Point me in the right direction for DVC member doing RCI Exchange

[disneyberry]

Hey everyone ^^ It's been another long time away from the DISboards.

My husband and I deposited some points for exchange with RCI a while back. We put 160 points in I think, for a 1 bedroom, but it was last year so I think we're a bit behind as far as planning a trip.

Can someone (maybe Dean? If he still frequents the DIS) help point me in the right direction as far as researching which RCI resorts are nice options?

I'm at a complete loss. I vaguely remember that DVC members only have a limited selection of RCI resorts to choose from.

We still don't have kids (been trying ; ; ) so at least we're still very mobile and flexible as far as traveling goes. ^^;

Any advice/suggestions and links would be appreciated. TIA!

 

[WilsonFlyer]

That brings up an interesting question, at least to me. What happens to points deposited with II once the switch to RCI happened?

Hmmm... I would assume those points stayed with II and that reservations can still be made. Sure seems like a long time ago that we switched back to RCI but maybe it's just me.

Will be interesting to see the feedback in this thread to this question.

 

[disneyberry]

Oh wait... what date was the switch to RCI? Maybe what I deposited into was RCI haha. It was around this time last year that I asked MS to do it.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

I just looked on the member site and it looks like we went to RCI in January of '09. Guess that makes this question even better because I thought deposits were good for 24 months but granted, I know NOTHING about "trading out".

(Edit: Posted before I saw disneyberry's post above mine.)

 

[disneyberry]

Okay yes, it's RCI. I just double checked my Vacation Details section on dvcmember.com.

Good thing you posted that, otherwise I would've made a VERY confusing thread. I edited the subject and original post now.

Still looking for advice, links, info, etc! ^^

 

[Dean]

Your deposit will likely expire the end of Dec, 2013 if I'm understanding correctly. That means you'll have another 2.5 years to reserve AND travel IIRC for the deposit first rules. You'll only be able to search for 1 BR units. I'd suggest you formulate a location or locations, investigate resorts and start an ongoing search. Double check your latest travel date but my recollection is Dec 2 years out.

 

[dzorn]

Your deposit will likely expire the end of Dec, 2013 if I'm understanding correctly. That means you'll have another 2.5 years to reserve AND travel IIRC for the deposit first rules. You'll only be able to search for 1 BR units. I'd suggest you formulate a location or locations, investigate resorts and start an ongoing search. Double check your latest travel date but my recollection is Dec 2 years out.

Dean if she did the deposit last year would she only have till the end of 2012 or is a deposit good for more than 2 years.

You can go through the RCI link on the members site to look at different resorts.

Denise in MI

 

[Dean]

Dean if she did the deposit last year would she only have till the end of 2012 or is a deposit good for more than 2 years.

You can go through the RCI link on the members site to look at different resorts.

Denise in MI

I don't have my notes but I'm thinking it's the end of Dec 2 years out from deposit with RCI, it was simply 2 years with II. To answer the question posted above, deposit with II were cut off at less than 2 years in some cases.

 

[Dean]

I don't have my notes but I'm thinking it's the end of Dec 2 years out from deposit with RCI, it was simply 2 years with II. To answer the question posted above, deposit with II were cut off at less than 2 years in some cases.

Back home from AK now. Reviewing the info it says under deposit first "no later than the end of second calendar year after the date of the deposited Vacation Time". It actually states the request must occur by that time, not the travel much be completed but knowing the other rules with RCI, I can't imagine they'd let the argument stand of placing the request for a future travel time. Thus I interpret this pertinent to the OP as the travel having to be completed by the end of 2013.

 

[disneyberry]

Thanks for the replies. ^^

So in addition to the link on the DVC members website, are there any other sites I can go to to research my options?

A forums like the DIS perhaps? That specializes in RCI resorts planning and reviews?

We're really flexible about where/when to go and what type of vacation to take, so I guess I wanna try to get the most bang for my buck if you know what I mean. This would mean trying to book the most highly recommended/rated resort among the RCI options DVC members have.

I just don't know where the best place is to go looking for reliable recommendations and ratings. With Disney it's easy: The DIS. With cruises it's easy: Cruisecritic. Everything else... I'm clueless haha.

 

[chalee94]

A forums like the DIS perhaps? That specializes in RCI resorts planning and reviews?

TUG.

http://tugbbs.com/forums/

the forums are free. reading the reviews requires an annual $15 membership fee, though...

