Abound, by Marriott became available in November 2022, and 2 months later, there are still questions about how it affects our timeshare ownerships – both for MVC Owners and Vistana Owners. Part of the problem is not getting questions answered because of hours-long wait times to get access to Vacation Owner Advisors on the phone. Part of the confusion is the concern by Owners that they will no longer be able to enjoy their ownership the way they have done in the past. Part of the frustration is the flaky websites and not being able to pay fees or check availabilities. Today I’m going Back to the Basics to help you understand what Abound includes, and what it does not.
Before Abound came to be, Marriott Vacation Club Owners had access to Marriott Vacation Club resorts, Ritz-Carlton Club resorts, and one of the two Grand Residences by Marriott – the Grand Residence in Tahoe is included, the Grand Residences in London is not. There were 74 resorts MVC Owners could access, and numerous Owner Events, Cruises, Tours, Destination Escapes, and other Owner Experiences – all using Destination Points.
Vistana Owners are Owners of Sheraton Vacation Club and Westin Vacation Club and have access to 22 Vistana resorts. They also have some exclusive Owner Events, Resort Credits, Destination Escapes, Insurance, and Cruises which go through Interval International – available only to Vistana Owners — all using Star Options. The opportunities aren’t as numerous, but they are provided for Vistana Owners and continue to be so, even now that Abound is available.
BOTH MVC Owners and Vistana Owners have access to resorts in the Interval International program through trades or points.
Abound, by Marriott
With Abound, by Marriott being introduced in November, Marriott Vacation Club Destinations Program BECAME Abound — all MVC Owners now use this program for everything ownership related. What was added for these Owners is that they can now reserve Sheraton and Westin Vacation Club properties, adding 22 more resorts to choose from. Nothing is taken away from MVC Owners that they had before – same Owner Events, Cruises, Tours, Destination Escapes and other Owner Experiences. The only real CHANGE is that the website was modified – and frankly is a real pain for EVERYONE right now. And Destination Points are now being called Club Points – very same thing, just different name.
ALL Vistana Owners were ENROLLED in Abound, by Marriott automatically, which affects the fees they pay. (More explanation on comparing these fees in future posts). Vistana Owners can PARTICIPATE in Abound and have access to all the MVC resorts elect Club Points IF they trade their deeded week or Star options for Club Points. This increases the number of resort options from 22 Vistana resorts to 96 Abound Club Resorts. AND Vistana Owners will have access to the numerous Owner Events, Cruises, Tours, Destination Escapes, and other Owner Experiences that are in the MVC network. Nothing was taken away from Vistana Owners, but there are CHANGES made that require the Owners to make decisions – basically whether to PARTICIPATE in the Abound program or not.
Vistana Owners need to understand that being ENROLLED in Abound is not the same as PARTICIPATING in Abound. They won’t be able to participate unless they ELECT Club Points in place of their Vistana properties or Star Options. Deeded MVC Owners make the same decision every year – do I want to trade my deeded week for Club Points or use it? However, Vistana Owners have an added decision to consider. Not only must they decide whether to trade their deeded week for Club Points and participate in Abound, but they must also decide whether to trade their Star Options for Club Points. Therein lies the stress of Vistana Owners on whether to elect Club Points or not.
It might help Vistana Owners feel more comfortable in electing Club Points if they were assured they get the reservations they want. Frankly, even MVC Owners aren’t guaranteed reservations at highly sought-after properties. We do our best to make it happen, but sometimes it doesn’t happen. And that’s OKAY – because Marriott properties – ALL of them – are so much better than hotels. THAT is why we invested in time shares to begin with. We are able to travel with family and friends, stay at wonderful locations in top-notch resorts, and we don’t worry about whether the photos give an accurate picture of what we will experience. THAT STRESS is alleviated by being Marriott Owners.
To answer more specific questions for Vistana Owners about participating in Abound, I highly recommend you read the FAQ’s on your website. It goes into great detail and depth on every subject. It takes a little investment of your time, but it will educate you and help you feel more comfortable with whatever you decide is best for you in using your ownership.
