RCI Trade to Any of the Hawaiian Islands?

[dairyou]

Has anyone done a trade to the Islands (not Aulani been there)?
We are looking for recommendations.
Thanks Everyone!
deb

 

[Brian Noble]

I've been to several resorts in Hawaii. I'm not sure if all of these are available to DVC or if some of them are below the quality filter. These are in order of recommendation.

HGVC Lagoon Tower, Oahu: We had a 3BR Penthouse on the top floor of the tower. We had the "worst" of the four corners (away from water/Diamondhead) but the views were still breathtaking. I'm not sure these are being deposited anymore, but if you can get one, get it. At one end of the Waikiki strip, so walking distance to a lot of restaurants/night life/activities. You might not even need a car here; we didn't have one. I would stay in this unit again in a heartbeat, but I'm not sure they deposit the penthouses anymore. There are other timeshare towers here, and some of them might also be deposited. If you can't get a penthouse, I might demote this below the Waikoloa resort, because it's more city than island for me. https://www.hiltonhawaiianvillage.com/

HGVC Kings Land, HGVC Kohala Suites, Big Island: These are two of the four resorts in Hilton Waikoloa Village. Except for Ocean Tower, none of them are on the water/have water views, but they are all very close. Kings Land units are *very* nice, as is its pool. Kohala is a barely discernable step down but still quite nice. I'm not sure if Ocean Tower can be had via RCI. I've not tried Bay Club yet; the units are reportedly larger, but they do not include pool access at the main hotel complex, while the other three all do. We stayed in 2BRs in both cases. The complex is nothing short of amazing, but the food situation there I thought left a little to be desired. https://www.waikoloabeachresort.com/

Kauai Beach Villas, Kauai. Stayed in an oceanfront 2BR via Wyndham points (can guarantee view). Units are dated but comfortable and well equipped. There isn't much development right there, so it is very peaceful, and there is a state park just up the beach; it is walkable if you are willing to climb over a bit of downed driftwood (which might be gone by now) and ford a small trickle of a stream. Local food is limited but a lot within an easy drive. Not sure if I would do this if I wasn't oceanfront, but we liked it so much we bought two 2BR annual oceanfront weeks there (only paid the transfer fees, so next to free). Personally, I'd promote this one if you could guarantee oceanfront above the Waikoloa resorts, but you have to be okay with less plush furnishings. (I am.) https://kauaibeachvillasresort.com/

Pono Kai, Kauai. Not sure I'd recommend this one, but I only stayed in the smaller units with a tennis court view. There is just one building of these; all the partial kitchens are there. It was a last-minute thing and I just needed an extra place near KBV for some unexpected guests. The larger units look like they might be nicer and it is in a sheltered area of beach so the swimming is very gentle. More development here, but the plus side is several restaurants are walkable. https://ponokai.com/

Paniolo Greens, Big Island. Up the hill from the Hilton complex, maybe a ten minute drive (if that). Has a little bit of an apartment complex vibe, often fairly easy to get via RCI, because there are a lot of units deposited and it is a little far from the water. Again, another last minute week I was trying to get near the Hilton complex for unexpected guests. It was okay. It would do in a pinch, and we'd do it again if there were a need to be on the Big Island on short notice; lots of good beaches are an easy drive but there are better choices. https://www.shellvacationsclub.com/club/resorts/paniolo_greens/index.page

 

[bwvBound]

We've traded into the following using other timeshare and, possibly, other exchange avenues (RCI / II / GPX / etc):

The Bay Club, Waikoloa, on the Big Island. Love it and revisit periodically. Spacious grounds, gorgeous landscaping and with access to petroglyphs and old walking trails. This property uses a "1-in-4" restriction on inbound exchanges.

Makaha Resort & Golf Club on Oahu. We *loved* the property but it is a long drive from Honolulu through some rough neighborhoods. Be warned: You are beyond the typical tourist areas. When we stayed (just as Aulani was being announced), it was old and run-down with many features closed ... still, it had that special "old Hawaii" charm and we thoroughly loved it.

Wyndham Bali Hai Villas, Princeville, on Kauai. Nice but a long drive to anywhere except that side of the island. We were glad, looking back, that we had split our visit between Kapa'a (a bit closer to most Kauai sites) and Princeville. Resort was quite functional but felt a bit cramped and disconnected from the water given our particular unit assignment. This was one time we truly felt that "inbound exchange guests" were given the worst unit location. On the bright side, the property was crawling in feral cats, chickens and doves. We enjoyed observing the critters as we sat on our patio facing the road (rather than the water).

Worldmark Kapa'a on Kauai. Booked this as owners rather as exchange. The property was once a motel so the 1BR unit was a funny mash-up of two hotel rooms in a long, narrow configuration: the beach-facing unit was retained as the kitchen and living room; the highway facing unit was redone as the bedroom and what was once a center hallway became the laundry/bath. The beach was not swimmable but the views were lovely and the location quite suitable for day-trips.

Worldmark Valley Isle, Lahaina on Maui. We didn't stay, just visited and enjoyed the beach one day. Very nice beach for wading in and relaxing. Mostly calm water, very clear and clean ... we spotted several turtles. Quiet and pleasant ... we hope to return for a stay!

