An overview of the elite levels of Marriott Vacation Club Ownership

The Marriott Vacation Club is a very popular program since most of the Marriott properties are in prime locations and are very nice.  The popularity of Marriott's hotels have definitely assisted with the growth of the Marriott Vacation Club. 

I have personally traveled to many of Marriott's Vacation Club properties and I have found most, if not all, to be of very high quality.  A significant perk of a lot of their properties is that they are generally included on the same grounds as a Marriott hotel so timeshare owners can benefit from the best of both worlds - luxury and spacious accommodations along with the typical amenities of the hotel (restaurants, spas, bars, events, etc.).

As detailed in the guide to the Marriott Vacation Club, Marriott has instituted various levels of Marriott ownership. Generally, these levels of ownership provide different benefit packages.  The benefits are as follows:

• Reservation Windows
• Owner Rental Discounts
• Last-Minute Reservations with Point Discounts
• Extended Banking Deadline
• Extended Election Deadline
• Trade for Marriott Rewards Points
• Preferred Access to Events / Offers
• Additional Luxury Cruise Tiers
• Guided Tour Excursion Credit
• Adventure Cruises
• Sailing Adventures
• Luxury Property
• Premier Events
• VIP Weekends
• The Ritz-Carlton Hotel stays
• Exclusive Phone Line

The above list is a the various perks that will come with the various levels of ownership.

The status levels are based on the amount of Vacation Club Points owned.  The five tiers are “Owners”, “Select”, “Executive”, “Presidential” and “Chairman’s Club.

• Owners own up to 3,999 Vacation Club Points.
• Select Members own 4,000 - 6,999 Vacation Club Points.
• Executive Members own 7,000 - 9,999 Vacation Club Points.
• Presidential Members own 10,000 - 14,999 Vacation Club Points.
• Chairman's Club Members own 15,000+ Vacation Club Points.

OWNER LEVEL:

As an "Owner", you are in the lowest tier of their Vacation Club ownership.  While there are various benefits that are not included, they may not be of relevance to a lot of owners. 

The key items of being a Owner are as follows:

1. Reservation Window:  You can reserve a week 13 months in advance of the reservation date but you need to pay a point premium.  Otherwise, you can reserve a week 12 months in advance but this will only be for stays of 7 nights or more.  You can only reserve stays of 1 or more nights 10 months in advance. 

While this may seem like trivial time periods, the key to enjoy your timeshare is to be able to book the weeks and resorts you want.  In order to do this, you need to plan in advance, usually being the as far out as possible in order to get the prime week or prime resort.  As explained below, the "Owner" level will essentially be in last place to make these reservations.

2. Luxury Property:  As per the above, if you want to reserve a stay at a luxury property, you can only make reservations 6 months in advance. 

The Luxury resorts include the following resorts:

• Ritz-Carlton Club, Lake Tahoe
• Ritz-Carlton Club and Residences, San Francisco
• Ritz-Carlton Club, Aspen Highlands
• Ritz-Carlton Club, Vail
  
• Ritz-Carlton Club, St. Thomas
  

SELECT OWNER:

1. Reservation Window:  You can reserve a week 13 months in advance of the reservation date without a point premium.  You can only reserve stays of 1 or more nights 10 months in advance. 

2. Luxury Properties:  Similar to the Owner level, if you want to reserve a stay at a luxury property, you can only make reservations 6 months in advance. 

EXECUTIVE OWNER:

1. Reservation Window:  You can reserve 1 or more nights 13 months in advance of the reservation date.

2. Luxury Properties:  You can reserve 1 or more nights 13 months in advance of the reservation date.

A key difference in reaching Executive Level is that you now have 13 months to book at any of the Marriott properties within the vacation club for stays of one night or more including those at Luxury properties.  This is definitely a material difference to the Owner or Select level since you now have priority of the other members to get the prime resorts and weeks.

3.  Last-Minute Reservation Point Discounts:  An additional perk that is provided to Executive Owners is now the ability to make reservations for Vacation Club properties 30 days prior arrival for a 25% discount in points.  Depending on your travel style, this may or may not be a worthwhile perk.

PRESIDENTIAL OWNER:

Presidential Owners get the same perks as Executive Owners but are able to make Last-Minute Reservation Point Discounts  60 days prior arrival for a 30% discount in points.  Again, depending on your travel style, this may or may not be a worthwhile perk.

CHAIRMAN'S CLUB

Chairman's Club Owners get the same perks as Presidential Owners but the biggest difference is that Chairman's Club Owners are able to bank their points for 2 years.  Basically, a Chairman Club Owner who will not use the points for the current year can bank that and use them for the following two years. 

CONCLUSION:

This is a short overview of the material differences between the various Marriott ownership levels.  There are more benefits that are provided between levels but the above is just meant to show the general differences between what I view as the most important characteristics.  As discussed, getting the desired week and resort require a lot of advanced planning so the ability to be able reserve time before other members becomes critical to get your desired vacation. 

A lot of owners do not recognize the importance of planning far ahead and could get disgruntled but you need to change your vacation planning style to get the vacation you want.  There are out there but it requires diligence and planning.  That is what I intend to help with!

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