 

[beachcomber]

What great timing to run across this thread! I've just been looking at the resorts, too, and trying to figure out exactly how this part works. We've always just used the points at WDW, and I "think" I'm ready to branch out!

 

[disneyberry]

Oh right, TUG. I'd forgotten about that site.

I only remembered that there was a lot of DVC bashing there...

 

[chalee94]

What great timing to run across this thread! I've just been looking at the resorts, too, and trying to figure out exactly how this part works. We've always just used the points at WDW, and I "think" I'm ready to branch out!

just be aware that it is usually not a good deal...you will typically be better off renting your DVC pts and paying cash for whichever resort you prefer...

more info about DVC/RCI options is in this thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2724741

I only remembered that there was a lot of DVC bashing there...

DVC is a very expensive timeshare that has value for people willing to pay extra to stay in the onsite bubble (part of the reason it's a poor deal financially to trade out through RCI). most TUG people aren't willing to pay extra. just don't mention "pixie dust" and you'll be fine...

 

[Dean]

Thanks for the replies. ^^

So in addition to the link on the DVC members website, are there any other sites I can go to to research my options?

A forums like the DIS perhaps? That specializes in RCI resorts planning and reviews?

We're really flexible about where/when to go and what type of vacation to take, so I guess I wanna try to get the most bang for my buck if you know what I mean. This would mean trying to book the most highly recommended/rated resort among the RCI options DVC members have.

I just don't know where the best place is to go looking for reliable recommendations and ratings. With Disney it's easy: The DIS. With cruises it's easy: Cruisecritic. Everything else... I'm clueless haha.

I second TUG as well as Timeshare Forums. For those more interested in other timeshares, I'd also consider Timesharing Today though it's cost is too much for the casual situation and you can't get much out of it without paying to join, unlike the other 2 mentioned. I am more familiar with TUG and would recommend anyone trying to research timeshares for exchange to consider joining, the minimal cost is worth it just for a single trip. I would steer people away from tripadvisors as a good source of into for Timeshares. Any reg timeshare site will have a certain amount of anti DVC sentiment, much of it deserved but some not. DVC is by nature a specialty option and much of the negative posts in the area of exchanges are well deserved.

Also, once you have any names of resorts in mind, there are a number of places to go to including webpages for a given resort or system, many email lists, etc.

What great timing to run across this thread! I've just been looking at the resorts, too, and trying to figure out exactly how this part works. We've always just used the points at WDW, and I "think" I'm ready to branch out!

It's not a good choice to buy DVC points to exchange for a number of reasons but if one has the points and decide they want to exchange, there's no reason not to at least give it a try. Always compare to what you could get the same or a similar thing for using cash or other means. There are maybe 50-60 resorts on the DVC list that are a good value IF you can get them, but even then, some are only reasonable for higher demand times. Basically do your investigation, plan ahead (at least a full year if possible) and put in an ongoing request. Don't let the upfront free deter you, may as well not even try if it does.

 

[disneyberry]

Just a followup from me regarding why I exchanged points into RCI.

I used to rent and transfer DVC points out here years ago (even wrote a guide that is still in my sig but prolly outdated) when I had extra points that my husband and I couldn't use. It got to be more and more of a pain because people expect you to be a full service travel agent, and on top of that it became very restrictive as far as advertising here goes.

So last year we had a lot of banked points expiring and we didn't want to let them go to waste so we put them into RCI for the time being, knowing that it would give us 2 years+ to use up the exchange.

Really it was a last resort option for us. Yes, I could've rented the DVC points out but it just wasn't worth the effort for me.

I still didn't sign up for a forums account on the TUG. It's a bit intimidating being a newb, so I'm just lurking for now. Does anyone know if the RCI Gold and Silver Crown awards actually mean the resorts are higher quality? Or are those awards as meaningless as hotel star levels?

 

[Dean]

Does anyone know if the RCI Gold and Silver Crown awards actually mean the resorts are higher quality? Or are those awards as meaningless as hotel star levels?

Somewhere in between. They are certainly not enough of an indication to use to make any decisions and many of the lower rated options are actually quite decent. Sometimes RCI is vindictive and downgrades for other reasons than true rating and sometimes there are options that may not meet all technical requirements for a level, which are quite specific and stringent. I think the ratings and reviews on TUG are far more helpful than RCI's or II's internal designations.