Wyndham Royal Sea Cliffs - Big Island, Hawaii - unit advice?

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

Wyndham Royal Sea Cliffs - Big Island, Hawaii - unit advice? Are there units to go after that have better views and or are refurbished already? How about units to avoid?

Thanks.

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

Definitely yes.

We (not Wyndham owners) traded in last September/October. I had called about 4x to request a view unit, and refurbished if posslbe. They promised nothing.

We checked in late, as I had told them we would. They did seem to remember me, and gave us a *great* unit with a fabulous ocean view from the lanai, the dining area, and even the MBR, recently totally refurbished - #519. This wasn't front row, it was next row back, right along the center walkway - so view wasn't totally ocean, but most of it was.

I don't know whether it helped that this was low season, or whether the number of times I had called had an effect... but it proved untrue that owners get all the nice units, and I was beside myself glad that we didn't trade into Kona Hawaiian Resort (which also had availability) instead, since view matters to me a lot.

This was one of the nicest exchanges we've done, and I'm talkin' over 50 exchanges. I loved this place. If all units there were this nice, ratings would be much higher.

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

Wow thanks for the reply and advice.

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

In fact, here's an old TUG thread about favorite exchanges that just reappeared today, to which I responded before our trip to Royal Sea Cliff (top reply on page 3).

If I were responding today, Royal Sea Cliff would make my Top 10 (I'd have to bump one of the last 3 on the list):

Best timeshare you ever stayed in? - Page 3 - Timeshare Users Group Online Community Forums

Oh- Morritt's Grand would have to be added also, we hadn't been there yet either, so bump 2. This is to give you an idea how much we liked RSC!

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

I called them and they have us on file and seem very very nice. I will drop by with some aloha the week before.

Thanks again for the advice.

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

Great idea to stop in the week prior, maybe they can tell you the unit # and you can check out its location. And since you're on the island, you can be there as early as possible for check-in (I'm always more optimistic about stuff like this when we're arriving early, thought we did fine without that there). I really liked the staff there. Hope you get a good one, enjoy your trip!

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

I called them and they have us on file and seem very very nice. I will drop by with some aloha the week before.

Thanks again for the advice.

Where are you staying the week before? At another Wyndham (KHV)?

I'm asking because we were just in Kauai in March (no promises other Wyndhams do this but it never hurts to ask...), one week in Bali Hai Villas and the next week in Ka 'Eo Kai. Housekeeping moved our luggage and food from one unit to the other when the KEK unit was ready. We didn't even need to be there, just showed up later in the day to pick up the keys.

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

We got an awesome ocean view unit.....amazing. Partially refurbished and not in bad shape....hard to go from new hardwood floors and granite at HGVC to old style 70's colors, carpet, and corian sp? but I am fine with it. It is my 10yr old daughter who is the timeshare snob and reminds me every day about where we were staying last week. Sheesshhh.

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

We got an awesome ocean view unit.....amazing. Partially refurbished and not in bad shape....hard to go from new hardwood floors and granite at HGVC to old style 70's colors, carpet, and corian sp? but I am fine with it. It is my 10yr old daughter who is the timeshare snob and reminds me every day about where we were staying last week. Sheesshhh.

She can marry my son. He complains when we only have a partial view or have to walk further than 50 feet to a beach.

Glad you got a great unit.

[taffy19 Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close taffy19]

We got an awesome ocean view unit.....amazing. Partially refurbished and not in bad shape....hard to go from new hardwood floors and granite at HGVC to old style 70's colors, carpet, and corian sp? but I am fine with it. It is my 10yr old daughter who is the timeshare snob and reminds me every day about where we were staying last week. Sheesshhh.

Don't you agree that a view makes a big difference? Just having breakfast on the balcony alone is heaven to me and then the sunsets with a few dinks with good friends or family. You will see what I mean when you have breakfast with your family.

Since you have been to Hawaii many times already, you can take advantage of enjoying this view but when you come for the first or second time, there is so much sight-seeing to do so a view may not be that important. This year, we had friends with us who had never been to Hawaii so we were out quite a bit but they still enjoyed the view.

[bevvy5 Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close bevvy5]

THanks for this thread. I think there's a site map on the Wyndham site for this resort. Unit 519 has been mentioned. Any other specific buildings or units to look for?

We'll be there for a two-week stay in March of '09 - just swapped my Florida January trip to accomodate friends who have never been to Hawaii - and better guarantee of good weather tipped the balance for us.

Thanks

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

Bev....you will be fine. The resort is pretty well maintained....not falling apart by any means. They had continual maintenance going on...painting the outside, grounds maintained well, and clean pool and public areas.

It really depends on what your expectations are. We stayed at HGVC Waikoloa the week before RSC and our first day transition was a bit trying as it is very different than HGVC which is brand new, flat panel TV, Bose multi system, granite, hardwood floors, big tub, walk-in tile showers, etc.

RSC is an older '70's style warm earth-tone colors with avocado, mustard, and brown. I talked to the person who assigned us our units and they are not refurbishing anymore. They replaced the hard chairs (bar etc) carpets and bedspreads last year but in the same colors so they did not have to replace the drapery. The kitchen appliances are newer Whirlpool and have been replaced over the last few years. The only thing they plan to do anytime soon is replace all the beds and sleeper sofas and some of the soft chairs. These are in good shape as is at least in our unit. This will be done over time and the beds have been ordered and are being shipped.

The things that were not refurbished were the tile in the entry, baths, kitchen and on the balcony. The tile is in fine shape but old style 4" x 4" lighter brown color in the baths and ceramic 12" x 12" rust brown in the entry and kitchen. The tile on the balcony is older white but in fine shape. The kitchen cabinets were redone in the past in an older cherry style color. The kitchen counter is corian like and an avocado mustard blend.

