Where did the link to THE Club Select go?

[R.J.C.]

So what does DRI owners feel so far of the new exchange system?.. pros and cons. Thanks.

Pro - Slightly cheaper than II and if you prefer RCI inventory you'll be happy.

Cons - Grossly overpriced units pointwise. There is no way in hell a studio in FL in hurricane season should be anywhere near close to 12,000 and an exchange fee unless it comes with a call girl. Based on this reason I see no expectation to ever use DEX.

 

[Motherof4]

Hello Tug members,

I saw the Diamond website changed. Where is the link to THE Club Select to find other vacation properties go? Does anyone know? Thanks for any help.

I used to use Club Select often now it is unavailable to all of the Florida Club Connection people. I used this for years and it was one of the only benefits to ownership. Not sure if this is your trouble or not. It took me asking staff over and over again from Oct until April for someone to have the decency to given me accurate information.

 

[Motherof4]

I posted on the Diamond Facebook sites how expensive DEX was with a cost analysis of a studio at Marriott for 9625 points which was about $1700 DR points compared to buying that same week om Marriott’s hotel website for $1200 which included room service. Most owners feel that DEX is too expensive and got better deals with II. Some observations were that short stays were more expensive than regular week stays, examples were shown in which studios, one bedrooms and 2 bedrooms cost 12,000 points at the same resort and the tier system was not equitably balanced. DR did not want to put money into Marriott’s pocketbook since Marriott now owns II. As a result they have a very hastily put together horrible exchange system. I miss Club Select.

Yes, I miss Club Select very much as well.

 

[Motherof4]

Pro - Slightly cheaper than II and if you prefer RCI inventory you'll be happy.

Cons - Grossly overpriced units pointwise. There is no way in hell a studio in FL in hurricane season should be anywhere near close to 12,000 and an exchange fee unless it comes with a call girl. Based on this reason I see no expectation to ever use DEX.

Very funny and you are correct. 12,000 points makes there no reason to be a Diamond member as you can get most places for less than the cost of your maintenance fees. Very Sad.

 

[Motherof4]

Thank you so much! This has been confusing and very disappointing! I loved Club Select and how it was structured! This new thing is NOT GOOD!

I used to use Club Select all of the time. If you were a Florida Club Connection member prior to Diamond now it isn't even available. We are not limited to a small number of resorts and use of points only. I am NOT a happy camper. Of course for another $10k I was told I could upgrade and have that feature again. Seriously!

 

[Motherof4]

If you were a former Florida Club Connection member no matter if you a Gold Member or not we now no longer have use of Club Select. Just letting everyone know. It took from October until April asking over and over for someone to finally have the decency to let me know what had happened. Of course for an additional $10k I could upgrade to get what I already had. Not a fan of Diamond at all. Most of the time I can get a weekend trip to the same resorts for half the cost of using points. Shameful.

 

[Motherof4]

Way too expensive.
At this moment almost every things is tier 6 (12,000 pts) as per the grid for up to sleep 4
View attachment 18411

Until October 31, 2020 every unit size are the same cost as the sleep 4
View attachment 18410

After October 31, 2020, we will need to pay cash or with points for bigger units based on this grid
View attachment 18412

As a silver member, it will cost me for a 3 bdrm sleep 8 tier 6: 12,000 pts (sleep 4) + 5,500 pts (sleep 4 to sleep 8) =17,500 pts or 12,000 pts (sleep 4) + $440 (sleep 4 to sleep 8) or any combination of tier level upgrade like 2,000 pts (tier 1 sleep 4) + 5x$220 (tier 1 to tier 6) + $440 (sleep 4 to sleep 8) = 2,000 pts + $1,540. We must pay on top of this the exchange fee of $149 as silver member.
They are crazy. Those resorts are not II resorts but RCI resorts.

On II a 3 bdrm at a premium resort peak season cost 10,000 pts.
View attachment 18413

Also, when we look at the DestinationXchange for deeded weeks owners where DRI have assigned a tier level to all their resorts, we see that for a resort in Orlando in February like Mystic Dunes Resorts, the tier level assigned is 1 or 2 and not 6 like they put for HICV at Orange Lake. HICV at Orange Lake should be 2,000 (tier 1) or 4,000 pts (tier 2) and not 12,000 pts (tier 6) for a 1 bdrm. On II, Orlando in Feb is 5,500 pts for a 1 bdrm (TDI 120 to 135).
View attachment 18414

That is ridiculous

 

[pedro47]

Ok, some time has passed, what are advantages of the new system?
Thanks

 

[csalter2]

Ok, some time has passed, what are advantages of the new system?
Thanks

I did Diamond’s webinar about DEX yesterday. The ONLY advantage is the ability to put points into it for up to 5 years. However, it’s expensive. The people who ran the webinar had no clue as to what the points values were for the various units. When I shared that a studio at Marriott Desert Springs Villas in Palm Desert was 12,000 points, she did not believe it.

