Timeshare rental question for Dean or others?

[lampy]

I have given up hope on an exchange through DVC for Hawaii beachfront and have placed an ad on the TUG board. I get a lot of offers for rental at various resorts. I like the Embassy Vacation Resort in Maui and have received a couple of offers for a 1BR week and 2BR week. Is there any help out there with how much someone should pay for a rental week at these resorts? I can find their rack rate on the web but is that a good comparision?

My plan is to just rent out my DVC points and rent a week from another timeshare owner. Any pitfalls?

 

[Dean]

I have two 1 BR units concurrently at the Embassy next July and also a 2 BR at the Embassy on Kauai for the next week. I didn't use my DVC to get them. Actuall I did have an arrangment for a private exchange using DVC (6 days 1 BR at OKW) for the 2 BR but the other guy, known on this board, offered to take cash instead so I took him up on it. Frankly I don't have a good feel for rentals there. You might want to talk to San Francisco Exchange and see about getting a week there as an independent exchange. I'd assume $650-850 for a 1 BR and about 50% higher for a 2 BR. There are many discounters that will do package deals that include the Embassy, just do a search for Maui. Also you might look for Marriott, Sands of Kahana or Whaler as a direct exchange.

I have had a request in with DVC for HI for almost a year now and had essentially no activity. This surprises me since DVC is supposed to have such great trading power.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Are you looking for a specific resort or specific time? We had no problems getting our Hawaii exchange, but we left everything rather open ended.

 

[lampy]

Thanks Dean.

I have found many "deals" for a 1BR Embassy at Maui for $1400-$1500 and 2BR for $2000, but that seemed high to me. ivacations.com has many listings as does TUG. The offers I am getting are through SFX members and was just wondering what deals they may get?

dianeschlicht

Thanks for your input too. I put in my exhange request through DVC for *any* HI exchange back in August and have heard nothing.....

 

[stlrod]

Lampy,

I'm not sure those prices are as high as you may think. A fellow Marriott owner I know easily sold 2 units in Maui for next July on ebay for $1500 (each was a 1BR). I have a 1BR next July in Kauai (Marriott) I'm thinking of selling and I know the nightly rental if booked through Marriott would be $340 plus tax (of course you would get housekeeping if booked through Marriott.) I might be open to a point trade or something along those lines. It's kind of up in the air right now though as I'm trying to see if I can get a trial set that week continued so that I don't have to give up the week I got. If you're interested in talking, e-mail me and I'll talk to my wife about what she wants to do.

Rod

 

[lampy]

Thanks Rod. In fact, we have talked before about an exchange and I appreciate all your help. It is my opinion that the Marriott's in Maui and Kauai are the BEST! That does make an exchange there very difficult. I still think the best way to use your DVC points for HI is to rent your points and rent from a Marriott or other owner.

 

[Dean]

Just got back in town. The exchange request I had was for a 4 week period (July) and included 2 resorts on Maui and 4 (I think) on Kauai. They did offer a KCR week early on but that wasn't part of my destination. As I said, I'm surprised nothing has come up, especially at Lawaii Beach.

Those prices do seem high to me but I have no specific experience to base that feeling on. What somthing sold at one ebay at the Marriott isn't a good benchmark.

What I was thinking was that you might be able to get a good deal with all or partly inclusive, air fair, and a car for an overall good price.

 

[lampy]

Thanks again Dean.

Do you know what brokers deal in inclusive packages for Marriott or Embassy?

 

[Dean]

I've seen several on the net. I'd start with Delta and AA package services. Also, go to the embassy's home page. I've seen it but don't have the URL at present.

 

[stlrod]

Dean's probably right--what a Marriott would sell for probably isn't a good benchmark (my internet friend actually sold two 1BRS for $1500 each.) While I also have no familiarity with Embassy prices, my gut tells me Dean's estimate is probably a little low--probably somewhere in between the two might be more accurate. If people are coming to you offering a "deal," my guess is that they are willing to negotiate or else they wouldn't be coming to you. You mentioned you know the rack rate. I think if you can get it for half the rack rate (at a reputable resort), it would be a fair deal. A friend of mine stayed at t Embassy on a timeshare presentation and said the presentation wasn't too bad.

 

[stlrod]

Here's the website for Embassy:


www.embassyvacationresorts.com


Out of curiousity, I plugged in 3 dates (1/15, 4/15/ and 7/15). The lowest rate for a "2 room suite" which I assume was a 1 bedroom was $339 on the first 2 dates ($349 in the summer). Those prices seemed high to me. I think they are compatible with Marriott rates and would have expected them to be a little lower.

 

[Dean]

I reviewed 3 sites where rentals are listed and found the Embassy at Maui for as low as $725 for a 2 BR for a week and Embassy Kauai for as low as $650 for a 2 BR for a week. Whether these are still available is unknown but it does give an idea that my first thoughts were no that out of line. The other advantage of renting from an owner is that you get view priority over other groups.

 

[lampy]

Thanks for checking Dean.

I am working directly from an owner and probably paying 10% more than prices I see at ivacations.com, TUG, and others BUT I get to pick the timeframe I want and the view I want. The best deals can be made two to three months out, however, I also need to secure Freq Flier tixs to HI that cannot be made two to three months out.