I am fortunate to be among the timeshare industry specialists who will be attending and participating in the TATOC annual conference this week in Cheshire, England. TATOC, which stands for “The Association for Timeshare Owners Committees,” is the United Kingdom’s leading timeshare association, existing to safeguard and enhance the timeshare holiday experience for existing and prospective users and to be the voice of owners.

This year’s conference theme is, “Achieving Our Goals” and was chosen to acknowledge the tremendous growth and change for TATOC in 2008. As their leadership explains, after the recent change, they are now ready to move forward, achieving their goals.

TATOC puts it well when they say, “We live in ‘interesting times’ and there are challenges that will have to be met by all of us, whether committee member or developer or management company. Working together and exchanging ideas and information is one way of meeting these challenges. Education of the industry is another, and we are delighted to have visiting us members of the industry, media and also government.”

I hope to bring you more news of the TATOC timeshare conference in upcoming days. I am sure it will be an exceptional event for everyone in the timeshare industry, timeshare sales, and timeshare resales alike. Every effort that strengths service for timeshare owners likewise strengthens the industry.

Follow this link to read the Sell My Timeshare NOW press release about the TATOC conference.

Good news about strong timeshare sales at the New Grand Lodge on Peak 7 timeshare resort.

The owners of Grand Timber Lodge timeshare and Gold Point timeshare, two popular Breckenridge timeshare resorts, are building a new timeshare resort – Grand Lodge on Peak 7.

Sales of timeshare units at Grand Lodge on Peak 7, are reportedly up about 10 percent over sales last year, and not because of discount pricing – sales prices are up around 20 percent. According to Rob Millisor, co-owner of the timeshare resort and a town Councilman in Breckenridge, February 2009 has been their best February yet.

Pre-Construction Timeshare Sales

Grand Lodge on Peak 7 timeshare resort is a three-phase property with a scheduled completion date of December 2010. Phase One timeshare units will be ready for vacationing in May of this year and are currently approaching sell-out. Phase Two, scheduled for completion this December, is about 35 percent sold. The third phase is expected to be ready for timeshare vacations by December 2010 with additional construction planned between 2011 and 2013.

At completion, the Grand Lodge on Peak 7 timeshare will feature 114 two-bedroom timeshare lock offs and four one-bedroom timeshare units. Phase One has 69 timeshare units.

Looking at What’s Driving these Timeshare Sales

According to an article in the Summit Daily News, Millisor attributes the timeshare company’s success to customer service. “We work long and hard and spend a lot of money creating great customer service – so I think that’s probably the number-one reason we’re successful.” Millisor describes timeshare sales as a way to, “own your vacations rather than to rent them.”

The company says that approximately 40 percent of timeshare sales come from owners either who refer their friends to buy timeshare or who buy additional time for themselves.

Between October 2008 and February 2009, the timeshare company saw over $19 million in timeshare sales. I’d say that is pretty good business during the throes of an economic recession.

Timeshare Sales and the Local Economy

Timeshare sales themselves are good for the local economy in the long run by increasing the tax revenue base and by bringing in a predictably steady stream of vacationers who spend their dollars at restaurants, retailers, and local attractions as well as on the ski slopes. But strong timeshare sales stimulate the local economy even during the pre-construction phase.

The number of two-night mini vacations that people are taking as part of their Grand Lodge on Peak 7 timeshare sales tour have increased, up 10 percent as well. More than 10,000 mini vacation timeshare tours were given out in 2008 as part of timeshare sales for Grand Lodge on Peak 7. Each prospective buyer also receives $100 in discount premiums to use with local merchants.

Limited New Timeshare Sales in Breckenridge, but Timeshare Resales are Available

Although Grand Lodge is fully sold out, you can find good deals on timeshare resales there. The Gold Point timeshare resort, another Breckenridge vacation favorite, is also a part of this timeshare collection. Since 1998, the company has logged more than $300 million in timeshare sales.

