Timeshare Trends Blog

The timeshare industry has recently seen its single largest increase in maintenance fees according to a report from Apex Professionals LLC. According to their report, with the recession, timeshare owners around the world have had to reconsider their once affordable timeshares as debt they need to eliminate. The Apex Professionals report spotlighted one developer that seems to be a major player in this game of increasing fees, which is Diamond Resorts International (DRI).

The annual maintenance fees for a DRI property have doubled since 2001, increasing from $695 to $1,400 today in 2009. Owners of DRI properties seem to have a common complaint and concern over how quickly the fees are increasing, and although, DRI is not the only company guilty of this trend, they are currently in the spotlight due to owners demanding answers and drawing attention to the situation.

Like many other timeshare owners, DRI owners have been feeling powerless with decisions on maintenance fees and special assessments, which is mainly due to the fact that most owners associations and board members are employees to that particular developer. It is rare to find a large developer today that isn’t designed that way. With this structure, it is nearly impossible for the owners to have control over their properties and the fees that come along with it.

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The Hyatt Regency Curacao Golf Resort, Spa and Marina is scheduled to open in January. Located at the Santa Barbara Plantation, a 1,500-acre luxury resort community, the beachfront resort is 25 minutes from the capital city of Willemstad and will feature 350 luxuriously appointed rooms, uninterrupted water views on three sides, white sand beaches, a Hyatt Pure spa, a full-service marina, extensive meeting space and the island’s only Pete Dye-designed 18-hole championship golf course. There will also be a fitness center, multiple outdoor pools, poolside grill, lounge, dive and water sport facility, and 18,500 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space.

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The Club La Costa Resorts and Hotels have been undergoing a major restructuring in response to the changing trends caused by the worst global recession to affect the holiday industry. Recently, the company moved to close down four of its five off-site sales operations in the United Kingdom due to the country’s continuing economic battering, to refocus on new programs aimed at increased activity.

Club La Costa Resort’s prestigious sales and exhibition center in London’s West End continues to operate, but a decision was made to shut down its other sites as their effectiveness in the current financial climate was under question.

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The Orlando area’s hotel occupancy rate has decreased another 6.7% from a year ago despite providing deep discounts. Orlando’s hotels filled 57.5% of their rooms, according to a report by Smith Travel Research, and the decline occurred despite heavy cuts in prices.

The average daily rate fell 14.6% to $91.36. Revenue per available room, a key industry measure fell 20.3% in October. The hardest hit area was International Drive, where the Hilton Orlando opened in September adding 1,400 rooms. Occupancy in the International Drive area fell 9.2% in October despite price cuts of more than 18%

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Disney Vacation Club has launched a new bonus strategy for its staff in a bid to boost the number of people that use its resorts. The timeshare club is adjusting its salary and bonus strategy to try to encourage members of its staff to help increase sales of Disney timeshare units.

Rena Langley, spokesperson for the Disney Vacation Club, explained that the pay structure among advance sales associates will enable them to provide more reward and recognition to top performers in the sales team. Disney timeshares have long been a popular option among European timeshare holders and new research shows that sales have been increasing among adults and couples without children.

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Worldmark By Wyndham recently celebrated 20 years of success. Wyndham Vacation Ownership, the world’s largest vacation ownership company and a member of the Wyndham Worldwide family celebrated a milestone anniversary commemorating 20 years in business. WorldMark by Wyndham has successfully grown from a small product portfolio in Oregon to more than 70 resort properties throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the South Pacific and more than 270,000 owners.

In October 1989, WorldMark by Wyndham (then known as Trendwest Resorts) recorded its first sale in Kirkland, Wash. and offered a very limited selection of vacation options, such as a two-bedroom town house in Eagle Crest, a two-bedroom condominium at the Inn at Otter Crest and a one-bedroom hotel suite at the Ashland Hills Inn. In 2000, WorldMark welcomed its 100,000th owner to the WorldMark family. The company also debuted seven additional resort properties that same year and spanned the globe with the introduction of Trendwest South Pacific, which is now known as Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific, in Australia.

The company added yet another seven resort properties to the ever-growing portfolio, including WorldMark Steamboat Springs, WorldMark Lake of the Ozarks and WorldMark Branson. In addition to resort development, the company also added a variety of owner benefits, including expansive owner education programs and online booking capabilities. In 2002, WorldMark by Wyndham was acquired by Cendant Corporation, which would spin off into four separate publicly traded companies in 2006. One year later, as part of the Wyndham Vacation Ownership family, WorldMark eclipsed 250,000 owner families. Today, WorldMark provides vacations to more than 270,000 owners at more than 70 resort properties.

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The Grand Laguna Beach Resort in the Dominican Republic has been added to the Interval International vacation exchange network. Currently under construction, the purpose-built, mixed-use resort is being built on one of the few remaining beachfront sites on the north shore of the island between the towns of Susua and Cabarete. Current plans call for both whole ownership and vacation ownership units, ranging in size from studios to three-bedrooms.

The unit design is a simple, elegant style patterned after the old-world ambience of colonial architecture and will include gracious living and dining areas, a state-of-the-art kitchen equipped with stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops, and a spacious terrace. Resort amenities are also anticipated to include a fine-dining restaurant with a cigar lounge and wine bar, an outdoor bar, beachside casual dining, two pools, an on-site grocery store, a fitness area, a 24-hour concierge, and the In-Sense Spa.

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The Geovillage Sports Village and Spa Resort near Sardinia, Italy is now an Interval International Resort. Designed around the principles of sport and wellness, the resort includes the Malo Clinic Spa and Fitness Centre, and counts champion tennis stars and top soccer teams from across Europe among its guests. The resort is set on 35 acres of lush Mediterranean gardens and is located on the northeast coast of Sardinia.

The resort includes timeshare units within the existing hotel that are spacious, filled with natural light, and designed in a modern style featuring bleached wood furniture. Amenities include an outdoor Olympic-size swimming pool and two indoor pools, four synthetic and six clay tennis courts, wet and piano bars, and a restaurant, in addition to the world-class spa and fitness center. It is also just a short distance from the beach of Pittulongu.

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Venice on Water is now affiliated with the Vacation Registry Collection Exchange Program, now the world’s largest luxury exchange network. Venice on Water is a one-week vacation ownership property on houseboats and offers a unique holiday experience, allowing guests to visit the waterways of the iconic Italian city while staying in luxury two-bedroom houseboats.

The boats are fully furnished, equipped to the highest specifications and can accommodate up to six people. The boats can be used for limited navigation inside the lagoon (no license required), while more experienced sailors can take them further along the famed Venetian waterways. Owners will be given training, while owners’ guests staying on the boats unaccompanied will need to hire a captain to take the vessel out of its moorings.

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