TS advice for family of 4, Americans living in Canada, Frequent Getaway Travelers

[agccapital]

Hi everyone,

I’m considering purchasing a resale timeshare and would appreciate your guidance in identifying which company best fits my needs. I’ve answered the recommended template questions below to provide as much context as possible.

Last weekend, I fell victim to some sleazy sales tactics with Club Wyndham in Orlando, which resulted in me signing a contract. After realizing how misled I was, I sent a rescind letter and am now curious about resale options. Despite that experience, I’m not turned off by timeshares.

We want Orlando during Christmas to be an annual tradition, with room for up to 8 people (so likely a 2-bedroom suite). I’m willing to spend $3,000-3500 annually on maintenance fees as long as our trips and accommodations result in a better per-night cost than paying retail.

I’m particularly concerned about potential devaluation of points when exchanging through RCI or other platforms, as well as availability challenges during peak seasons like Christmas. Given my mix of goals (frequent weekend getaways in Canada or US Northeast, a big annual trip to Orlando, and occasional international travel), which timeshare companies or programs would you recommend??


1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis?
Orlando annually, somewhere week 51-52

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?
don't want to be locked into one other than Christmas.


3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?

a.Mexico (Cancun or Riviera Maya) every other year.

b.Eastern or Southern Ontario Canada or Poconos, PA for weekend getaways. Who has Niagara resorts???

c.Atlantic City or Miami (especially during Columbus Day weekend).

d.Hyatt or Hilton in Trinidad n Tobago , weeks 4 - 10 ish, E3rdYr


4) How many people do you usually travel with - total, including yourself?
Four (myself, my spouse, and two children). Sometimes up to 8 people for our Orlando Christmas vacay.

5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?
mostly school schedules locked, so travel must align with holidays like Christmas, Easter, Labor Day, Columbus

6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more months in advance?
For xmas, we can even do 13 months if necessary. But we are most comfortable at 9 months. 45 day "last calls" for getaways are very intriguing.

7) Can you vacation for a full
week at a time?
For our annual big vacation, yes. For weekend getaways, 2-3 night stays. Can start sat and end Monday.

8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
prefer 3-4 stars consistently. Bonnet Creek is ideal.

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
I can spend $15k upfront, but I’m flexible if the value proposition is right.

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?
Around $2,500–$3,000 annually, provided our trips and accommodations result in significant savings compared to retail rates.

11) Are you a detail-oriented planner?
value planner

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


---

recommend?

Thanks in advance for your advice!

 

[jabberwocky]

Are you thinking $2500-$3000 CAD or USD. Currency difference is huge right now so that will be a significant impact.

I think you’ll need at least two timeshares - or a flexible points system like Wyndham to get some of those locations. Perhaps even a mixture across two systems will be necessary.

Orlando at Christmas should be easy if you get in there early. We have a fixed week 51 in Orlando at Sheraton Vistana Resort (not as close as Bonnet Creek to WDW - but still really nice).

You could take care of the annual Orlando and EOY Mexico with a 2BR lockoff purchase at Lagunamar (in Vistana). The Lagunamar resort is spectacular, can accommodate up to 8 people in a 2BR and has MF of around $2k.

Since you only want Mexico EOY you can use that to book your vacation with priority 8-12 months in advance.

For the year’s you aren’t using it, you could make two deposits into II (both sides of the lockoff - 1BR and a studio). Your deposit is good for two years after the year you deposit (so you could deposit 2026 and exchange in 2026/27/28). Exchanging into a 2BR in Orlando should be easy if done early enough - there is a ton of inventory. With Vistana/Marriott preferences you’d stand a very good chance of getting great resort.

You would have to pay a fee to upsize the 1BR and studio deposits in addition to the II membership and exchange fees - but all in you’d be around the $2500/year mark.

 

[jp10558]

I can't really speak to Mexico, they're kind of their own thing, and right now in RCI they're charging insane resort fees so you might just want to try renting those direct from owners. All Inclusive fees in a lot of Mexico is also insane IMHO adding $4,000+ for 2-3 people at many locations.

