Trading into RCI???

[jpolak]

We are planning/hoping to use our DVC points to trade into RCI for a week stay in Aruba. Now this trip is a few years out, but I have a few questions. So I know you have to pay a non refundable fee and you can make your request two years in advance, but not sure how the process works.

The resorts are 160 points for the week so does that mean I need to have that many points available when I put in the request? If so are those points held until reservation comes through? If you could put the request in two years in advance will those points be held for the two years or do they need to be banked? Hope I made some sense. TIA.

 

[abdgeek]

The points will be taken when you make the reservation, so you will need to have 160 points in that use year or one's that can be banked or borrowed for that use year. If you choose to make the reservation online using the DVC RCI website, RCI will take the points if they are there. If they aren't there, DVC should call you to see how you want to use your points for the reservation. If you have multiple contracts and want your points used a certain way, you will want to let DVC know.

 

[Dean]

We are planning/hoping to use our DVC points to trade into RCI for a week stay in Aruba. Now this trip is a few years out, but I have a few questions. So I know you have to pay a non refundable fee and you can make your request two years in advance, but not sure how the process works.

The resorts are 160 points for the week so does that mean I need to have that many points available when I put in the request? If so are those points held until reservation comes through? If you could put the request in two years in advance will those points be held for the two years or do they need to be banked? Hope I made some sense. TIA.

You don't have to do so 2 years out but doing so that far out increases your chances of success dramatically. The exchange fee is only non refundable if you match. If you don't match or cancel before a match is found, it's non refundable. Of the 7 resorts on the DVC RCI list, 6 do not require an All Inclusive fee and fortunately for you, all have 1 BR units. Of these they are all reasonable resorts to stay at. All are below DVC and not all are on the beach. ABC is the bottom and I'd put CDM, CL & PL as pretty much equal. IMO it really comes down to whether you prefer the High Rise area or Low Rise area and how important being on the beach is to you. The 2 top resorts are the Marriott, these on the RCI list are pretty much the rest of the top level choices. Since the renovations are done, La Cabana is a reasonable choice for a private exchange or rental. Partly it depends on when you want to go. For Xmas, NY, or weeks 5 or 7 you'll have almost no chance, for Feb and March it'll be tough. The rest of the time with this planning should be successful.

Historically you need to have the points available, usually in the UY of the trip. If the trip is sufficiently ahead as to be 2 UY's ahead, then you get your choice of paying either in this UY's points or next though there must be something depositable to RCI from DVC's member points inventory in that UY. They do not actually take the points in any way until a match is found, until then you can use your account just like you don't have the pending search. I would recommend against leaving points sitting there just for the exchange, it's usually best to keep them moving forward and definitely don't miss any banking deadlines.

I don't know how it all works as I am trying to trade into DVC from RCI. That said I own a 2 bedroom oceanfront at the Marriott Ocean Club in Aruba. Maybe we should set up something here on the Disboards for trading amongst ourselves. It seems that many of us have other timeshares as well. Send me an email in a few years when you want to go and you can book me a two bedroom at VWL and I'll book my 2bedroom oceanfront in Aruba for you . Good luck.

A private exchange board would be a good idea IMO. However, it's been my experience that most people who are interested in this are not realistic in their expectations. Plus the cost to the member to give up a 1 BR for a week will be significantly more than the 160 exchange points required. Put another way, a non DVC owner who was interested would get less than a week or a smaller unit size than they were giving up to the member for the same points as required by RCI. In many cases this is still a win for the non DVC member as well but it might not be in your situation unless you were willing to compromise. Of course the unit type you own could also alter the dynamics. If you had an OF unit, being able to guarantee that would be a plus for the DVC member that they might be willing to pay more for. Both would also avoid the exchange fees. There are other boards that offer private exchange listings.

The points will be taken when you make the reservation, so you will need to have 160 points in that use year or one's that can be banked or borrowed for that use year. If you choose to make the reservation online using the DVC RCI website, RCI will take the points if they are there. If they aren't there, DVC should call you to see how you want to use your points for the reservation. If you have multiple contracts and want your points used a certain way, you will want to let DVC know.

I believe if you do an instant exchange online you'd have to have all points in a single master account. This is one of the areas where DVC will often bend the transfer rules for multiple transfers or even transferring banked/borrowed points on a case by case basis.

 

[jpolak]

Great. Info thanks. We would be looking to go end of summer. Did I read that right marriott IS on the RCI exchange list? Didn't see it on the RCI web site.

 

[Dean]

Great. Info thanks. We would be looking to go end of summer. Did I read that right marriott IS on the RCI exchange list? Didn't see it on the RCI web site.

No, most Marriott's and all newer Marriott's are in II only, a few are on both. But one could potentially trade to those privately or through an independent exchange company.

ETA: End of summer should be very easy if done well in advance and should be easier for a direct exchange as well.

 

[Dean]

Great. Info thanks. We would be looking to go end of summer. Did I read that right marriott IS on the RCI exchange list? Didn't see it on the RCI web site.

