Has anyone won Vistana on Skyauction?

[tcycmc]

I am considering bidding on this resort on skyauction but I am afraid that I may get booked in the older section of Vistana. has anyone had any experience with this. Or has anyone had any experience in the older section of Vistana?

 

[snoopy]

We won a skyauction for Vistana. I requested the Cascades or Lakes section and was accomodated in Lakes. Be sure to sign up for Vistana's Diamond Lane so you can make the request ahead of time (although beware that RCI doesn't give your ressie over to Vistana until a few days before arrival..... if you can remember to sign up for the Diamond Lane the day before you leave, you should get your request granted).

 

[tcycmc]

Thanks for the information. How do I sign up for the Diamond Lane?

 

[snoopy]

Go here to Vistana's website and click on Diamond Lane, it will walk you through the process:

http://www.starwoodvo.com/resorts/welcome.jsp?resortID=5

 

[LauraR]

Snoopy, your garden is gorgeous! Do you mind my asking what you paid for Vistana on Skyauction?

 

[w770496]

I just received an invitation for four nights at Sheraton Vistana Resort for $219 less $100 gift for use at WDW.

I don't see any mention of sitting through a presentation. Is this too good to be true? Any comments would be appreciated!

 

[snoopy]

Laura, we paid $269 to stay at Vistana for a week. We got very lucky though -- they screwed up the Ready, Set Go auction I won (they booked me for Silver Lake Resort and then someone at their office forgot to let Silver Lake know! ). So they were forced to give me the only thing they had for that week, the Vistana. Ordinarily the Vistana Resort 2-bedrooms usually go for quite a bit more, closer to $600 per week. Still a great deal - the villa is lovely, so spacious and convenient.

 

[snoopy]

w770496 - I haven't seen this promotion, but I'm betting the $100 "gift" is after you sit through a presentation.

With skyauction, you are NOT required to do a timeshare presentation. They will call you and try to get you to do it, we just didn't answer the phone.

 

[iluvflorida]

Hi. Booked and stayed at Vistana 2 weeks (not in a row) in Feb of this year through skyauction. First week had unit in Lakes section that had just been redone and was great. 2nd week in Fountains section that was in need of reno and found out it is slated for this year. It was not all that bad in our standards but from other comments some would not have liked. Paid $545 one week and $611 for other both 2BR. Loved the resort (first time stay)

 

[ushkina]

I just won Vistana Villages through skyaution, but they haven't confirmed my dates yet.. Could anybody tell me please how this voucher system works? Is the housekeeping included in the price?

 

[Jamieb]

No, housekeeping is not included in the price when winning on Skyauction. You have more or less bought an RCI exchange for the week you will be going.

If you won a pay per night auction then it may be included. The only auctions I have seen for Villages are RCI weeks.

Also note, Vistana Resort and Vistana Villages are not the same resort.

 

[ushkina]

Jamieb, thanks. What's the right place to read a bit more about RCI exchanges ( I am not familiar with timeshare terms etc..). Are there any extra fees associated with RCI? Is Florida tax (11%) included in the price? Thanks!
The auction was for Vistana VIllages.

 

[Jamieb]

The fee you pay to SkyAuction should be all you pay, which will be $195 + $15 + Your Bid. You will not pay any more unless you want other options. Last year we stayed at Vacation Village at Parkway through SkyAuction and there was a $10 fee to use the safe.

If you really want to you can check out www.rci.com but as your not an owner at and RCI exchange property you may not find too much info.

When you buy a timeshare you have the ability to trade to other resorts around the world. Some people exchange quite often some people always like thier home resort. RCI is not the only exchange program but they everything you see on SkyAuction for a timeshare resort is RCI as far as I have seen.

When you finalize your booking with SkyAuction you will get an email with the RCI exchange certificate in the email. You will then print it out and take it to the resort when you check in. There are usually 3-4 pages but some people only able to see the first page, but that is the most impartant one as it will list your resort and date of arrival as well as unit description.

One thing to note, since it is an exchange you are not required to do any timeshare presentation, unless the auction states it is a timeshare promotion. So when checking in you may be asked to attend a free breakfast or something of that nature, you have the right to decline since it is an exchange. Some resorts will not bother asking since it is an exchange but some may try to get you to attend.

 

[ttfn3]

I just wanted to share this tip with this board. We have just won our first Skyauction that we will use this summer. Our win was for the Hilton Grand Vacation Club for a 2 BR. We had a first and second choice of checkin date (just a day apart) and Skyauction was unable to secure that week (tho. it was listed on the dates of the auction). I asked them if there were any other 2 BR units available at the Vistana Villages or Vistana Resort for those dates. Skyauction found units at Vistana Resort and I was able to book that resort for the same price that I paid for the HGVC auction. I was quite pleased especially since I paid less than what the Vistana Resort auctions were going for. It may not work in the future. But give it a try if they can't book your dates at your winning resort.

We stayed at the Vistana Resort in 2000. I'm looking forward to going back. Luckily I saved my maps/info from our last trip. We stayed in the Springs section. The only drawback was we were right by 535 so the traffic noise was a bit of a problem. Any suggestions for which section I should request for a quiet location near a good pool for young children? Thanks!

 

[snoopy]

We liked the Lakes section - it was so quiet and serene in our villa overlooking the lake. The Lakes pool is zero entry -- perfect for families with toddlers or non swimmers.

 

[ushkina]

Jamieb, thanks a lot for the info! ttfn3, thanks! - I will keep this tip in mind if I don't get confirmation for my dates.
I have one more silly question - will they provide bedsheets for the bedroom only, or also for the sleeper sofa in the living room (where one of us will be sleeping)?
Thanks!

 

[26555]

Any tips on navigating the Skyauction site? So many options include airfare which I am not interested in but I don't know how to filter them out. Can you reserve a week but only use 5 days? Thanks.

 

[Jamieb]

Ushkina,

There will be bedsheets for the pull out. The one time we used it, the sheets were in a closet along with a couple of extra pillows. If there are none in the unit when you get there, make sure to call housekeeping to get a set but they will supply them for you.

26555,

On the skyauction site, if you want Florida hotels only, first click on the USA link on the main page, then on the right you will see different areas/states, from there select Florida. Lower on the next page, on the right, there is a place to select hotel only, once you do that all you will have is hotel/condo listings.

 

[ushkina]

Thanks! Good to know I don't have to bring extra bedsheets,