Points or Weeks?

I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is.

All the sites that offer comparisons are biased in some way and RCI's site is no help.

I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.

Can weeks be converted to points? Or do I need a points account first?

Please help---looking for any insight-thanks!

hananz wrote:

I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is.

All the sites that offer comparisons are biased in some way and RCI's site is no help.

I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.

Can weeks be converted to points? Or do I need a points account first?

Please help---looking for any insight-thanks!

----------------------- In my opinion, a "points resort" is definitely better than a "weeks resort". With RCI, if you own only at a weeks resort you cannot convert to points. If you own at a points resort AND a weeks resort, you can convert your points on an annual basis. So if you are buying for the first time, purchase at a points resort. If you don't plan on ever staying at your home resort, search the internet for a large amount of points for as small of maintenance fee possible. Points can be "rented" for a fee or borrowed against the next year's allotment if needed. If you are flexible and not picky on destinations, RCI has some great deals (7 days) for as little as 9000 points. Hope this helps

RCI Points is just one of many "points based" programs. You should take the time to investigate all of them and see which have resorts in the locations where you are most interested in vacationing. Some ot the most popular programs include Fairfield, Trendwest, Hilton Grand Vacation Club, Marriott Vacation Club, Disney, Starwood, BlueGreen, WorldMark, Equivest, Royal Holiday Club, Sunterra, etc... Some have most of their timeshare properties on the west coast of the U.S.. Others are concentrated in the southeastern states. Fairfield Points are considered to provide the greatest number of choices.

Each program has its own rules and benefits. Take the time to explore the pros and cons of each. There is a lot of information available on the bulletin boards/forums at the Timeshare Users Group www.tug2.net. especially on the board devoted to Points Systems Discussions. Make sure to read the "sticky notes" at the top of the board.

There are several Yahoo Groups where members post charts and discuss various topics related to the ownership of the particular points system they have purchased. You can do a Google search for "Yahoo Group XXX e.g. Fairfield timeshare"

Points provide more flexibility than "fixed/deeded" weeks but there are disadvantages as well.

With RCI Points, if you want a resort other than the "home resort" to which your points are attached, you can search for weeks or days only 10 months in advance of the check-in date.

Owners of fixed weeks can deposit their week with RCI or Interval International up to 2 years before the check in date, and can use it for an exchange up to 2 years after the check in date. Theoretically this allows them to obtain a week exchange anytime within a 4 year period.

Owners of "floating" time can sometimes reserve a week and deposit it with RCI and I.I. up to two years before the check-in date. It depends upon the policy of the individual resort. Some will only allow reservations a year in advance. But whatever "floating week" is deposited, it can be used to search for exchanges for at least one (if not two) years before the check-in date, and always for two years after.

Because the owners of "fixed deeded" weeks can begin searching for a desired exchange so far in advance, many RCI Points owners are complaining that all of the prime weeks have been "snatched" by fixed week owners before they (the RCI Points owners) ever had a chance to be offered the weeks.

The owner of a fixed week always has the right to use, loan, gift, or rent out the week they own (as long as the mainenance fees, taxes, and other billed items have been paid AND the week has not been deposited with RCI, II, or any other exchange company).

Weeks (or nights) obtained by using RCI Points cannot be rented out. And if you wish to allow a guest to use the week or nights, you must obtain a "guest certificate" at an additional cost. I think it's about $59. per week now, but I'm not sure because the fees keep going up.

There are many other differences between owning a fixed week vs. Points. But the above information should alert you to the fact that much research should be done before buying into any type of timeshare product.

