VRI*ety Plus is now deceased...

[theo]

Fwiw, I attended an owners meeting with a fishing friend the other day at a SW FL VRI-managed resort at which he owns two weeks. A VRI rep was present (...and made absolutely no reference to the ILG acquisition of VRI, which (unbeknownst to me) had already been publicly announced on that very same day). The VRI rep did overtly state however, that the "VRI*ety Plus" program was now officially dead.

I'm not an "exchanger" myself, but I did take note that when the VRI*ety Plus program was first created (and marketed quite heavily) a year or two ago, the new program basically put "standard" VRI*ety members at "the back of the bus" for exchange priority (i.e., behind any and all VRI*ety Plus members who might be seeking the same exchange).

Anyway, if you care ( ...and I certainly don't), VRI*ety Plus is dead. If you are one of the people who paid serious money to buy into it, all I can ask is that you "don't shoot the messenger".

 

[rrlongwell]

... all I can ask is that you "don't shoot the messenger".

I think you will be alright, this is not the Roman Empire of old.

 

[JudyS]

VRI*ety Plus was run by I.C.E. (Int'l Cruise Exchange.) I never saw much value in I.C.E.

For a while, I had a free membership in I.C.E. that I never used.

Maybe VRI*ety dropped I.C.E. because few people bought it? I believe SFX's Platinum program is also run by I.C.E. Has there been any change in SFX Platinum?

 

[Passepartout]

Makes one wonder if RCI Platinum extra-cost membership won't go that way, too. I haven't read a lot of satisfied rants, but maybe those who bought into it are keeping it a secret. Or maybe they re embarrassed to admit they fell for it.

Jim

 

[JudyS]

Makes one wonder if RCI Platinum extra-cost membership won't go that way, too. I haven't read a lot of satisfied rants, but maybe those who bought into it are keeping it a secret. Or maybe they re embarrassed to admit they fell for it.

Jim

I have RCI Platinum, and I've complained here that I wasn't able to get one of the promised benefits (a higher limit to the percentage of RCI Points I could use in RCI Points Partners -- RCI said the problem was a "computer glitch.") However, RCI Platinum, unlike VRI*ety Plus, costs only about $55. VRI*ety Plus cost up to around $1,000.

With my RCI Platinum membership, I was eventually able to get a $25 rebate on the cost of combining TPUs. I may renew RCI Platinum, if RCI delivers this year on the increased percentage of points available for RCI Points Partners.

 

[ampaholic]

I have RCI Platinum, and I've complained here that I wasn't able to get one of the promised benefits (a higher limit to the percentage of RCI Points I could use in RCI Points Partners -- RCI said the problem was a "computer glitch.") However, RCI Platinum, unlike VRI*ety Plus, costs only about $55. VRI*ety Plus cost up to around $1,000.

With my RCI Platinum membership, I was eventually able to get a $25 rebate on the cost of combining TPUs. I may renew RCI Platinum, if RCI delivers this year on the increased percentage of points available for RCI Points Partners.

I asked for and got a refund from RCI for the $55 as the computer glitch wasn't fixed after 30 days. Same issue as JudyS.

RCI Platinum is a piece o' crap.

 

[dundey]

I asked for and got a refund from RCI for the $55 as the computer glitch wasn't fixed after 30 days. Same issue as JudyS.

RCI Platinum is a piece o' crap.

I disagree with that statement. The discount I got for combining deposits along with the unit upgrade I received has already paid for my membership fee for the year. If you will actually USE the benefits, platinum is a decent deal.

 

[Passepartout]

The mysterious duplicated reply. (poof-gone)

 

[Passepartout]

So sorry for hijacking the thread. It was not intentional. I didn't see value in VRI*ety Plus so didn't join it even though I own at 3 VRI managed resorts. Perhaps a way will be found to either reimburse those who bought in or the program will morph into something usable and of interest to more member/owners. Carefully note- I'm not holding my breath.

Jim

 

[theo]

Another $0.02 worth...

So sorry for hijacking the thread. It was not intentional. I didn't see value in VRI*ety Plus so didn't join it even though I own at 3 VRI managed resorts. Perhaps a way will be found to either reimburse those who bought in or the program will morph into something usable and of interest to more member/owners. Carefully note- I'm not holding my breath.

Jim

No "hijacking" and no apologies necessary; it's all relevant to (supposedly) "enhanced" exchange programs.

Time will tell, of course, but with the recent ILG acquisition of VRI (and with ILG already being the "parent" of exchange company Interval International) I suspect that VRI*ety (...whether regular, decaff, or Plus) will just quietly fade off into the sunset. After all, how many different "exchange" entities or platforms would it make sense for ILG to own / run, anyhow?

As far as the (...likely very few) people who bought into all the VRI*ety Plus marketing razzamatazz of yore, I'm willing to bet that those people will simply be (...indeed, basically already are) just plain SOL.