No luck on DC Points.....best plan B?

I am making a seperate thread for this; I'd hidden it in a different one.

I attempted to book 5 nights for Paris at 10 months with no luck.
I have the dates reserved via the MOD rate and also as a MR Points reservation, so we are covered. I hoped to use points for 3 midweek nights and pay the MOD rate over the weekend.

Here is a question for the many experts here. Which is the better option:

1) MOD rate is 824.50 euros (so about $1100) OR

2) 170,000 MR Points

You are a group who would be well versed in the travel opportunities of the 170K points. So better to just use them, or save them for something down the road.

I'd pay MOD rate. If I don't get at least 0.01 per point in value, I pay cash.

Have you looked at the 5 night travel packages? Not sure if you have more points in your MR account than the 170K, but if you do, you might want to ponder a 5 night MVC owners travel package and get some FF airline miles as part of it. And if you have to either use MR points or cash, you might just ponder a hotel option right in Paris. Just spit balling ideas.

I looked at the hotels in the city; very very expensive. I'm not sure if we will be a group of 4,5 or even 6. I'm sure at least one could hold 4. Otherwise 2 rooms.

The 170K points are an odd number. I think the 5 night package was 180K with 100K miles but the villa requires 2 upgrades a night so I'd need another 50k on top of that. I wasn't sure I'd have the 50 but I actually do. So converting the point allocation is a possibility.

I love the ideas; please keep them coming. I don't have much faith in the wait list.

Would you consider something outside of Paris? The marriott timeshare is VERY nice.

The timeshare is what I have the reservations on hold for right now. I just can't in on the DC points, but can either pay the cash rate or use my Marriott Reward points.

For those that have stayed in the villas, do we need to rent a car? I'd like to use the trains, but not sure we can get to a train heading into the city without a car.

GreenTea said:

The timeshare is what I have the reservations on hold for right now. I just can't in on the DC points, but can either pay the cash rate or use my Marriott Reward points.

For those that have stayed in the villas, do we need to rent a car? I'd like to use the trains, but not sure we can get to a train heading into the city without a car.

Click to expand...

You certainly can survive without a car, if your primary objective is to spend time in the city or at Eurodisney.
There is a regular shuttle from the resort to the train station.
To visit many of the interesting places outside of the city, you really do need a car though.
The shuttle/train is fine for one or two trips into Central Paris. Any more and I believe it could become rather a chore and quite time consuming.
We have both stayed in the centre without a car (obviously) and and at the resort with a car.
Both were good, but personally if my priority was to spend a fair chunk of time in the city I would without any doubt choose to stay in the city.

GreenTea said:

I am making a seperate thread for this; I'd hidden it in a different one.

I attempted to book 5 nights for Paris at 10 months with no luck.
I have the dates reserved via the MOD rate and also as a MR Points reservation, so we are covered. I hoped to use points for 3 midweek nights and pay the MOD rate over the weekend.

Here is a question for the many experts here. Which is the better option:

1) MOD rate is 824.50 euros (so about $1100) OR

2) 170,000 MR Points

You are a group who would be well versed in the travel opportunities of the 170K points. So better to just use them, or save them for something down the road.

Click to expand...

I would try to get on a wait list. We went to France last summer and got the reservation by getting on a wait list. They will close the wait list if they don't think they will be able to honor it, I found this out because I wanted I decided I wanted to add another week to our request be the list was closed. Our was reservation was filled pretty quickly, I want to say in 2 weeks The destination club points are actually pretty reasonable for that property so I would say that is the most cost effective way to go.

I do find the rewards points to be a good value any where the exchange rate is not favorable. None of the Paris hotels will let you use points for a room with more then 2 people so with large groups it is very expensive to stay at a Marriott in Downtown Paris. We did, however, get two rooms on MRP when on the Champs Elysees each room would have cost use $1,100 a night if we had paid. The most effective way to use your points, unless you have a ton of air miles it the vacation packages. I would try to save them for that if you can.

If you do go the route of the wait list I would keep your other reservation ( or both if you can't decided be between the two yet) until you destination club res comes through and then cancel the ones you no longer need.