• 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!

Experienced credit card points traveler -- should I buy a time share for skiing?

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
1) Is there a vacation destination you wish to visit most of the time or on a regular basis? if so where?

South Lake Tahoe, Northern Utah for skiing.

So far I have traveled primarily using credit card points, but it takes a bit of work and I'm no longer interested in spending the time in maintaining credit cards. It has taken me to nice places like Ritz Carlton Tahoe, Ritz Carlton Bachelor Gulch, Waldorf Astoria Park City. I will still maintain cards that give free nights every year (Hilton, Marriott, Intercontinental) but I won't be earning points aggressively with credit card signups.

I have stayed at following timeshare properties and I like them better than hotels since they have more space and kitchen: Sheraton Mountain Vista Avon, Marriott Mountain Side Park City, Marriott Timber Lodge Tahoe.

Looking for a timeshare program that I can utilize for ski travel during peak or non peak weeks. If traveling during holidays, I would go to following resorts:
  • Mt. Rose Reno Nevada
  • Mt. Bachelor Bend Oregon
  • Brundage McCall Idaho
  • Schweitzer Sandpoint Idaho
  • Beaver Mountain Utah
  • Powder Mountain Utah
  • Grand Targhee near Jackson Wyoming
  • Big Sky Montana
  • Aspen Snowmass or Buttermilk Colorado
If traveling during non peak times, I would consider following places:
  • Park City Utah
  • South Lake Tahoe CA/NV
  • Kirkwood CA
  • Squaw Valley CA
  • Beaver Creek CO
  • Snowbird or Alta Utah
I will take some weekend trips to Heavenly, Kirkwood as I can take the bus from Bay Area.

2) Do you want to visit your home resort at least half the time, or do you want to trade more than half the time?


Depends on what is good value. I might not want to trade if it is not cost effective. But leaning towards trading.

3) What are your 5 top trade destinations?

Kauai, Maui, Big Island, Cabo, Costa Rica

4) How many people do you usually travel with?

75% - 3
25% < 8


5) Can you travel any time, or are you locked into the school schedule?

Locked into California public school schedule.
Ski during following weeks as well as regular weekends:
  • 2 weeks Xmas
  • 1 week President's day
  • 1 week Easter -- Alta/Snowbird/Brighton/Solitude
One year, I may do a Xmas ski trip; other year, I'll do a warm weather trip. I would like to do an April ski trip every year but since lodging is cheap in that time frame, it's not the biggest consideration


6) Can you make firm plans 12 or more mos. in advance?

yes

7) Can you vacation for a full week at a time?
a minimum 1 week ski trip every year. A lot of weekend trips to the Sierras but a minimum 1 week ski trip every year.


8) What level of accommodations do you prefer on a scale of 1 to 5 stars?
I have been staying at a lot of 5* places using credit card points. We are a bit spoiled. 3.5* would be minimum.

9) How much can you afford to spend upfront, without financing?
10k per week for holiday weeks
5k per week for non-holiday weeks


10) How much can you afford to spend every year for a maintenance fee that will come due right after Christmas, and increase each year?
$1500 per week

11) Are you a detail oriented planner?
yes

12) Do you understand that once you buy a timeshare, it may be very difficult to sell or give away, and you are responsible for all fees, until you do?
yes
 

T-Dot-Traveller

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2015
Messages
4,644
Reaction score
3,592
Points
348
Location
Canada
Resorts Owned
Mayan Palace Regency
Taranova
I think you should be looking at timeshares .

I say timeshares / plural because trying to buy one may not fit all your requirements .
Marriott has both ski resorts & Hawaii / so does Wyndham .
Some ski location TS’s are “independents “ so you would buy there & use . Then buy a trader TS
or a many resort point system like Wyndham or Worldmark for other uses .

Christmas /New Year’s -& Presidents week you may want to explore this by finding what properties
sold these as fixed weeks / and or ski season specific weeks - ie weeks 1-8 / Platinum Season or similar
format .

One way to research is to go on eBay and use filters - you can enter states ( Utah etc j and also
enter week 51 timeshares and then click - sold / finished listings .
Sometimes you can get lucky & buy these resale very reasonably - evan though they have high use value for your needs .

TUG may have some past threads that have TS ski resort info . You may wish to “conversation”
some folks who posted since not everyone visits TUG daily .

Timeshare rentals may allow you mid - peak time use as well .
TUG Marketplace has listings - sometimes for “ next winter “
There is also the 45 days or less rental forum .

