• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 31 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 31st anniversary: Happy 31st Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $24,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $24 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    Tens of thousands of subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Why II or RCI at all?

J

jziggy1

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2006
Messages
8
Reaction score
0
Location
Pennsylvania
Maybe I'm just new and missing a critical point, but with a system like TUG to help make direct exchanges--Why pay additional money to these companies to help with a trade? We've been timeshare owners for three years and II members three years. We have a 5 star with a good trading location and week and have had no problems exchanging for other 5 stars where we want to go so far--but can't we do our own 'networking' here on TUG and avoid the member and exchange fees?? My membership will lapse this fall (2006) --are they like the cell phone companies and offer better incentive if you "hold-out" for a better package offer to keep you in the system?? I don't want to miss any leverage opportunities.
 
You don't need II or RCI - they need your week

Yes. Some of our most satisfying exchanges have been direct with other owners here on TUG. We found the cost of II to be more than the value by a factor of at least 2. We dropped II in 2002, RCI in 1997 (although because of our FF ownership our weeks account remains active) and haven't missed the fees or the so called service one bit. Save your money and reduce your frustration by not dealing with the big 2 weeks exchange companies.
 
RCI and II are BIG COMPANIES with access to inventory from THOUSANDS OF RESORTS. Tug is tiny by comparison. And, so far, there haven't been a lot of people interested in direct exchange. The tide may be turning due to the dissatisfaction with RCI exchanging, but I'm not sure the disappointment is shared by II members. Buy where you want to go and none of it is a problem.
 
Direct exchanging is good, but not a panacea. Renting is the panacea. If you rent your week for cash, you can use that cash for any timeshare on planet. Or, you could use it for hotel rooms where there aren't any timeshares. Why be limited to what is deposited and not rented by II and RCI or any other exchange company for that matter?

Exchanging only makes sense if you can predictably trade up to units that would cost you more to rent than to exchange (including all exchange fees annual and one-time).
 
That's what we did. If we can't exchange or don't want to exchange for a year--we love our resort. While I've been in II--I feel like I HAVE to look for an exchange every year or I've wasted that years member fee. Our sales-rep told us that if we did let it laspe--we could alway get back in without a problem when ever we wanted to.
 
I have been happy with all my trades through II. I just confirmed today a week at Williamsburg Plantation in May. My kids like Kings Dominiom. shhhh...so do I :D
 
An overlooked advantage of direct exchanging.

One of the things I really enjoy in vacationing is variety. But, the more experienced I have become as a traveler the more discriminating I have become. The more I have travelled the more particular I have become in the units that I am assigned, hence the more resentfull I have become of resorts that place exchangers in the "dog" units. Direct exchanges and rentals from owners can often avoid placement in the dog units. I can reserve the oceanfront penthouse unit at my home resort and offer it in exchange to someone else. He won't get the unit facing the alley with the view of the dumpster that he is probably going to receive if he exchanged thru RCI or II!!! In return I can get something special in return. This almost always holds true. I say almost, because one time recently, one of my home resorts got wind of the fact that I had rented my unit to a friend and switched units on him on checkin! I think that IS WRONG!!!! My friend is entitled to the same privileges as I would enjoy. Ben
 
Last edited:
jziggy1 said:
That's what we did. If we can't exchange or don't want to exchange for a year--we love our resort. While I've been in II--I feel like I HAVE to look for an exchange every year or I've wasted that years member fee. Our sales-rep told us that if we did let it laspe--we could alway get back in without a problem when ever we wanted to.
Click to expand...

One of the advantages of many independent exchange companies is that they do NOT charge an annual fee just to be a member. Membership is free and you only pay when you make an exchange.

You might try www.daelive.com , www.sfs-resorts.com , www.platinuminterchange.com , and www.tradingplaces.com

In fact, you can join all of them, with the cavaet that SFX is rather picky about what resorts and weeks they will accept.
 
II has been very good for us. We love our home resort and have only traded our week 4 times. Two at the Royal Sands, Once to Four Seasons Aviara and now Westin Ka'anapali in December.

II gives us equal trade value for our lock off and all but the Westin Ka'anapali we have been given two bedrooms for our one bedroom.
 
Without II we could not have accessed all the Marriott's, HGVC and other prime resorts we have had over the past few years. Renting these is not an option, asking prices are prohibitive. We do use SFX as well mainly because they offer access to prime Mexican resorts. I don't care for RCI at all :D , except when they have their surplus inventory available at bargain prices. :D

Kola
 
I recently realized that I have been RCI for 14 years. We own a 4/2 ST on the coast of Maine (we live in GA). We have consistenly done exchanges through RCI for 2br units (as we now have multiple kids). I am not entirely sure about direct exchanging, but in MY instance, I think I am better off being able to rely on the trading power of my unit in a larger exchange system than on finding someone who is specifically interested in my unit...

Perhaps I am wrong...thoughts?

Doc
 
It works so just use it

Doc - Nothing wrong with that. You are getting what you want from the process rather than worrying about things you have no control over. Just keep enjoying what works until it doesn't (may never happen) and then find an alternative if you need to. I think some make the whole ownership of timeshare far too complicated and thus no fun.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top