Changing 2015 reserved week at WSJ to Star Options

We are unable to use our Week 44 at WSJ (check in is Oct. 31). I did reserve the week a year in advance. Can I still convert this week to Star Options? If so, can I do this online or do I have to call? Is it true that these Star Options would be good until the end of 2016? Still learning after all these years! Thanks.

Carolyn

You can cancel your reservation online at mystarcentral.com and get the StarOptions to use for another reservation. I'm assuming this was a home resort reservation with 2015 StarOptions, since you made the reservation 12 months in advance.

You can also bank those StarOptions to use up to two years later. You'd have until 2017 to use the StarOptions.

I don't know what the fees, if any, would be. They partly depend on your Elite status. The last date to bank your StarOptions also depends on your Elite status. Without status I think you only have until June or maybe earlier to decide.

I would probably call so I can ask some questions of the agent. You may also have to call to bank the options, even if you can cancel the current reservation online.

I think you're now able to cancel reservations up to 6 months in advance without charge.

If you want to use your SOs next year, you have to bank them prior to the deadline, which I believe is July 1st for non-elite owners.

I'd be more precise, but I can't get MSC to open.

Caroline, I'd strong urge you to log onto your MyStarCentral.com account and read the User Guide that is housed there. It's pretty useful.

Reservations may be cancelled 61 days or greater prior to arrival with no cancellation Or usage restriction.

Non elite may bank those options for $95 prior yo June 31

June only has 30 days ...

SMHarman said:

Reservations may be cancelled 61 days or greater prior to arrival with no cancellation Or usage restriction.

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Thanks everyone. So if I understand correctly, I can cancel my weeks reservation up to 61 days prior to check in and convert to Star Options for a $95 fee? Or is it June 30th? Check in date is October 31, 2015

Carolyn

You can convert before June 30, but June 30 is the last day you can convert. So you must 1) cancel, AND 2) convert by June 30. You can do both with the same phone call.

You can cancel without a fee up to 61 days before the checkin date (for an October 31 reservation that would be around August 29 or 30, depending on what exactly you count). At that point you could use the StarOptions for another reservation this year.

You can cancel closer to the check-in date, but there is a $75.00 fee, and the StarOptions are restricted. You can only make a reservation within 61 days of arrival with them. I think you can't bank those StarOptions. Once restricted, you have to use them in the same year.

If you want to bank StarOptions and save them for another year, you have to do that before July 1, independent of anything else. Banked StarOptions are good for the following two years. In your case, you would have until the end of 2017 to use them. They are StarOptions, so reservations are made within 8 months of the arrival date.

Elite status lets you bank later in the year: before October 1 for some (4-Star for sure, maybe 3-Star too?), and by December 31 for 5-Star Elite.

I think I've got it now. Call SVN by 6/30/15 to cancel reservation and convert to StarOptions for a $95 fee. These Star Options must be used by 12/31/17 for the 2015 reservation. With that said, if I don't make a "weeks" reservation for my 2016 week (the following year) and let SVN know I just want to take the Star Options, is there a $95 fee to do this? Thanks again!

Carolyn

Carolyn said:

I think I've got it now. Call SVN by 6/30/15 to cancel reservation and convert to StarOptions for a $95 fee. These Star Options must be used by 12/31/17 for the 2015 reservation.

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No - there is no fee for canceling your reservation and converting to Staroptions in 2015.

The $95 Fee is for rolling the Staroptions over to 2016.

With that said, if I don't make a "weeks" reservation for my 2016 week (the following year) and let SVN know I just want to take the Star Options, is there a $95 fee to do this? Thanks again!

Carolyn

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You pay each time you roll the Staroptions over to the next year. But if you roll your 2015 Staroptions over to 2016, you have 2 years to use them - you don't have to pay again, if you don't use them until 2017.

If you decide to roll your 2016 usage over to 2017, that is a new transaction, and you will pay again.

Your 2015 are rolled once for use in 2016 Or 2017. Or a bit in both.

2016 would roll to be used in 2017 or 2018.

2015 has to be used by end of 2017 or they are lost.

While on this subject now you can borrow from a future year can you borrow rolled points back?

I know last year I offered to make a reservation for a friend over Christmas 2014 bit could not as I had rolled my surplus SO into 2015 in June so had 0 2014 SO in my account. I imagine that has changed with the borrow functionality.

Carolyn said:

I think I've got it now. Call SVN by 6/30/15 to cancel reservation and convert to StarOptions for a $95 fee. These Star Options must be used by 12/31/17 for the 2015 reservation. With that said, if I don't make a "weeks" reservation for my 2016 week (the following year) and let SVN know I just want to take the Star Options, is there a $95 fee to do this? Thanks again!

Carolyn

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Are you sure you don't mean "convert to StarPoints" (the hotel currency) and not "convert to StarOptions" (the floating timeshare currency)?

You don't really convert to StarOptions, that's just implied when you book less than 8mos in advance...