I was trying to book a room at the Wild Oak Ranch sometime this summer. Hyatt blocks rooms aside for non-member guests. I went online as a non-owner to the hyatt.com site and rooms are available to non-owners on the exact dates they are unavailable to me as an owner using the member’s reservation site hyattvacationclub.com. It should be noted that the salesman never mentioned I would be waiting behind people who were not members of the time share for rooms after they were not booked to outside non-owner guest.

As an owner, I should have priority to any available room at the property of choice. However, this is not the case. Hyatt sets aside rooms for non-member guests and these rooms are left open even if there is a member waiting for a room at that property for that date on a member waiting list. Once Hyatt does not fill a room at the guest rate, they open the rooms up to members on the member waiting list. Therefore, members wait until last minute and get rooms only after Hyatt was unable to book the room to non-owner guests.

Hyatt Vacation Club owners pay the purchase price of the property due in full within 3 months of purchase date, reservation fees, often split week fees, a cancellation fee if necessary (no 24 hour notice waiver), and a cleaning fee if you stay less than a full week and would like the room cleaned/sheets changed.

I personally spent $28, 000 on my property purchase at Wild Oak Ranch. I have 2000 available points each year. We pay $1, 200.00 a year in fees in addition to the other fees mention above. It would take quite a few stays as a non-owner to equal what we are paying.

If you were to average the yearly expense as a member it might look something like this: add the purchase price $28, 000 (not including interest on that total sum) and the $1, 200.00 yearly maintenance fees and the average would come to an approximate round sum $2, 000 fixed expense for 28 years and then $1, 200.00 a year each year thereafter. In my opinion, investing at a Hyatt Vacation Club property is not a savings compared to staying for several days each year, in the largest of the rooms, with the open availability. I would be hard pressed to exceed what we have spent for the same number of stays as I have spent to have the “privilege” of ownership and to be denied my choice of stay over someone who did not purchase ownership.

Think twice before buying a Hyatt Vacation Club Time Share. They tell you that you can trade your week for other weeks at other Hyatt resorts, but in reality they sell the inventory for cash customers like a hotel, and there is very little or no inventory left to trade for. When you call for a reservation, the agents are very rude and unhelpful, and do nothing to accomodate your request.

In addition, the fees go up every year. You are better off saving your money and getting a hotel room.

Robert
Weston, FL