DVC Units on RCI's Vacation Rental Site

[bzzelady]

I just checked RCI's rental site and what to my wandering eyes should appear...
DVC units for rent (similar prices to renting the same unit through CRO and some actually appear to be a bit higher)! The properties on there right now are Boardwalk and OKW.

I truly wonder how many people from RCI are actually going to be able to trade into DVC or if RCI is going to make a practice of skimming the DVC units off to their profit site

There is even studio and 1 bedroom availability for Christmas week 2009 at the Boardwalk.
There are 2 bedroom units at OKW during most of the months.

Now to see if any of these end up on the last minute portion of the website...

http://www.wyndham-vacations.com/orlando-vacations.html

 

[Chuck S]

I think the cash rooms on the site are CRO controlled units.

 

[tomandrobin]

Funny, didn't really see DVC rentals on II website like that!

 

[RobDoc]

Funny, didn't really see DVC rentals on II website like that!

Yeah, II didn't have the same deal with DVC.
These cash villas are not from the member deposited weeks they come from the same inventory used by CRO for cash rentals.

 

[Brian Noble]

The telltale sign: Exchangers are told to call Member Services' 800 number to book ME. Renters are told to use a web site that only understands CRO/WDTC-style reservation numbers. It's pretty clear that this is just another marketing channel for units the Mouse controls.

 

[tomandrobin]

Yeah, II didn't have the same deal with DVC.
These cash villas are not from the member deposited weeks they come from the same inventory used by CRO for cash rentals.

I am sure they are from Disney's inventory and not DVC inventory. But it is still another level that was not at II. RCI has a history of skimming inventory and renting for themselves. Its only a matter of time before they do the same to DVC, if some of those weeks are not exchanged weeks already.

 

[bzzelady]

I also think that what I saw this morning is cash inventory right now...but we did not see this type of activity with II. I think that this is something that needs to be watched over the next several months. Hopefully it is indeed CRO inventory being booked by another party (similar to when AAA books for a member) but I wonder how many of the RCI folks will really be able to trade in over time.

 

[Brian Noble]

Its only a matter of time before they do the same to DVC, if some of those weeks are not exchanged weeks already.

I will be very very surprised if the agreement that DVC negotiated with RCI allows this. There is no way that DVC wants to lose pricing control over resort inventory.

we did not see this type of activity with II.

DVC actually did put some SSR units into II's Getaway pool as a market test, within the last year or two. I don't think it was repeated.

 

[tomandrobin]

I will be very very surprised if the agreement that DVC negotiated with RCI allows this. There is no way that DVC wants to lose pricing control over resort inventory.

Did all of the other resorts "OK" RCI renting out the exchanges?

 

[Brian Noble]

I would imagine most of them signed RCI's "standard agreement." I'm quite sure Disney didn't---the Mouse had a lot of leverage in this move, and I'm sure they used every last bit of it to the best of their ability.

Remember: there is a lot of money in Disney's rental side of the house---much more so than almost any other RCI developer you could think of, and that includes Wyndham---even Wyndham's top-teir resorts have rack rates about 1/3-1/4 what Disney gets for its set. That rental income is critical to the Parks & Resorts balance sheet at TWDC, and there is no way they'd let the RCI bottom-feeder rates compete.

Edited to add: we'll see what happens going forward. But, as I said, I'm going to be very surprised if it happens. It's also worth noting that other developers have similar relationships with RCI. For example, Ginn has developed several whole-ownership resorts in Florida that use RCI as a marketing channel.

 

[RobDoc]

I am sure they are from Disney's inventory and not DVC inventory. But it is still another level that was not at II. RCI has a history of skimming inventory and renting for themselves. Its only a matter of time before they do the same to DVC, if some of those weeks are not exchanged weeks already.

It is something in the DVC/RCI agreement and the rooms are coming from CRO inventory.

I think it's a huge step to suggest that either DVC or RCI are doing anything improper.

Perhaps it's time to lose the II bias and just see how DVC and RCI work together before making accusations not in evidence. I'm certain that DVC will monitor the situation closely and make any changes deemed necessary.

 

[Melynny]

I checked this on Tuesday, I think because this was the day that RCI had 40% off thier rentals.. Anyway, I noticed that there were 2 RCI resorts listed for each DVC resort with different Pre numbers. Some had a large inventory and others had a small inventory such as when I searched all of Saratoga Springs.. one resort had 134 units and the "other Saratoga Springs" in the same search had 8.

I am thinking that the 134 units was the developer controlled inventory and the 8 were the Owners trade in inventory. Back to the 40% off I found a studio at Vero, Thanksgiving week for just a bit under 700.00.

 

[DianeV]

Supposedly there are a small number of people who have been able to pull up exchanges...not me!

 

[JandD Mom]

What is the RCI rental site? Can you access it if you aren't a member of RCI?

 

[Dean]

Supposedly there are a small number of people who have been able to pull up exchanges...not me!

I've seen many units at all resorts for both the weeks and RCI points side.

 

[Brian Noble]

Me too. You need a very strong trader to see them in Weeks. You need a lot of points to book them in Points.

You cannot access the RCI rental inventory unless you are an individual subscribing member. In the case of DVC, that's no great loss---the prices are at best about 25% below rack.

 

[Melynny]

NONE of my RCI deposits can see the weeks.

 

[JandD Mom]

Hi all,

I do not own any other timeshares so I am not as well versed in the RCI/II intricacies as most of you, but I will tell you my perceptions. Since DVC got into RCI I have been looking extensively at resort offerings for the various places we would want to go.

It appears to me that putting DVC into RCI is like going on a date with someone who is obviously "out of your league" (by that I mean DVC is the "good looking" one).

From everything I have read about the resorts I have researched, I have found few, if any resorts in the RCI system in Aruba, St. Martin, California, Hawaii or other parts of FLA that come even close to DVC in terms of quality.

IMHO, Marriott VC is closer to DVC in quality (some resorts I think are great, some not so good, but in general, the brand is pretty comparable). Marriott, Westin, The Royals, were all available in II. I didn't find 1 resort through RCI in any of the places I mentioned that made me feel confident it was worth trading my DVC time. I am sure there are some great resorts in there, but I don't feel as confident that those resorts are easy to find in the RCI system.

So I will vote with my wallet and not participate in the RCI trades. If I want another resort, I will rent my DVC and take the money and rent exactly what I want.

If others are unhappy with the RCI system, I hope you will join me. If you are happy with the system, by all means, give up your DVC to RCI.

 

[alice99]

I think the cash rooms on the site are CRO controlled units.

What is CRO controlled?

Also - On Tuesday, when that huge amount of rooms showed up on RCI website, my sister and I both did a search for the same week. We each saw available weeks , but different units. I saw AKL , BWV and OKW. My sister saw SSR and the BWV unit.

 

[Cee]

To find something comparable in the RCI inventory, look at the Gold Crown resorts. They are all extremely nice. I own at Palm Beach Shores and that is an all inclusive resort and beautiful.