Exchange suggestions needed for weak traders

We have 3 white Desert Rose weeks which have very low trading power with RCI. They are no good for places we like to go in Colorado but will pick up a couple of fairly decent RCI resorts in Ruidoso, NM. Am sure there are places in the country I have not searched that would be interesting to us that we have not considered. We either have been there too often or do not want to return to Orlando, Branson and Williamsburg. Any suggestions as to where else these low trading power weeks might be used?

Thank you,

Diane

Try one of the independent companies. Trading Places or Dial an Exchange. I know with TP you would have no trouble getting Hawaii or Mexico. DAE has a lot of European availability, and neither of these companies userating systems when trading.

Good idea for future deposits. Thank you.

Would like to use the older/already-deposited-with-RCI weeks for one or more US destinations. Any ideas along that line?

Diane

In RCI, I recently saw some Park City and Snowbird for summer 2008 with my SA trader (never the best resorts or the biggest units, but they can get you there) ... and some east coast beach weeks in May, which is actually a pretty nice time to be there - September and October too. You could also probably get east coast mountains in summer or in fall, for leaf-viewing.

If you ever want to open up your search beyond the US and want to go to Europe, you could use them to go to the Italian Alps in summer, Canary Islands anytime, probably southern Spain, Portugal, and Hungary.

If you are able to plan last minute, trading power limitations are lifted within 45 days of checkin. Also, an ongoing search cannot be placed less than 30 days of checkin. And I believe any existing ongoing search stops 14 days before checkin. Simply put, within 2 or 3 weeks of the current date, you'll have access to the entire RCI inventory, which is mostly made up of garbage weeks that nobody wants, and some prime weeks that travelers have had to cancel at the last minute. In your area, I've seen quite a few Santa Fe weeks (Villas de Santa Fe and others) come up recently. If you get really lucky, you may be able to snag the Sheraton Mountain Vista (yes, I've seen this as well). The key is if you can go at the last minute and coordinate airfare if it's not drivable.

Tonight do a search for weeks for up to 6 weeks from the current date and you'll be pleasantly surprised at your possibilities. Inventory changes everyday so be sure to check nightly (the best exchanges are snapped up almost instantly when they become available).

If you have never been there

Come east and enjoy Branson, Lake of the Ozarks or Hot Springs. We love Branson and depending on your interests the other two destinations could be fun.

You could always use it to get yourself a cruise discount.

They've already been here, and I guess I ran them off.

Arkansas Winger said:

Come east and enjoy Branson,. We love Branson and depending on your interests the other two destinations could be fun.

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I could not give better advice than that in Post 5, which essentially is to take control of your own searching and spend some time online to see what your deposits can get in different areas, especially in the 14-45 Day Window.

I will add that you could match up with someone with a known good trader, do comparable searches, and find out what you are missing. I have a hint involved here that I will share by email.

The only other addition is that you can confirm an exchange ahead of time, so that you can complete the rest of your travel plans, and continue searching. If you find something better at the last minute, you can switch to it, using the same deposit you used for the original exchange.

Is this true??

JLB said:

The only other addition is that you can confirm an exchange ahead of time, so that you can complete the rest of your travel plans, and continue searching. If you find something better at the last minute, you can switch to it, using the same deposit you used for the original exchange.

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If I confirm a resort and then find something else that I like better at a later date, RCI will just switch the resorts?? No fees?? True??

scitchr said:

If I confirm a resort and then find something else that I like better at a later date, RCI will just switch the resorts?? No fees?? True??

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No, RCI will charge another exchange fee. But depending on how good the resort you want is, this may be a small price to pay for a great week.

Hey JLB or others - is it really true if you find something better,you can switch using the same deposit? The reason I ask is that I currently have a 1-bedroom confirmed at a resort for next summer and recently saw a 2-bedroom at a resort close by (2 miles away) - could I have asked to switch? Thanks for any help you can give . . .

Hey JLB or others - is it true, if you find something better at the last minute - you can switch to it using the same deposit you used for the original exchange? The reason I am asking is we have a 1-bedroom confirmed at a resort for next summer and I recently saw a 2-bedroom at a nearby resort - could I have called and switched? Thanks for any help you can give . . .