Your best bet is to use your points in The Club if at all possible. Stay away from the exchange because all kinds of fees become applicable once in there. It is certainly a last resort (no pun intended) option. If they make changes to it that truly benefit Club members, then and only then would I consider it.

 

[R.J.C.]

Ok, some time has passed, what are advantages of the new system?
Thanks

You can save use/lose points for 5 years instead of only 1. That is the ONLY benefit and once those points are put into DEX, they must be used in DEX.

 

[pedro47]

Sound like exchanging outside The Club resorts you will need more points to book a week?

 

[DRIless]

I used to use Club Select all of the time. If you were a Florida Club Connection member prior to Diamond now it isn't even available. We are not limited to a small number of resorts and use of points only. I am NOT a happy camper. Of course for another $10k I was told I could upgrade and have that feature again. Seriously!

As a Platinum Member of THE Club since 1999, all I see for filter options after hitting search is

Affiliated Resort
Club Affiliated Cruise
DestinationXchange Partner
Luxury Homes
Managed

I think Club Select/Global Partner has all been 'rolled' into DEX Destination Exchange. I do see some significant discounts in close in bookings, one as few as 308 points for a week in Orlando the end of May.

The loss of Interval International as a trading partner is gigantic.

COMMENTS?

 

[geist1223]

Never used II with our DRI Points. Too many DRI resorts we want to visit.

 

[karibkeith]

So what does DRI owners feel so far of the new exchange system?.. pros and cons. Thanks.

It seems the introduction of Destinations Xchange to the Club Members has caused changes to the Diamond Resorts website. Club Combo/Club Select inventory is gone and I suspect availability will be reduced with non-Club exchanges. Also I could not find Global Partners which I never knew existed until it was mentioned on the TUG board.

Have they all been replaced with Destinations Xchange?

When I got the notice from Diamond Resorts that they were dumping Interval International and introducing Destinations Xchange to The Club Members, I did an internet search on Destinations Xchange and got several past and current editions of their catalogue. It appears to me that Destinations Xchange has been around since 2016~2017. Subsequently they have regularly issued updates .So it is not new but will be used as a substitute for Interval International beginning in 2021. However, the guide for The Club Members is different than the one for non-Club members of Destination Xchange. The major difference is that there are no listings of resorts. You are expected to use the Diamond Resorts website.

It appears that a Club Member cannot deposit a non-DR property directly to Destination Xchange but must go through Club Combo which only gets you the number of points negotiated during a points purchase and locked in for such deposits. So if the points you get only is good for trading to a Tier !V and the non-Club member can deposit and get Tier VI, you are screwed again by Diamond.

For The Club Members, the website search now includes many non-Diamond properties for which there is no availability simply because there are not enough Destinations Xchange exchanges. They may have just copied other resort lists. So it just craps up their website.

I think Diamond Resorts has taken something away (not just Interval International but the benefits of an Interval International Gold Membership). The benefit is being able to deposit unused points albeit in blocks of 2,000 for use up to five years, Since Diamond Resorts did not recognize the Covid difficulties, especially border closings, and did not extend rollover periods, being able to deposit into Destination Xchange was timely.

My biggest problem with Destination Xchange is trying to equate the Tier requirement for a resort with the points required with a normal Club reservation. This is difficult because the Club reservation has exact points whereas Destination Xchange is multiples of 2,000 points. Also, if there is no availability then there is no information on the Tier requirements. This is where the non-Club guide is helpful for resorts listed. I have been able to make comparisons for a handful of resorts and it seems to me that going the Tier route would require less points but I am unsure as to whether or not you can do a Tier exchange if you could make a Club reservation for a property.

Another annoyance is the Reservation Protection Plan. The one for The Club does not cover reservations through Destination Xchange. So you are better to not use the yearly plan but only use it for each reservation unless multiple reservations are made through The Club or through Destination Xchange.

Don’t bother using the Contact Us E-Mail option. You get an automatic response that they will get back to you and then nothing. I guess they want to overload the telephone operators. Another joke is to use “Feedback about our Website”. You get the infamous “Please Wait” until they time you out for non-use which they will do even if you are actively using the site.

 

[pedro47]

So January 1, 2021 is the kick off date for the new Destination Exchange Program.

 

[csalter2]

I find DEX pretty simple. It’s not really that complicated. If you are a points member, you determine what tier level you want to put them in. However, at this time it’s a crapshoot until they get some directory/guide to let you know at which tier level each resort will be. Now if you want a higher tier level than you have deposited, you can pay additionally with either points or cash. Cash is the better deal.

As a points owner, you can also use DEX as a straight exchange with your points as you would with Interval International. The exchange fee is less too as it’s dependent on loyalty level and if you pay online or not. Personally, DEX is only useful to me if I’m going to lose points, and I’d have 5 additional years to use them.

You can deposit for Club Select on the website. Log onto the Diamond website use the menu on the left and click onto My Accounts. Then Click onto Profile and Settings. You’ll see Club Select four slots down.

 

[csalter2]

So January 1, 2021 is the kick off date for the new Destination Exchange Program.

You could have used DEX as a points owner in September. They made it available then.