As a side note, Marriott also owns other time share properties – St. Regis Residence Club, Hyatt Residence Club, and Welk resorts. Abound or Vistana Owners DO NOT have access to these resorts through Abound, and according to Marriott, Hyatt and Welk will NEVER be part of Abound.
How can Marriot Club Points owners access Hyatt and Welk or who can access Hyatt and Welk?
The only way to access Welk or Hyatt properties is to go through Interval International. They don’t become available often, but I’ve seen there available.
dumb question:
Are the Hyatt & Welk properties too high end for the Abound clientele?
No, Ritz-Carlton is part of the Abound properties and are high-end. It is because in their original deeds/contracts with owners BEFORE they bacame Marriott, it stipulated they would never be part of another company’s inventory. They can’t go back and change their contract with the owners.
i heard you can check available inventory, and if you see something you like, place a 14 minute hold. enough time to convert your staroptions to club points.
Therefore, you dont convert to club points and then find nothing you like.
That is true in theory. If the website is working properly that is a good way to do it.
As Shanna said, it’s good in theory when it works. I put something on hold in December, less than 5 minutes I tried to book it and it wasn’t available to me. I was livid and after calling Marriott, they couldn’t do anything for me because they were operating with the same computer system issues.
We bought Vistana in Nov. They made it sound as if we were automatically members if Abound. I guess we aren’t. How do we trade our Vistana Points for Marriott Abound points- or whatever they’re called? I’m beginning to think we made a very expensive mistake. Who do we call? What do we do? THANK YOU.
If you learn how to use your ownership, you can have some great vacations! I recommend you become familiar with what you can do with your Vistana Points in your Vistana network first. You may want to travel to a Sheraton or Westin timeshare and not go through Abound at all this first year. You should also read/listen to many timeshare blogs that explain how/what to do such as https://www.atimeshare.com/abound-for-vistana-owners/ or just google it. To learn know about how to use your ownership in the Abound program, you can search for topics on my blog. You can also call Vistana Owner Services, the number should be listed on the Vistana Website. Ask them questions and how/what you do to learn.
Last, but not least, make an effort to learn it. This isn’t something that you choose a vacation destination, put it on your calendar, and show up. You have to plan ahead, strategize, and prepare to make your reservation. But when you do, and arrive at the wonderful property, you will love it.
We are Vistana owners and have gotten calls from someone about the “new changes to the program.” After speaking with 2 gentlemen, in 3 different phone calls, we realize they presenting the benefits of switching our Vistana points to Marriott Vacation Club points, plus buying an extra 1000 club points to bump us to the “Executive Level.” Does anyone know much about this and what the pros and cons are? Does the Executive Level actually make much difference? The cost would be a one-time purchase totally about $16,000, but would also add another $680 in annual maintenance fees.
This is another method of a “Sales Presentation” that is promoted to Owners at resorts when they visit, except they are calling Owners on the phone. They appear to be targeting Vistana Owners, as they are more likely to not understand their ownership as well. My recommendation is that purchasing more points just to bump up to Executive Level is not worth it. If, however, you need 1000 more Club Points to travel as frequently as you want, or to the resorts you want to travel, you can consider buying more. In any event, I wouldn’t do it through a phone conversations. Might be just that I’m very cautious when spending that much money. Doesn’t sound like a good deal either. Electing Marriott Vacation Club points (switching your Vistana points) is something you can do yourself — so you don’t need to pay for that. $16000 for 1000 points — expensive!
Thanks very much! Another part of this that I didn’t explain well… We would get the extra 1000 points every year. The cost, $16k, is a one time payment. They would also give us an extra 2500 points as a bonus, when it closes.
Does that make any difference in your advice?
They also said the Executive Level dramatically increases the number of properties that we would have access to. We can’t really see which ones, though.
Again, thanks for your knowledge!
Linda