Marriott Vacation Club International timeshares are unquestionably popular. When Sell My Timeshare NOW published this year’s HOT 100 List of timeshare resale and rental properties that received the most offers to buy or rent, six of the top ten were Marriott timeshares.

Coming in as number ten on the list is Marriott’s Oceanwatch Villas At Grande Dunes timeshare in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. This favorite resort is located beachside on the famous Myrtle Beach Grand Strand and features two-bedroom, two-bath timeshare villas that accommodate up to eight adults.

You can choose your vista from oceanfront, ocean side, ocean view or garden view, all with private balconies, full kitchens, and a separate living and dining area. Plan a Myrtle Beach timeshare vacation and play golf at over 100 nearby courses and explore the shops, restaurants and theme park activities along the Grand Strand. But you can also take it easy on the beach or poolside without ever leaving this beautiful resort.

Marriott’s Oceanwatch Villas at Grande Dunes are an excellent choice when you, or some members of your vacation party, want to truly relax and gear down from the daily grind. Onsite amenities include The MarketPlace Convenience Store and Grill, the Sand Dollar Pool Bar (seasonal), Pizza Hut Express, Starbucks, and The Woodsy Grill & Pool Bar. Best of all, you can enjoy a Marriott Oceanwatch Villas at Grande Dunes timeshare by a buying timeshare resale at a great price or taking advantage of a timeshare rental.

Click here to view the full 2010 Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 List.

Jennie Thompson, a long time advocate of timeshares, is a Board Member of the Timeshare Association (TATOC, Timeshare Owners and Committees) is the managing director of Malaga-based, Leisure Solutions, has recently been appointed vice president of the BCCS’s Regional Committee of Andalucía.

Jennie’s appointment positions her in a key role in the British Chamber of Commerce in Spain, a position from which she will be platforming the message of timeshare’s benefits and campaigning to improve the image of timesharing and the timeshare industry within the business community in Britain and Spain. As vice president of the BCC’s Regional Committee of Andalucía, Jennie will have two years during which she will be interacting with the Foreign and Commonwealth Offices, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), international embassies, consulates, and other key business connections.

“I’m determined to educate my BCCS colleagues and foster an understanding that timeshare is a respectable industry and encourage not only more people to consider doing business with us, but more businesses to enter the industry,” says Jennie.

Here at The Timeshare Authority and Sell My Timeshare NOW, we can’t think of a better spokesperson for this message. Jennie Thompson has been an instrumental part of the timeshare industry for a long time, with an excellent understanding of what the industry needs and the timeshare and timeshare resales consumer desires and deserves. As Jennie explains, “The timeshare industry has a reputation that has been founded on selling practices, not the actual product – we need to change that.”

We couldn’t agree with you more!

Congratulations, Jennie Thompson, the timeshare industry is fortunate to have you in this role.

Last week, Marriott Vacation Club timeshare announced its new timeshare points program called, Marriott Vacation Club Destinations.

Lee Cunningham, executive vice president and chief operating officer for Marriott Vacation Club, North America, explains, “… we have successfully evolved our product offering based on Owner feedback, and the Marriott Vacation Club Destinations program reflects a tradition of Owner involvement and was designed specifically for both current and future Owners.”

The news of this new program, long rumored to be coming, has brought on a great deal of discussion, speculation, and questioning by the timeshare community, specifically Marriott timeshare owners and all those who are considering buying Marriott timeshare and timeshare resales.

In profiling the new Marriott program. Sara Clarke, writer for the Orlando Sentinel, wrote:

The Timeshare Authority blog promised you information as we confirm more about the program. Here is some general information and some updates:

• Marriott Vacation Club Destinations is designed to offer expanded opportunity and flexibility to new Marriott timeshare owners.
• Current Marriott timeshare owners will have the option to choose to participate in the program or to stay in their current plan, without losing ownership privileges.
• Each year, Marriott Vacation Club Destinations members will receive timeshare points that they can use, bank, borrow against, or add to by purchasing more.
• Marriott Vacation Club Destinations focuses on four Vacation Collections: the Marriott Vacation Club Collection; Marriott Collection; Explorer Collection; and the World Traveler Collection.
• Membership in the Marriott Vacation Club Destinations entitles you to access the services of a personal Vacation Ownership Advisor. Your personal Advisor can assist in travel arrangements within the four Collections.
• Those who enroll now receive bonus points at the time of enrollment.
• Marriott Vacation Club Destinations members have the option to check in on any day of the week or season of the year.
• The annual membership fee in Marriott Vacation Club Destinations is $165 (in most cases) and provides members the flexibility to change reservations, change their length of stay, and to select the accommodation size that best fits their needs.

As with any timeshare or vacation club, one size never fits all. Marriott Vacation Club Destinations will be more valued by some Marriott timeshare owners than by others, and at the moment, has some Marriott timeshare owners questioning whether the program will help or hurt them. As it stands now, Marriott timeshare owners who bought their timeshare as a Marriott timeshare resale are eligible to be part of Marriott Vacation Club Destinations, however, timeshare resale buyers going forward will not be. Although Marriott Vacation Club Destinations membership is not transferable when you sell timeshare, this is an annual membership program in which you can opt out of membership at any time.

Because so many timeshare owners are abuzz about this topic, you can probably expect both more clarification coming from Marriott Vacation Club and perhaps even some adjustments to guidelines and policies over the upcoming months. The Timeshare Authority blog will do its best to keep you up-to-date.

More on Marriott timeshare points:

• Timeshare Points at Marriott Vacation Club are Changing – Timeshare Owners Still Have Questions

Effective last week, the Walt Disney World Resort (Orlando) began accepting reservations for a new luxury pet resort scheduled to open this summer. The 50,000 square-foot facility is called Best Friends Pet Resort and is described by Disney as a “best of breed” pet resort, with air-conditioned, VIP suites and private outdoor play yards for your pet.

Disney has offered pet boarding for many years but this announcement indicates that their services are being taken to a new level. Their boarding service includes up to two meals per day and two scheduled daily walks. You can choose to add other services such as an extra walk ($5 add on charge), cuddle time ($5 add on charge), or an ice cream break ($4 add on charge). Other options include playgroups for dogs or special one-on-one play times, also available at à la carte pricing.

Discounted Rates for Timeshare Owners with Disney Vacation Club

Overnight rates for dogs start at $20 per night for pets of Disney Vacation Club members and go to $21 for dogs belonging to Disney resort guests and $23 for those of park visitors. For cats and other small animals, the Disney Vacation Club member price is $13 per night and ranges up to $18 for the pets of park guests.

Disney Vacation Club currently does not offer pet-friendly timeshares, which makes the pet resort an especially important feature for pet owners planning a Disney timeshare vacation.

Here are two timeshare resorts in the Disney area that you might be interested in for timeshare resale and timeshare rentals that ARE pet friendly:

• Celebration World Resort – Kissimmee, Florida
• Summerfield Condo Resort – Kissimmee, Florida

And for some really good tips on traveling with your pet, click here to see this article from Smarter Travel.