Your knowledge of how to maximize credit card points is good background for timeshare usage .
The rules may differ but the overall game is similar .

Have fun learning .
 

K2Quick

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2009
Messages
889
Reaction score
109
Points
253
Location
Salt Lake City, UT
Being locked into a school calendar really means you're going to need to own at the location where you want to stay rather than trade in, because holiday ski weeks are rarely deposited.

Worldmark would give you Bend, McCall, Beaver and Powder Mountain in Northern Utah, Park City, and South Lake Tahoe, but only Park City would be ski-in, ski-out if that's important. They also have one nearby the Banff resorts, a couple in Whistler, and ones close to Steamboat Springs and Winter Park if that's ever something that interests you. Also, Worldmark isn't going to serve up your minimum 3.5* - it's more like somewhere between 2.5* and 3* but generally priced accordingly, though.

Hyatt would give you Beaver Creek, Aspen, and North Tahoe but that's more a situation where you would probably need to own at each specific resort to get holiday weeks and those don't come cheap either with up-front costs or maintenance fees. You might want to inquire on the Hyatt board to determine how realistic it is to get the ski resorts during holiday weeks.

Marriott gives you South Lake Tahoe and Park City. You'd probably need to own one of those to stay during a holiday week and at least a strong Marriott trader to get a non-holiday week (unless you're looking at late spring skiing where trades would probably be easier).

Sheraton/Westin really only offers up Beaver Creek or Steamboat Springs for skiing, but also gives you some nice internal preference for Hawaii Westin trades.

The Hawaiian trade locations you listed are doable, but you'll have to have expectations kept in check depending on where you go and what you have to trade with. I usually book where I own (Worldmark) and put in a trade request with Interval International and cross my fingers that I get an upgrade to a Marriott or Westin. On our last trip, the trade didn't come through so we ending up just staying at the Worldmark in Kihei - not nearly as nice as the Marriott or Westin, but it was still comfortable and clean and we were in Maui so hard to complain.
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
I think you should be looking at timeshares .

I say timeshares / plural because trying to buy one may not fit all your requirements .
Marriott has both ski resorts & Hawaii / so does Wyndham .
Some ski location TS’s are “independents “ so you would buy there & use . Then buy a trader TS
or a many resort point system like Wyndham or Worldmark for other uses .




Being locked into a school calendar really means you're going to need to own at the location where you want to stay rather than trade in, because holiday ski weeks are rarely deposited.

Worldmark would give you Bend, McCall, Beaver and Powder Mountain in Northern Utah, Park City, and South Lake Tahoe, but only Park City would be ski-in, ski-out if that's important. They also have one nearby the Banff resorts, a couple in Whistler, and ones close to Steamboat Springs and Winter Park if that's ever something that interests you. Also, Worldmark isn't going to serve up your minimum 3.5* - it's more like somewhere between 2.5* and 3* but generally priced accordingly, though.

Marriott gives you South Lake Tahoe and Park City. You'd probably need to own one of those to stay during a holiday week and at least a strong Marriott trader to get a non-holiday week (unless you're looking at late spring skiing where trades would probably be easier).

Sheraton/Westin really only offers up Beaver Creek or Steamboat Springs for skiing, but also gives you some nice internal preference for Hawaii Westin trades.

Thanks for the feedback. Just for ballpark calcs, what would it cost in annual fees to own 2 weeks in 2 BR in Bend/McCall every other year and 3 weekends in 1 BR with Marriott for Tahoe/Park City?

I have enjoyed ski in ski out places but those resorts tend to be in ski areas, which are crowded during holidays due to cheap multi resort passes. So going to smaller independent ski areas is important for Xmas.

I will leave out my desire to trade into places in Hawaii/Mexico. We don't go there that regularly. We have averaged once every three years. I think we can visit those only when we accumulate enough hotel points or nights.
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
Hi, Marriott timeshares fit many of your requirements. Marriotts timeshares are walk to lifts at Heavenly, Park City, and Breckenridge. They are a shuttle bus away every 30 minutes at Vail. They are 4 stars and very dependable from both a service and location perspective. You'll be able to book and exchange into Easter week regularly.

However, Christmas, NY, and President's holiday weeks are platinum plus weeks and requires significantly more upfront money than regular platinum weeks. As an example, at Park City Mountainside, holiday weeks will be around 45k upfront vs 17k for platinum weeks.

