RCI or II

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

I recently purchased a resale Cypress Pointe Resort timeshare Diamond season. I am not going to be able to go to Orlando this year and thinking of exchanging it, being new to timeshares I am curious am I better off joining RCI or II and does anyone know of any promotional codes for membership discounts. Any feedback greatly appreciated.

[BoardGirl Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BoardGirl]

Do you know what exchange you want out of it??

Different companies are better for different destinations.

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

Hi- We actually just want to stay in the northeast this year, but we may want to cruise in the future. Does that help?

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Hi- We actually just want to stay in the northeast this year, but we may want to cruise in the future. Does that help?

Timeshares for cruises are notoriously bad deals.

Northeast pretty much restricts you to RCI and II. Orlando is not going to trade for summer beach weeks. Are you restricted to the school schedule? How far "north" do you consider northeast? Are you looking to exchange for this year or next? Does it have to be beach or can you do mountains.

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

Hi Lawren-

We were hoping to travel later in the year, perhaps after September we are relatively flexible even with the school schedule. The northeast could possibly include parts of Canada, however it will more likely be New England.
Does that narrow down which may be a better option?

Thanks,
Alissa

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Timeshares for cruises are notoriously bad deals.

Northeast pretty much restricts you to RCI and II. Orlando is not going to trade for summer beach weeks. Are you restricted to the school schedule? How far "north" do you consider northeast? Are you looking to exchange for this year or next? Does it have to be beach or can you do mountains.

These are all good questions....

Cruising and TSing have nothing to do with each other - you can ALWAYS get a better crusie deal by booking directly.
If you can only take one vacation a year - you can bank your week with the exchange company one year ahead of use and have a 3 year window to exchange/use your week - 1 year before check-in date to two years after check-in date.

So to REALLY assist u, are u tied into school Holiday weeks and summer vacations time?

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Hi Lawren-

We were hoping to travel later in the year, perhaps after September we are relatively flexible even with the school schedule. The northeast could possibly include parts of Canada, however it will more likely be New England.
Does that narrow down which may be a better option?

Thanks,
Alissa

Another question before I answer. What is the check-in date on the week you will be depositing?

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Another question before I answer. What is the check-in date on the week you will be depositing?

I cross posted but yes, what is the date???
You need to be at least 60 days before check-in and this is going to GREAT influence your trading power - unfortunately - negatively

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

I cross posted but yes, what is the date???
You need to be at least 60 days before check-in and this is going to GREAT influence your trading power - unfortunately - negatively

Ok, more info to answer all questions and hopefully have enough info to make the decision.
We aren't tied to school vacations thankfully- we don't have an issue with taking the kiddies out of school. The week we would be depositing is in Mid-July but they are all red weeks so I'm told.
We really don't know where or which resort to go to because we are brand new to all of this. We've always vacationed with relatives at their lake home. We bought the timeshare so we could "branch out" and see more places and maybe not spend so much time with IN-LAWS So, we're pretty much wide open.
Also, whichever one we do go with RCI or II- does anyone know of promo codes for membership?

thanks again for all the help..

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

3 months out... Do NOT under any circumstances deposit that week with RCI. Unless you will go to the Bershires or Poconos in October and last minute. Your trade value will be miserable. Worse than just normal one year out Orlando deposit.

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Ok, more info to answer all questions and hopefully have enough info to make the decision.
We aren't tied to school vacations thankfully- we don't have an issue with taking the kiddies out of school. The week we would be depositing is in Mid-July but they are all red weeks so I'm told. We really don't know where or which resort to go to because we are brand new to all of this. We've always vacationed with relatives at their lake home. We bought the timeshare so we could "branch out" and see more places and maybe not spend so much time with IN-LAWS So, we're pretty much wide open.
Also, whichever one we do go with RCI or II- does anyone know of promo codes for membership?

thanks again for all the help..

Okay, I would suggest that u bank with II NOW! - RCI will definitely penalize u for such a late deposit.
I am assuming that you have a 2BR?
Does it "lock-off" because then u could deposit it as a studio and 1BR and get 2 exchanges from it.
Or even a 3BR?

