Booking through sky Auction

[avalovesminnie]

For those who have done it- how far ahead did you book? Aside from the listed fees and extra for certain weeks are there other fees? If you don’t mind if anyone booked in 2019 can you tell me where and for how much, for comparative purposes? Anything I should know? Thank you!!

 

[omniscientmommy]

I would try doing a search for threads that mention skyauction.

 

[bearzabout]

I’ve booked many trips with Skyauction.

Busy weeks are best booked ahead of time. Expect to pay around $300-$700 to book months ahead.

Last minute bookings are often the cheapest, depending on how many other people want the same week. Some last minute auctions go higher than booking ahead due to bidding wars.

Be very careful to research resorts first. Some are not that great. Others, like Diamond resorts, Westgate and Liki Tiki can have resort fees payable upon arriving at the resort. Some one bedroom units are small so target larger units whenever possible.

Skyauction sells excess inventory, or units that may otherwise sit empty due to lack of demand at regular pricing. In other words, no one else wants them and there must be a reason.

If I want a stress free trip, I book months ahead. If I want to save money, I’ll wait until the week of the trip and roll the dice. Sometimes I win big, like Bonnet Creek for under $200, or a week for under $100 in a not so great place, but sometimes I am forced to overpay or not go.

Prices have gone up a lot this year as more people travel. Check Skyauction winners to see winning bids. Some have been scary high lately.

 

[katallo]

Agree with the above post. We have used them for multiple locations and never had a problem. I learned a valuable lesson early in the process. Research, research, research before you bid. One of the first auctions was for the Marriott next to Sea World. Beautiful hotel, however not such a great deal when we learned there were high resort and parking fees. Read all of the fine print.

If there is an auction we want more than 4 months out, we usually purchase the travel insurance just in case.

 

[BonnieA]

I've booked with sky auction for years. I used to do the bidding but now I find the "buy it now" to be less stressful. I know what I want and know I'm getting it.

 

[SWofDisorder]

We use skyauction occasionally but look there first. It is often hard to find our dates without extra fees of some sort. But I did get Summer Bay resort with no extra fees for $270. I also paid full price for Silver lake at $320.

Read very careful the fine print, the dates with extra fees, etc. Double check as there are no refunds for any reason.

 

[pk1959]

This is all good information. I have looked at Skyauction many times but have never pulled the trigger and bought. I want to try it though! So does skyauction mention when a place has additional resort and parking fees or is that something that you have to go to each individual website of the places you are considering and check yourself?

 

[bearzabout]

Generally they mention in the auction description if additional fees are collected at the resort. It is best to call the resort to verify if the additional fees in the description is correct.

Sometimes a resort will charge extra fees to people booking individual nights through a booking service but exempt these fees for weekly stays through a timeshare exchange. It seems Skyauction stays are noted in the system as exchanges most of the time. I usually search on the resort's website for resort/parking/internet fees before booking and call the resort before I book if it is not clear whether the fees apply to timeshare exchange stays.

Some timeshare only exempt owners from fees but charge exchangers.

I think Likitiki charges $25 per day as additional fees, Diamond's fees vary by resort but are often over $10 per night. Westgate's fees Are different at each resort. These fees can really add up.