Marriott timeshare in Orlando?

[HM]

We're considering buying a timeshare at the Marriott Grande Vista in Orlando. Does anyone here own a Marriott timeshare? It sounds like a good deal, but I'm investigating thoroughly before we take the plunge.

Positives (or my just-started-considering-this version of the positives):
Stay in a great 2-bedroom condos for the price of a value/moderate hotel.
Can "trade" our Orlando week for a week at 250+ resorts worldwide for a $79 fee.
If we get a 2-bedroom lock-out, we can "split" the week into two weeks in a 1-bedroom (useful for after the kids are out of the house and we don't need 2 bedrooms).
Can rent /gift the week to someone else if we can't use it.
Can leave the timeshare to our children in our will; they can continue to take inexpensive vacations as long as they pay the yearly fee.

Negatives:
Initial cost is high (but we wouldn't have to finance it).
If we don't plan to vacation one year (which could happen once we're older -- sickness, etc) we'd still have to pay the maintenance fee /taxes.
Can't justify staying on Disney property any longer
Maid service costs extra.

I'd be interested in hearing stories about time share experiences -- Marriott or other -- positive or negative. We're not considering Disney Vacation Club because Marriott has more choices worldwide.

We own a Marriott Timeshare in Hilton Head Island. We love it. Haven't traded yet, but have used the Interval International Getaways at other places (don't have to trade to get those weeks). We didn't finance ours through Marriott, though we did buy it through them. The incentives to buy were a week anywhere in the world, flights for two to anywhere and a rental car. We used the incentives to go to London a couple years ago staying at a Renaissance in central London AND we were able to fly our family of four on the airline miles they gave us! Well worth paying a bit extra through them.

You can make your reservations at the 365 day mark. We have to do this for our timeshare each year, because the times we can use it are high demand (floating in sports season--GOLD).

I think your PROS outwiegh your CONS and you should do it!

 

[MrsPete]

We own a Marriott Timeshare in Hilton Head Island.

I see that Marriott has about six different resorts in Hilton Head. Do you have any comment about this one vs. that one?

The incentives to buy were a week anywhere in the world, flights for two to anywhere and a rental car. We used the incentives to go to London

That sounds great.

We have to do this for our timeshare each year, because the times we can use it are high demand (floating in sports season--GOLD).

Our salesperson didn't say a word about "seasons", and I'm in the dark here -- gold and platinum? Platinum covers the more desirable weeks, right? What if we someday want to travel during Gold season? Would it be smart to buy the "high demand" season, knowing that we'd sometimes "trade down" for the lower "gold" season? Why do I sometimes see the term Red?

I think your PROS outwiegh your CONS and you should do it!

I think you're right. I just want to make sure I know everything before we take the plunge!

 

[PrincessDadx2]

MRSPete,

Some more info.

1. One of the benefits of a lockout is that you can trade into a resort that has only 2br units. If the week is available you will get the trade even though it is an upgrade for you. There are still some trade restrictions, but this is how we have been getting great weeks in Orlando. There is usually always something to trade up into because of the supply. One caution, Interval won't let you trade to another companies timeshare in the same market. If you buy Marriott in Orlando they will not allow you to trade into DVC. They will allow you to trade other Marriotts into DVC. That is how we got OKW with our Williamsburg lockout.

2. If you are on the school schedule then definitely only get a Platinum season. That will give you the best options for school vacation weeks, which are relatively harder to reserve and trade for because they are more highly demanded. It will also help you in trading to other Marriott properties because they tend to value platinum weeks in a similar way.

3. You pay property tax with your maintenance fee and it is deductible on your Schedule A for taxes. Marriott has had some special assessments to bring some of the properties that they did not build up to Marriott standard. Usually they charge higher maintenance fees and have a higher reserve so that they do not have to have a special assessment. It can happen though if there is a large uninsured loss or something like that.

4. Definitely check out the Marriott board on www.tug2.net (tugbbs.com). It is the DIS of the timeshare world. If you are buying resale remember that asking price is exactly that. Many people still have overly optimistic opinions about what they can sell their timeshare for. If you are patient and make many offers you should be able to get a good deal. If you are interested in Grande Vista consider looking at the 3br lockouts. You might find the extra cost is not too much for the flexibility and ability to have a large family vacation at some point.

 

[MrsPete]

MRSPete, Some more info

Thanks! I am starting to feel that I understand these concepts.

 

[HM]

MrsPete-
We own at the Grand Ocean in Hilton Head. We own what was called the Sports season which covers March thru early June or Sept/Oct dates usually. We usually go in the last weeks of May or early June.

My parents own at the Harbour Club in Sea Pines. They also own Sports season. So we've stayed at their place as well.

We've done the preview of Barony Beach and in May took a look around the new resort they are building, Sea Watch.

I've also visited and seen the Monarch rooms and grounds.

Depending on your needs, I'm sure you'll find one that you'll like. However, none of them are lockouts. They are all two bedroom units except the Seawatch that is selling some three bedroom units.

We chose to do Grand Ocean, because of the location right on the beach and the access to the middle of the island. I've visited HHI since I was a child, before it was a tourist destination and it is our favorite place to vacation. And the 5+ hour drive from NC is much better than the 10 it takes us to Orlando.

