StarOptions and StarPoints Increase for Westin St. John – What it Means for Owners

Starwood Vacation Network (SVN) has just released their 2014-2015 Network Calendar and StarOptions charts. Owners use these charts to determine where and when they can travel. StarOptions dictate how many points are required to book a reservation at a Starwood resort. They also determine how many points SVN owners have to use towards trading and exchanging.

This year, many owners were surprised to see that the points required to stay at the Westin St. John timeshare resort, have substantially increased.

While Starwood has not commented on the cause of this change, many speculate that the points increase is due to new developments at the resort. Last year the resort broke ground on a new luxury segment, the Coral Vista Villas. With this new segment, we have seen a growth in the reservation and resale value at the Westin St. John.

This is the first time that Starwood has established such a wide points range for “premium” properties.

What does this mean for Westin St. John owners?

For Westin St. John owners, this is great news. With an increase in both StarOptions and StarPoints in 2015, these owners will have more leverage to book and exchange. Here is an example of the points increase for the Virgin Grand Villas segment of the resort.

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Here you’ll see that for a three-bedroom unit during weeks 1-18, 51-52, StarOptions increased from 196,900 to 257,700. For the same reservation, StarPoints increased from 76,800 in 2013 to 139,100 in 2015.

Not only will these owners have more flexibility to travel to other resorts, but they may benefit from an increased timeshare resale value. Now that the Westin St. John is valued as a premium SVN resort, the demand for timeshare resales at this home resort may also increase.

What does this mean for all other Starwood Owners?

For Starwood owners looking to travel to the Westin St. John, you may experience new restrictions. Now that more points are required to visit St. John, you may not be able to reserve your desired week or unit. With more points required to book a timeshare week, you may need to select a smaller room or travel during a non-peak week.

However, there are still ways to enjoy the same accommodations at the Westin St. John. You may be able to bank a portion of this year’s points to use next year, or the year after.

Starwood Vacation Network has not released any information in regards to similar changes at their other resorts. Check back with TheTimeshareAuthority.com for more details later this year.

Media Source: Starwood Vacation Network