VRI Resort Owners Question -- Requesting Week for Deposit

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

I am thinking about buying a floating week at a VRI Calif coastal resort for use in exchanging in RCI. As I understand the process, you can call VRI one year in advance of the date you want your week. So, if I want a July 2007 week, I am suppose to call in July 2006 for the July 2007 week. My question concerns this process. When you call VRI, does it matter whether you are going to use the week yourself at the resort or deposit it in RCI. What I mean is that I am told that some resorts will not give you the most demanded summer weeks if you are simply going to deposit it to RCI. Of course, I want a summer week so that I can maximize the trading power in RCI. Will VRI use the fact that I am going to deposit the week as a factor in deciding whether I get the week I have requested or is it simply first come first serve and I can get what I request regardless of how I intend to use it? Thanks.

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

That is not a VRI question - it's a resort question. That is, the policy is set by the resort, not by VRI. But since the process is done by VRI, they would be the ones to tell you how it works at the resort that you are intereted in.

The answer you get will be specific to that rsort - it will not necessarily be true of all VRI floating week resorts.

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

Thanks Steve. I will call VRI and ask them about the specific resort I am thinking about.

[SteveH Member Find all posts View Profile Close SteveH]

Tim:
One caveat - regardless of where you buy the resort can change its policy. If enough owners with floating weeks are unable to book their prime time choices they can pressure their HOA to change the policy on banking. This happened to me with a week I purchased after I had checked with the resort first. I was able to designate the check-in week during my first year of ownership and then the policy changed and so did trading power of the weeks they will now give me.
Steve

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Own two VRI resorts. Foxrun in NC is a fixed week and Landmark in PCB, FL is a winter float. I reserve a year in advance and either use or bank with RCI or II (belong to both). When I bank for an exchange, the resort banks the week that I reserve. I own a couple of non VRI resorts and those bulk bank and do not bank the exact unit and/or week that I reserve.

We don't have to pay the maintenance fee to reserve, but do have to pay the maintenance fee if we bank it with RCI or II.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Should this thread be moved to the VRI forum?

[DDI Par Member Find all posts View Profile Close DDI Par]

VRI reservations

Tim:

We own at a VRI managed resort in Sedona, AZ. We generally reserve our week(s) 10-12 months in advance and have never had a problem reserving exactly the weeks we want. However, we must pay our maintenance fees at the time of making the reservation. I have always assumed that this is the case with all VRI managed resorts, although it may not be. For instance, we will reserve our week for late Sept./early Oct. 2007 this fall, 2006. (High demand in Sedona at that time of year). Even though VRI sends out maintenance fee bills in Nov., due 12/31, we must pay that bill at the time of making reservations based on last year's fee, with balance due if the fee has gone up or a credit if the fee has gone down (Hah!).

The second part of your question involves depositing that week with RCI. You need not even tell VRI you are depositing your week. VRI gives you a reservation #, and you can call RCI directly, give them the reservation #, they will verify it with VRI, and voila!, you have your deposit (it may take a day or two for verification).

We have exchanged into the VRI managed resort Winner's Circle, and if that is the one you are looking at, we thought it was nicely located, the rooms were updated and well-decorated, and the whole place had a friendly demeanor. We have also looked at a couple of resorts in nearby Del Mar: Wave Crest and L'Auberge. They may be a cut above Winner's Circle, but definitely pricier as well.

The above specifics are, of course, limited to our experience with VRI as regards our resort in Sedona. I notice that some previous posts present some different information based upon where they own. Suggestions to clarify all this with both VRI and the resort you are considering is sound advice. Good luck!

DDI Par

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

Tim:

We own at a VRI managed resort in Sedona, AZ. We generally reserve our week(s) 10-12 months in advance and have never had a problem reserving exactly the weeks we want. However, we must pay our maintenance fees at the time of making the reservation. I have always assumed that this is the case with all VRI managed resorts, although it may not be. For instance, we will reserve our week for late Sept./early Oct. 2007 this fall, 2006. (High demand in Sedona at that time of year). Even though VRI sends out maintenance fee bills in Nov., due 12/31, we must pay that bill at the time of making reservations based on last year's fee, with balance due if the fee has gone up or a credit if the fee has gone down (Hah!).

The second part of your question involves depositing that week with RCI. You need not even tell VRI you are depositing your week. VRI gives you a reservation #, and you can call RCI directly, give them the reservation #, they will verify it with VRI, and voila!, you have your deposit (it may take a day or two for verification).

We have exchanged into the VRI managed resort Winner's Circle, and if that is the one you are looking at, we thought it was nicely located, the rooms were updated and well-decorated, and the whole place had a friendly demeanor. We have also looked at a couple of resorts in nearby Del Mar: Wave Crest and L'Auberge. They may be a cut above Winner's Circle, but definitely pricier as well.

The above specifics are, of course, limited to our experience with VRI as regards our resort in Sedona. I notice that some previous posts present some different information based upon where they own. Suggestions to clarify all this with both VRI and the resort you are considering is sound advice. Good luck!

DDI Par

Winners Circle is exclusively fixed week. You can deposit as much as two years in advance, and you don't have to prepay.

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Yes, Frank, why don't you go ahead and move it to the VRI Forum.

Eric

[Amy Member Find all posts View Profile Close Amy]

You definitely need to check with the specific resort policies. I own at one of the VRI-managed southern CA resort with all floating weeks 1-52. We can reserve up to 2 years in advance and there is no need to prepay the maintenance fees. And I have never felt the need to tell them whether I'm reserving for purposes of use or banking into RCI; I've never had a problem reserving a summer week, even as late as 8 months in advance.

[3blessings Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close 3blessings]

contact number

I'll be a new VRI owner (in escrow now)...Can anyone give me VRI reservation number? Thanks.

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

VRI's Phone Number


VRI's phone number is 949-859-2181


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VRI WebSites


http://www.vriresorts.com/

http://www.8664myvacation.com/

[3blessings Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close 3blessings]

Thank You!!!