keephowlin
newbie
Hi all. I’ve basically written a book to describe my situation and request for advice. I realize this is a lot to read, but I’ve tried to provide as many details as possible, in hopes it will provide for the best answers from you experienced veterans… I think that the strategic part of this program is part of the fun!
I recently purchased 308k points through Discovery program and have until 12/31/2009 to use them. I bought it before I knew about the resale market and these forums, so that’s water under the bridge, so to speak. I believe that the 308k points will be enough points for my 2009 travel, and that I’ll need to use the traditional Wyndham reservation approach to use them (no RCI or pooling). After researching, I recently purchased 182k Pagosa Springs Converted Fixed Week through resale, which should close and complete transfer before the end of the year. Its points become available Jan 2009 (which I won’t need that year, so we could either pool, bank generics, or ARP the fixed week and bank it).
After researching everything, we felt like we would be good candidates for the Wyndham program (resale) for a few reasons… In looking through the resort directory, we’re interested in going to many of the Wyndham locations and thought that a resale timeshare would be a great and inexpensive way to see a lot of places throughout the US. We don’t come in with the expectation that our $643 yearly MF will provide an exotic destination every year … any exotics would just be icing on the cake. Our kids are grown, so we are not tied to school schedules for travel, but we’re not gluttons for punishment either, so we’d like to hit the locations when the weather is nice there.
So after reading and studying these forums, FAQ’s and Primers, I’m seeking some advice about how to best utilize this program for our needs and get the most out of it. I’m thinking we might be good candidates for banking some generic weeks in RCI for getting Wyn, since we’re flexible about both the location and the schedule. For 2009, I’ll have to use the Discovery points straight through Wyn because of the limitation of the Discovery program, but there still may be some value to a strategy on that use year. I imagine the Discovery program may give me a small advantage to booking tougher locations, as an enticement to buy retail. I should most likely book these before the resale transfer completes, so as to utilize this benefit (if it even exists).
So, here’s our top locations… Please take a look and comment on whether I should use the Discovery points or if they are candidates for RCI generics (and size recommendation) to obtain these. We also have the potential to ARP our converted fixed week (week #29 2BR Pagosa) for RCI deposit if someone thinks that’s worth doing in this case. My hope is that with smart strategy, advanced planning and flexibility on our part, we might be able to land 1-3 weeks at fun destinations per year on our 182k…
Bluebeards, St. Thomas
Sea Gardens, Pompano
South South, Tahoe
Newport Overlook, RI
Bonnet Creek, Orlando
Pagosa, CO
Old Town Alexandria, VA
Sedona, AZ
Glacier, WI
La Cascada, San Antonio
Makai Club, Princeville
Other places that are on the list, but a little lower down are Nashville, Smoky Mountains, Branson, Flagstaff, Patriots Place, Fairfield Bay, Angel Fire and Durango…
Huge thanks to anyone patient enough to have read this far and we appreciate your opinions on this!
Rob & Sandra
I recently purchased 308k points through Discovery program and have until 12/31/2009 to use them. I bought it before I knew about the resale market and these forums, so that’s water under the bridge, so to speak. I believe that the 308k points will be enough points for my 2009 travel, and that I’ll need to use the traditional Wyndham reservation approach to use them (no RCI or pooling). After researching, I recently purchased 182k Pagosa Springs Converted Fixed Week through resale, which should close and complete transfer before the end of the year. Its points become available Jan 2009 (which I won’t need that year, so we could either pool, bank generics, or ARP the fixed week and bank it).
After researching everything, we felt like we would be good candidates for the Wyndham program (resale) for a few reasons… In looking through the resort directory, we’re interested in going to many of the Wyndham locations and thought that a resale timeshare would be a great and inexpensive way to see a lot of places throughout the US. We don’t come in with the expectation that our $643 yearly MF will provide an exotic destination every year … any exotics would just be icing on the cake. Our kids are grown, so we are not tied to school schedules for travel, but we’re not gluttons for punishment either, so we’d like to hit the locations when the weather is nice there.
So after reading and studying these forums, FAQ’s and Primers, I’m seeking some advice about how to best utilize this program for our needs and get the most out of it. I’m thinking we might be good candidates for banking some generic weeks in RCI for getting Wyn, since we’re flexible about both the location and the schedule. For 2009, I’ll have to use the Discovery points straight through Wyn because of the limitation of the Discovery program, but there still may be some value to a strategy on that use year. I imagine the Discovery program may give me a small advantage to booking tougher locations, as an enticement to buy retail. I should most likely book these before the resale transfer completes, so as to utilize this benefit (if it even exists).
So, here’s our top locations… Please take a look and comment on whether I should use the Discovery points or if they are candidates for RCI generics (and size recommendation) to obtain these. We also have the potential to ARP our converted fixed week (week #29 2BR Pagosa) for RCI deposit if someone thinks that’s worth doing in this case. My hope is that with smart strategy, advanced planning and flexibility on our part, we might be able to land 1-3 weeks at fun destinations per year on our 182k…
Bluebeards, St. Thomas
Sea Gardens, Pompano
South South, Tahoe
Newport Overlook, RI
Bonnet Creek, Orlando
Pagosa, CO
Old Town Alexandria, VA
Sedona, AZ
Glacier, WI
La Cascada, San Antonio
Makai Club, Princeville
Other places that are on the list, but a little lower down are Nashville, Smoky Mountains, Branson, Flagstaff, Patriots Place, Fairfield Bay, Angel Fire and Durango…
Huge thanks to anyone patient enough to have read this far and we appreciate your opinions on this!
Rob & Sandra
