OT: RCI in the Caribbean

[MinnieForMe]

Has anyone used RCI to exchange to an island? Bahamas? Aruba? Etc.? Any suggestions?

 

[swilshire]

Are you a member of the Timeshare Users Group at www.tug2.net ? There are lots of reviews of resorts around the World. I never exchange into anywhere without checking them first. Membership is only around $15 a year. Well worth it to avoid a vacation mistake in my opinion.

Sheila

 

[Kat&Dom]

Has anyone used RCI to exchange to an island? Bahamas? Aruba? Etc.? Any suggestions?

I have exchanged to the Dominican Republic twice through RCI. My best advice when exchanging is to double check the all-inclusive costs. A lot of Caribbean resorts have a mandatory all inclusive cost that might end up costing more than just buying a vacation package. I am not sure if it is such a good deal to exchange with RCI into Mexico and Caribbean because of the mandatory all inclusive charges that so many resorts have. I think that Hawaii is a better option now - seems like way more availability too.

Good luck!

 

[MinnieForMe]

I have exchanged to the Dominican Republic twice through RCI. My best advice when exchanging is to double check the all-inclusive costs. A lot of Caribbean resorts have a mandatory all inclusive cost that might end up costing more than just buying a vacation package. I am not sure if it is such a good deal to exchange with RCI into Mexico and Caribbean because of the mandatory all inclusive charges that so many resorts have. I think that Hawaii is a better option now - seems like way more availability too.

Good luck!

Thank you! Our dream trip is Hawaii. Is there any place you can recommend?

 

[Kat&Dom]

Thank you! Our dream trip is Hawaii. Is there any place you can recommend?

We stayed at the Wyndham Royal Sea Cliff in April on the Big Island - it was beautiful and the people were wonderful. The concierge lent us everything we needed for the week to use at the beach so we did not have to buy anything. We got a beach umbrella, lawn chairs, surf board, noodles and beach mats from him.

If Hawaii is your dream - try to get into Maui first, Kauai second, Big Island third then Oahu. I have been to all 4 islands and Maui, Kauai and Big Island are more natural - Oahu is very commerical with lots of hotels and restaurants.

When I was booking, there was a lot of availability with Wyndham resorts - they have resorts on all 4 islands! We found flights and car rentals were quite reasonable too. Good luck with your booking!

 

[MinnieForMe]

We are Wyndham owners so I was pleasantly surprised to see a few choices available for February and April. I'm pretty clueless about Hawaii so I'll have to start researching. I do know that we will have to find a way to get to Pearl Harbor too!

The units available were in Kona. Is that someplace we would not want to stay? We don't like big cities and would prefer to sightsee (nature) and hang out on the beaches.

 

[Kat&Dom]

We are Wyndham owners so I was pleasantly surprised to see a few choices available for February and April. I'm pretty clueless about Hawaii so I'll have to start researching. I do know that we will have to find a way to get to Pearl Harbor too!

The units available were in Kona. Is that someplace we would not want to stay? We don't like big cities and would prefer to sightsee (nature) and hang out on the beaches.

Wyndham Royal Sea Cliff is in Kona on the Big Island. We had an awesome time, there was a sheltered beach just down the road 10 minutes that had giant sea turtles that we were able to snorkel with - an amazing experience.

We also drove over to Hilo which was beautiful - we had lunch at this restaurant called "The Pond" which is built over a pond so my son was able to feed about 50 colorful fish while waiting for our food.

The Big Island also has the volcano parks which are amazing to see.

The only thing with the Big Island is that you don't get a lot of clear sunny days because of the VOG - smog from the Volcano - it means that you don't burn as quickly but also don't get all the sunshine that you associate Hawaii with. We had about 3 days of clear blue sky with sunshine and 4 days of VOG. The days of VOG were warm and beautiful too - you just didn't see any blue sky.

We had a 2 bedroom unit at Wyndham Royal Sea Cliff with a full kitchen and laundry - it was great. We picked up groceries at Costco and were able to make a lot of meals at the condo. The staff are exceptional at Sea Cliff and go out of their way to make sure that you are enjoying your stay.

I believe that the other Wyndham resort in Kona is a Gold Crown and the RCI agent recommended it to us but I liked the look of the Sea Cliff and was very happy with my choice.

 

[Kat&Dom]

We are Wyndham owners so I was pleasantly surprised to see a few choices available for February and April. I'm pretty clueless about Hawaii so I'll have to start researching. I do know that we will have to find a way to get to Pearl Harbor too!

The units available were in Kona. Is that someplace we would not want to stay? We don't like big cities and would prefer to sightsee (nature) and hang out on the beaches.

If you are wanting to see Pearl Harbour - it is a quick and easy trip on an inter-island flights. We were in a 9 seater plane - it was incredible to look down and see the waves cresting below. Or you could fly into Oahu and stay in a hotel for a couple of days, then fly over to Kona for a stay there.

In April, we stayed one week in Kona at the Royal Sea Cliff then flew over to Maui for 4 days - our flights costs from Canada (Calgary to Kona, Kona to Maui, Maui to Calgary) were $634 with all the taxes. I just booked one way for each leg.

 

[MinnieForMe]

Well, our dream trip will have to wait a few more years for me to save the airfare. Can you believe airfare from Boston was $1700-2100 per person? My husband nearly fell over when I told him 8-10K for our family to fly to Hawaii. We either need to save or lose a few kids. LOL.

Any other travel ideas? We may be heading back to Orlando yet again because Disney is such a cheap vacation.

 

[Kat&Dom]

Well, our dream trip will have to wait a few more years for me to save the airfare. Can you believe airfare from Boston was $1700-2100 per person? My husband nearly fell over when I told him 8-10K for our family to fly to Hawaii. We either need to save or lose a few kids. LOL.

Any other travel ideas? We may be heading back to Orlando yet again because Disney is such a cheap vacation.

I love Disney as a cheap vacation too. It is fun and such a great family destination.

When I looked at hotwire.com for flights from Boston to Kona in February - United was $952 with all the taxes included. When I first started looking at flights from Calgary - orginally it was running at $1,200 and I ended up getting it for $634. Keep looking, just in case - maybe your dream vacation is closer than you think. It is crazy how flights bounce around so much.

I was so excited for our November vacation to Disney - we got our flights from Calgary to Orlando for $345 including all taxes - I have never gotten that good of a deal before. 2 days later, the same flight was $756 - crazy. Just shows, you have to keep watching all the time.

Good luck on your search to find a great vacation destination.

 

[MinnieForMe]

Thanks. I'll keep my eyes on the flights!