If you only can spend upfront the money that you listed, then buying a Worldmark makes sense. You can book at their Lake Tahoe, Taos, Whistler and Steamboat Springs resorts during the holidays or you can exchange into a Marriott for Easter skiing. The drawback is that you will need to take a shuttle bus or a long walk to the lifts or you can occasionally exchange into the above Marriotts for Easter week. Generally, Worldmark are 3 star resorts but are excellent value for the money. FYI - due to the limited number of WM units at Park City, that resort is a very difficult place to book during the major holidays but President's week is possible

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
Hi, Marriott timeshares fit many of your requirements. Marriotts timeshares are walk to lifts at Heavenly, Park City, and Breckenridge. They are a shuttle bus away every 30 minutes at Vail. They are 4 stars and very dependable from both a service and location perspective. You'll be able to book and exchange into Easter week regularly.

However, Christmas, NY, and President's holiday weeks are platinum plus weeks and requires significantly more upfront money than regular platinum weeks. As an example, at Park City Mountainside, holiday weeks will be around 45k upfront vs 17k for platinum weeks.

If you only can spend upfront the money that you listed, then buying a Worldmark makes sense. You can book at their Lake Tahoe, Taos, Whistler and Steamboat Springs resorts during the holidays or you can exchange into a Marriott for Easter skiing. The drawback is that you will need to take a shuttle bus or a long walk to the lifts or you can occasionally exchange into the above Marriotts for Easter week. Generally, Worldmark are 3 star resorts but are excellent value for the money. FYI - due to the limited number of WM units at Park City, that resort is a very difficult place to book during the major holidays but President's week is possible

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the feedback. I would probably not ski any of the major ski resorts (Park City, Beaver Creek, Heavenly, Breck) during holidays because how crowded they get . If I ski them, it will most likely be last week of Jan or Feb. Occasionally first week of April.

I plan on getting one independent ski area pass along with an Epic or Ikon pass each year (alternate years). Park City and Heavenly are great for 3 day trips. Any idea what it would cost in maintenance fees to have 3x 3 day weekends at Tahoe and Park City with Worldmark?
 

Sandy VDH

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
9,848
Reaction score
4,227
Points
648
Location
Houston, TX
Resorts Owned
Wynd VIP Plat GF, HGVC Elite, WM, HICV, +
Ski season is one of those destinations that you should seriously own if you indeed on going every year. There are only about 8 to 10 weeks of good ski season at most locations. Of course some years this may go as long as 12 weeks. It is very difficult to rely on trading into to get a ski week, especially if you want February Presidents week 7.

Only problem with Worldmark for skiing, is you have NO home priority. You are competing with everyone in WM who wants a ski week. Hilton or Marriott would give you a home week priority, but obviously at a higher purchase cost and likely also higher MF.
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
Ski season is one of those destinations that you should serious own if you indeed on going every year. There are only about 8 to 10 weeks of good ski season at most locations. Of course some years this may go as long as 12 weeks. It is very difficult to rely on trading into to get a ski week, especially if you want February Presidents week 7.

Only problem with Worldmark for skiing, is you have NO home priority. You are competing with everyone in WM who wants a ski week. Hilton or Marriott would give you a home week priority, but obviously at a higher purchase cost and likely also higher MF.

Good to know. Sadly, it looks like the locations I want to ski for Xmas and President's day are Worldmark and the non-holiday locations are Marriott/Hilton/Hyatt.
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
I have no issues with skiing those resorts during the holidays as long as stay on the more challenging runs and lifts.

With Worldmark, you can only book 7 days or greater when reservations can be made 13 months in advance of your stay. So booking for long ski weekends are only possible in the less popular resorts such as Steamboat, Taos, and Lake Tahoe. Credits required to book vary by number of bedrooms, days of week, and location of the unit you are looking to book but you can use 2,000 credits per day. The cost of each credit is roughly 7¢. So 6,000 credits to stay at Lake Tahoe Fri-Mon which is about $420 for a 2BR.

Thanks for the feedback. I would probably not ski any of the major ski resorts (Park City, Beaver Creek, Heavenly, Breck) during holidays because how crowded they get . If I ski them, it will most likely be last week of Jan or Feb. Occasionally first week of April.

I plan on getting one independent ski area pass along with an Epic or Ikon pass each year (alternate years). Park City and Heavenly are great for 3 day trips. Any idea what it would cost in maintenance fees to have 3x 3 day weekends at Tahoe and Park City with Worldmark?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
I have no issues with skiing those resorts during the holidays as long as stay on the more challenging runs and lifts.

