Need Real Life Feedback - Exchanging a DRI Deeded Unit in RCI

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

Hi. I have received invaluable information from one of our members on a very closely related topic, but in an attempt to stop bugging him, I am asking this specific question to the greater forum .

If I own a deeded week at a DRI owned AND managed resort (not points, not The Club, just a plain old vanilla deeded week that the previous owner never converted to anything) within the Diamond season and I reserve XYZ week, and then I choose to deposit it into RCI, will the exact week I reserved get deposited into my RCI account?

I have received different answers from different DRI sales reps when I call the specific resort (Grand Beach II) to get an answer - they clearly only know The Club and can't answer a straight weeks ownership question. I figure that someone here must have done this - own a straight week, reserve a week within their season, and then attempt or succeed in depositing it into RCI and therefore can give me the straight scoop on how it works.

I appreciate any help. It's very frustrating trying to get an accurate answer to what should be a rather straight forward question.

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

can you call RCI and ask what week you deposited?

With my Marriott-to-II deposits, when I reserve my Marriott week I get a confirmation #. I give that confirmation # to II so I know what week I am depositing with them.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

Hi. I have received invaluable information from one of our members on a very closely related topic, but in an attempt to stop bugging him, I am asking this specific question to the greater forum .

If I own a deeded week at a DRI owned AND managed resort (not points, not The Club, just a plain old vanilla deeded week that the previous owner never converted to anything) within the Diamond season and I reserve XYZ week, and then I choose to deposit it into RCI, will the exact week I reserved get deposited into my RCI account?

I have received different answers from different DRI sales reps when I call the specific resort (Grand Beach II) to get an answer - they clearly only know The Club and can't answer a straight weeks ownership question. I figure that someone here must have done this - own a straight week, reserve a week within their season, and then attempt or succeed in depositing it into RCI and therefore can give me the straight scoop on how it works.

I appreciate any help. It's very frustrating trying to get an accurate answer to what should be a rather straight forward question.

I can't speak to Grand Beach specifically. I can address the situation based on the identical situation at Poipu.

+++++

And the answer is ........... it depends.


It depends on what is in the timeshare program documents for that resort and the affiliation agreement between the resort and RCI (or any other exchange company with whom there is an affiliation agreement). At Poipu, as a deeded floating week owner you can't reserve a week and deposit it with RCI; the agreements require that exchange requests with RCI can only be placed through the resort. So if you want to use your week with RCI, you have to let the resort know that you want to place your week with RCI and they then have RCI transfer a week from their bulk-banked resort account into your account.

This is not unique to RCI, either. SFX has an affiliation agreement with Poipu (or did have; I don't know if it's still in effect), and I ran into a similar situation depositing with SFX.

++++

So, the advice here is to check the timeshare program documents and see what the program is at Grand Beach. And if you do read the documents you will know more about the program at Grand Beach than probably anyone in the DRI sales staff will know.

The folks who are on top of the issue are the people who are actually responsible for managing inventory and assuring compliance with resort rules and regulations. Before DRI, that was whoever headed the reservations department at the resort.

[timeos2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close timeos2]

It could be worse. Wastegate even changes fixed weeks!

Hi. I have received invaluable information from one of our members on a very closely related topic, but in an attempt to stop bugging him, I am asking this specific question to the greater forum .

If I own a deeded week at a DRI owned AND managed resort (not points, not The Club, just a plain old vanilla deeded week that the previous owner never converted to anything) within the Diamond season and I reserve XYZ week, and then I choose to deposit it into RCI, will the exact week I reserved get deposited into my RCI account?

I have received different answers from different DRI sales reps when I call the specific resort (Grand Beach II) to get an answer - they clearly only know The Club and can't answer a straight weeks ownership question. I figure that someone here must have done this - own a straight week, reserve a week within their season, and then attempt or succeed in depositing it into RCI and therefore can give me the straight scoop on how it works.

I appreciate any help. It's very frustrating trying to get an accurate answer to what should be a rather straight forward question.

You SHOULD get the week you reserved BUT, if you tell DRI that it is for RCI deposit and maybe even if they get told, by RCI I suppose, that it was deposited then they may - and have - substituted a bulk bank week of their choosing. I hate it but that has been the process in the past. Thankfully our resort switched from RPM (Sunterra/DRI's management arm) to an independent management (VRI) almost a decade ago and VRI doesn't pull that owner negative trick. What you reserve from the resort they manage is what you can use, rent or deposit as it is your week after all. Why should a ton of inventory be placed with RCI as a bulk bank #1 as it reduces trade power and #2 why shouldl you have to take what they want to give you rather than what you reserve/own?

Only Wategate is even worse as they won't even give you your DEEDED FIXED WEEK for trade (with II anyway)! Now THAT is really overstepping the rights of owners. Fortunately RCI will only accept the deeded week from Westgate while II lets Wastegate get away with the substitution. Another reason I feel II is not a good choice for exchange as an individual owner/member.

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

just tried to bank my deeded week at grand villas with RCI,DRI will not let you you pick week and as you can only bank 360 days before date result:less trading power.however within the RCI system exchanges are available up to jan 2105.who has banked these,certainly not owners.as a diamond week owner they pick which diamond week so if you pay 360 days in advance you could end up with a week being banked 4 months ahead and not 12.owners loose out.e mail complaints sent but as yet no reply to my questions.