EDITED TO ADD: You might want to join the Timeshare User's Group (TUG); $15 for your first year; discounted renewals or free renewals if you "earn" them through referrals or reviews. TUG has a resort review area from a timeshare owner's perspective rather than a fly-by-TripAdvisor report. Thus, I find TUG resort reviews more useful than a typical hotel-type review.

 

[dairyou]

Thanks Everyone! I’m going to start investigating! I need to call MS Saturday and find out which trades I can use. I know RCI is one for us. We are new at this part

deb

 

[ct7878]

I've been to several resorts in Hawaii. I'm not sure if all of these are available to DVC or if some of them are below the quality filter. These are in order of recommendation.

HGVC Lagoon Tower, Oahu: We had a 3BR Penthouse on the top floor of the tower. We had the "worst" of the four corners (away from water/Diamondhead) but the views were still breathtaking. I'm not sure these are being deposited anymore, but if you can get one, get it. At one end of the Waikiki strip, so walking distance to a lot of restaurants/night life/activities. You might not even need a car here; we didn't have one. I would stay in this unit again in a heartbeat, but I'm not sure they deposit the penthouses anymore. There are other timeshare towers here, and some of them might also be deposited. If you can't get a penthouse, I might demote this below the Waikoloa resort, because it's more city than island for me. https://www.hiltonhawaiianvillage.com/

HGVC Kings Land, HGVC Kohala Suites, Big Island: These are two of the four resorts in Hilton Waikoloa Village. Except for Ocean Tower, none of them are on the water/have water views, but they are all very close. Kings Land units are *very* nice, as is its pool. Kohala is a barely discernable step down but still quite nice. I'm not sure if Ocean Tower can be had via RCI. I've not tried Bay Club yet; the units are reportedly larger, but they do not include pool access at the main hotel complex, while the other three all do. We stayed in 2BRs in both cases. The complex is nothing short of amazing, but the food situation there I thought left a little to be desired. https://www.waikoloabeachresort.com/

Kauai Beach Villas, Kauai. Stayed in an oceanfront 2BR via Wyndham points (can guarantee view). Units are dated but comfortable and well equipped. There isn't much development right there, so it is very peaceful, and there is a state park just up the beach; it is walkable if you are willing to climb over a bit of downed driftwood (which might be gone by now) and ford a small trickle of a stream. Local food is limited but a lot within an easy drive. Not sure if I would do this if I wasn't oceanfront, but we liked it so much we bought two 2BR annual oceanfront weeks there (only paid the transfer fees, so next to free). Personally, I'd promote this one if you could guarantee oceanfront above the Waikoloa resorts, but you have to be okay with less plush furnishings. (I am.) https://kauaibeachvillasresort.com/

Pono Kai, Kauai. Not sure I'd recommend this one, but I only stayed in the smaller units with a tennis court view. There is just one building of these; all the partial kitchens are there. It was a last-minute thing and I just needed an extra place near KBV for some unexpected guests. The larger units look like they might be nicer and it is in a sheltered area of beach so the swimming is very gentle. More development here, but the plus side is several restaurants are walkable. https://ponokai.com/

Paniolo Greens, Big Island. Up the hill from the Hilton complex, maybe a ten minute drive (if that). Has a little bit of an apartment complex vibe, often fairly easy to get via RCI, because there are a lot of units deposited and it is a little far from the water. Again, another last minute week I was trying to get near the Hilton complex for unexpected guests. It was okay. It would do in a pinch, and we'd do it again if there were a need to be on the Big Island on short notice; lots of good beaches are an easy drive but there are better choices. https://www.shellvacationsclub.com/club/resorts/paniolo_greens/index.page

I know that this is an old post, but currently looking for timeshare on the Big Island and Paniolo Greens keeps coming up. Would my 16 year old son be bored out of his mind here? We will be headed to the Big Island for a week after a week in Kauai. We have offered lots of options for vacation this summer from Europe to Alaska, but he just wants to go back to Hawaii to “chill”- he loved Maui last year (Aulani not as much as he felt it was too busy). He does like having his own space so having the 2 bedrooms would be nice with him- just not sure if Paniolo Greens is too remote and if I should keep looking for something else

 

[dairyou]

Thank you!! My kids started new jobs so we had to delay for another year. Thanks for more to look into!!!

 

[bobbiwoz]

Kaanapali Beach Club on Maui Is what we traded into in 2017. It was great! We tried to find something for next March on Kauai using RCI, but the only one available didn’t have A/C and we didn’t want to rely on the trade winds. So, we booked with Vrbo and I will rent out my points.

 

[ldo]

Paniolo green is too far up the hill and not near the water. I’d either stay at a lesser quality resort near Kona or try for one of the hgvc at wakailoa. But if it’s for this summer, you’ve likely missed most units in Rci. Most trading via Rci for hawaii plan at least 10+ months out.

 

[bwvBound]

Paniolo green is too far up the hill and not near the water. I’d either stay at a lesser quality resort near Kona or try for one of the hgvc at wakailoa.

I agree!

Paniolo Greens is waaaaay too far from the water for my interest. I want to walk to a beach not drive. I want a resort to have some connection to the water.