There isn't much for this year currently sitting in II or RCI for August.

 

[ldo]

fyi--Aruba, great island, loved it last Jan! Watch out for what you request. Some RCI resorts are mandatory "all inclusive" and are very $$$$, esp. if you have a family. Make sure to "deselect" all inclusive for your search. There are tons of great places to eat and a fun Dutch grocery store with everything you need. No need for AI, unless that is what you want for a big price. We were at Marriott, not via RCI. But, LA Cabana and the Divi resorts looked good.

 

[Dean]

fyi--Aruba, great island, loved it last Jan! Watch out for what you request. Some RCI resorts are mandatory "all inclusive" and are very $$$$, esp. if you have a family. Make sure to "deselect" all inclusive for your search. There are tons of great places to eat and a fun Dutch grocery store with everything you need. No need for AI, unless that is what you want for a big price. We were at Marriott, not via RCI. But, LA Cabana and the Divi resorts looked good.

Of the 7 on the DVC list, only the Occidental is AI.

 

[jpolak]

We went to Aruba for our honeymoon and stayed at the marriott. The time share units were just be built. We are looking a few years out but wanted to figure it out in advance.

Dean-Thanks for the great info!!

 

[Dean]

We went to Aruba for our honeymoon and stayed at the marriott. The time share units were just be built. We are looking a few years out but wanted to figure it out in advance.

Dean-Thanks for the great info!!

You're very welcome of course. We've been to Aruba 3 times for 11-12 nights each. Last time all at the Marriott Surf Club (exchange 7 nights plus Marriott points 4 nights) and the previous times were a week on exchange at the Surf Club bracketed by a couple of nights front and back at La Cabana (we also own Bluegreen). We prefer the High Rise area and the quality of the Marriott's over the lessor resorts. Not that the others being discussed are bad but they are certainly below our preferred standards.

Trying to put myself in your position ONLY owning DVC but knowing what I know for a trip where I had enough time to plan thoroughly, say 2 years out, here's what I think I'd do. I'd judge that a 1 BR is a good value and research the resorts on the DVC RCI list and likely put in a request for Playa Linda and Costa Linda only. I'd judge the AI fee at Occidental as far too much as well as that we like to explore the great multitude of restaurants there. Then I'd start looking for alternatives that were either better, cheaper or both. I'd likely look on red week and TUG for direct exchange and rental options, esp for the Marriott but possibly at any of the resorts being discussed. I'd also talk to several of the independent exchange companies esp Trading Places Int, Dial an exchange, Platinum Interchange and San Francisco Exchange to see what they might have and be able to do. Then I'd take the first option to come along that met my standards. Since I'd already investigated and essentially made decisions up front, I could stop there and cancel anything I needed to such as the DVC exchange search. The only resort not in RCI to consider besides the one's being discussed would be the Renaissance but it's downtown location is a big negative to me for a first trip. The other couple of top resorts in RCI (Gold Crown) but not on the list are also worth considering.

You should be able to rent a 1 BR for a week at one of the Marriott's for between $1000 & $1500 depending on view, maybe less on short notice but you seem to be a planner like me. You should be able to rent La Cabana from a fixed week owner or Bluegreen points owner for $400-600 for a studio or a little more for a 1 BR. La Cabana is a good resort to make a point. The studios there have the same kitchen and are almost the same size as the 1 BR units. For 2 people there is very little difference. I can't stress enough that a rental or private exchange gives you far more control over view type and generally gives you preferential treatment as the guest of an owner.

 

[jpolak]

You're very welcome of course. We've been to Aruba 3 times for 11-12 nights each. Last time all at the Marriott Surf Club (exchange 7 nights plus Marriott points 4 nights) and the previous times were a week on exchange at the Surf Club bracketed by a couple of nights front and back at La Cabana (we also own Bluegreen). We prefer the High Rise area and the quality of the Marriott's over the lessor resorts. Not that the others being discussed are bad but they are certainly below our preferred standards.

Trying to put myself in your position ONLY owning DVC but knowing what I know for a trip where I had enough time to plan thoroughly, say 2 years out, here's what I think I'd do. I'd judge that a 1 BR is a good value and research the resorts on the DVC RCI list and likely put in a request for Playa Linda and Costa Linda only. I'd judge the AI fee at Occidental as far too much as well as that we like to explore the great multitude of restaurants there. Then I'd start looking for alternatives that were either better, cheaper or both. I'd likely look on red week and TUG for direct exchange and rental options, esp for the Marriott but possibly at any of the resorts being discussed. I'd also talk to several of the independent exchange companies esp Trading Places Int, Dial an exchange, Platinum Interchange and San Francisco Exchange to see what they might have and be able to do. Then I'd take the first option to come along that met my standards. Since I'd already investigated and essentially made decisions up front, I could stop there and cancel anything I needed to such as the DVC exchange search. The only resort not in RCI to consider besides the one's being discussed would be the Renaissance but it's downtown location is a big negative to me for a first trip. The other couple of top resorts in RCI (Gold Crown) but not on the list are also worth considering.

