Bad upgrade? Vistana Kaanapali Maui (296K StarOptions or 480K points) -> Sheraton Flex (261K StarOptions or 407K points) for $14K

We just did this yesterday and after getting home, thinking it's a bad deal - since we're now getting fewer StarOptions and fewer Bonvoy points. They are saying it's because the Sheraton Flex is better in that is has lower fees, fees wont go up as much as they are shared amongst many more properties and fewer are oceanside (versus the Vistana Kaanapali which is oceanside with more probability of higher fees), and that the Sheraton Flex can be exchanged natively via Interval International with more weeks as those StarOptions are worth more - but aren't all StarOptions the same, regardless of which is the home resort. They are saying that we could instead trade them annually for 2 weeks at a premium like Atlantis Bahamas and then even rent them out on sites like Redweek, for a profit. Also we get access to a new section of the Interval site that allows much lower cash bookings of resorts (unfilled rooms) that is being rolled out now and only to new owners of these Flex units. The question that keeps bothering us is why are we paying $14K to "upgrade" and get fewer StarOptions/Bonvoy points, even with the greater flex options. We're also thinking this new system should eventually be rolled out to all owners, no? Are we wrong? Thinking about rescinding.

Caveat, there is a sort of "benefit" in that $14K is what we would have paid over 3 years anyway in maintenance fees ($5500 annually before), as they would be pushed out to 2025 for the next payment - though our timeshare usage would be pushed out to 2024 to be used (or turned into Bonvoy points), but we would get immediate use of the discounted cash booking system though.

Normally, we just convert the StarOptions to Bonvoy points as we never make use of the timeshare weeks and prefer to stay at the hotels with the far many more options and flexibility and we have over 4M Bonvoy points already always (so we wont miss them for the next few years).

Would love some opinions on this, thank you!

I think that a salesman is trying to get a nice timeshare back from you. I could be wrong. Redweek is a great site for transactions, but I would recommend that you use Tug (www.tug2.com) for advice. There are different forums on Tug, and you just have to find your forum and ask the same question you asked above. You will have 5 answers in a couple of hours. Tug is free. You just have to sign up. If you like the site, you can register to join for $15/year. Great value.

macc14 wrote:

We just did this yesterday and after getting home, thinking it's a bad deal .........They are saying...........Thinking about rescinding.

Two points. "They are saying..." Whenever a timeshare sales person tells you something in a sales pitch, it is likely not 100% true. Many are notorious for lying or telling half-truths. Remember, after they sell you something and it is not what you thought it was, they can hide behind the wording of the contract which basically says the what is said in the contract is what counts, not what the sales person told you.

Secondly, this advice comes from many longtime timeshare owners. The fact that you are wondering about your purchase and thinking about rescinding is an indicator that you should rescind. Remember, you only have one chance to rescind this multi-thousand dollar purchase. If you take the time to look over the contract with a fine-toothed comb and decide later that you do want it, you can always go back and purchase it. Forget about what the sales person likely told you that "this offer is good for today only."