II Exchanges thru Diamond-The Club vs Individual Membership

As you know, Diamond Resorts (once Sunterra) provides membership in II to members of "The Club". We have gotten some nice exchanges over the years. However, we are toying with the idea of adding a paid membership in II..
There seems to be some sort of "filter" that some resorts put on their available properties that exclude Diamond points members. Do you think it would be to my advantage to have a direct membership in II as well? I know it is possible to have both. They periodically send promo info to me to join.

Minnie, Who do you use to exchange your Muana Loa unit with? Where are you interested in going? We just became Diamond Club members last year but have used II as individual members for several years. We converted to The Club primarily for the purpose of using points for short stays and haven't made any II exchanges with our corporate account as yet. From my on-line searches so far, I don't see any appreciable difference in what is available. I doubt you would get anything different as an individual account than you can get with your Diamond account for your San Luis Bay unit.

We have always deposited Mauna Loa with The Club. It is converted to points which can be used in II or for Diamond properties. I know I would be able to deposit it into II.

What I'd like is to be able to see properties like FS Aviara. II tells me FSA and other high end resorts place restrictions on who can "see" their deposits.

Here's my advice, for what it is worth. Call II and ask the rep if your Muana Loa unit can pull FSA. If he/she will not give you an answer, hangup and try again until you get a rep that will give you a straight answer. I got a rep once that told me that only 1 of the 9 different resorts I owned (all but 1 were 5 star) would get FSA with a request beyond the 59 day flex window. My research indicates that very few resorts can pull the really top tier resorts like FSA. Even some Marriotts and many Hawaiin & Caribbean places can't pull FSA. That was very valuable information! That would help you make a more informed decision about bothering with another II account.

I have booked FSA through THE Club.

In fact, I have gotten one FSA trade back in 2005. I saw it as a space-bank but could not pull it on line. I called II and told the rep what was available and she was able to override the system and give it to me. However, that doesn't work anymore, as the reps say, "You see what I see thru Diamond".

I will try the suggestion to call II and see what my Mauna Loa can pull.
Thanks for the suggestions.

Paying II buys you heartache - save your money

After over a decade as a paying member of II I had been nothing but disappointed with the trades/quality/service (actually lack of service) that II offered. When I started to use the Corporate II membership through Diamond (Sunterra) I found II actually worked quite well - and I didn't usually have to use all my points to get what I wanted! Contrast that with my whole week gone into the II pool and then months and months of trying, usually unsuccessfully, to get anything, anywhere that we wanted and that represented a fair trade. It simply never happened and we'd end up taking anything so we wouldn't lose our week.

Paying to be an II member puts you behind all the Corporate and privileged accounts (Diamond, Marriott, DVC, etc) - it is a losers play. Don't do it. You already have access to the best way to use II.
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John, Have you gotten a Four Seasons or say...Harborside with your Sunterra/Diamond account? Or do you simply use your points to get 1/2 point bargain flextime exchanges? I'm a newbie with this "priviledge" corporate account and am curious why you find it a better way to get the high end resorts in exchange (if you do indeed find that to be true.) The OP was asking about that very specific question not whether using II as an individual in general was a good idea.

I have booked FSA through THE Club.

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Joe
Did you get FSA with an ongoing request, in flextime, or spotting it online?

My only trade into Aviara was by snagging one after sighting it in the wee hours about 10 months out using my individual account and a non branded yet 5 star resort.

barndweller said:

John, Have you gotten a Four Seasons or say...Harborside with your Sunterra/Diamond account? Or do you simply use your points to get 1/2 point bargain flextime exchanges? I'm a newbie with this "priviledge" corporate account and am curious why you find it a better way to get the high end resorts in exchange (if you do indeed find that to be true.) The OP was asking about that very specific question not whether using II as an individual in general was a good idea.

Click to expand...

Harborside once - never tried to get Four Seasons. Never sniffed either one as a paying, II member.

Minnie said:

As you know, Diamond Resorts (once Sunterra) provides membership in II to members of "The Club". We have gotten some nice exchanges over the years. However, we are toying with the idea of adding a paid membership in II..
There seems to be some sort of "filter" that some resorts put on their available properties that exclude Diamond points members. Do you think it would be to my advantage to have a direct membership in II as well? I know it is possible to have both. They periodically send promo info to me to join.

Click to expand...

Because I own more resorts than DRI I have two I.I. memberships. IMO, there would be no advantage that I can see to having the additional membership.

At least when searching online with either points or a direct week for week exchange using the same resort that is in DRI points, there is no difference. Perhaps with on ongoing search their might be but, overall, THE Club points are easier to use and more economical in getting more out of my resort week in exchange.

You might take note that John and I seem to be of like mind on this one. That doesn't happen very often and might be a sign that either the sky is falling or that taking the personal membership out would be a complete waste of time and money.

Now, see..I have spotted both beyond flextime using my individual account but have only seen Aviara in flextime with my Diamond account. Harborside isn't on my gotta go someday list so I rarely even look for it except to alert my fellow forum members. FSA and SCT (Troon in Scottsdale) on the other hand are on my really love to go as often as possible list. Diamond doesn't seem to improve my chances in any way. It seems that only owning one of the "approved" timeshares will get me those trades.

barndweller said:

Joe
Did you get FSA with an ongoing request, in flextime, or spotting it online?

My only trade into Aviara was by snagging one after sighting it in the wee hours about 10 months out using my individual account and a non branded yet 5 star resort.

Click to expand...

As previously mentioned, you won't see FSA through your Club account online. It can be gotten with an ongoing search or if you know it's there, call DRI and get them to book it, that's how I got a week there.