Are you a Christmas Week Traveler?

While there are many things to consider if you actually want to own a timeshare, one easy question to ask yourself is whether you are a Christmas week traveler? 

What I mean by this is whether you will want or need to travel over the standard Christmas break that generally occurs from December 21st through January 2nd of each year.

Prior to having kids, I HATED traveling this week and generally avoided it at all costs.  Flights were expensive, hotels are overpriced, restaurants are booked and everywhere was busy.  

Now that I have kids, we are somewhat forced to travel with these crowds as if we do not travel during Christmas break, there is very little time throughout the remainder of the year when there are any decent size breaks where it makes sense to travel far. 

Christmas week is a tough week to travel as almost the entire world has off during this time or this is when most people take vacation time since you can use fewer vacation days and combine them with the national holidays to get a good chunk of time off. 

Timeshare Considerations:

Since most people travel during this time, most people will plan far in advance in order to get there desired resort.  Additionally, many people who purchased Christmas week at whatever resort they own at will likely use that week.  Therefore, the timeshare inventory during this time is sparse. 

As I wrote about here, my particular strategy for Christmas break last year DID NOT work as I did not get Christmas week despite putting in a request a full year in advance. 

Key Consideration Prior to Considering Timeshare Ownership:

I try to be very transparent and explain that timeshare ownership is NOT for everyone.  Timeshares have significant issues and the systems are complicated.  However, I think that a simply question to ask yourself on whether you are a Christmas week traveler is a solid question to consider prior to ever consider being a timeshare owner. 

If you purchase a timeshare solely to exchange (my particular strategy) and you want to travel during Christmas week in popular destinations (Hawaii, Ski destinations, Disneyworld, etc.), you are likely to be disappointed with timeshare ownership. 

Getting high quality resorts during Christmas week is incredibly difficult and even when I plan a year or two in advance, I rarely succeed in getting my top pick for this week.  

Strategy for Hotel Points:

As I have explained in other posts, I think that it is extremely important to have hotel points in order to maximize timeshare ownership.  The general strategy that I have discussed previously was to book a hotel using points (generally fully refundable) and then proceed to put in a request for a timeshare at that destination.  If the timeshare does not get confirmed, you still have a hotel room for "free" since you used points.  

Once easy way to get a ton of points is through credit card signup bonuses.  I wrote about one particular offer here which is a very solid deal. 

This particular strategy has been very useful to me but is EXTREMELY important for Christmas week travel.  Getting rooms with hotel points can be difficult as well so you need to book far in advance for Christmas week but hotel rooms are generally available even in the most desirable locations if you plan far enough in advance. Since the rooms are generally refundable, you still have flexibility and you can attempt to receive a timeshare for Christmas week. 

Conclusion:

If you are a Christmas week traveler, meaning that you typically only travel during Christmas week or potentially one other week during the year, timeshare ownership is probably not the best for you.   While I have had success in getting some great Christmas weeks through exchanges, these are not guaranteed and it is actually quite rare to get top quality resorts during this time. 

However, if you are not just a Christmas week traveler, timeshare ownership can be a great tool to travel for cheap.  The week before Christmas and the week after Christmas usually has tons of availability at high quality resorts.  If you are flexible for your vacation time, you can do very well with timeshares. 

My goal is to keep showing you how!  

What are your thoughts on traveling during Christmas week?