RCI - 1 in 4 rule specifics

[CheapMom]

Does anyone know about the 1 in 4 rule- where you can only trade out to a specific resort once in every 4 years. My question is does this go per person, per membership, or per contract.

There is a resort that I might like to trade into and I have 3 contracts and 2 memberships. Can I go to this resort 1x every 4 years for each membership?

 

[spiceycat]

think it is per membership with RCI.

unless you own at that resort.

if you have a points and week membership with RCI.

 

[Brian Noble]

Usually, it is per RCI account. I'm not sure how that's going to work with DVC, because you don't have "your own" account.

 

[Dean]

As Brian noted, we don't really know. And given that ultimately it's the resort that enforces it, DVC really doesn't have any control and RCI really doesn't either so I would expect it to apply the same to DVC members. Even if DVC tells you otherwise, I wouldn't expect them to truly know. I am aware of people being canceled at 2 weeks out and a time or two being denied a room when they showed up. And it varies from one resort/system to another. I've mentioned the Mayan resorts several time which is 1 in 5 now and it covers their entire system. If you trade to one resort, you can't trade to any other for a total of 5 years from the date of the trip. They fairly recently changed from 1 in 4 to 1 in 5 and made it completely retroactive. This is the only one that comes to mind that it's not resort specific. Some resorts ignore it and let you stay, some are 1 in 3 but most that use the option are 1 in 4. As noted, it's normally by RCI account. Being newer to RCI points, I'm not sure, but I would assume you could trade once from a DVC contract, once from an RCI weeks contract and once from an RCI points contract. Normally concurrent and consecutive weeks are counted as one but they may limit the number of weeks/units you can have. With the Mayan system, I think it's 2 weeks. You can always trade in through an independent exchange company, I am not aware of similar limitations that direction and know for certain that having an RCI trade does not prevent trading in through the independents.

 

[Brian Noble]

This is the only one that comes to mind that it's not resort specific.

The Orange Lake resorts do this too.

 

[Dean]

The Orange Lake resorts do this too.

Interesting, there was no mention of the 1 in 4 when I traded to OLCC recently. Thanks.

 

[CheapMom]

hmmm, this is for a nightly trade. So I wonder if I use membership 1 and my name- for this trade. Then maybe next year use membership 2 with husband's name if it would work. Sounds risky as it is pretty much untested. Decisions, decisions.

 

[Brian Noble]

OLCC

It's a 1-in-3 across all of them: the four in Orlando, plus Wisconsin, Vermont, and there might be one or two more.

Edited to add: here's a representative quote from the Urgent Information from A430:

1 IN3 YR RULE APPLIES ACROSS ALL ORANGE LAKE PROPERTIES. IF YOU HAVE TRAVELLED TO ANY OL RESORT YOU CAN NOT RETURN UNTIL 3 FULL YEARS HAVE PASSED. APPLIES TO 0670 8896 8897 8881 5421 A493 AND A429.

 

[Dean]

hmmm, this is for a nightly trade. So I wonder if I use membership 1 and my name- for this trade. Then maybe next year use membership 2 with husband's name if it would work. Sounds risky as it is pretty much untested. Decisions, decisions.

I don't think it'll work that way but it might. The question is whether one who has separate masters will be counted as 1 member or multiple with RCI. I'm guess they've loaded them by name rather than by contract but it should be intersting to find out. For points reservations this shouldn't be an issue. Remember ONLY points resorts will be available for shorter than 1 weeks stays unlike II where it was shorter notice but potentially all resorts on the list.

 

[CheapMom]

For points reservations this shouldn't be an issue. Remember ONLY points resorts will be available for shorter than 1 weeks stays unlike II where it was shorter notice but potentially all resorts on the list.

I am not understanding- - 'points resorts'? what do you mean? Are you saying this might only be an issue for weekly stays?

 

[Dean]

I am not understanding- - 'points resorts'? what do you mean? Are you saying this might only be an issue for weekly stays?

RCI is actually two exchange companies in one. One is a full weeks system much like II and the other a collection of points resorts much like the individual DVC resorts are members of the Disney Vacation Clubs. If you go to the listing for the RCI resorts and click over to the listings pages, you'll see some some have wording that says "RCI Points". Only these resorts can be gotten for less than a week, and they canonly be reserved at 10 months out or less.

 

[CheapMom]

Well I went ahead and made my exchange- I had some banked points that were set to expire in May so I figured, why not. I don't plan on exchanging very often, so I am not sure I will even want to exchange again within 4 years- and if I do- well I will just cross that bridge when I come to it.

I got a 1 br at the Manhattan club for Wed., Mar 11- Girlfriends and I have tickets for Wicked that day so it will be nice to stay the night and not have to rush back home after.

20 points- $95 exchange fee and $25 resort fee. Certainly a better deal if you are staying multiple nights as the $95 is charged per exchange, not per night. (The $25 resort fee is per night, by the way)

 

[Brian Noble]

Actually, I think you'll be fine. If it was a single night stay, it came out of Points inventory. Points transactions are supposed to be exempt from 1-in-4 rules.

(Don't ask me why. I have no idea. It just is.)

Remember ONLY points resorts will be available for shorter than 1 weeks stays unlike II where it was shorter notice but potentially all resorts on the list.

And not even all of those. So far, all the DVC inventory in Points is reportedly full-week stays only.

 

[Dean]

Well I went ahead and made my exchange- I had some banked points that were set to expire in May so I figured, why not. I don't plan on exchanging very often, so I am not sure I will even want to exchange again within 4 years- and if I do- well I will just cross that bridge when I come to it.

I got a 1 br at the Manhattan club for Wed., Mar 11- Girlfriends and I have tickets for Wicked that day so it will be nice to stay the night and not have to rush back home after.

20 points- $95 exchange fee and $25 resort fee. Certainly a better deal if you are staying multiple nights as the $95 is charged per exchange, not per night. (The $25 resort fee is per night, by the way)

Nice resort option, glad it worked out for you.