Pertinent to DVC and non DVC alike though DVC is less variable than most. Look at the locations and the resorts in those locations. Only include the portion for that system in your thinking and decision making process (on the positive side) that you believe you'd be happy with. For example, if one were looking at covering HH, FL Atlantic Coast and Disney and the criteria included on the beach; DVC would not meet all those needs. If the criteria included adequate nearby restaurants and activities, VB might not be acceptable. If you use that criteria in this situation it might be that Marriott is the only acceptable option then one would have to look at both the weeks and points options for Marriott and weight the in/outs, costs, etc. OTOH, Wyndham covers PCB and Destin where little others do well. The PCB Marriott resort is nice but not near the beach and the BG resorts there are not up to my quality standards.
I agree with Dean on Bluegreen and Marriott, although I don't have much info on either system.
I don't think there's any system that fits that need well for a night or 2 that I am aware of. Both BG and Wyndham have coverage in that general area but neither system is good for a night or 2 routinely for high season unless you plan ahead. For BG the min stay is 2 nights (or 1 if you pay for 2) and for Wyndham it's 3 for planning ahead and I believe it's 2 for shorter notice. RCI points will allow a single night but you'd pay an exchange fee and almost always, a housekeeping fee. Marriott Points will do one night subject to availability but the closest options will be Branson, Williamsburg and NJ. For the Beach, you'll have to plan to the further reservation time frame. For BG it's 11 months, For Marriott it's 12-13 months either for points or weeks and for Wyndham it's 10 months (13 if you own at that exact resort).
Agree. With most Wyndham resorts, prime time stays are limited to 3,4, or 7 nights. Other than prime, 2 nights is usually the minimum.
The other issue with Wyndham, at least at some of the older resorts, is you may end up having to change units (or at least have a risk) if you straddle the weekend though you'll know up front. That is less of an issue with BG & Marriott but could still happen.
You might look at the lists and go visit a couple in each system that interest you. Like DVC, renting can be a good way to get a feel.
That could happen with any system, but I know Wyndham does everything they can to avoid moving a guest. It's in the resort's best interest to avoid doing a full cleaning of a villa for nothing. Even when the reservation specifically says there will be a move involved, it seldom happens.
I debated whether to even mention it. The reason I did was that I see Wyndham as an outlier in how that portion works. At least with the resorts that were/are more fixed week oriented, it's very common to have a search turn up a warning that you may have to move units then when you finalize it you have 2 separate reservations (and used more housekeeping credits). With DVC, Marriott or BG you'd have to search separately and know you were looking at likely moving based on the way one had to reserve. I realize that in the end it's really not that different in many situations but it is when looking at long weekend or non conforming reservations like mid week to mid week. We have such a reservation for TX in Dec but even if we don't have to move we still used housekeeping credits for 2 reservations.