I do the same but my daughter is 4 and she is not going on blacks for many years. My wife is a beginner too and some people who might come with us might not be advanced skiers.

With Worldmark, you can only book 7 days or greater when reservations can be made 13 months in advance of your stay. So booking for long ski weekends are only possible in the less popular resorts such as Steamboat, Taos, and Lake Tahoe. Credits required to book vary by number of bedrooms, days of week, and location of the unit you are looking to book but you can use 2,000 credits per day. The cost of each credit is roughly 7¢. So 6,000 credits to stay at Lake Tahoe Fri-Mon which is about $420 for a 2BR.

Can I book 2 weeks for Xmas in Bend (Mt. Bachelor) 13 months in advance? Where can I read up on the points and maintenance fees for various resorts? My Tahoe plans are almost always made 3-4 days before the trip. So I don't need to book those in advance. But if I wait to book that late, will I even find availability?

I'm used to canceling couple of days out for hotels. But some skiing hotels have 30 day or more cancellation deadlines. How are the cancellation policies for ski time shares?
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
Good to know. Sadly, it looks like the locations I want to ski for Xmas and President's day are Worldmark and the non-holiday locations are Marriott/Hilton/Hyatt.
Yes, Steamboat is a really good mountain and the value for money is high, especially when you book at Christmas and President's weeks. Nothing to frown upon - just enjoy the skiing and smile when you think about all the money you are saving.

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
Yes, Steamboat is a really good mountain and the value for money is high, especially when you book at Christmas and President's weeks. Nothing to frown upon - just enjoy the skiing and smile when you think about all the money you are saving.

I might do Steamboat for Xmas in future as they have an excellent early season record. But my 4 year old needs lessons and their lessons are expensive.

It's also a bit trickier to get to than say Mt. Bachelor. We can drive to Mt. Bachelor. Xmas flights are expensive, we would have to fly Southwest to DEN and then drive to Steamboat.
 

Sandy VDH

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
9,848
Reaction score
4,227
Points
648
Location
Houston, TX
Resorts Owned
Wynd VIP Plat GF, HGVC Elite, WM, HICV, +
Cancelling timeshares is NOT the same as cancelling a hotel. They are generally more restrictive.

Wyndham you can cancel 15 days or more prior to checkin and receive a complete refund of points. You can now purchase insurance, where the cost varies based on the amount of points in the reservation.

Hilton you and cancel 31 days prior and receive a complete refund. There is a work around for Hilton, you can book a changeable reservation that lets you rebook into a reservation that uses the same points or more, and you can do this up to 1 day prior to arrival. Hilton also offers insurance you may purchase.

I do not know WM, Marriott or Hyatt cancelation policies. Perhaps others do.
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
I do the same but my daughter is 4 and she is not going on blacks for many years. My wife is a beginner too and some people who might come with us might not be advanced skiers.



Can I book 2 weeks for Xmas in Bend (Mt. Bachelor) 13 months in advance? Where can I read up on the points and maintenance fees for various resorts? My Tahoe plans are almost always made 3-4 days before the trip. So I don't need to book those in advance. But if I wait to book that late, will I even find availability?

I'm used to canceling couple of days out for hotels. But some skiing hotels have 30 day or more cancellation deadlines. How are the cancellation policies for ski time shares?
You can see all the Worldmark resorts and credit values at http://www.worldmarktheclub.com/resorts

You can book for 2 weeks or more at all Worldmark resorts, you are only limited by the number of credits in your account.

The Bend Worldmark is very nice and you can see the pictures on the site as well. Their room inventory is mostly studios and one bedrooms so you can book a couple rooms if you need more space. Drive from the WM resort to Mt Bachelor is 30 minutes each way.

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
Worldmark can be cancelled 30 days before checkin if you booked 13 months in advance.

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
You can see all the Worldmark resorts and credit values at http://www.worldmarktheclub.com/resorts

You can book for 2 weeks or more at all Worldmark resorts, you are only limited by the number of credits in your account.

The Bend Worldmark is very nice and you can see the pictures on the site as well. Their room inventory is mostly studios and one bedrooms so you can book a couple rooms if you need more space. Drive from the WM resort to Mt Bachelor is 30 minutes each way.
Thanks. Looks like it is 10k for 1 BR and 12K for 2 BR during peak season. I have read that the purchase price on resale is low but the main cost to watch out for is the maintenance fee. Any idea of the approx maintenance fee for 12k points purchased per year? Also, if you cancel a reservation, do the points go bank into your account similar to airline miles and they can be used again in future? Do they expire?
 

