Ritz Carlton private residence club (timeshare) has now announced expansion into the Bahamas with a new Caribbean timeshare resort at The Abaco Club on Winding Bay.

The Abaco Club is a fractional ownership resort that is part of the Ritz-Carlton Club and will be a Ritz-Carlton managed resort. The Ritz Carlton timeshare program is structured in three tiers called: Select Membership; Preferred Membership; and Premium Membership. The three tiers represent ownership of timeshare points in the amounts of 500 points; 1,000; and 1,500. In a press release issued last week by Ritz Carlton, the company explained the value of the points like this: “For instance, a Member could elect to spend 14 nights (1,190 points) in a cliff-side cottage with the family to escape the winter chill, seven nights (280 points) in a similar cottage in summer while the kids are on vacation and four nights (30 points) in a cabana in the fall for a romantic getaway.”

Ritz Carlton Caribbean Timeshare

Pre sales on new vacation ownership at The Abaco Club on Winding Bay are already available and start at $110,000. Spokespersons for the company say that owning a fractional through the Ritz-Carlton Club affords members a carefree homeowner experience with the luxury of a dedicated staff to assist them.

Timeshare occupancy is planned for December 2008, with the Caribbean timeshare resort ultimately offering 16 homes for deeded fractional ownership. Special services include pre-stocking the kitchen with the timeshare owner’s favorite foods before his arrival; storage of personal items; concierge service; assistance with travel arrangements; twice daily housekeeping, and much more.

If you are interested in learning more about becoming at Ritz Carlton timeshare owner, by buying timeshare resales at excellent prices, you will be interested vacation ownership at the following resorts:

• Ritz-Carlton Club Bachelor Gulch Resales
• Ritz-Carlton Club St. Thomas Resales
• Ritz-Carlton Club St. Thomas Rentals
• Ritz-Carlton Club, Aspen Highlands Rentals
• Ritz-Carlton Golf Club & Spa, Jupiter Resales
• Ritz-Carlton Golf Club & Spa, Jupiter Rentals

Royal Sands Cancun timeshare is part of the Royal Resorts family of timeshares, with over 60,000 Caribbean timeshare and Mexico timeshare vacation ownership members. This beautiful Cancun timeshare is number 79 on the SellMyTimeshareNOW.com HOT 100 List.

The Royal Sands Cancun timeshare opened in 2000 and it is located on the site of the former Fonatur’s Casa de Visitas, also known as the Casa Maya or Mayan House. The Mayan House had a distinguished tradition of hosting Presidents and other dignitaries, and in keeping with this, many of the historic furnishings from the original resort have been used in the current property.

The timeshare villas at Royal Sands resort are known as “flexivillas” describing the way the units can be subdivided as a 2-bedroom lockout or used as a 1-bedroom timeshare lockout. As a 2-bedroom, 2- bath unit, the timeshare has over 1,448 square feet of living space and accommodates up to 6 people. Each timeshare villas has a fully equipped, American-style kitchen, dining area, televisions, DVD player, and a furnished balcony off the living area, as well as a second balcony off the bedroom.

On property amenities include a night club, 2 gourmet restaurants, and a spa. Two golf courses and a marina are nearby, as well as shopping at KuKulcan Plaza. Royal Sands timeshare owners and timeshare renters can enjoy tennis, snorkel gear, bicycles, volleyball, or a sailboat at no additional charge.

In 2005, the Royal Sands timeshare, like other resorts and Cancun timeshares on the beautiful Mexican Rivera, took a powerful hit from Hurricane Wilma, the most intense hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. Posted below is a YouTube video from a young couple who have just returned from a Royal Sands timeshare vacation last month. Besides the video showing that these two had a wonderful vacation, it also shows that the Royal Sands Cancun timeshare is fully resorted and in excellent shape for your next timeshare vacation.

Group RCI recently released research showing that 876,000 timeshare weeks (that’s new timeshare sales only) were sold worldwide in 2007, according to an article in the July edition of Perspective magazine. The information is published in Group RCI’s Latin America and the Caribbean Vacation Ownership Fact Book 2007, and reveals a 6 percent increase in the sale of new timeshare (timeshare bought from the developer) over timeshare sales in 2006. Of this increase, timeshare sales in Latin America account for 30 percent of the total amount, or 261,000 timeshare weeks sold.