Wyndham resale is actually IMHO a pretty great deal though, you can get Bonnet Creek early to fix it if you need to, you can look to use RCI Extra Vacations instead to book other locations - Orlando is easy to book something. They have stuff in Atlantic City, Vermont (a section at Smuggs), DC, Poconos and many other east coast locations. RCI EV can also get you Massanutten in VA easily for cheap. You can basically look at the points you need, and figure out the MFs from that and decide. You can try and get lower than CWA fees by looking for specific resorts, or take the CWA average fee/pt cause it's basically free to pick up and you get ARP (early reservation access) at a lot of resorts. The only thing is I think every 70,000 pts gets you 1 HK which you use for each booking. Once you run out it's $185 a booking. Otherwise there are no fees using Wyndham directly to book. RCI tells you the fee depending on the booking type (exchange has one) EV/LC doesn't and in small print it'll say the resort fee you pay when you get to the resort.

Downside to RCI or II to get extra locations is they're all a week basically. You don't have to stay the whole week of course... TO book just 3 days you have to use a points system like direct Wyndham. That's the issue with Marriott - as I understand it, if you want points, they have a "junk fee" of $3 per (point??) to activate it, otherwise it's all weeks, and all II trades are weeks. So it's quite a bit more expensive to acquire Marriott points, even resale.

You probably need to look at some locations and ask here if they're hard to book at the club booking or ARP window vs RCI Extra Vacations to know the points you need.

 

[agccapital]

Thank you all for your helpful responses. I'm still navigating the complexities of timeshare ownership and appreciate your patience. I wasn't even aware of housekeeping credits before! This makes me realize how challenging it is to truly calculate an ROI. Here's my understanding of your key recommendations, and some follow-ups:

1. Wyndham Resale seems to be a strong contender due to its flexibility and access to Bonnet Creek. I understand I need between 308,000 and 346,000 points for a 5-night, 2BR stay Christmas week. This would mean about $2,200 to $2,700 in annual maintenance fees. Are there any other significant costs I should be aware of?
2. The Vistana (Sheraton/Westin) system was also suggested, particularly Lagunamar. Is this part of Marriott Vacation Club? Hilton Grand Vacations? I don't fully understand those points systems yet. Would owning in both Wyndham and Vistana be advisable, or I'd likely exceed my maintenance budget?
3. I understand II and RCI are the main exchanges. Which membership would be better suited for my needs (Orlando at Christmas, weekend getaways in Northeast/Canada, occasional Mexico trips)? Does it even matter? If RCI membership is included with Wyndham ownership, is that a real strong benefit? I see RCI logo's at every presentation I've ever been to anyway...
4. Last Call and Extra Vacations through RCI sound interesting for spontaneous trips, particularly for weekend getaways in Ontario and the Northeast. What kind of quality and availability can I realistically expect for last-minute bookings? Are these options typically good values compared to tripadvisor/priceline bookings?

 

[geist1223]

I do not know about Wyndumb but with Worldmark if you want to Book as soon as the Booking Window opens(13 months for Worldmark) you have to Book a full week. Less than a week can not be Booked until less than 10 months.

 

[CO skier]

I do not know about Wyndumb but with Worldmark if you want to Book as soon as the Booking Window opens(13 months for Worldmark) you have to Book a full week. Less than a week can not be Booked until less than 10 months.

Club Wyndham is not WorldMark; different timeshare programs with different rules.

Bonnet Creek, like many (most?) Club Wyndham resorts have no minimum booking requirement.

 

[CO skier]

Wyndham Resale seems to be a strong contender due to its flexibility and access to Bonnet Creek. I understand I need between 308,000 and 346,000 points for a 5-night, 2BR stay Christmas week. This would mean about $2,200 to $2,700 in annual maintenance fees. Are there any other significant costs I should be aware of?

5-nights, Sunday through Thursday, at CW Bonnet Creek is 135,000 point for 2 bedroom deluxe and 190,000 for 3 bedroom deluxe; 224,000 and 308,000, respectively, for a full week. Our family of four was spoiled by 3 bedroom units; you will definitely want one when 6-8 people are staying.

