dvc versus other timeshares

[ksheppard]

In my opinion, for folks who live in the eastern US, a Wyndham timeshare deed---purchased resale at a resort with an owner-controlled board and reasonable fees---is one of the very best bargains in timeshare.

Wyndham's system is quite extensive, with some very nice resorts at good to great locations. The units are not ultra-luxurious in the way that a Hilton or some of the better Marriotts might be, but they are well-equipped, very comfortable, and tend to carry lower annual fees than resorts in those systems do, as well. Wyndham is a system that you would buy to use, not buy to trade---the better inventory is kept for owners, rather than given to exchange companies, and as a result trade power is mediocre at best. But, when used internally, the system delivers solid value. There are a number of nuisance fees, but with a modest amount of planning, those are easy to avoid. And, if you pay one here or there, it's still no great hardship, as the overall ownership costs are still very modest.

It's worth looking at their directory---ignore the Affiliate resorts, as they have little actual inventory---to see if the locations/resorts are of interest.

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/wyndham/memberdirectory0910/


The other main players in the "mini-system" game are Bluegreen and Worldmark. Worldmark seems to concentrate more in the western US. Bluegreen has a nice portfolio as well, with a few locations that the others don't serve. As I mentioned, we just got back from Mountain Run, a Bluegreen resort, and I really liked it. Maureen thought the unit itself was a small notch below most of the Wyndhams we've visited, but this is a minor quibble. It was reasonably well-equpped, well-maintained, and the resort staff was very service-oriented.

We are from Montreal, Canada, so in essence , there is no resort in particular that we will be visiting on a regular basis. Yes, we want to go to and visit different parts of the states but we would actually like to trade for Caribbean, Mexico and Europe destinations.

Do you have any suggestions of which companie might be good for us

 

[JimC]

Own MVCI (Marriott) as well. Use that for non-Disney holidays. DVC is expensive and the value for us is as an on-site timeshare that costs less then a deluxe resort and VB for a beach resort week that is about 90 minutes from our home.

Marriott provides a consistently good product and service. They do not have the great story-telling or themed resort of a Disney; but those are the hallmarks of Disney. Each has program specific advantages and disadvantages, but overall I consider them comparable quality.

 

[Brian Noble]

we would actually like to trade for Caribbean, Mexico and Europe destinations.

For these, I'd really recommend spending a good chunk of time at tugbbs.com or timeshareforums.com, learning all you can. I'm not sure a single system would cover all of them, so I'd either want a high-quality fixed week plus a sound knowledge of the independent exchange companies, or perhaps RCI Points. The Caribbean can be hard with either RCI or II without the right underlying week, and I have very little experience exchanging for Europe.

 

[Dean]

We are from Montreal, Canada, so in essence , there is no resort in particular that we will be visiting on a regular basis. Yes, we want to go to and visit different parts of the states but we would actually like to trade for Caribbean, Mexico and Europe destinations.

Do you have any suggestions of which companie might be good for us

I agree with Brian, spend some time learning and TUG is a great option. You might look at Diamond resorts which has a lot of European options. You might look at Club Intrawest which has resorts in HI, FL, Canada, etc.

As I tried to indicate, there is so much more than just where you want to go including when you can travel, unit size, how well you can go short notice, your gambling mentality, etc. IF you want full weeks and can stomach the costs Marriott may indeed be the best option. Happy learning.

 

[ksheppard]

Thank you so much all for all of your very pertinent information and opinions. I will continue to read up on all of the different options.

 

[crisi]

And you can always skip the timeshare idea and pay cash. That way you aren't committed to ownership.

As several posters mentioned, being a timeshare owner seriously is a hobby activity to get the most out of it. Decide if you are the timeshare type. DVC seems to me to be pretty much a dilettante sort of system for Disney fans, fairly easy to use and manage. When you want to start trading and working a system, you are going to have to know what you are doing.