More Information about South America Timeshare Sales

Here are some other noteworthy facts about timeshare sales from the RCI Fact Book:

• 57 new timeshare resorts became affiliated with an exchange system in Latin America in 2007.
• Of the 1,154 timeshare resorts in Latin America affiliated with a timeshare exchange company, more than 750 of them are located in the Caribbean, Central America, or Mexico.
• Other high-growth areas for South America timeshare include Brazil timeshare, Venezuela timeshare, and Argentina timeshare.

Stats that appear in the book are based on research derived from the United Nations World Tourism Organization, the International Monetary Fund, and regional Tourism Ministries and their affiliates. Ricardo Montaudon, President and Managing Director, Group RCI, The Americas, describes the book as a, “…valuable publication that offers potential investors and entrepreneurs interested in the vacation ownership industry an objective overview of the current state of the industry and of its performance last year.”

Aruba…Jamaica….oooh I wanna take ya’…

Can’t you just hear the Beach Boys singing? And if you can’t now, you will as soon as you arrive at La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club for your laidback, Aruba beachside vacation. The resort is located in Oranjestad, which in English is pronounced simply, “Orangetown,” and sits on one of Aruba’s most beautiful beaches — the white sands of Eagle Beach.

Although the resort is undergoing renovation, management at La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club timeshares has planned the work to involve only targeted areas at any one time, keeping the overall property vacation-ready and relaxing for timeshare owners, their guests, and anyone who rents timeshare there. La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club timeshare resort is number 86 on Sell My Timeshare NOW’s HOT 100 List and with upgrades in progress to refresh the look and amenities of the units, this hot property may be even hotter in the future.

Vacationers at La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club give it high marks for good service and making them feel at home and comfortable. While there are perfect opportunities in Oranjestad to sightsee and visit the historic areas of Aruba, many timeshare owners select this destination because it entices you to do so very little…lounge by the pool, nap on the beach, cool off in the water slide and then resume your “heavy-duty” relaxation routine. If you are seeking a destination to unwind and let the warm breezes carry your everyday stresses away, you can’t get any better than the timeshare resales and timeshare rentals at La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club.

An All-Inclusive Aruba Timeshare Resort

La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club is a casual-style beach resort that offers 1, 2, and 3-bedroom timeshares and studio units. While the timeshare units include kitchens and kitchenettes, they also offer the convenience of optional all-inclusive meal plans. All-inclusive timeshares are rare in the US, and when you find them, they are typically located in Mexico, the Dominican Republic, South America, the Caribbean, and randomly scattered about other parts of the world including Egypt, Spain, and Austria.

La Cabana Beach and Racquet Club offers a variety of meal and drink plans, including one that covers only breakfast and unlimited alcoholic beverages each day. The packages cover anything a person eats or drinks, at any of the timeshare resort’s food service areas. They do not cover liquor by the bottle, shared meals, or room service. Most all-inclusive timeshare meal plans also limit you to eating only one breakfast per day, one lunch, and one dinner… in other words, don’t expect to be able to eat your breakfast at 7, 8, and again at 9 AM on a given day. (For most people, this restriction is not a problem.)

Here’s an added note about La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club Aruba timeshare: Do not confuse this timeshare resort with the former La Cabana Villas that is now known as The Aruban Resort. La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club timeshare is a sold-out resort with approximately 12,000 owners. According to their management, they have a stable owners association and the timeshare property owned there is deeded and held in perpetuity.

To enjoy timeshare vacations at La Cabana Beach & Racquet Club and other Aruba timeshares, look for opportunities in Aruba timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.

Follow this link to download the complete HOT 100 List from SellMyTimeshareNOW.com

And to get you in the mood for your Aruba timeshare vacation, listen to the Beach Boys singing Kokomo from MTV, by way of YouTube.

Sadly, I have been updating you on the news, and often the lack of news, about the Royal Oasis timeshare resort for more than three years. Here are links to the blog posts written within the past year on this subject. Their titles alone suggest that most of the news about this struggling timeshare resort has not been good.

• Uncertain News about Royal Oasis Timeshare Resort
• Royal Oasis Timeshare Resort: A Litany of Problems
• Important Information for Royal Oasis Timeshare Owners
• Updates about Royal Oasis Timeshare
• Optimistic News about Bahamas Timeshare Resales
• Recent Announcement Regarding Royal Oasis Timeshare
• The Other Victims of the Royal Oasis Timeshare Owners Fiasco

The short version of the problem is that hurricane damaged suffered in 2004 was the straw that broke the camel’s back for this already struggling timeshare resort and resulted in its closing. Workers, timeshare owners, and all the ancillary network of people connected to the timeshare resort, such as vendors and suppliers, were all deeply (and negatively) affected.