Owners booking a full week would have a two-day advantage over someone booking only 5 night. This might matter at high demand times such as weeks 51 & 52.

I would recommend purchasing a Bonnet Creek deeded ownership for 224,000-308,000 credits. This allows for booking 7 nights 13 months in advance using Advance Reservation Priority. If 2 days later there is still availability, cancel and book only the 5 nights. Use the excess points for other reservations, or credit deposit them into the next or following Use Year.

238,000 points, $1,920 USD yearly maintenance fees

WYNDHAM BONNET CREEK, FL- ANNUAL 238,000 POINTS | eBay

WYNDHAM BONNET CREEK 238,000 POINTS. I also have several other Wyndham properties for sale! 238K POINTS. Upon receiving your signed contract and deposit, we will submit the contract to the resort so they may begin their Right Of First Refusal (ROFR) process.

www.ebay.com

308,000 points, $2,500 USD yearly maintenance fees

WYNDHAM BONNET CREEK 308,000 ANNUAL POINTS TIMESHARE FOR SALE!! | eBay

WYNDHAM BONNET CREEK. Let the on-site experts from the Disney Planning Center help you plan your activities. The two most common forms of usage are Annual (every year) and Biennial (every other year).

www.ebay.com

If you are not focused on Disney and just want the Orlando area, WorldMark Reunion is all 3 bedroom deluxe units for about $1,700/year maintenance fees or WorldMark Kingston Reef offers 2 and 3 bedroom units.

Orlando, FL Resorts: WorldMark Reunion

Experience Florida sun and Orlando fun on your getaway to WorldMark Reunion. Book your vacation today.

worldmark.wyndhamdestinations.com

Orlando, FL Resorts: WorldMark Kingstown Reef

Book your next vacation at WorldMark Kingstown Reef, an Orlando, FL resort with old Florida charm. Stay near top Orlando theme parks and attractions.

worldmark.wyndhamdestinations.com

Buy an entry level ownership of 10,000 credits, stay in Orlando every other year in WorldMark. The credits are issued for 2 years. Easy to expand the ownership, or buy a different timeshare for stays outside of Orlando.

 

[sue1947]

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?

a.Mexico (Cancun or Riviera Maya) every other year.

b.Eastern or Southern Ontario Canada or Poconos, PA for weekend getaways. Who has Niagara resorts???

c.Atlantic City or Miami (especially during Columbus Day weekend).

d.Hyatt or Hilton in Trinidad n Tobago , weeks 4 - 10 ish, E3rdYr

So far the posts have all focused on your Orlando Christmas visits. That's the easy part. Your focus should be on the rest.

It all boils down to supply and demand. In general, there are more people who want something during school holidays and weekends than there is space. Add in all the folks who book to rent out to families who need school holidays, and the competition can be fierce. Orlando has a ton of supply so the supply vs demand works out ok. Pretty much every timeshare system has a spot in Orlando. Your other destinations, especially those weekend trips, will be another matter. Focus on questions about those areas. When do you want those weekends? If summer, then you will compete with others who will book a week long stay and the weekends may be gone before the booking window opens. It will vary by location and time of year. Others here who own in those systems can provide advice on what the reality is.

Every system is different and it can be overwhelming to sort it all out. Look at what resorts you want for your weekend stays and focus in on those systems. You can exchange into Mexico, along with maybe c or d. Hyatt trades in II while Hilton is RCI. If you like the Hyatt, then look at the Marriotts for your stay in Orlando, or DVC which also trades in II. If you go with DVC for an onsite stay at Disney, you will probably want to go with another system for the rest.

The 45 day exchange options (60 days with II) are the leftovers, as are the Getaways/Last Call etc. Sometimes there's something good via a late cancellation that drops in, but they are usually time and places nobody else wanted. These are best for people who live within driving distance of a bunch of timeshares. Orlando frequently shows up, but I'm not sure about Christmas week. Don't buy to use these, but rather see them as nice extras if they work out.