While Grand Lodge on Peak 7 is the only Breckenridge timeshare resort available for new timeshare sales, there are plenty of opportunities for excellent values in Breckenridge timeshare resales. In addition to the Grand Lodge family of timeshares, you will find timeshare resales at Hilton Grand Vacations Club – Valdoro Mountain Lodge Timeshare and Marriott’s Mountain Valley Lodge Timeshare.

Walt Disney Vacation Club timeshare has announced that it is full steam ahead for their new Disney timeshare resort destination in Hawaii. Work at the Ko Olina location thus far has included determining placement of the new Hawaii timeshare foundation and laying the underground utilities.

When complete, this new Disney timeshare resort will include 350 hotel rooms and 480 timeshare villas located on 21 acres of oceanfront property. There will be a water play area, a pool, children’s club, an 18,000 square-foot spa, a wedding lawn, and an 8,000 square-foot convention center. There will also probably be plenty of “hidden Mickeys” and equally as many Mickeys dressed in Hawaiian shirts and leis.

This new Hawaii timeshare is scheduled to open in 2011. Follow this link to learn more about this timeshare resort project: Disney Timeshare in Hawaii, But Where’s Space Mountain?

Disney Vacation Club Timeshare Resales and Timeshare Rentals

Disney timeshares are some of the most in-demand vacation ownership resorts in the world. Sell My Timeshare NOW’s inventory of timeshare resales and timeshare rentals includes many desirable deals at Disney Vacation Club timeshare resorts.

• Disney’s Villas at Wilderness Lodge Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Old Key West Resort Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s BoardWalk Villas Timeshare Resales
• Disney’s Beach Club Villas Timeshare Resales

Other recent news about Disney Vacation Club Timeshares:

• Disney Timeshares Are Changing Timeshare Points Structure

Playa Grande Resort Timeshare, a Cabo San Lucas Mexico timeshare, makes the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list as hot property number 37.

Could you use a little time away from the rest of the world? … Away from your job, your cell phone, and those committees, meetings, and responsibilities? Playa Grande Resort is a Cabo San Lucas, Mexico timeshare resort, located on an amazing strip of private beach that will make you feel like you have escaped to land’s end. Located on Solmar Beach, considered Baja’s most exclusive beach, within an eight-acre sanctuary, Playa Grande Resort timeshare is still only minutes from downtown Cabo.

For an escape, retreat, honeymoon, or romantic memory of a lifetime, how can you beat Playa Grande Resort Mexico timeshare? No surprise at all it is number 37 on the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list of timeshares receiving the most offers to buy or rent.

What to Expect on Your Playa Grande Resort Mexico Timeshare Vacation

The timeshare resort at Playa Grande offers two facilities- (1) the original buildings, which many feel offer the best ocean views and (2) the newest timeshare units in The Ridge. Both offer spacious rooms at a Mexico timeshare resort where owners rave about the attentiveness of the staff and the cleanliness of the timeshare units.

Golf, tennis, and seven beautiful swimming pools provide lots of opportunity for recreation and relaxation. Spa services, private transportation, daily maid service, and turn down service are just a few of the ways to make your luxurious Playa Grande timeshare vacation even heavenlier.

A Few “Insider” Tips for Your Playa Grande Timeshare Resort Vacation

Expect warm (hot) weather throughout the summer months. This is Mexico! But remember the seven swimming pools and the ocean breezes are there to help you keep your cool.

The Pacific Ocean at Cabo is for whale watching and scenic viewing, not swimming in unprotected areas. Instead of an ocean plunge, you may want to plan pool time and be prepared that at this busy timeshare resort, people stake out their claim on poolside chairs early each day.

The pool closest to the ocean is an ‘adults only’ pool for those who prefer a quieter venue, but it is a smaller pool.

And there’s a local Wal-Mart and a Costco for stocking up on basics you may need during your Playa Grande Cabo San Lucas Mexico timeshare vacation.

To learn more about all the opportunities available to rent timeshare or buy timeshare resales at Playa Grande Cabo San Lucas, Mexico timeshare, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Watch this YouTube video of the surf at Playa Grande; in less than a minute of watching, it will have you looking for your flip-flops and packing your swimsuit.

