep 17, 2007

I am thinking of getting either Event/Holiday week or floating week in WKORV.

Do you get any additional benefit other than getting X-mas/New Year's week
every year?

I don't mind using it for the Holidays, but sometimes I would like to get a week during summer season.
Do you get any head-start on reserving another week?

In addition, when you exchange a week to other SVN resorts, do you get any better "chance" of getting the resort you want at the right season?

49ners1_2_3

KOR5Star · Sep 17, 2007

You get nailed owning fixed weeks. If you want a week other than what you fixed, you have to compete for it as if you don't even own at the property. In other words, you have to wait until 8 months before your desired dates to book the week you want. :doh:

There are no benefits associated with fixed weeks... other than the fact you never have to wake up early and book your week.

...and if it's 51 and 52, you can actually be there for the holidays.

If you want to mostly use it during 51 and 52, but only rarely use it other times, you could probably link up with another owner that would trade with you.

The School calendar is looking good for a two week Winter Holiday for December 2008. Schools will either go the whole two weeks or pretty close to it. There will be owners with school aged kids that will be salivating for those weeks in 2008. I know I will be one of them. You can play "Let's make a deal." :whoopie:

The calendar looks good again in 2013 and 2014. We only have one good year now because leap year screwed it up. Luckily, I won't be worrying about the school year calendar in 2013, but someone will.

DeniseM · Sep 17, 2007

I would not buy a fixed week unless I planned to use it every year - although, it would probably rent really well. If you plan to exchange it or trade into another season, it's just not a good deal, when you consider how much more a fixed week costs.

As KOR5Star said, to use your week any other time, you will have to try to make a Staroption exchange at 8 mos. out. In other words, whether you were trying to reserve at WKORV or another resort, you lose your owner's priority and you are competing with everyone in the SVN who wants to exchange for that week. At the WKORV you would also lose your view priority and could end up with Mountain View, also known as parking lot view.

Whatever you do, don't buy from the developer. 2 Bdm. ocean view units are going for a little less than $30K now...

Henry M. · Sep 17, 2007

Isn't a fixed week like a floating week in the sense that you can rent at your home resort 12 months out, just like floating week owners?

Other than being able to go during Christmas/New Year, I don't think there's any other benefit from SVN. No special treatment as far as exchanges. It is an attractive time to exchange for other locations or renting on your own, though.

I was lucky to find someone on TUG to exchange my summer weeks next year for another island. Overall I'm happy with my SVN ownership at WKORV and WKORV-N.

49ners1_2_3 · Sep 17, 2007

Thanks KOR5Star and DenisM,

I thought you would get some extra benefit of owning the premium Event/Holiday week since you are paying big $$$ for it.

It seems like I will get a floating week instead...

Yes, I am planning to buy it on resale

49ners1_2_3

spuppy · Sep 17, 2007

According to mystarcentral.com, an event week has the same benefits as a floating week if you choose a week different from what you purchased:

"If you decide to release your Event Week and return to your Home Resort at another time you may:

* Reserve a week, beginning on an established check-in day, at your Home Resort in the same Villa Type and Season that you own. This is called “floating” in your season. You may request reservations beginning 12 months prior to your desired arrival date, during your Home Resort Preference Period."

stevens397 · Sep 17, 2007

As others have said, there is only one advantage to owning those fixed weeks but it can be a big one. My business partner owns a Marriott in Aruba and always wanted to go week 52. Each year, 5 people in my office would begin calling at the appointed hour and the one who got through passed the call to him. He ended up getting it every year but it was a hassle. When they started building a new Marriott next door, he bought a dedicated week 52 to avoid the hassle.

That said, there is a big potential problem. The dates are not specified - only the week. His wife is a teacher and school usually starts on January 2nd, but in many years, not all three check in days work for them. For example, Saturday checkins for week 52 may end Jan 4th and Sunday Jan 5th. That means some years, you are STILL competing - you have to assume that most people who buy week 52 have kids in school and that is why they spent the extra dollars to do it. Some years the dates don't work at all.