When you finally figure out which program best meets your needs, give serious thought to purchasing directly from an owner, or elsewhere in the RESALE market. While some Points-based programs offer additional "perks" for buying from the developer, most times the perks do not provide sufficient extra benefits to justify paying "full price" when so many Points-based programs are available for up to 90% below the developer price on the resale market.

jennie wrote:

RCI Points is just one of many "points based" programs. You should take the time to investigate all of them and see which have resorts in the locations where you are most interested in vacationing. Some ot the most popular programs include Fairfield, Trendwest, Hilton Grand Vacation Club, Marriott Vacation Club, Disney, Starwood, BlueGreen, WorldMark, Equivest, Royal Holiday Club, Sunterra, etc... Some have most of their timeshare properties on the west coast of the U.S.. Others are concentrated in the southeastern states. Fairfield Points are considered to provide the greatest number of choices.

Each program has its own rules and benefits. Take the time to explore the pros and cons of each. There is a lot of information available on the bulletin boards/forums at the Timeshare Users Group www.tug2.net. especially on the board devoted to Points Systems Discussions. Make sure to read the "sticky notes" at the top of the board.

There are several Yahoo Groups where members post charts and discuss various topics related to the ownership of the particular points system they have purchased. You can do a Google search for "Yahoo Group XXX e.g. Fairfield timeshare"

Points provide more flexibility than "fixed/deeded" weeks but there are disadvantages as well.

With RCI Points, if you want a resort other than the "home resort" to which your points are attached, you can search for weeks or days only 10 months in advance of the check-in date.

Owners of fixed weeks can deposit their week with RCI or Interval International up to 2 years before the check in date, and can use it for an exchange up to 2 years after the check in date. Theoretically this allows them to obtain a week exchange anytime within a 4 year period.

Owners of "floating" time can sometimes reserve a week and deposit it with RCI and I.I. up to two years before the check-in date. It depends upon the policy of the individual resort. Some will only allow reservations a year in advance. But whatever "floating week" is deposited, it can be used to search for exchanges for at least one (if not two) years before the check-in date, and always for two years after.

Because the owners of "fixed deeded" weeks can begin searching for a desired exchange so far in advance, many RCI Points owners are complaining that all of the prime weeks have been "snatched" by fixed week owners before they (the RCI Points owners) ever had a chance to be offered the weeks.

The owner of a fixed week always has the right to use, loan, gift, or rent out the week they own (as long as the mainenance fees, taxes, and other billed items have been paid AND the week has not been deposited with RCI, II, or any other exchange company).

Weeks (or nights) obtained by using RCI Points cannot be rented out. And if you wish to allow a guest to use the week or nights, you must obtain a "guest certificate" at an additional cost. I think it's about $59. per week now, but I'm not sure because the fees keep going up.

There are many other differences between owning a fixed week vs. Points. But the above information should alert you to the fact that much research should be done before buying into any type of timeshare product.

When you finally figure out which program best meets your needs, give serious thought to purchasing directly from an owner, or elsewhere in the RESALE market. While some Points-based programs offer additional "perks" for buying from the developer, most times the perks do not provide sufficient extra benefits to justify paying "full price" when so many Points-based programs are available for up to 90% below the developer price on the resale market.

--------

Owners of RCI Points resorts can still book into a week's resort beyond the 10 month window as long as they have the necessary points for the resort in their account.

One difference between RCI and II for exchanging is with RCI you MUST deposit your week before requesting an exchange. If you don't get the exchange you want, then you lost the right to use your home week. With II you can request an exchange without losing your week. There are pros and cons to both methods.

Mike 1536 stated: >> One difference between RCI and II for exchanging is with RCI you MUST deposit your week before requesting an exchange. If you don't get the exchange you want, then you lost the right to use your home week. With II you can request an exchange without losing your week. There are pros and cons to both methods.<<

Mike: I'm not lobbying for OR against one or the other of these exchange entities --- and I currently have membership in BOTH RCI and II. That fact stated right up front, I'm curious to know what you see as any "downside" to II and/or its practice of not requiring deposit to be made prior to making a request. I'm NOT saying that there IS no "downside" to II, just asking for your input and perspective on what it might be.....