Diamond Resorts Points at Poipu Hawaii timeshare on one of Kaui’s most beautiful beaches makes the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list.

We haven’t looked at Sell My Timeshare NOW’s HOT 100 list in quite a while, and it seems like a good time to get back to the favorite timeshare resorts that take honors on this list.

So Many Reasons Diamond Resorts Point at Poipu is a Popular Hawaii Timeshare

Diamond Resorts Point at Poipu is an in-demand Hawaii timeshare and is the HOT 100 list timeshare number 38 based on offers made to buy or rent timeshare. Located on the south shores of the island of Kauai, this Hawaii timeshare sits atop the bluffs, overlooking Shipwreck Beach.

Your Diamond Resorts Point at Poipu timeshare offers your choice of either garden-view or ocean-view two bedroom timeshare units or three-bedroom timeshare units. Designed to accommodate from four to six timeshare guests, these Hawaii timeshare units have full kitchens and either a balcony or a terrace.

But as luxurious as they are, you may find you spend very little time inside your timeshare resort during your Kauai vacation. You will want to see the lava beds of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, the pristine beaches at Poipu, and the lush green depths of the island’s rainforest.

On property, you will find a half-acre lagoon pool with poolside bar, an oversize hot tub, hillside gardens and ponds, children’s play area, and an abundance of nearby or on-site activities for relaxation and recreation. The island’s diverse landscape means you can even kayak – as Kauai offers the only navigable rivers in Hawaii. Whether you are hiking, biking, horseback riding, or getting “the view from the top” on a zip line, there are as many ways to explore the island as there are unique features to explore.

The list of things to enjoy at Diamond Resorts Point at Poipu timeshare is long and includes scuba, snorkeling, and beach time, where you will likely see the Hawaii state fish-the “humuhumunukunukuapuaa.” (Yes, that’s the fish made famous with its own tribute song in High School Musical 2)

And don’t forget to also visit the south shore’s famous blow hole, Spouting Horn Park and Poipu Beach Park, where some of the roughly one thousand Hawaiian monk seals, (all that survive in the world today) can be seen playing and sunning on the beach.

To learn more about the exciting opportunities available to you in timeshare resales and timeshare rentals at this beautiful Hawaii timeshare, talk to the the timeshare specialists at Sell My Timeshare NOW. 877-815-4227.

Sell My Timeshare NOW announces William Lee Goss as the company’s new President and Chief Operating Officer.

Lee comes to us from a background that includes most recently having been the President and COO for Eons, Inc. (an online Boomer social networking site created by the founder of Monster.com). He was past co-investor in and the COO of Boston-based Yankee Group and has extensive deal-making experience having directed growth equity and buy-out investments for the Cambridge, MA-based venture equity firm, General Catalyst Partners.

Additionally, Lee led global merger integration activities for Terra Lycos in which the combined entities acquired more than thirty companies. Starting in the early 1990s, Lee sees his professional background as one of “growing up” in the travel and leisure industry as he climbed the ladder at American Airlines from analyst to Vice President.

Looking Ahead at Sell My Timeshare NOW

It’s great to have Lee as part of our team at Sell My Timeshare NOW. We are truly in an exciting and aggressive growth period for our timeshare resales and timeshare rental advertising and marketing company.

President Goss received his undergraduate degree with honors at the University of Virginia in computer science and his MBA at Duke University.

Follow this link to read Sell My Timeshare NOW’s most recent press release.

Bloomberg News (and other sources) have reported that Arizona-based ILX Resorts has filed for bankruptcy protection. In a story that is becoming all too familiar, ILX Resorts timeshares cites the tight credit market and the growing economic recession as causes.

But here is an important fact to remember: ILX Resorts timeshares are open for business and will continue to operate. Many people learning of the situation at ILX Resorts timeshare will walk away remembering only the word “bankruptcy,” but ILX has filed chapter 11, an important distinction, which is designed to protect a company from its creditors for during a period of restructuring. ILX Resorts has not filed chapter 13 bankruptcy, which is liquidation bankruptcy.

