Anyone also own in Aruba?

[aclov]

Just got back from Aruba, I did a DVC exchange into Aruba Beach Club. Great resort, right on the beach. We fell in love with the island! Does anyone also have a timeshare in Aruba?

 

[Msteg]

We own a Divi timeshare at Dutch Village. Purchased it in 1985 and love going back to paradise each January.
We bought OKW in 1992 and love it as well.

 

[Dean]

Just got back from Aruba, I did a DVC exchange into Aruba Beach Club. Great resort, right on the beach. We fell in love with the island! Does anyone also have a timeshare in Aruba?

We've owned timeshares in Aruba for 14 or 15 years though we have only been a few times. We first owned fixed weeks we used for trading and then converted those fixed weeks to Bluegreen points a few years ago. We do enjoy Aruba and try to go about EOY. Off season including summer is usually an easy time to find cheaper options but also it's easier to trade in as well. IMO, Aruba has a number of good but not great resorts including ABC, Casa Del Mar, La Cabana, Costa Linda, Playa Linda and others. The only truly top notch options are the Marriott's. If you're happy with the second tier but nice options like ABC, you should be able to find something for summer for fairly cheap and for spring or fall for very cheap. Xmas to mid March will be more but still controllable.

Bluegreen points for La Cabana resale would be a great option for Aruba as well. Be aware that Aruba timeshares tend to have very high maint fees. I'd suggest you spend some time (months) investigating before you commit. The other benefit to a mini system like BG is it gives you many other options.

 

[aclov]

Thank you so much for the advice! It seems alot of people usually from out East own out there, I'm located in the Midwest so a little farther to travel to.

Divi Resorts looked very nice and they also have an all-inclusive one. They are doing a timeshare promotion for a week that looks tempting!

 

[aclov]

I'm looking at a one bedroom at La Quinta Beach Resort, I do remember passing by it. It's for sale by owner who has other weeks there but cannot use all of them, the week is in June which is a good travel month for me. Ironically I sat next to a family on the way home who also owned there.

 

[brinkley07]

Yes. My family has owned at Aruba Beach Club for years. My dad originally bought one week and has since added on additional weeks. We love going there and he finally upgraded his studio for a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom so we can all stay together one week. It's a great place to go, and I'm counting down the days to our upcoming vacation! He does have a week for sale that you can pm me about if you would like some information.

 

[Dean]

I'm looking at a one bedroom at La Quinta Beach Resort, I do remember passing by it. It's for sale by owner who has other weeks there but cannot use all of them, the week is in June which is a good travel month for me. Ironically I sat next to a family on the way home who also owned there.

I don't know as much about that resort other than it's not that highly rated. One should be able to pickup a summer week for under $1K for a 1 BR and if you work at it, likely a lot less or a 2 BR (or equivalent) for that low as well. Early June will be cheaper in general. Several Caveat's. I would not personally consider an AI for Aruba because there are many great restaurants and I wouldn't want to miss out on that option. Don't discount studios because many are essentially the same as a 1 BR, that's esp true at La Cabana. Many of the resorts and some of the Aruba oriented BBS have listings for the area. Don't forget redweeks, TUG and ebay as well. Don't let them get you with closing costs, all you really need is a RTU transfer and for the few $$$ involved, it's not reasonable to pay for escrow for most of the resorts. Personally I'd look at a Marriott Gold week for a 1 BR or 2 BR, esp since the 2 BR units are lockoff's and you can get 2 weeks out of it, assuming I wanted to buy there. The fees are still pretty high for Aruba though so I still think the best option is Bluegreen points which you can buy for under $500 including closing, sometimes less. I'd get about 15-20K points as a min in this situation.

 

[tomandrobin]

We do not own in Aruba, but did a private exchange for the Marriott Surf Club. We had a great time and I would highly recommend the resort to anyone interested in traveling to Aruba.

 

[Dean]

We do not own in Aruba, but did a private exchange for the Marriott Surf Club. We had a great time and I would highly recommend the resort to anyone interested in traveling to Aruba.

12 Days there early next year. Our last 2 trips to Aruba we stayed there a week bracketed by days at La Cabana (Bluegreen reservation) but with the Marriott Destination points and the 2 BR exchange we got, we'll be at our preferred option the entire time. IMO, there's a big drop off from the Marriott's to everyone else there. We (meaning spouse mostly) prefer the Surf Club over the Ocean Club due to the pool setup.

Many often divide timeshare enthusiasts into 2 groups, those that are resort oriented and those that are destination oriented. We actually require a lot of both with maybe 60% of out criteria being resort related and 40% the destination. I also consider the value of what I gave up in trade, which is why I always try to make every trade an upgrade as much as possible.

 

[tomandrobin]

12 Days there early next year. Our last 2 trips to Aruba we stayed there a week bracketed by days at La Cabana (Bluegreen reservation) but with the Marriott Destination points and the 2 BR exchange we got, we'll be at our preferred option the entire time. IMO, there's a big drop off from the Marriott's to everyone else there. We (meaning spouse mostly) prefer the Surf Club over the Ocean Club due to the pool setup.

Many often divide timeshare enthusiasts into 2 groups, those that are resort oriented and those that are destination oriented. We actually require a lot of both with maybe 60% of out criteria being resort related and 40% the destination. I also consider the value of what I gave up in trade, which is why I always try to make every trade an upgrade as much as possible.

We prefer the Surf Club over Ocean Club too. The pools and lazy river are really good, the downside was the chairs.....luckily, we are early risers. Rumors are creeping back up about Westin looking into adding a timeshare again, but I am not holding my breath on that to happen.

We are destination and resort oriented too. We have always wanted to visit Aruba and The Marriott was our only choice we wanted. Luckily, I found someone who wanted my 3 bedroom at Atlantis, and she had a 3 bedroom at Marriott Surf Club.

 

[Dean]

We prefer the Surf Club over Ocean Club too. The pools and lazy river are really good, the downside was the chairs.....luckily, we are early risers. Rumors are creeping back up about Westin looking into adding a timeshare again, but I am not holding my breath on that to happen.

We are destination and resort oriented too. We have always wanted to visit Aruba and The Marriott was our only choice we wanted. Luckily, I found someone who wanted my 3 bedroom at Atlantis, and she had a 3 bedroom at Marriott Surf Club.

A fair trade it'd seem assuming similar view and season. We really enjoy Aruba and it's much easier to get to than HI which it is similar to in many ways (not in others). I believe that most DVC members actually have a fair amount of expectations in both of those areas, that's one of the reasons I've tended to downplay the exchange options, that and the cost/value of what a DVC member is giving up. My opinion is that the big difference between II and RCI is the top 2 or 3 systems (Marriott and Westin and formerly, DVC). It is interesting to compare II and RCI for different locations. II stands out in some, RCI in others.