Using II exchange for week of Member Cruise-Good, Bad or Ugly??

[icydog]

I exchanged an off season Marriott studio for an OKW studio, on II, for Sept 20-27th, 2008 (the member Cruise is Sept 21-25). We don't really like studios but for the few nights we will be in it the studio will be fine. What I like is we can travel on the weekend thereby skipping the full airplanes on Thursday going back to Newark. Also this year, 2007 cruise, we were very hurried getting in on Sunday and rushing to the dock. This way we can leisurely arrive at the cruise and enjoy our first night onboard.
But this means our room will be empty from Sunday until Thursday.

The Good

1. we get to arrive a day before the cruise and enjoy the before cruise Dis meet and eat at our favorite restaurants
2. we have a place to keep our non essential clothing while we cruise
3. we won't have to wait in line to get a room at OKW on Thursday afternoon when all the cruisers arrive
4. We can stay over on two expensive weekends without using all those pts.

The BAD

1. we won't be able to enjoy our full stay at OKW since we will be gone from our room until Thursday
2. we really don't enjoy studios
3. it may waste a good week in II that can be used for something else
4. points in Sept are low anyway- only 48 points for a studio for that Saturday, Thursday and Friday nights (if I used my points for the three nights we will need the studio)

The Ugly

1. This year we wished we had just gotten on the plane and not spent Thursday night at OKW-- it would have been easier than packing twice
2. We might spend a lot of money at WDW that we don't have to spare
3. it might necessitate buying another set of Annual Passes (I'm not sure when our expire so this may be a moot point)
4. We will probably just veg out on Thursday and not enjoy the parks or the resort until Friday

Any ideas? I have 24 hours from 7 AM est to cancel the reservation.

Marylyn

 

[ldo]

If your M studio plus exchange fee is worth more than 48 points, then cancel, if not then I would keep it. On the other hand, if the week is going to expire, or you don't really think you would use it otherwise, then keep the trade. We have traded an expiring week before and only used 4 days.
I would still fly down Thurs. and stay either at a DVC or a WDW hotel (assuming you are using the bus to get to cruise). It is risky to fly the same day as a cruise--weather, air traffic control, etc. can mess you up. We always fly 1 day before--even if we are just staying in an airport hotel for the night when we get there. I don't unpack--just pop one change of clothing and bathing suit in my smaller bag, which I want to carry on the boat anyway, as luggage might not get there until after dinner.

 

[icydog]

If your M studio plus exchange fee is worth more than 48 points, then cancel, if not then I would keep it. On the other hand, if the week is going to expire, or you don't really think you would use it otherwise, then keep the trade. We have traded an expiring week before and only used 4 days.
I would still fly down Thurs. and stay either at a DVC or a WDW hotel (assuming you are using the bus to get to cruise). It is risky to fly the same day as a cruise--weather, air traffic control, etc. can mess you up. We always fly 1 day before--even if we are just staying in an airport hotel for the night when we get there. I don't unpack--just pop one change of clothing and bathing suit in my smaller bag, which I want to carry on the boat anyway, as luggage might not get there until after dinner.

The cruise begins on Sunday the 21st of Sept. So if I travel on the 20th, a Saturday, I will be down in Orlando day before hand. I agree that leaving that extra day makes sense especially in the Northeast in the winter but in the fall it usually makes no difference. Of course there could be a hurricane and that must be considered in our planning. One time our kids got snowed in at Hartford Airport in January and didn't get down to WDW until 2 days later. We were already in the two bdrm from the week before but it sure messed up their vacation.

As far as the economics of this it may not pay to use the Marriott Studio week. I have until sometime in 2009 to use the week so there's no hurry. My husband and I will talk about it some more at lunch today. Thanks for the good advice.
Marylyn

 

[Brian Noble]

Do you have anything to deposit that might generate an AC? Most any ACs can be used in Orlando in September, and you'd only pay about $300 total for the studio.

 

[icydog]

Do you have anything to deposit that might generate an AC? Most any ACs can be used in Orlando in September, and you'd only pay about $300 total for the studio.