He's still happy he bought it and they have had great usage, but nothing is totally trouble-free.

tomandrobin · Sep 18, 2007

I love a staff of 5 to start calling first thing in the morning, for us to book our units!

KOR5Star · Sep 18, 2007

spuppy said:
According to mystarcentral.com, an event week has the same benefits as a floating week if you choose a week different from what you purchased:

"If you decide to release your Event Week and return to your Home Resort at another time you may:

* Reserve a week, beginning on an established check-in day, at your Home Resort in the same Villa Type and Season that you own. This is called “floating” in your season. You may request reservations beginning 12 months prior to your desired arrival date, during your Home Resort Preference Period."

Haven't checked myself, but if this is the case, it's changed since I bought from the developer. I was seriously considering weeks 51 and 52, but it was quite clear at the time that I was NOT able to book at 12 months.

The reason was a rational one. You would be drawing from a pool of weeks that you did not contribute to. In other words, you gave up your event week, but the only people that could use it would be other event week owners or Westin could rent it. It reduces the number of weeks available for the people who bought floating weeks.

If they changed it, I've got mixed feelings about it. Fixed week people can access hundreds and hundreds of weeks without contributing to the pool of weeks themselves.

DavidnRobin · Sep 18, 2007

Hey - I have an idea - why not call the Elite line and ask... {or read the CC&Rs}

As a fixed week owner at WSJ - we can reserve from 10-14 months - and then at 8-10 months try and exchange within our season at our resort (good luck with that...). I know this is not the same as owning an Event week - but the CC&Rs do have the conditions of owning an Event week (I read them but didn't pay attn.)

Grandmama · Sep 19, 2007

In the WPORV CC&Rs an Event week can be exchanged for a Float week if the owners do not want to use their event week. That means that they can exchange their week into their home resort at the 8 - 12 month home resort reservation period just like anyone with a Float week. I believe WKORV is the same. They can also use only one unit (i.e. one bedroom or studio) of the Event week and reserve the other side of the unit at 8 -12 months out for another time of the year.

49ners1_2_3 · Sep 22, 2007

Better chance of exchange with other SVN?

Thanks for the advice.

One of my reason to own a event/holiday week in WKORV is to have a better
chance of exchage it with other SVN owners (WSJ, WPORV, WKORV,Harborside,etc) who made a reservations during summer/holiday months.

My thinking is that it is not easy to reserve the resorts during the peak-season (especially not your own resorts) and ownning a event week will make it easier to direct exchange with other SVN owners...

Does this make sense and ownning a event/holiday week help me to acheive these goals?

Is there any other/better way to acheive the goals? :shrug:

49ners1_2_3

KOR5Star · Sep 22, 2007

Yup, I just checked it on my CD. Event week owners can trade just like anyone else.

Chalk up another bit of info that the salespeople had no clue about... but spoke as if they did. I remember the explanation as if it were yesterday. And the explanation made such good sense that I didn't question it.

I would have gladly paid the premium for at least two of my weeks to be 51 & 52.

Bummer.

Well... I've gone these years thinking none of the salesperson's misunderstandings have harmed me. I can't think that any more.

DeniseM · Sep 22, 2007

49ners1_2_3 said:
Thanks for the advice.

One of my reason to own a event/holiday week in WKORV is to have a better
chance of exchage it with other SVN owners (WSJ, WPORV, WKORV, Harborside, etc)

Private exchanges within the top SVN resorts, and especially WSJ seem to be very difficult, if not impossible. A Tugger set up a private webpage a while back for private exchanges among owners and although a lot of people signed up, and it was active for over a year, there were no exchanges completed at all...not one... The owners of the most in-demand/expensive resorts have no motivation to do a private exchange, because if they don't use their week, they can rent it for big bucks...

I would not buy a fixed holiday week unless I intended to use it 2/3 of the time - the cost of the fixed/holiday week makes it prohibitive to exchange, because you will seldom get the same value back, in exchange. It would be a good rental, though.