The thing in the worse shape was the old bronze color aluminum slider doors and screen doors. The screen doors did not work well on the tracks but they did work and kept the bugs out and let the sound of the waves in. We did not bother to call about the screens....they were operational enough for us but they could be replaced or fixed. The patio furniture was in decent shape but a mish-mash of styles so a bit cheesy....no biggy to us.

The TVs were a bit dated and the cable worked fine with many channels. The remotes were held together with Scotch tape where the batteries were located....cheesy but functional. The stereo and DVD were newer and just fine. The in unit washer/dryer worked fine as did the AC and the ceiling fans. The AC vents were a bit grody and needed a good cleaning but did not affect my wife's allergies.

It was fine if you know what to expect....you will want to get an ocean view unit as some of the deeper units in the complex are a bit dark. We were in unit 516 and had a nice ocean view from the dining and living room and partial from the master bedroom. The RSC is a mix of units that are owner occupied, timeshare, and Outrigger hotel units.

We are clean freaks so we run all the dishes we plan to use through the dishwasher when we arrive and use disinfectant wipes on most of the surfaces we touch/use. The cleaning is not that great and we did not tip the maids because of it. The washer/dryer unit louvers were full of lint dust, the kitchen cabinets were filthy when we wiped down where the dishes are stored, and the kitchen light switches and counter needed a good cleaning. The kitchen floor tile was/seemed dirty but we were not about to clean it so we just threw down pool towels for our own sanity. There were no stains on the carpet or furniture so that was fine. And we had no issues with bugs.

We did not use the pools which were adequate but the kids were pooled out from the Hilton and not inspired. We were out most of the time in the ocean anyway.

From the above and other comments it either works for you or it doesn't. Heck we were in Hawaii for two weeks at the last-minute with frequent-flyer tickets. It was a great trip and the RSC was just fine.

The staff was great as well as the Wyndham concierges, Expedia travel people, and the front desk. You can pm me for the name of who to ask for an ocean view unit which should be done about two weeks before you arrive.

I will post this to a review at a later date. Let me know if you have any additional questions.

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

Bev, somewhere on this site I did post links to the resort map as well as an aerial view, I thought it was here but apparently not.

Gee 4a, glad you got a view, but sorry to hear it wasn't so clean! FWIW our RSC unit seemed very clean - no yuck factor for us at all. (I can be picky about that as far as visible dirt and grime - you can also see my comments on TUG about Royal Regency in Paris being one of the worst resorts I ever stayed in for that reason, where we put towels down on the sofa and dining room chairs to sit on. I don't usually wipe surfaces down with disinfectant however. ) When we arrived at RSC last year the carpet seemed brand new, the upholstery was very clean and looked new. Perhaps we were the first people in, after that unit was refurbished.

Expectations can be part of it - mine were low enough that when they were so exceeded, I felt sheer delight.

One other pro - for oceanfront, RSC seemed huge - we often willingly give up square footage to be on the ocean. Comparing previous Hawaii timeshare experiences, we preferred our stay in a teeny modest oceanfront unit at Kuleana Club over our big unit at Paniolo Greens - 2 previous visits to Big Island had all been private oceanfront studios in Kona where we fell asleep to the sound of surf crashing, and Paniolo Greens was a total letdown for me - I'd never go back there. I'm not sure what RSC's square footage is, but if I woke up one morning and someone had willed me that RSC unit #519 to live in full-time, I'm sure I could manage!

[4ARedOctober Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close 4ARedOctober]

Oh yeah I forgot to comment on the living space......it is very big...a lot of extra room in the master bedroom and living room especially. And the kitchen is decent size as well as the second bedroom. The bath area (toilet and tub showers) are a bit small but adequate and there is only one sink in the master with plenty of counter space. The closets are big too.

If they had used the space a bit differently in the design there is more than enough room to work with to make the bathrooms bigger. Some is kind of wasted space the way it is laid out for time share...but if one lived there that space would definitely be used.

As I had said the carpets and upholstery were fine with no big stains or anything like that. But the kitchen was the place for the yuck factor and when one sees that it makes you wonder about the couch and carpet too.

As far as the wipes go we usually buy a cheap small container at Wall Mart to wipe the phones, remotes, and kitchen counter and give the rest to the front desk or a needy employee. But when we pulled the dishes to wash and saw the yuck in the cabinets we ended up running out of the whole container of wipes. Unit 516 will be clean for awhile anyway.

Thanks for all your help Laurie.

Bev, somewhere on this site I did post links to the resort map as well as an aerial view, I thought it was here but apparently not.

Gee 4a, glad you got a view, but sorry to hear it wasn't so clean! FWIW our RSC unit seemed very clean - no yuck factor for us at all. (I can be picky about that as far as visible dirt and grime - you can also see my comments on TUG about Royal Regency in Paris being one of the worst resorts I ever stayed in for that reason, where we put towels down on the sofa and dining room chairs to sit on. I don't usually wipe surfaces down with disinfectant however. ) When we arrived at RSC last year the carpet seemed brand new, the upholstery was very clean and looked new. Perhaps we were the first people in, after that unit was refurbished.

Expectations can be part of it - mine were low enough that when they were so exceeded, I felt sheer delight.

One other pro - for oceanfront, RSC seemed huge - we often willingly give up square footage to be on the ocean. Comparing previous Hawaii timeshare experiences, we preferred our stay in a teeny modest oceanfront unit at Kuleana Club over our big unit at Paniolo Greens - 2 previous visits to Big Island had all been private oceanfront studios in Kona where we fell asleep to the sound of surf crashing, and Paniolo Greens was a total letdown for me - I'd never go back there. I'm not sure what RSC's square footage is, but if I woke up one morning and someone had willed me that RSC unit #519 to live in full-time, I'm sure I could manage!