Timeshare Trends Blog

The Registry Collection has welcomed the Park Residences at the Crane in St. Philip, Barbados. The resort is the newest addition to the Crane Residential Resort, a AAA four-diamond property perched on a cliff overlooking world-famous Crane Beach on the southeast coast of Barbados. The vast majority of the 130 garden residences feature private pools, a lush tropical garden setting with rock walls accented by waterfalls, and roof terraces that offer complete privacy. The one and two-bedroom residences offer generous living space with the quality finishes. Guests also have easy access to the resort’s dining and fitness amenities, and the Crane’s beach elevator takes them to the waters of Crane Beach, recently named one of the “Top Ten Beaches in the World.”

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Lifestyle Holidays has opened its sixth resort. The Lifestyle Holidays Vacation Club recently opened another upscale property along the north coast of the Dominican Republic in Puerto Plata. The new Royal Suites is located at the center of Lifestyle Holidays Vacation Resort and follows the Tropical, the Crown Suites, the Crown Villas, the Residence Suites and the Presidential Suites. The Royal Suites is made up of six low-rise buildings inspired by Mediterranean architectural style fused with modern features, accented by a wide swimming pool. Each structure houses deluxe and standard single and double bedroom suites that have king-size beds in the master bedrooms, separate dining and living areas, pull-out queen-size futon beds, flatscreen TV sets, cedar closets, and fully-equipped kitchens.

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The annual award recognizes resorts that provide outstanding vacation experiences with state-of-the-art conveniences, and modern features and appointments. Wholly owned by Bay Gardens Resorts Group, the property is a luxury oceanfront retreat on the northern coast of St. Lucia, an island paradise well known for its spectacular beaches, lush rainforests, and volcanic peaks. It is situated in the heart of Rodney Bay Village, which offers visitors easy access to a wide selection of restaurants, retail outlets, and live entertainment.

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The Ritz-Carlton Destination Club and the Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club have unveiled its first of its kind partnership. The two luxury destination clubs have forged a new exchange opportunity for the benefit of their members. This strategic alliance presents members of both clubs an expanding universe of extraordinary destinations that only they can provide. The collaboration allows Ritz-Carlton Destination Club members access to 17 Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club residences in North America. They include Scottsdale, Lake Tahoe, Aspen, South Carolina, Punta Cana, Sun Valley, Jackson Hole, Hawaii’s Big Island, the Turks & Caicos, and Mexico’s Los Cabos, Punta Mita and Puerto Aventuras. In return, Abercrombie & Kent Residence Club Members are able to convert their nights for use at 10 Ritz-Carlton Destination Club locations in Colorado’s Aspen Highlands, Bachelor Gulch and Vail, St. Thomas, Jupiter in Florida, San Francisco and North Lake Tahoe, Hawaii, and Abaco in the Bahamas.

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Lifestyle Holidays Vacation Club and Diamond Resorts International have signed an agreement. Lifestyle Holidays Vacation Club, located in Puerto Plata on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic, has announced an agreement with Las Vegas-based Diamond Resorts International in which both vacation clubs will provide mutual benefits to their members and owners. Diamond Resorts International is one of the largest vacation ownership companies in the world with more than 177 branded and affiliated resorts and over 24,000 guest beds in 26 countries with destinations throughout the continental United States and Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa.

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The all-inclusive resort, the Westin Playa Conchal Resort & Spa will open in May of 2011. Marking a milestone in Starwood’s history, The Westin Playa Conchal Resort & Spa will also be the first all-inclusive resort in Starwood’s global portfolio. The property will undergo extensive renovations to its 406 spacious suites and all public areas and is set on one of Costa Rica’s most scenic beaches, Playa Conchal. The resort is only 45 minutes from the international airport and is centered around an expansive lagoon-style pool featuring gardens, thatch-roofed bungalows and ocean and forest vistas. Westin currently has five hotels in Mexico and one in Guatemala, and will be opening five more in Latin America in the next four years including the Westin Playa Conchal Resort & Spa, Costa Rica; the Westin Libertador, Lima, Peru; the Westin Guadalajara, Mexico; and the Westin Panama and the Westin Playa Bonita.

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The Bay Gardens Beach Resort And Spa is the newest member of the Interval International exchange network of resorts on St. Lucia. The island paradise is well known for its spectacular beaches, unspoiled tropical rainforests, and majestic mountains. The Bay Gardens Beach Resort features one and two-bedroom suites complete with a full kitchen and living and dining areas. Its design juxtaposes the charm of neoclassical Caribbean architecture with timbered balconies and verandas. The amenities are state-of-the-art with DVD and CD players, high-speed Internet access, and Wi-Fi in all public areas, including the beach.

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Divi Resorts appears to be a good steward of the environment, implementing an impressive number of “green” programs at all of its properties across the Caribbean. Divi’s property in Barbados, Divi Southwinds, has served as the catalyst and leader for the earth-friendly practices in 2008 after it was certified as a “Green Hotel”, the first property in Barbados to receive the designation. Last year, the resort was a semifinalist for the prestigious Ministry of Tourism Green Hotel Award and received the “Honorary Award” from the Travel Foundation’s “Switch Off Save Big” challenge. “Our guests are increasingly attuned to the health of the planet and basing their hotel selection on environmental standards,” commented E.J. Schanfarber, CEO of Divi Hotels Marketing, Inc. “It is imperative for hotels to recognize their responsibility to the environment, and our efforts evidence Divi’s corporate belief in sustainable tourism. Our success at Southwinds has been a key building block for the lessons and initiatives we are applying to the rest of the properties.”

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Interval International has revealed that its U.S. resident members reported annual household income greater than $125,000 per year, 88% are satisfied with their membership, 33% would like to purchase additional holiday time, and Interval International’s U.S. members spend about 23 nights away from home, taken as leisure time. Also determined in the profile, Florida, California and Hawaii are the most popular destinations members said they wanted to visit within the next two years, with New York City the most popular urban destination. The Caribbean is the number one “international” favorite destination for US residents. An official at Interval International said, “The observations and insights drawn from this research reinforce the value our members place on vacationing. This study also represents the latest in Interval’s continuing commitment to bring timely and consumer-centric research to the market.”

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The Island One Resorts Management Corporation has recently filed for voluntary Chapter 11 reorganization in US Bankruptcy Court in Orlando, Florida. Island One Resorts is a 25-year-old, Orlando based timeshare developer that currently owns and operates eight Florida timeshare resorts and one Caribbean timeshare. In the Orlando area, Island One resorts include Barefoot’n the Keys, Bryan’s Spanish Cove, Liki Tiki Village, Orbit One Vacation Villas, and Parkway International Resort. Other timeshare properties include the Charter Club Resort in Naples, the Cove on Ormond Beach, The Crescent Resort in Miami, and Chenay Bay Resort in the US Virgin Islands. Through Club Navigo, a points-based vacation club, Island One also offers its member-owners access to numerous US timeshare resorts, Mexico timeshare, and Caribbean timeshare. According to the Orlando Business Journal, court documents state, “The company attributed the Chapter 11 filing to the downturn in the economy in 2008 and the fact that unit sales and resort revenues were reduced as consumers generally took steps to limit spending on vacations.”

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