Why buy gold or silver week vs. getaway or last call?

[Beefnot]

Oh my lord, I didn't realize II Getaways were so doggone attractive. What is the rationale for buying a gold or silver week rather than simply securing a getaway / last call / sell-off for 30% to 50% of maintenance fees?

 

[GregT]

I would speculate that the advantage is availability -- I've only followed Getaways sporadically, and while there are sometimes very interesting Getaways, for the most part I don't find the inventory to be consistently available when I want to go -- and when it is, I find the price to be jacked up. I remember when it was loaded with Ko Olina 2BR Getaways, but at a price of $2,200 for a week (or thereabouts). In that situation, I'd rather rent from an owner for $2,500 and get an Ocean View.

Whereas if you bought a good Gold Marriott week, then you would have an excellent trader, with a more predictable opportunity to get the week that you want. You still have view risk, but your MFs would be much cheaper.

All this being said, your strategy is a viable one, and if you are flexible on your timing then Getaways can be a great addition.

Good luck and let us know what Getaways you find!

Bes,t

Greg

 

[vacationtime1]

Oh my lord, I didn't realize II Getaways were so doggone attractive. What is the rationale for buying a gold or silver week rather than simply securing a getaway / last call / sell-off for 30% to 50% of maintenance fees?

It depends on geography -- the geography of where you want to vacation.

As Greg points out, Hawaii getaways are not cheap. They are also not predictable and they come without view guarantees.

OTOH, you are interested in the Palm Springs area where there are off-season getaways (i.e. gold or silver season) priced at <50% of MF's at the Marriott and Westin properties on a frequent basis. Assuming Palm Springs to still be your focus, I agree with your premise.

 

[DeniseM]

The vast majority of Getaway/Last Call weeks are off-season in areas with more supply than demand. If you are very flexible about when and where you travel, they can be a great deal. If you want the top resorts in popular areas, not so much.

 

[Beefnot]

OTOH, you are interested in the Palm Springs area where there are off-season getaways (i.e. gold or silver season) priced at <50% of MF's at the Marriott and Westin properties on a frequent basis. Assuming Palm Springs to still be your focus, I agree with your premise.

Ok so Palm Springs and Scottsdale are off the table for owning for me right now then because I will most likely only be going during summer when getaways will be plentiful, and they are within driving distance.

 

[M&JJ]

Do Westin Kierland or Canyon Villas at Desert Ridge get offered on getaways during the summer? Any idea what the cost is for a 2 bedroom on these getaways?

 

[DeniseM]

Do Westin Kierland or Canyon Villas at Desert Ridge get offered on getaways during the summer? Any idea what the cost is for a 2 bedroom on these getaways?

If you go to II and search the Getaways, you will find some listed for the Westin - but they are 1 bdms.

If you don't have II access, let me know, and I can post a Sighting for you on the Sightings Forum.

 

[Beefnot]

I posted what I found in the sightings forum for Kierland yesterday, and there were many 2 br. Very, very attractive prices.

 

[Robert D]

You can find cheap Getaway weeks in Orlando close to year round. No reason to own an offseason week there.

 

[heathpack]

First, some gold weeks are extremely productive traders. Hyatt gold weeks are easily tradable for 4-7+ weeks of travel, into whatever quality if resort you want.

Second, many people have these weeks as traders, not to personally use during off season; thus they would not be comparing the cost of owning that week to the cost of a getaway. They are typically leveraging the lock off feature into multiple weeks of travel. A 2BR is then locked off, traded, and each half gets an XYZ, so four weeks. One would then just have to run the math and figure out if initial cost + ongoing MF + exchange costs are the better value vs renting. If you pick the right ownership, the answer is typically less.

Third, exchanges are frequently available on a longer time horizon than getaways- this becomes a factor in flying destinations if you are trying to use FF tix. A good example is a recent XYZ we obtained- 2BR Westin Lagunamar for the week after Thanksgiving 2012. That week is not available as a getaway right now, only as an exchange, and we will be trying to use FF tix for that flight.

To take the example further for this particular Mexico trip: week 1 is the 2BR Westin Lagunamar XYZ $170, week 2 is the Grand Luxxe Riveria Maya 1BR $435 (MF
equivalent) + $170, total for 2 weeks $875 or $440ish per week. The cost as Getaways would probably be easily twice that, it would be way harder to find consecutive weeks, and I would less likely be able to get free airfare.

However, I agree with you- the Getaways can totally rock for destinations you drive to or can find a cheap flight to. I have only recently looked closely at them myself. And I have been very impressed with prices and how far out they can be booked. They will just never replace a good trader for me, I see them as good, viable supplements.

H

 

[Beefnot]

They will just never replace a good trader for me, I see them as good, viable supplements.
H

good points.