Thanks, Ken

ken1193 wrote:

Mike 1536 stated: >> One difference between RCI and II for exchanging is with RCI you MUST deposit your week before requesting an exchange. If you don't get the exchange you want, then you lost the right to use your home week. With II you can request an exchange without losing your week. There are pros and cons to both methods.<<

Mike: I'm not lobbying for OR against one or the other of these exchange entities --- and I currently have membership in BOTH RCI and II. That fact stated right up front, I'm curious to know what you see as any "downside" to II and/or its practice of not requiring deposit to be made prior to making a request. I'm NOT saying that there IS no "downside" to II, just asking for your input and perspective on what it might be.....

Thanks, Ken

------------- Ken, Before I respond I want to clarify that I prefer II's system of "request first". In this manner, if I do not get the exchange I want, I can still just go to my home resort (which I have done in the past). Now, the only "downside" is that the "request first" method may reduce the inventory. My understanding is that my "request" will be filled if someone "deposits" the unit I'm requesting, but the person who has that unit may be waiting for his own request to be filled. For example, if I'm requesting a NC unit and will be depositing a NH unit; the person depositing the NC unit is waiting for his Hawaii request to be filled; etc, etc. "Deposit first" (II or RCI) allows for more availability, but as I said previously, I don't like the idea of losing control of my home week. I'm new to the RCI Points, but I like the idea that I know the trading power of my week (it's worth x number of points). If I want to go to a prime location, I know exactly what I need in points to exchange. With a weeks resort, you really don't know the trading power. Though RCI does have a chart which assigns "points" to weeks resorts (by region). I can deposit my weeks unit and receive an extra 50000 points if I so choose. The 10-month window is a minor drawback, but I'm pretty flexible with dates and was never picky with resorts. I've learned to be; otherwise doing exchanges can be very frustrating. I've yet to use deposit first, but i'm sure I'll do it at some time. What's you opinion on the two methods? Mike

Mike asked > What's your opinion on the two methods?<

Mike, I will readily admit that mine is not a particularly well rounded or experienced opinion, having not yet ever actually utilized the II "request first" method (although I may well be doing so very soon). I have, however, come to dislike the RCI "deposit first" approach (relinquishing the home resort week, potentially without acquiring a suitable exchange). Trading power may well be less of a mystery with points, but I only have weeks (for now, although I'm considering also adding points into the mix for added flexibility).

Re: >> I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is. <<

A bit of historical perspective is really necessary to get a clear picture and not just compare apples with oranges and then wonder why they aren't the same....... Prior to sometime around the year 2000, as far as I know the entire "points" system simply did not exist. The timeshare world was "weeks" --- period, amen.

The advent of "points" at that time essentially created a new and separate "currency" for timeshare use. The two "currencies" differ considerably, obviously including in their inherent flexibility.

Re: >> I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.<<

Points, then, is very clearly the route for you to pursue.

To be very clear, I'm not advocating in my reply for one or the other, I'm just trying to point out that the two "currencies" of timeshare usage (weeks and points)have VERY different histories. They were NOT both created at the same time; "weeks" preceded "points" (literally) by DECADES.......

hananz wrote:

I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is.

All the sites that offer comparisons are biased in some way and RCI's site is no help.

I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.

Can weeks be converted to points? Or do I need a points account first?

Please help---looking for any insight-thanks!

Suppose you want an oceanfront unit where you can hear the waves breaking on the beach, how can you do that with points?

mike1536 wrote:

hananz wrote:

I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is.

All the sites that offer comparisons are biased in some way and RCI's site is no help.

I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.

Can weeks be converted to points? Or do I need a points account first?

Please help---looking for any insight-thanks!

----------------------- In my opinion, a "points resort" is definitely better than a "weeks resort". With RCI, if you own only at a weeks resort you cannot convert to points. If you own at a points resort AND a weeks resort, you can convert your points on an annual basis. So if you are buying for the first time, purchase at a points resort. If you don't plan on ever staying at your home resort, search the internet for a large amount of points for as small of maintenance fee possible. Points can be "rented" for a fee or borrowed against the next year's allotment if needed. If you are flexible and not picky on destinations, RCI has some great deals (7 days) for as little as 9000 points. Hope this helps

Suppose you want an oceanfront unit where you can hear the waves breaking on the beach, how can you do that with points?

ebram wrote:

Suppose you want an oceanfront unit where you can hear the waves breaking on the beach, how can you do that with points?