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
The WM Bend resort is different than many other WM resorts. The main WM rooms are studios and 1BRs. I think their 2BR are fractionals which means that they only become available if an owner deposits them because they want the WM credits so they can book elsewhere. This means that you can not count on the 2BRs being available.

Credits have 2 years until expiration so you can cancel and rebook as many times as you want during that time period. WM is an extremely flexible system but that means it can be complicated and you really should study the rules. You should read the Worldmark subforum on this site and also check out wmowners.com

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

CalGalTraveler

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2014
Messages
9,736
Reaction score
8,270
Points
498
Location
California
Resorts Owned
HGVC, MVC Vistana
Welcome to TUG. You are making a good decision to research this in advance.

We also live in the Bay Area and ski Tahoe however we own a vacation rental that we use during non-peak weekends (we rent it out during peak and holidays) and use timeshare/hotel points for other ski locations and HI during peak.

I have been intrigued by some of the independents such as The Ridge Tahoe which sometimes are given away here on TUG and has reasonable MF. It has ski-on access to Heavenly via the stagecoach lift. I am not sure how it trades in II or RCI. So other TUG owners will need to comment or you can search TUG threads. Driving with a family is much more convenient and cost effective than flying so Tahoe has it's benefits.

Another independent that intrigues me are the Grand Vacations (Peak 8, Peak 7 etc.). However those are Colorado which are at least a 1 - 2 hour drive from the airport. We have been going to SLC/Park City because you waste a lot less time traveling to the slopes on long weekends.

Lastly, check out Cliffs Club Snowbird, however not sure how that trades outside of Alta/Snowbird - but easy access to SLC airport.

Join Tug for the best $15 you will spend on your future vacations, and you can check out the resort ratings in the marketplace.
 
Last edited:

Marathoner

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
804
Reaction score
511
Points
203
Location
NYC
I own at the Cliff Club at Snowbird. The issue with owning at the Cliff Club for the OP is that for the non-holiday weeks, your week is chosen by lottery and your week request is assigned to a bucket which rotates every 4 years (a, b, c, d) in terms of selection priority. This means that once every 4 years, you will likely get your top pick and once every 4 years, you will be given a week that nobody wanted during the 4 month ski season. President's week is not a holiday week in their system so you can get it every 4 years. Their 2br sleeps 10 so is spacious.

The skiing at Snowbird and Alta is fabulous.

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
 

MrockStar

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 5, 2014
Messages
4,926
Reaction score
2,607
Points
348
Location
Detroit MI
I own at the Cliff Club at Snowbird. The issue with owning at the Cliff Club for the OP is that for the non-holiday weeks, your week is chosen by lottery and your week request is assigned to a bucket which rotates every 4 years (a, b, c, d) in terms of selection priority. This means that once every 4 years, you will likely get your top pick and once every 4 years, you will be given a week that nobody wanted during the 4 month ski season. President's week is not a holiday week in their system so you can get it every 4 years. Their 2br sleeps 10 so is spacious.

The skiing at Snowbird and Alta is fabulous.

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk
BLUEGREEN has big sky Montana and I think Brerkensidge Colorado and also Pono Kia Kuai Hawaii, it's points with priority use of the underlying deeded week owned. The resorts are 3.5 to a few 4.5 and Gold crown. They also have direct exchange with Shell and Raintree resorts who have many nice timeshares out west and Hawaii and Mexico. It's probably the Ieast expensive byin and lowest cost maintenance fees and most flexible resale points based system that could fulfill your Ski timeshare ownership search. Best of luck and your very savy using TUG here first. If I can be of any more help on Bluegreen timeshares just ask. AL
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
Welcome to TUG. You are making a good decision to research this in advance.

We also live in the Bay Area and ski Tahoe however we own a vacation rental that we use during non-peak weekends (we rent it out during peak and holidays) and use timeshare/hotel points for other ski locations and HI during peak.

I have been intrigued by some of the independents such as The Ridge Tahoe which sometimes are given away here on TUG and has reasonable MF. It has ski-on access to Heavenly via the stagecoach lift. I am not sure how it trades in II or RCI. So other TUG owners will need to comment or you can search TUG threads. Driving with a family is much more convenient and cost effective than flying so Tahoe has it's benefits.

