I remember my first encounter with vacation timeshare rentals like it was yesterday: I was thirteen, and bored stiff sitting in a stuffy hotel ballroom on a beautiful Hawaiian beach day. I was waiting for my parents to exit a time share sales pitch so we could embark on the promised snorkeling excursion at its conclusion. We never bought that time share, but certainly enjoyed snorkeling at Molokai.This image of time shares, with limited, inflexible week-long vacation condo rentals is a thing of the pastprovided you’re looking in the right place. To better understand how vacation time share experiences work in today’s travel industry, I visited a Florida Marriott Vacation Club property for the weekend and sat down with vacation club sales members, PR, and real vacation owners in order to give you the skinny on how renting a timeshare can now work. Marriott’s Oceana Palms on Singer Island, Florida provided a good backdrop for our discussion. (I know, I have a terrible job.) If you’re looking for a Florida timeshare, Orlando is another good option. How Marriott Vacation Club works:Say goodbye to the concept of ‘buying’ a week of time at a single resort.
Marriott Vacation Club destinations abound. So instead, you can find the timeshare that works for you and your vacation style.
Marriott Vacation Club members buy points, not hotel rooms or condos, which can be used as currency at literally hundreds of properties. The system is comprised of three main collections:. Marriott Vacation Club (over 50 Marriot Vacation Club resorts). Marriott Hotels (access to over 3,700 hotels using Marriott Rewards points). Explorer Collection (which connects to adventure, cruise, and speciality vacations). World Traveler Collection (use Interval International to use points for international hotels)Members can use their points in more combinations than I’d realized: maybe they want to take one traditional vacation at a single Marriott Vacation Club property per year (there are over 100, by the way).
Or maybe they want to take a few overnight stays at a traditional Marriott hotel for a sports tournament, and then use their remaining points on a shorter beach getaway. Maybe, they’d rather ‘bank’ their points for several years, going all out for a family reunion. Honestly, the possibilities are limited only by the number and locations of Marriott destinations (which, as we all know, are numerous).When families buy into the club, they choose how many points they’d like to buy. Points are essentially vacation currency. To give parents a general idea of the investment, one Marriott Vacation Club point is roughly equivalent to $10. Families can start by buying a smaller number of points, then buy more should they find they need them, or vice versa: it is possible to sell points. When ready to book a vacation, owners can use the Marriott Vacation Club call center (based in Salt Lake City for US owners) or opt to use the integrated website.
What it costs:I like that unlike in the past, Marriott Vacation Club is very transparent about price. Here are a few examples of what the lowest point buy-ins can get you. As noted above, one point is roughly $10, so 1,500 points would be $15,000. Most owners finance, paying monthly. Remember, every owner also pays an annual maintenance fee and club dues. 1,500 points = 3 nights in Las Vegas in a 2-bedroom villa or 7 nights in Vail in a 1-bedroom villa. 2,500 points = 7 nights at Palm Beach in a studio villa or 10 nights in Miami in a 2-bedroom villa.
3,500 points = 7 nights on Oahu in a 1-bedroom villa or 7 nights in Orlando in a 3-bedroom villaAll these examples (and more) are available on the marriottvacationclub.com website. What Marriott Vacation Club actually looks like:I had the pleasure of sitting down with two Marriott Vacation Club owners, both local to the Palm Beach, Florida area. Both owners I spoke with were mothers who love traveling with their kids, make most of the travel decisions for their families, and enjoy planning trips. One owner had owned with Marriott Vacation Club for 10 years, and the other had owned for five years.Both women testified to the ease of using the Marriott Vacation Club booking system.
One loved using the call center agents, while the other preferred to figure out her reservations online. Either way, both women agreed that planning trips in advance is crucial to getting the most out of the program.