As a matter of fact I do. I just got one for a platinum one bdrm from a Marriott Manor Club deposit. That's something to think about!!!Sometimes a one bdrm AC can be good for two bdrm units like in HH where Marriotts don't have one bdrms available. Good thinking!!

 

[Dean]

Do you have anything to deposit that might generate an AC? Most any ACs can be used in Orlando in September, and you'd only pay about $300 total for the studio.

While I've done full week exchanges and only stayed part of the week, one needs to realize the hard costs. For a Marriott to Marriott exchange, it could be as little as $89. For a Marriott to DVC it's more like $250 (exchange fee plus Resort Services Fee) and for an AC to a studio it's over $300 total. Marilyn, for future trips used in this manner you might consider using a studio to get into one of the Orlando Marriott's for a larger unit for only $89 total.

 

[ldo]

I would still fly down the day before---I have flown in the summer and fall when a thunderstorm messed up flights for a long time---last August--it was 6 hours stranded on Long island at the airport with 100s of people trying to get flights out---of course, an early AM flight would probably be OK.

 

[icydog]

While I've done full week exchanges and only stayed part of the week, one needs to realize the hard costs. For a Marriott to Marriott exchange, it could be as little as $89. For a Marriott to DVC it's more like $250 (exchange fee plus Resort Services Fee) and for an AC to a studio it's over $300 total. Marilyn, for future trips used in this manner you might consider using a studio to get into one of the Orlando Marriott's for a larger unit for only $89 total.

That's as succinct as one can get. Thanks Dean. I'll use that Marriott Studio to trade into a two bdrm Marriott in Sept during Flexchange. So I am going to cancel the OKW exchange this morning. I forgot about that resort fee!!

 

[Brian Noble]

While that's true, you probably also need to figure the "value" of the underlying week as well. If you have another use for that underlying week---a use to which the AC cannot be readily put---then the AC is reasonable for this sort of thing.

I recently burned an AC on a Friday-Tuesday stay in a 1BR OKW over Memorial Day. It works out to be about $95 a night for the four nights we are there, which is a fair price. Had I used my least expensive "real" week, and "charged" the MFs on that week to the DVC unit, the price would have been closer to $175 per night. As the AC has many more restrictions than the real week, I'd rather save the underlying week for something else.

This argument doesn't fly if you let things expire, though---in that case, Dean is 100% spot-on: use the options that require the lowest additional out of pocket costs. Saving costs on an individual week doesn't matter if your remaining assets expire unused.

 

[icydog]

Okay, I did two things. Yesterday I reserved the Marriott Cypress Harbor for Sept 20-27 using a Marriott studio. Outlay 1/2 of maintenance fees for Mountainside Studio = $350 plus exchange fee of $89 = $439

Today I got up at 4:30 and went on II and reserved a SSR one bdrm for Sept 20-27th. I used an AC (thanks to Brian Noble for that suggestion) Outlay $299 for the AC and $95 to Disney for their idiot resort fees=$394. As Brian pointed out that AC was to expire in Nov 2008 and I had no plans for it.

Also by reserving the SSR for those few nights I won't have to rent a car (I can use the Magical Express Bus to get to Disney World and save at least $150 in car expenses).

We have never loved SSR, its our least favorite resort, and this will be our first time really staying there, but for this purpose alone this will work out well for us. So today I will cancel the Marriott Cypress Harbor week and redeposit it with II. My II account looks like a series of reservations and cancellations. Is there any way to remove all the weeks from view? Anyway, I am a happy, albeit tired, camper now.

 

[icydog]

As an update to this--my nephew and family is taking our SSR one bdrm Sept 20-27th.

We reserved an OKW one bdrm using an accommodation certificate for Sept 20-27.

That way we will all have our own space. We will be at OKW on Saturday and we board the DVC Member cruise on Sunday. We will get back to OKW on Thursday morning, and leave from Orlando airport on Saturday morning.

Cost for trip for our OKW one bdrm and my nephew's SSR one bdrm

2 Accommodation certificates = $600
2 Disney resort fees =$200
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Total cost = $800 for two one bdrm villas at WDW for an entire week (although my hubby and I will only be on site for three nights)