Questions on trading

[eva]

Hopefully those of you that have traded into II can answer a few questions that I have. We have some points that we have already banked into 2003 and will have to be used next year. We are not planning to go to WDW next year. My husband has a conference in Denver for June 2003 and we are thinking about trading into II for a Colorado trip next year. Here are a few questions that I have:
1. Do you have to trade for an entire week?
2. Once you call to see what is available are your points automatically committed? So if they can't find one of the 3 locations during the timeframe that you requested are you stuck?
3. Can you use banked and borrowed points for trading?
4. How far in advance can you start looking?
5. What if the resort that you are looking at have 2 types of 1-bedrooms? Can you request which type of 1-bedroom you want?
6. Can you find out how many points it will cost you before you commit them?
7. What type of experiences have you had with doing this sort of thing?
Thanks for the help!

 

[Dean]

1. Do you have to trade for an entire week?

Yes but you don't have to use the whole week. You can do less than a week through the CC but I don't think there's anything near Denver. I'm not sure how far Keystone is from Denver but Colorado Springs is likely the closest option for you (Broadmore) maybe slightly over an hour. Most resort locations will be between 1.5 and 2.5 hours from Denver other than Durango and Telluride.

2. Once you call to see what is available are your points automatically committed? So if they can't find one of the 3 locations during the timeframe that you requested are you stuck?

No, you only lose your points once you ACCEPT an exchange.

3. Can you use banked and borrowed points for trading?

Yes as long as you could use them to make a reservation considering availability and home resort priority.

4. How far in advance can you start looking?

Two years, and I'd recommend starting a least a year out. Now for CO summer, you might do ok regardless. There are a lot of great resorts in CO and I'd think summer would be not that difficult to get trading DVC.

5. What if the resort that you are looking at have 2 types of 1-bedrooms? Can you request which type of 1-bedroom you want?

Not through II unless there is a different sleeping capacity or kitchen set up. Say you are exchanging a DVC 1 BR full kitchen sleeps 4. You could set the search up to exclude limited kitchen/no kitchen or sleep 2 units. You could not set it up to give you sleep 6 units without searching with a 2 BR. You might still get the larger 1 BR but can't set it up that way. Exmample: Marriott's Mountian Valley Lodge only has studios and 1 BR units. The 1 BR sleep 6 thus if you say "will not accept a smaller unit" you get a slightly larger unit or nothing. There are only a couple on the DVC list that has 2 sizes of 1 BR units at least in terms of official size like sleeping arrangements, kitchen and baths.

6. Can you find out how many points it will cost you before you commit them?

Yes, for that time I'd think it would be OKW or possibly HH adventure for the size unit you're requesting. MS should be able to tell you further but you must ask the right way. THEY WILL NOT COMMIT TO YOU HOW MANY POINTS simply because there are variables like what unit is available to give up or what can you deposit based on when and how many points you have available. Ask them what minimum SEASON is required to give up.

7. What type of experiences have you had with doing this sort of thing?

I haven't traded my DVC but have done a couple of searches. I have a fair amount of II trading experience outside of DVC.

There are a fair amount of units just sitting there for June or August this year nothing good yet for next year. That means that the chances of getting something is good. If you only want 3-4 days, especialy if you don't need the weekend, I'd look at CC or cash. If you can do with a studio, a trade may be your best option. If you want to pursue a trade, I'd be happy to lend help with resort selection and look on II's Website to see what's available. There's also a couple of newer resorts that might be added to the DVC list that are not in the book like the Sheraton and newer Hyatt. Good luck.

 

[ColoradoDisneyFan]

I can give you some help with choosing a location in Colorado! Keystone and Breckenridge are both around an hour and 15 min from Denver. Beaver Creek is an hour and 40 min. These are all great locations. What time of June are you going? Of course the Broadmoor is fab and there is alot to do in the Colorado Springs area too. But Keystone would be a great deal points-wise compared to the Broadmoor. Let me know if you need more details.

 

[downontheBW]

Eva,

You've already received some good information but I'll add just a few more points. I've looked into trading for Colorado a bit. I've found some decent prices on hotels so haven't found it advantageous to use points for a Colorado trade. But if you have points you won't use at DVC, that's different.

As Dean said you can use points for the CC and stay as many nights as you want. But if you want to trade for II properties, yes you do trade an entire week. According to the II site, June is high season (II red season) in Colorado so I believe you'll need to exchange one week's worth of DVC Dream or Magic season points. Someone else can correct me if I'm wrong.