This fact doesn’t have to be a negative; after all, haven’t we been preaching the importance of trip planning at Pit Stops for Kids for years? Vacation planning can be nearly as fun as the trip itself! One of the owners put it this way: Our vacation starts when we start planning it.And remember all those combinations of trips owners can book, ranging from club stays to cruises? The two owners I talked to actually have used their points for a wide variety of vacations. One had traveled internationally with hers more than once, and the other likes to convert points to Marriott Rewards to book hotel stays before air travel days.I asked about ease of use: both owners used the call center staff and the forums on the owner website to figure out which properties to book for which days to stretch their points the furthest, and to ask for reviews of each property and get advice about which would be best based on their family’s needs.
The owner with young kids frequently asks call center staff for resort information: which property is best for kids who want a beach without waves? Which has the best kids’ program? These women have taken their families on trips ranging from city hotel stays to week-long ski vacations to beach getaways to college-touring overnights.
Flexibility is crucial to the new face of time sharing. Common questions:I went straight to the source, and talked to the folks at Marriott and the American Resort Development Association (ARDA).Q: How much does it cost to buy into Marriott Vacation Club?A: At the time of this posting, Marriott says points start at 1,500, which equates to $15,000.
Financing is available. My first impression: $35,000 (which would buy 3, 500 points) is a lot of money. Our cars don’t cost that much, in our family.
But we take multiple vacations per year, as family travel is one of our most cherished activities. Points renew every single year, and yet families pay for these points only once. Conclusion: it’s worth crunching the numbers for your family before dismissing the time share option based solely on price.Q: Can I sell my points? Can I sell my entire membership?A: Yes. It’s as simple as that. But we’ve all heard horror stories from former time share owners who didn’t get ‘back their investment’ when they sold.
I posed this question to ARDA president and CEO Howard Nusbaum. His answer: vacations are not a financial investment. They’re a lifestyle investment. Just as you’d never expect to get a return on the sale price of a car, you won’t ‘make’ money off your time share. Unlike time shares of 20 years ago, families today aren’t exactly buying real estate. They’re buying time.
Much like the ZipCar or bike share model of business, Marriott Vacation Club is all about trading, using, and sharing.Q: Won’t I have a hard time getting the rooms or availability I want, much like when I try to use airline miles?A: Not if you plan ahead. The Marriott Vacation Club sales team pointed out that while last minute deals can be found (just as they can be found using any hotel reservation site), the primary reason families cannot get into the properties they want to book is due to poor planning. They suggest families plan their major vacations up to one year in advance. If this recommendation warms your heart, you’re a planner like me, and this won’t be a problem. If it worries you, a Marriott Vacation Club ownership might not be for you.Q: Are Marriott Vacation Club properties all condos?A: No. They are resorts, with villas ranging from studios to three-bedroom units. I was pleasantly surprised by Marriott Oceana Palms, which to all extents and purposes is a full-scale beachfront resort.
Families certainly don’t have to be vacation club owners to stay there, so there’s much more of a resort feel than a condo feel.Q: Won’t I be limited if I like to plan my own travel?A: This is a worry I have, too. Those who love to plan travel don’t want to feel restricted. I felt better when one owner explained how she used her Marriott Vacation Club points as only one tool in her vacation planning. She still went where she wanted to go and booked what she liked best. She cross-referenced her destination picks with the thousands of Marriott and partner properties available to her, but didn’t limit herself to them. Only you can decide whether this approach would work for you.Other time share programs worth a look:. a Disney timeshare is a great investment.
You DO NOT want to buy a Marriott Vacation Club property. We purchased a timeshare in Las Vegas for about $19,000 in 2008.
The timeshare is now worth less that $5000 and Marriott claims a marker downturn. As far as points, Yes, you can redeem your Week for Marriott Rewards points but they charge $134 to do so and they will deny the use of points for any reason.
Late on Maintenance fees or disputed Loan payments). AND, and at the end of your loan (if you received one), they will not apply your last payment to principle and interest but instead to other fees and charges they wish to collect. STAY AWAY FROM THIS SCAM!!!! It is nothing but a money pit, and you would do better saving the money for the times and places that you actually wish to travel.Marriott Vacation Club Owner for 10yrs. I have a few comments, but first, thank you for taking the time to actually expand your knowledge In an area so often prejudged. I am the first to say it is definitely not for everyone.
