• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Question: Marriott or Westin

spaulino

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2013
Messages
260
Reaction score
5
Points
128
Location
Orange County, California
Resorts Owned
Marriott Ko'Olina Beach Club
Ok, here's my story.. Been kind of looking out for Marriott Ko'Olina resales and been really wanting to own one at Ko'Olina. I figured it's somewhere we always go to (Oahu) and it's a very nice property that if there's ever one year we can't go, it might not be too hard to rent it out or exchange. But I just want to know what's the main difference between Marriott system vs Westin system. Reason I ask is as much as we go to Oahu, we almost always go to Maui after stopping by Oahu so it might not be a bad idea to purchase Westin Maui instead of Ko'Olina. I heard both are good properties but I just want to have an idea what's the diff between the 2 systems. I don't think I would want Marriott Maui Ocean because I don't want to pay any higher than my budget. We've stayed in Ko'Olina Beach Club a few times and we love it. I'm familiar with Westin in Maui too so I'm sure we'll love it as well. So any thoughts???

I'm pretty familiar on how TS works.. but I'm no expert when it comes to exchange, deposit in RCI etc, but I know I have more to learn. We have 2 kids, 13 and 8 so either of those 2 properties would be good for us. I'm still looking around and just waiting for that perfect deal, good price for us.
 

DeniseM

Moderator
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
57,672
Reaction score
9,093
Points
1,849
Resorts Owned
WKORV, WKV, 2-SDO, 4-Kauai Beach Villas, Island Park Village (Yellowstone), Hyatt High Sierra, Dolphin's Cove (Anaheim)
For all the details about how Westin (Starwood) works - see the FAQ at the top of the Starwood forum.
 

mjm1

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 10, 2008
Messages
3,541
Reaction score
1,291
Points
548
Location
Las Vegas, NV
Resorts Owned
Marriott: Resorts and Destination Club Points;
Westin Kierland Villas;
HGVC Flamingo & Blvd;
Hyatt Pinon Pointe
Something to consider, and you can read more in other threads, is if you like Westin on Maui, look at buying Westin Kierland Villas (WKV). It is a mandatory resort, which means you can do internal exchanges at 8 months before check in by using StarOptions. StarOptions transfer to resale buyers of mandatory resorts. The maintanence fees at WKV are more reasonable and the upfront costs are likely lower too. Again, refer to other threads that provide details on the Starwood program.

We did what I described and traded into Maui. Loved the resort and look forward to it. We don't plan to trade via II, because we can do internal exchanges.

Starwood doesn't have as many locations as Marriott but they are very nice resorts.
 

Rent_Share

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2005
Messages
5,091
Reaction score
3
Points
473
Location
SOCAL (562)
Have you reviewed the Marriott section ? K'Olina most likely has an active ROFR, right of first refusal on resale contracts that you would have to pass. I see Studios posted in sightings for exchange's with almost any timeshare

I exchanged into Westin Maui with Worldmark (Studio)

If you want certain weeks/views you might need to buy Hawaii, keep in mind your fees will be the highest of the system
'
Buy Resale
 

pedro47

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
22,073
Reaction score
8,537
Points
948
Location
East Coast
May I suggest, I would look at the number of resorts I could exchange into and their locations. How many resorts does Westin have compared to Marriott ? PLus with exchange engine do they use RCI or II and would they allow you to use an independent exchange company ? Those are mine suggestion only. Please buy resell.
Resell only.

Good luck both are outstanding in my opinion.
 
Last edited:

kimgerlach1

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2014
Messages
87
Reaction score
0
Points
116
Location
Louisa VA
SoIf I Bought A Timeshare In Hawaii With Marriott, Say A 2 Bedroom, Say I NevereEven Went To Hawaii, Would It Be A Great Trader To Get Good Weeks In The US Or Mexico? Knowing That M MF Would Be The Highest?
 

DeniseM

Moderator
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
57,672
Reaction score
9,093
Points
1,849
Resorts Owned
WKORV, WKV, 2-SDO, 4-Kauai Beach Villas, Island Park Village (Yellowstone), Hyatt High Sierra, Dolphin's Cove (Anaheim)
SoIf I Bought A Timeshare In Hawaii With Marriott, Say A 2 Bedroom, Say I NevereEven Went To Hawaii, Would It Be A Great Trader To Get Good Weeks In The US Or Mexico? Knowing That M MF Would Be The Highest?

No - the taxes and maintenance fees are waaaaay to high to be a good trader. Plus, it is a complete waste to trade Hawaii for Mexico - Mexico is one of the easiest trades in the world - far more supply than demand.
 
Top