HHI is a high demand area. We tried to trade/rent a Grand Ocean unit in the summer once and couldn't do it. Other times of year are easier. We often visit at Christmas (my folks own at Players Club with two Christmas weeks....this timeshare was one of the first ever built on the island and they've owned it forever).

Do you have any specific questions that I could try to answer? -HM

 

[MrsPete]

Depending on your needs, I'm sure you'll find one that you'll like. However, none of them are lockouts.

Sounds like you're well versed in all things Hilton Head! We're planning to buy in Florida now, and we're talking about adding a Hilton Head time share in a couple years (we're also in NC, so HH is close for us). We're really sold on the lock-out idea though.

HHI is a high demand area. We tried to trade/rent a Grand Ocean unit in the summer once and couldn't do it. Other times of year are easier.

I'm not clear: Do you mean that you couldn't GET a Grand Ocean unit in the summer BEFORE you were an owner? Or do you mean that once you became an owner you couldn't get a summer date? Sorry -- I know I'm being dense, but I'm still new to this.

 

[HM]

I'm not clear: Do you mean that you couldn't GET a Grand Ocean unit in the summer BEFORE you were an owner? Or do you mean that once you became an owner you couldn't get a summer date? Sorry -- I know I'm being dense, but I'm still new to this.

One year I had won a trip to WDW and the only time we could do the trip (without taking the kids out of school) was during our usual HHI timeshare vacation week. So we thought we'd try trading and going during the summer. We aren't eligible to choose summer months (Platinum) with our (Gold/Sports) season, so we thought we might trade or rent a week at the Grand Ocean instead. Every week was unavailable to trade or rent. We ended up with a Spring Break trip instead of our usual late May dates.
Am I making sense?

You'll find some rentals on TUG sometimes...but are usually a lot more than we'd be willing to pay.

 

[MrsPete]

One year I had won a trip to WDW and the only time we could do the trip (without taking the kids out of school) was during our usual HHI timeshare vacation week. So we thought we'd try trading and going during the summer. We aren't eligible to choose summer months (Platinum) with our (Gold/Sports) season, so we thought we might trade or rent a week at the Grand Ocean instead. Every week was unavailable to trade or rent. We ended up with a Spring Break trip instead of our usual late May dates.
Am I making sense?

You'll find some rentals on TUG sometimes...but are usually a lot more than we'd be willing to pay.

So you normally have no problems -- that one time was just difficult because you were trying to go from Gold season to summer? But if you'd been trading within "your own season" you'd have had no trouble?

Lucky you, winning a WDW trip!

 

[ckoncurat]

We are not owners, but we have stayed at the Marriott Cyprus Harbour in Orlando, Fords Colony in Williamsburg VA and just got back from Summit Watch in Park City Utah. All three were lovely, rooms are huge and grounds are spotless. In VA they told us that the orlando units are harder to trade because they are so plentiful. I DO like staying on disney property, however.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

It depends on your travel needs. If you can travel in September and January (for example) when the kids are in school, you're absolutely right that you can rent in Orlando for less than the maintenance fees on a timeshare. If you're locked into school schedules, however, it's a different story.

My Orlando weeks do have higher maintenance fees than the others, but if you want to go there for Christmas/New Years or spring break, the convenience of knowing the week is always there for you is well worth it.

It depends which vacation week you are talking about. Most school systems fluctuate vacation weeks from year to year. While the Christmas break is fairly consistent, even that vacation can fluctuate, and what happens when the kids are done with school? Then you are still locked in to the same week - the busiest one of the year.

For us, we like the idea of staying at new places, and the rates we have gotten have been better than the timeshare deals we've seen. Those maintenance fees are expensive, and they will go up! With a timeshare...going at a certain time becomes an obligation - something you have to do - and that changes EVERYTHING!
Try a little experiment with your kids (or spouse) sometime....First offer them a choice of chores and see how they respond. The next day, tell them they HAVE to do the same task. I almost guarantee that because they are told that they HAVE to do it, they will resist in some way. It is human nature.

 

[HM]

So you normally have no problems -- that one time was just difficult because you were trying to go from Gold season to summer? But if you'd been trading within "your own season" you'd have had no trouble?

Lucky you, winning a WDW trip!

Yes, it was very lucky!

Reserving in our own season hasn't been a problem except for one year...and I never did find out what the trouble was (I think the online reservation window opened up before the phone banks did). We have always been able to get the week we want within our season otherwise.
-HM

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Mousesavers.com justs added some great tips about buying Disney timeshares in particular, but it has some good reminders. One of the mostimportant thins to know is that when you buy a timeshare you are NOT buying real estate! That means you don't really own anything, and at least with Disney, you don't even own the right forever.

Be certain to read the fine print, and I'd even consult a legal expert personally.

 

[MrsPete]

Mousesavers.com justs added some great tips about buying Disney timeshares in particular, but it has some good reminders. One of the mostimportant thins to know is that when you buy a timeshare you are NOT buying real estate! That means you don't really own anything, and at least with Disney, you don't even own the right forever.

Be certain to read the fine print, and I'd even consult a legal expert personally.

I'll go read that -- Mousesavers is always good stuff.

Whether you own it forever depends upon whether you choose a timeshare that is deeded or simply has "right to use". With a deeded timeshare, it is indeed your "forever"; you can even will it to your children. I think Disney is the "right to use" type, but I could be wrong about that.