Adding on to what OutandAbout said, you can set up the II exchanges either online or on the phone. Check out the
Marriott Timeshare FAQ's at the top of this board, or ask here, if you need help with those.
XYZ's must be requested/processed over the phone. The two different kinds of XYZ's are called "Two for One" and "Type II." Both are available if you have a confirmed exchange in your II account with an upcoming check-in date - in other words, you cannot try for an XYZ until/unless your exchange request is fulfilled.
The first type is available to pretty much anyone with a confirmed exchange but the availability is mostly limited to low-demand weeks and resorts. There were early reports that an XYZ week had to be concurrent/consecutive to a confirmed exchange week but that's incorrect - many people have booked XYZ's that have no connection at all date-wise to existing confirmations.
The second type is available to anyone who has accepted in an exchange a unit that has a smaller private sleeping capacity than the unit you've given up for the exchange. That generally means you've given up a 2BR for a 1BR or a studio, or a 3BR for a 2BR or smaller. But it's not the number of bedrooms that count, it's the private sleeping capacity according to II's numbers, so in some rare cases you may be eligible for a Type II if you've given up a 1BR for a studio. This type of XYZ can generally pull higher-demand intervals and resorts than the first type.
For both types some II reps say that the check-in day of your XYZ must be prior to the check-in date of your confirmed exchange, while other reps say you just have to call in for the XYZ before the check-in date of your confirmed exchange but the check-in date of the XYZ can be anytime during the open grid including after your confirmed exchange date.
II does not publish a grid for XYZ availability and not every II rep is knowledgeable enough or helpful enough to process them. When you call in ask the rep if s/he can help and if you meet with resistance just hang up and call again. Some people say that you have to be sweet as pie but I think that's ridiculous - just be as respectful as you'd be when asking for any other benefit or service to which you're entitled and you should do fine. Over on the TUG Sightings board there is a thread wherein helpful TUGgers post their latest XYZ acquisitions and Dioxide is maintaining a very helpful grid based on those reports. I won't link that thread here because the Sightings board is restricted to TUG Members, but if you go over there you should see it on one of the first two pages - it gets traffic at least every couple of days.
The only guarantee with XYZ's is that at any time any one of the rules, which are unpublished but TUGgers have managed to figure out through experience, can be broken or changed. Or the program can be unceremoniously ended. Nothing is set in stone. If you're lucky you'll meet up with a helpful II rep the first time around. If not, try again. Good luck, with your exchanges and XYZ's!