My experience is that the majority of issues come from owners not fully understanding the process. Also it is a commission based product which unfortunately leads to issues obviously. But the majority of companies are very transparent throughout their paperwork. If you look at it as an investment in your quality of life, then you should be satisfied.
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An owner that spends $25,000, and $1,200 per year,(both pretty fair averages) will spend approximately $55,000 over a 25 year period. If you don’t care about your level of accommodation quality, then this probably won’t make sense.
But if you look at the options now available, then it starts to work. Most families can’t disregard the cost of their accommodations. I can, and do each year.
I don’t care if my family says this year they want to stay at Disney’s Aulani resort in Hawaii, and next year with the Ritz Carlton at Northstar Tahoe, or possibly London, cabo, fiji, Paris or even Rome. That’s where the value truly lies in my experience. Even if I could get all these places for $250 a night plus tax, that is still $2,100 per week, which over 25 years is over $50,000, if per Prices never go up. It’s the commitment to you and your family that each year for one week, at least, we will enjoy travel at the highest level. Now try adding the average rate of hotel inflation over 25 years and you not only spent more renting, but every dollar is 100% loss.
Not to mention, your kids will go through the same thing. At least my kids can decide if the cost of maintenance fees are worth continuing the same experiences with their families.
The response you got one the other post to visit - Timeshare Users Group is the very best advice anyone can get. Spend some time, ask some questions you'll get lots of different opinions most all of the valuable. Then you can sort out the input and decide if owning a timeshare week or points is right for you.IMO, the first few things one should consider is the following:1) the capital investment - if you buy a week or points from the developer you'll be paying a lot, and probably a good amount of that investment will never come back to if you choose to sell - the value comes in the time spent. If you choose a resale week you can save a lot compared to buying from a developer, it doesn't have the flexiblity of the new Marriott Desinations point program, but the investment is a fraction.2) are you comfortable with the annual maintenance fees? They will come every single year, and it matters not whether you use your week, you are obligated to pay.
Also Maintenance fees tend to go up greater than the rate of inflation.3) Can you plan ahead? Typically the people who are most successful with their reservations plan 6 months or even a year or more in advance.
If you can't plan far ahead, you should think hard before investing. I am not saying not to do it, just be aware its tougher. That said, I have owned for about 15 years, we have never planned very far in advance usually 3 months to 6 months in advance - so not ideal, yet we have always had good trades. Not necessarily got my first choice each time, but trades that I found acceptable have always happened.4) Are you flexible? Would you be happy going to a different (nice) place if you couldn't get Hawaii, etc when you wanted to.
If you have to be someplace at a particular time and can't place well in advance then timeshares might not be the best for you.There are lots of other things to consider, but to me everyone's needs, desires, and capital are their own. No one can make a decision for you, you know your circumstances best and timesharing can be a great way to vacation with family and friends.
We have certainly enjoyed Marriott weeks, and now since enrolling them in the Destinations Points program we have found that that even fits our needs better than our weeks based usage did.So take your time, and make a well informed decision. Don't listen to all the Hype from the sales dept. And equally don't listen to all the negative from people who never learned how to use what they purchased or couldn't afford the investment. For example, If you can afford it and like the points - who cares if its the cheapest way you can go about it. All that matters is it fits your needs and your budget. If budget is more important, then you need to take plenty of time to decide if you should make the investment and probably should be looking at resale weeks because of how little you can find good properties for.I wish you good luck with your decision.
Personally, I would not buy a timeshare unless you want to go to the same place every year. Yes, you can make exchanges but it doesn't always work out. Given the annual dues for most timeshares you could just as easily rent a timeshare unit on Redweek.com. At least then you can pick the exact property in the exact location you want. If you decide to purchase I would recommend resale market. You can even buy resale (yes, just as cheaply as online) directly from Marriott.That being said, I've used 3 timeshare (one being Marriott) for over 20 years.
I have looked into the new Marriott points but it's not for me.