Point me back to the basics please!

Hello everyone. Absolute Worldmark newbie here! I am just thinking about buying WM, and I am trying to understand how the system works. I've been searching both here and on wmowners.com, and I'm finding a lot of information about specific resorts, best ways to use your membership, etc. - in other words, all things about what to do when you're already a member. Can anyone guide me towards links (or other sites) that get back to the absolute basics i.e. teach me about the system and what I should know in order to understand what and how to buy? Things like the difference between Fairfield, Trendwest and WM; whether you have a home resort in this system and why you would pick one over the other; rules for using your points - you know, basic stuff that all you pros know, but some of us are still don't have a clue.

Thanks in advance.

I don't know of any place where you can get an objective basic comparison of Fairfield and Worldmark.
For a basics education about Worldmark, go to www.worldmarktheclub.com and click on "Owner Education" on the left side of the Home Page. You don't have to log in. Scroll down until you find "Download the basic education handbook". Click on that link and read the basic Worldmark rules.
Trendwest was the original developer and manager of Worldmark. It is no longer associated with Worldmark.

The Worldmark advice article is also a good source of info. The top half of the article is a list of those resorts open in 2004 ( several new resorts have been added since 2004) and the points requirements for stay at the new resorts is higher than in older resorts but the article is otherwise very good.

Is there a difference between WM and Fairfield?

Thanks Judy and Bill, those were great sources.

I do have another question for all the pros out there. I can go to eBay and buy Worldmark credits, but I also see ads for Fairfield points. If I understand this correctly, these are same thing now, that a certain number of Fairfield points equate to a number of WM credits, correct? Is the difference only that originally the former were purchased from Trendwest and the latter were purchased from Fairfield? Or is there in fact a difference between purchasing WM credits and Fairfield points?

No, Worldmark and Fairfield are totally different. They are simply managed by the same company.

spatenfloot said:

No, Worldmark and Fairfield are totally different. They are simply managed by the same company.

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So if I am a WM member, can I not access Fairfield Resorts and vice versa? Or if I can, am I subject to restrictions?

There are a handfull of WM & FF resorts which are shared between the two. BUT there are very few rooms and very few resorts which do this.

Just the basics...

CatLovers said:

Hello everyone. Absolute Worldmark newbie here! I am just thinking about buying WM, and I am trying to understand how the system works. I've been searching both here and on wmowners.com, and I'm finding a lot of information about specific resorts, best ways to use your membership, etc. - in other words, all things about what to do when you're already a member. Can anyone guide me towards links (or other sites) that get back to the absolute basics i.e. teach me about the system and what I should know in order to understand what and how to buy? Things like the difference between Fairfield, Trendwest and WM; whether you have a home resort in this system and why you would pick one over the other; rules for using your points - you know, basic stuff that all you pros know, but some of us are still don't have a clue.

Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

Just read this.

Bill4728 said:

There are a handfull of WM & FF resorts which are shared between the two. BUT there are very few rooms and very few resorts which do this.

Click to expand...

So I take it that if Fairfield resorts are listed on the WorldMark site, then they are available to reserve into just as if they were WM resorts. They refer to them as Affiliate Resorts on the WM site - any different rules around these, or just like any other WM resort?

PerryM, thanks, another TUGger also pointed me towards your link and I found a lot of my questions answered there!

CatLovers said:

So I take it that if Fairfield resorts are listed on the WorldMark site, then they are available to reserve into just as if they were WM resorts. They refer to them as Affiliate Resorts on the WM site - any different rules around these, or just like any other WM resort?

PerryM, thanks, another TUGger also pointed me towards your link and I found a lot of my questions answered there!

Click to expand...

2 units at each of 13 Fairfield resorts are available to WM owners of good standing as of 11-6-2006, or anybody who buys 5000 credits from the developer after that date. Read the Travelshare forum on http://www.wmowners.com/forum/ to find out more details. It is a register-only forum but there is no membership fee.

Also, Trendwest is the developer and manager (but not owner) of WM, but their name has changed to Worldmark by Wyndham. Worldmark the Club is owned by Worldmark owners.

Thanks everyone for the info and the great sources. One additional point of clarification please.

On the Worldmark site (WorldmarkTheClub.com) there seem to be four kinds of resorts - WM resorts, Affiliate resorts, Associate resorts and Direct Exchange resorts. Because I plan to buy resale, it seems like I will be able to book using my points at the WM resorts, but not at the Affiliate resorts. Correct? What about the Associate and Direct Exchange resorts? Will my resale points access that inventory, or will I have to have at least 5000 developer-purchased points to get to those?

Many thanks everybody; I appreciate your patience in answering my newbie questions.