Another independent that intrigues me are the Grand Vacations (Peak 8, Peak 7 etc.). However those are Colorado which are at least a 1 - 2 hour drive from the airport. We have been going to SLC/Park City because you waste a lot less time traveling to the slopes on long weekends.

Join Tug for the best $15 you will spend on your future vacations, and you can check out the resort ratings in the marketplace.

Yes, I signed up for a TUG membership last night.

Sounds like you have figured out how to ski in Tahoe cost effectively! I have created an alert for The Ridge.

The traffic to Tahoe is so bad, we have only spent 5 days skiing Tahoe this season. Yes few twice to Park City and twice to Colorado. So far we have 6 days Park City, 12 days Beaver Creek. Colorado is a lot of hassle and the elevation caused problems for my wife and daughter. I don't see any advantage to Colorado compared to Utah.


I own at the Cliff Club at Snowbird. The issue with owning at the Cliff Club for the OP is that for the non-holiday weeks, your week is chosen by lottery and your week request is assigned to a bucket which rotates every 4 years (a, b, c, d) in terms of selection priority. This means that once every 4 years, you will likely get your top pick and once every 4 years, you will be given a week that nobody wanted during the 4 month ski season. President's week is not a holiday week in their system so you can get it every 4 years. Their 2br sleeps 10 so is spacious.
The skiing at Snowbird and Alta is fabulous.

Agreed

Snowbird would be good once my daughter is a good skier. Until then we need to focus on resorts that offer good beginner terrain and good lessons. We are getting the Mt. Rose season pass next year as they have 50% off on kids lessons.
 

JohnPaul

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2011
Messages
1,649
Reaction score
845
Points
323
Location
Sacramento, CA
Resorts Owned
Vacation Internationale, HGVC - NYC, Worldmark, Shell Vacations, Sedona Pines, RCI Points, Starwood (Avon, CO)
You are unlikely to get a 3 day ski weekend at WM Park City. You can’t book less than a week (unless that’s all that is available) until 10 months out. At that point everything is booked. WM only has 14 units there (up from 10)

It’s a great resort. Fancier than most WM. A week in a two bedroom during ski season is 14000 WM credits.
 

ski_sierra

TUG Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2019
Messages
517
Reaction score
327
Points
173
Location
SF Bay Area
Resorts Owned
Too many
You are unlikely to get a 3 day ski weekend at WM Park City. You can’t book less than a week (unless that’s all that is available) until 10 months out. At that point everything is booked. WM only has 14 units there (up from 10)

It’s a great resort. Fancier than most WM. A week in a two bedroom during ski season is 14000 WM credits.

I think I'm going to give up on timeshare for Park City. The cost/availability does not seem to be worth it. If we ski Park City, we will stay at the Waldorf Park City. We have multiple Hilton Aspire cards and the cost of free night certificate is no more than $200. We have used it during peak season on 3 separate trips. Those nights are only valid on weekends so we have to use Hilton points on weekdays. The cost of a free night would be $400 if you buy Hilton points directly during their sales.

I know the comparison is not apples to apples because credit card benefits change from time time but you can also cancel credit card any time without much hassle unlike timeshare. Also it's a hotel room and does not have a kitchen.
 

crystal413

newbie
Joined
Aug 14, 2017
Messages
13
Reaction score
0
Points
11
Resorts Owned
Olympic Village Inn, Tahoe, CA
Southern CA Beach Club
We own at Olympic Village Inn @ Squaw Valley Resort in Lake Tahoe, CA. We absolutely LOVE our timeshare, and would recommend buying there, soon to be managed by Grand Pacific Resorts, so you can trade for Hawaii with GPR. With OVI, you buy the room size and season, but have to call to reserve your actual dates. We have the large room (Chamonix) with a fireplace, but both sizes are 1 bedroom. Maintenance fees are about $800/year, in your budget. And you can acquire a week at OlympicVillageInn.com for free, and just pay the maintenance fees. It's right at Squaw Valley, a great resort, has a shuttle bus so you can park your car for the week and shuttle over to ski. Also has 5 hot tubs and an Olympic size pool. We housed the Olympians here in 1960... of course it's completely remodeled since then! OVI also has a gym, sauna, and video game room~
 

CalGalTraveler

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2014
Messages
9,736
Reaction score
8,270
Points
498
Location
California
Resorts Owned
HGVC, MVC Vistana
Do you have to reserve for an entire week? or can you split up your weeks into several weekends? That's one of the biggest challenges we have with Tahoe timeshares.
 
Top