You call up and reserve it.

vicki296 wrote:

ebram wrote:

Suppose you want an oceanfront unit where you can hear the waves breaking on the beach, how can you do that with points?

You call up and reserve it.

I own a 2 br oceanfront unit(2 out of 40 units) at Surfsside Resort, Falmouth Ma. in the summer. Let me if you can reserve one like it and how you did it. No owners I know puts them up for exchange. I can go there every year or rent out that specific unit at the time interval.

I can't reserve that resort because it's not in my network. And let's be fair, it's already summer, hardly the start of the reservation window.

A comment on Jennie's post - so far as I know, Marriott Vacation Club does not operate on a points system. I have not heard anything about points at my home resort or at any of the many Marriott resorts I've traded into. I own MVC timeshare weeks, and none are fixed weeks, but instead offer the possibility of booking any week within my 'season'. My 'season' at my home resort is the shoulder season just before and just after high season (high season at my resort is June-August), so I have about 5-6 months worth of weeks to select from. And I can (and usually have gotten) a requested trade into any resort II works with at any time of the year. And the weeks don't have fixed check in days. Instead you can check in Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

mike1536 wrote:

jennie wrote:

RCI Points is just one of many "points based" programs. You should take the time to investigate all of them and see which have resorts in the locations where you are most interested in vacationing. Some ot the most popular programs include Fairfield, Trendwest, Hilton Grand Vacation Club, Marriott Vacation Club, Disney, Starwood, BlueGreen, WorldMark, Equivest, Royal Holiday Club, Sunterra, etc... Some have most of their timeshare properties on the west coast of the U.S.. Others are concentrated in the southeastern states. Fairfield Points are considered to provide the greatest number of choices.

Each program has its own rules and benefits. Take the time to explore the pros and cons of each. There is a lot of information available on the bulletin boards/forums at the Timeshare Users Group www.tug2.net. especially on the board devoted to Points Systems Discussions. Make sure to read the "sticky notes" at the top of the board.

There are several Yahoo Groups where members post charts and discuss various topics related to the ownership of the particular points system they have purchased. You can do a Google search for "Yahoo Group XXX e.g. Fairfield timeshare"

Points provide more flexibility than "fixed/deeded" weeks but there are disadvantages as well.

With RCI Points, if you want a resort other than the "home resort" to which your points are attached, you can search for weeks or days only 10 months in advance of the check-in date.

Owners of fixed weeks can deposit their week with RCI or Interval International up to 2 years before the check in date, and can use it for an exchange up to 2 years after the check in date. Theoretically this allows them to obtain a week exchange anytime within a 4 year period.

Owners of "floating" time can sometimes reserve a week and deposit it with RCI and I.I. up to two years before the check-in date. It depends upon the policy of the individual resort. Some will only allow reservations a year in advance. But whatever "floating week" is deposited, it can be used to search for exchanges for at least one (if not two) years before the check-in date, and always for two years after.

Because the owners of "fixed deeded" weeks can begin searching for a desired exchange so far in advance, many RCI Points owners are complaining that all of the prime weeks have been "snatched" by fixed week owners before they (the RCI Points owners) ever had a chance to be offered the weeks.

The owner of a fixed week always has the right to use, loan, gift, or rent out the week they own (as long as the mainenance fees, taxes, and other billed items have been paid AND the week has not been deposited with RCI, II, or any other exchange company).

Weeks (or nights) obtained by using RCI Points cannot be rented out. And if you wish to allow a guest to use the week or nights, you must obtain a "guest certificate" at an additional cost. I think it's about $59. per week now, but I'm not sure because the fees keep going up.

There are many other differences between owning a fixed week vs. Points. But the above information should alert you to the fact that much research should be done before buying into any type of timeshare product.