About 'all weeks are RED' myth.

Do people want to go to Orlando in Januaray, October, September?

Or do you want to go when the kids are off - Mid June to Mid August, Christmas, New Years, Presidents week, Spring break weeks 9-13 and Easter.

If your Timeshare 'floats' the best weeks to reserve for maximum trading power are the Spring Break,Easter timeframe followed by Christmas/New Years, (but not if New Years is a Friday - the week BETWEEN Christmas and New Years is high time) Presidents week and then the summer weeks.

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

3 months out... Do NOT under any circumstances deposit that week with RCI. Unless you will go to the Bershires or Poconos in October and last minute. Your trade value will be miserable. Worse than just normal one year out Orlando deposit.

hmmm... and those were some of the ones we looked at- possibly in October. Any ratings? Have you been to either?

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

3 months out... Do NOT under any circumstances deposit that week with RCI. Unless you will go to the Bershires or Poconos in October and last minute. Your trade value will be miserable. Worse than just normal one year out Orlando deposit.

RCI will severely penalize this late deposit - NOT that the Berkshires or Poconos are bad places to visit...

Okay, I would suggest that u bank with II NOW! - RCI will definitely penalize u for such a late deposit.
I am assuming that you have a 2BR?
Does it "lock-off" because then u could deposit it as a studio and 1BR and get 2 exchanges from it.
Or even a 3BR?

About 'all weeks are RED' myth.

Do people want to go to Orlando in January, October, September?

Or do you want to go when the kids are off - Mid June to Mid August, Christmas, New Years, Presidents week, Spring break weeks 9-13 and Easter.

If your Timeshare 'floats' the best weeks to reserve for maximum trading power are the Spring Break,Easter time frame followed by Christmas/New Years, (but not if New Years is a Friday - the week BETWEEN Christmas and New Years is high time) Presidents week and then the summer weeks.

II would be where u need to deposit - and please answer the unit size/type question

hmmm... and those were some of the ones we looked at- possibly in October. Any ratings? Have you been to either?

The point was u would NOT be able to trade into anything 'good' using RCI becaus of the late deposit (many RCI owners deposit 2 years ahead) - not that these areas are bad - but that all u would see is very off season places in not the nicest resorts.
If you deposited your week 12-18 months AHEAD of the use date, it would be a different story

You can access the II directory without logging in by going here... https://secure.intervalworld.com/web/cs?a=5 - to get an idea of the type of resorts II has.

[alissag Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close alissag]

Hi Pat-

Ok, that definitely helps! Thanks so much. Our unit is a 3 bedroom lock-off. I didn't realize I could deposit both, I though I could only use them separately at the resort. I'm so glad you told me this. So am I understanding that summer weeks are least desirable when trading?

For us, it really doesn't matter when we go- we'll take the kids out of school. Do you recommend II or do you use another company? Are their discounts for membership anywhere?

[GrayFal Silver Contributor and supermoderator Find all posts View Profile Close GrayFal]

Hi Pat-

Ok, that definitely helps! Thanks so much. Our unit is a 3 bedroom lock-off. I didn't realize I could deposit both, I though I could only use them separately at the resort. I'm so glad you told me this. So am I understanding that summer weeks are least desirable when trading?

For us, it really doesn't matter when we go- we'll take the kids out of school. Do you recommend II or do you use another company? Are their discounts for membership anywhere?

No discounts - some resort groups DO offer discounts but I don't believe yours is one.

No, u don't understand - the LEAST desirable are all the weeks I DID NOT MENTION... weeks 1-5, 14-21ish, 35-46, 48-50

Yes, u should join II and yes, deposit it as 2 separate units....when u join II, ask them if they give 'accommodation certificates' for your resort.
If they say yes, ask them what weeks are eligible - for the last 3 years - and then u will know what weeks are the HIGHEST demand...
Don't be discouraged if they say none are given, because Orlando has MANY nice TSs so they get a lot of deposits.

So u will have 2 deposits in II - a 2BR and a 1BR? or studio? - I am not sure how your unit 'locks-off' and u will be able to request travel from the time your deposit is confirmed until July 2010,,,,,

More to follow later.....