Southwest US and Mexico Timeshares

ILX timeshares owns eleven timeshare resorts, most of which are located in the southwestern US. They also own one Mexico timeshare in San Carlos. In the US, ILX timeshares can be found in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, and South Bend, Indiana.

Premiere Vacation Club is owned and operated by ILX Resorts Incorporated and is a vacation ownership program offering the flexibility of staying as few as two nights or as long as multiple weeks in your ILX timeshare. Affiliated with Interval International timeshare exchange, Premiere Vacation Club timeshare can be exchanged internally through the ILX Resort system or through Interval International.

Point to Point Destinations has just announced five new timeshare resorts added to their RCI Points and RCI Points Home Group. All are California timeshare resorts although several are located in the Lake Tahoe resort area at the California/Nevada border making them convenient to the diverse recreational amenities both areas have to offer.

Point to Point Destinations is a California-registered non-profit mutual benefit corporation, and an association of timeshare members. Purchasers of Point to Point Destinations timeshare offered by West Coast Timeshare Ltd. (Canada) and West Coast Vacations Ltd. (USA) become voting members of Point to Point and can take advantage of all urban timeshares and resort timeshare property registered to Point to Point by either West Coast Timeshare Ltd or West Coast Vacations Ltd. There are 37 timeshare resorts or vacation properties in the Point to Point Destinations Home Group.

New Additions in California Timeshare at Point to Point Destinations Timeshare

Americana Village Resort timeshare and Stardust-Tahoe timeshare are both located in South Lake Tahoe, CA. Both California timeshare resorts are favorite destinations for skiing, enjoying Lake Tahoe’s beaches, or crossing the border into Nevada to enjoying gaming and casinos.

Red Wolf Lakeside Lodge timeshare is in Vista, CA and offers a mountain retreat on the north shore of Lake Tahoe, while as additions to the Point to Point Destinations Home Group, you’ll find the Olympic Village Inn and the Red Wolf Lodge at Squaw Valley USA. Sports buffs recognize the name Squaw Valley USA as the host resort for the VIII Olympic Winter Games in 1960.

To learn more about your opportunity to become a timeshare owner at Red Wolf Lakeside Lodge and other timeshare resales, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW.

In a report released last week, Ernst and Young LLP identified key trends they project will impact the hotel and travel industry for 2009. The Timeshare Authority focuses on three of the trends that seem have as much meaning for timeshares as they do for hotels.

In a report titled, “Top Ten Thoughts for the Hospitality Industry,” released last week, Ernst and Young’s hospitality industry experts made ten interesting and timely observations about the state (and the future) of the industry. Looking at the first three, all seem to tell a bad news-good news story that may be equally as meaningful for the timeshare industry as for hoteliers.

Although the report is lengthy, HotelExecutive.com summed up the first three of ten items in this way:

So what’s the good news for the timeshare industry that rings out from these points? It’s simple:

Yes, there will be sales of existing timeshare resorts and land for development of new timeshare resorts that some savvy and stable buyers will be able to pick up at deeply discounted prices. But because of this, these timeshare developers or timeshare companies will be able to get the new (or refurbished and rebranded) resorts up and running, with less land debt than many timeshare deals have typically carried in the past. And because of this, they will be able to open, operate, and provide timeshare buyers with exciting new destinations, no matter the economic climate.

Yes, timeshare companies are having to trim the fat from their budgets. But this is almost always a good thing in business. Look for today’s recession to build a leaner but stronger timeshare industry, eager to provide quality service and products to a price-conscious consumer market.

And yes, the popularity of consumer feedback as a decision maker for people booking hotel nights not only bespeaks a growing preference by consumers to book vacation and travel lodging online, it also reminds us just how much confidence we travelers place in the opinions of others travelers. We like arranging hotel stays, timeshare resale transactions, and timeshare rentals online because it is easy to do, fits our busy schedules, and lets us comparison shop to our heart’s content. We also respect others whose vacation preferences are similar to our own … which says a lot about why demand is growing all the time for by-owner timeshare resales, or broker assisted timeshare sales from the current timeshare owner.

The full report is available as a free pdf download here: Hospitality Industry Report.