When you finally figure out which program best meets your needs, give serious thought to purchasing directly from an owner, or elsewhere in the RESALE market. While some Points-based programs offer additional "perks" for buying from the developer, most times the perks do not provide sufficient extra benefits to justify paying "full price" when so many Points-based programs are available for up to 90% below the developer price on the resale market.

--------

Owners of RCI Points resorts can still book into a week's resort beyond the 10 month window as long as they have the necessary points for the resort in their account.

One difference between RCI and II for exchanging is with RCI you MUST deposit your week before requesting an exchange. If you don't get the exchange you want, then you lost the right to use your home week. With II you can request an exchange without losing your week. There are pros and cons to both methods.

"Owners of RCI Points resorts can still book into a week's resort beyond the 10 month window as long as they have the necessary points for the resort in their account".

RCI claims to keep the weeks and points space bank inventories completely separate, although many people doubt the veracity of this claim. However, if it is true, then Points owners can reserve weeks that have been deposited, but ONLY weeks deposited by Points owners who also own some fixed/deeded or floating weeks. They are allowed to deposit their weeks under a program known as Points For Deposit (pfd). They receive additional points for depositing their fixed week and then that week becomes available to all Points owners who have enough points to claim it, first come-first served.

However, the only weeks eligible for deposit under the pfd program are weeks from resorts that are not RCI Points resorts. There are fewer of these left so there are far fewer weeks coming into the space bank. This is a very complex concept to understood. It is discussed in detail at the Points Systems Discussions bbs/forum at the Timeshare Users Group: http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=14

I own RCI Points plus several fixed/deeded and floating weeks. When I search for a week through my Weeks account, I am able to see many, many weeks that do not appear when I search through my RCI Points account. it wasn't always this way. In prior years I could find a lot more good weeks through my Points account. But as I mentioned above, there are far fewer weeks coming into the Points spacebank because more and more resorts have joined the RCI Points program. Once they do so, the weeks from that resort cannot be used for pfd.

Something else to consider when deciding to buy weeks or points is that many 'weeks' resorts have aligned themselves with just one exchange company. For instance I recently found out that since I am a weeks owner at my resort I can only trade through RCI. They said if I was points I could do either RCI or II.

I had wanted to try II because it has Disney resorts.

I'm a DVC owner and from what I can tell the set up DVC management has with II, is that we are not individually II members(so we can't get into II and look at what is available). We need to call Memeber service to do anything with II. So it's pretty scary for most members, especially the newbies that haven't figured out "to call right at 11 month window to get those busy time reservations."

From the Dis boads, most DVC members are looking to go to HI or maybe ski weeks. It would take 270 DVC points to get a 2br exchange in red/high season(so most members don't feel it's a good value). Quite a few own MVC or other another timeshare to "trade" with.

mike1536 wrote:

hananz wrote:

I've been reading up on timeshares and I can't seem to figure out the benefits of weeks, unless you know you'll always vacation saturday to sunday or whatever days it is.

All the sites that offer comparisons are biased in some way and RCI's site is no help.

I'm looking to buy and be able to take anywhere from 1-7 nights of vacation at a time.

Can weeks be converted to points? Or do I need a points account first?

Please help---looking for any insight-thanks!

----------------------- In my opinion, a "points resort" is definitely better than a "weeks resort". With RCI, if you own only at a weeks resort you cannot convert to points. If you own at a points resort AND a weeks resort, you can convert your points on an annual basis. So if you are buying for the first time, purchase at a points resort. If you don't plan on ever staying at your home resort, search the internet for a large amount of points for as small of maintenance fee possible. Points can be "rented" for a fee or borrowed against the next year's allotment if needed. If you are flexible and not picky on destinations, RCI has some great deals (7 days) for as little as 9000 points. Hope this helps

ken1193 We would like to purchase additional points through Rci. Do you know of any problems with purchasing them through the internet via sites like ebay?

Thanks, Becky