I'd recommend talking with MS to find out what accommodations (studio/1BR/2BR) are available at each of the CO properties and they can also give you an estimate of the number of points it will cost. You can give MS as many locations as you want (I think), I've had a search in for as many as 6 locations at once. The exchange policy is flexible in that you can put in a search and MS will call you when they find a match and you'll have a day to decide if you want to do the trade; you aren't automatically committed and won't lose your points. If you've never looked into this before, it's a good idea to get the details from MS.

Of course, if you don't mind spending $15 and want more info on the II properties go to http://www.tug2.net/ Good luck!

 

[Dean]

Most II red time is actually "low" season compared to DVC and therefore adventure points costs. Summer CO is relatively easy to get, Ski season is what's difficult. You can actually search for a combination of up to 64 weeks. You could do 64 resorts for one week or one resort over 64 weeks. They want a minimum of 3 choices (weeks or resorts) but there are ways around that. If part of your choices are Maui Marriott or Marriott Aruaba at Xmas or Easter, you probably won't match those choices or you can search for resorts that you know don't deposit over a year in advance.

 

[eva]

Thanks for all of the great info! We are looking at staying in the Breckenridge or Beaver Creek area. We have toured the Grand Timber Lodge in Breckenridge and it is absolutely beautiful. That will definitely be our first choice. Then we were looking at St. James Place in Beaver Creek. Haven't really thought of a third choice yet. We have thought about paying cash for the stay there and using CC for the Broadmoor for a couple of nights. We just wanted to make sure if we had MS do a search that we could turn it down if it cost too much in points.

 

[Dean]

My top choices personally would be:

Breckinridge:

1. Grand Timber Lodge
2. Hyatt Main Street Station
3. Marriott's Mountain Valley Lodge
   [/list=1]
   
   Steamboat Springs: None Worthwhile on the list
   
   Beaver Creek
   1. St. James
   2. Park Plaza
   3. Poste Montane
      [/list=1]
      
      Vail: Marriott at Streamside, newer units only
      
      Avon: Hyatt Mountain Lodge
      
      Telluride: Franz Klammer
      
      
      
      I don't see any of the rest that I would trade DVC for though I might accept others for a lesser exchange or as a cheap rental. I would suspect that WorldMark at Steamboat will be added to the list soon as well. Of these the Hyatt, St. James, MMV and FKL would be my top picks.

 

[Diznut84]

Another option is to trade a DVC ressie in exchange for an RCI exchange from an RCI member. For example, here is availability for June 2002:

Resort: Location:
0867 The Christie Lodge Avon, CO USA
2266 St. James Place Beaver Creek, CO USA
2199 Beaver Run Resort Breckenridge, CO USA
0909 French Ridge Condominiums Breckenridge, CO USA
1634 The Village at Breckenridge Breckenridge, CO USA
1778 Orofino by Straight Creek Dillon, CO USA
1225 Swan Mountain Resort Dillon, CO USA
1617 Golden Eagle Resort Estes Park, CO USA
2334 River Bank Lodge Keystone, CO USA
1528 Goldenwoods Condominiums at Powd Mesa, CO USA
2349 Inn at SilverCreek SilverCreek, CO USA
1342 North Star Steamboat Springs, CO USA
5162 Sunburst Condominiums Steamboat Springs, CO USA
3862 The Rockies Condominiums Steamboat Springs, CO USA
1195 Thunder Mountain Condominium Steamboat Springs, CO USA
1319 Marriott StreamSide at Vail-Aspen Vail, CO USA
1320 Marriott StreamSide at Vail-Birch Vail, CO USA
0054 The Wren Vail, CO USA
1126 Indian Peaks Winter Park, CO USA
0768 The Pines at Meadow Ridge Winter Park, CO USA
0512 Timber Run Winter Park, CO USA

Of these, the only comparable property would be St. James Place. I would definitely avoid the Marriott - Aspen, Birch, or Cedar (and perhaps even Douglas). St. James Place is truly an exceptional resort. Currently, there is a 2BR unit beginning June 1, 2002 (wrong year but there will be MANY deposits later in the year). You could make arrangements with an RCI member in exchange for a shortened DVC ressie. For example, I think you might be able to convince someone to accept a Sunday - Thursday 2BR at OKW in exchange for the week at in the 2BR St. James unit. Basically, you can agree that whoever gets you your desired unit first will be awarded the DVC ressie. The RCI member will have at least 24 hours after the unit becomes available to make final arrangements. This process does involve some risk, but it can be considerably cheaper than working the same reservation through DVC.