You should be able to rent a 1 BR for a week at one of the Marriott's for between $1000 & $1500 depending on view, maybe less on short notice but you seem to be a planner like me. You should be able to rent La Cabana from a fixed week owner or Bluegreen points owner for $400-600 for a studio or a little more for a 1 BR. La Cabana is a good resort to make a point. The studios there have the same kitchen and are almost the same size as the 1 BR units. For 2 people there is very little difference. I can't stress enough that a rental or private exchange gives you far more control over view type and generally gives you preferential treatment as the guest of an owner.

Thanks Dean. It will be the whole family so I need a room that will sleep five or I will nedd to look for a two bedroom.

 

[Dean]

Thanks Dean. It will be the whole family so I need a room that will sleep five or I will nedd to look for a two bedroom.

Realize that most resorts are very strict when it comes to occupancy. Of the RCI resorts on the DVC list, I think only ABC has 1 BR units that sleep 5 or 6, the rest or limited to 4. Now it's possible that some of the resorts have rooms that sleep more but only trade for 4 but I'm not aware of any on the DVC RCI list that do though you may want to check further. IMO, for 5, you've just jumped up to a 2 BR at 270 points if you proceed with an exchange AND you've reduced your chances of success though for late August you should still be OK. Now if you do a private exchange or rental option other possibilities come to mind such as La Cabana which has a few deluxe 1 BR units that sleep 6 plus the economics of rental vs exchange is quite different for a 2 BR at 270 points vs a 1 BR at 160 points. For a 2 BR and the time you're looking at, I think you'll be FAR better off with a rental or private exchange than a DVC RCI exchange. The other benefit to a private arrangement is you can often arrange non traditional start/end days such as travel during the week or like we do, a week and 2 weekends.

Just realize Aruba can become quite expensive. Air can be an issue and you're looking *5 plus dining out and groceries are significantly more expensive that most places in the states. I'd suggest you look for some online menu's to get an idea. Food is roughly twice what it is locally for both restaurants and groceries but we're in an area where things tend to be less so the difference might not be as much depending on what you're accustomed to. A week in Aruba for 5 can easily turn into a $6-8K trip if one isn't careful. Something like $3K or a little more for air, $300 car, $1000-1200 for dining/groceries, $2K rental, $150-200 occupancy tax (I think it went up recently), activities $300, tips $100. From NY you might be able to do a little better on air if you work at it. I'd be tempted to concentrate on the air and timing and then try to find the right rental or private exchange to fit your dates.

 

[abdgeek]

We are planning/hoping to use our DVC points to trade into RCI for a week stay in Aruba. Now this trip is a few years out, but I have a few questions. So I know you have to pay a non refundable fee and you can make your request two years in advance, but not sure how the process works.

The resorts are 160 points for the week so does that mean I need to have that many points available when I put in the request? If so are those points held until reservation comes through? If you could put the request in two years in advance will those points be held for the two years or do they need to be banked? Hope I made some sense. TIA.

Just wanted to give an update on Aruba. I just booked Aruba Divi Phoenix Beach Resort through DVC RCI for Easter Week 2015. The resort does RCI points, so I was fortunate to get a 7 night stay(I didn't originally think I was going to be able to--every time I went in I could only do one night). Based on my research, I was considering three DVC RCI resorts: Aruba Beach Club(older furnishings--but supposed to be updated), Aruba Divi Phoenix, and Costa Linda(hard to get--rarely comes up) and booked the first one that came available for when I wanted. Costa Linda came up once or twice, but not for the dates I wanted.

If you're interested in ADP, one thing to note is that there are two different parts of the resort that are listed. Also, the pictures online are for the new part of the resort that opened in 2009--not cool--makes it hard for you to know what you booked. Your two booking options are Beach Villas at Divi Phoenix and Aruba Divi Phoenix Beach Resort. Both have different booking numbers. The Beach Villas are the four eight story buildings that you see in the pictures that opened in 2009. ADP is the 12 story high rise building on the right and smaller buildings in the front of the high rise that you can't see in the pictures. Let me tell you, it took a lot of work to find that out! People seemed to be pleased regardless of which section they were staying in.

I say all that to say that several of the Aruba resorts are showing availability now thru 2015. Not sure when you're going, but you may want to keep an eye out periodically to see what is available.

I can also second what Dean said about the airfare. I just paid about $1k for my flight. I honestly had sticker shock and was only expecting it to be about $300--my fault for not realizing that Aruba is 15 miles from Venezuela. I did find one or two fares for about $500, but you had to have an overnight layover before going on to Aruba the next day--not an option given the time I have off. Southwest has also started offering some flights to Aruba, but they are still testing the market and I couldn't get the connections to work out to get their non-stop flight from Atlanta to Aruba.