In February, it seemed there was a ray of hope for Royal Oasis timeshare owners, when the property owners, Harcourt Development announced that Foxwoods Development Company (FDC) would manage the Royal Oasis timeshare resort property. But as of yet, the Royal Oasis has not reopened.

Now, in an unusual twist, the owners at Royal Oasis have found a way to annoy timeshare owners at a different property—one that isn’t even owned by them!

Unhappy Timeshare Owners Protest at Royal Oasis Timeshare Resort

This week, timeshare owners from the Freeport Resort and Club, protested in front of the Royal Oasis timeshare resort. The Freeport Resort and Club is a charming timeshare resort located about 300 yards from the Royal Oasis timeshare property. And therein lies the problem.

For many years, the timeshare owners at the Freeport Resort and Club were permitted to use a walking path that leads from their resort to the famous shops and open market, the International Bazaar. They have also had direct access to the beach, and playing privileges at two golf courses. But all of this is being denied because of the closing at the Royal Oasis timeshare property.

According to a report in the Freeport NEWS, Freeport Resort and Club President Jack Grobowsky, alleges that, “…certain rights of the timeshare owners have been taken away and they have been trying for more than four years to have those rights restored, but nothing has been done.”

Timeshare owners at the Freeport Resort and Club believe they were guaranteed these rights in the Bahamia Prospectus, and that golf privileges and the replacement of the former Bahamia Beach Club path are not being adhered to per the terms of the Prospectus.

Grobowsky explained, “We are here because we love Freeport and we know that it is not the Bahamian people that is doing this. It is the fault of developers who choose not to deliver on their promises and we believe that the Port Authority and the government make them follow through with the promises they make…We simply want our privileges and amenities returned to us, especially the shortcut access to the International Bazaar.”

Hope for Freeport Resort and Club Timeshare Owners

The Freeport Resort and Club timeshare consists of 52 timeshare condos in 6 circular buildings, which architecturally, could probably be classified as Midcentury Modern. The resort is not palatial, instead it is quaint and appealing with a beach décor and plantation shutters on the wall of windows that surround each timeshare unit. Ceiling fans and rattan furniture tell you this is a place to track in a little sand, laze by the pool, or try your hand in the kitchen making conch fritters with the fresh seafood you bought from a street vendor.

Obviously many Freeport Resort and Club timeshare owners love their vacation ownership, and for plenty of good reasons. If you are interested in owing timeshare at a casual resort in the Bahamas, this might be the perfect place for you, and I wouldn’t let the issue over the walking path or even the golf access be a showstopper.

Sell My Timeshare NOW has just released its HOT 100 list featuring the timeshare resales and timeshare rentals that received the most offers to buy through our company in 2007 - more than 48,000 offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare on properties at these 100 resorts alone!

Some interesting trends are evidenced in the list, including just how stable the top ten properties have been over the past year. The 8 timeshare resorts that top the list this year, all made the top 10 last year. Noteworthy is the jump WorldMark by Wyndham, multi-destination timeshare made from seventh on the previous list, to claim the top spot at number one for this year.

Two other trends are also shown. First, Hawaii timeshares claimed four places among the top ten: Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas in second place on the list; Diamond Resorts Ka’anapali Beach Club in fifth place; Marriott’s Maui Ocean Club timeshares in sixth; and the Ko Olina Beach Club timeshares, new to the top ten list this year, claiming the tenth spot. WorldMark by Wyndham’s multi-destination timeshare locations includes 4 resorts in Hawaii: Kapaa Shore; Valley Isle in Lahaina; Kihei; and Kona in Kailua-Kona.

The other trend that the HOT 100 list reveals is that Marriott is clearly a favorite timeshare brand, with Maui Ocean Club, Marriott’s Aruba Surf Club, Newport Coast Villas, and Ko Olina Beach Club and all making the top ten list.

HOT 100 Timeshare List

The complete top ten list is shown below. You can view the full report, Sell My Timeshare NOW’s HOT 100, by clicking this link.

1. WorldMark by Wyndham, (Multi-Destination)
2. Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas, Maui, Hawaii U.S.A.
3. Orange Lake’s West Village, Orlando, Florida U.S.A.
4. Marriott Timeshare’s Aruba Surf Club, Palm Beach, Aruba
5. Diamond Resorts Ka’anapali Beach Club, Maui, Hawaii U.S.A.
6. Marriott Timeshare’s Maui Ocean Club, Maui, Hawaii U.S.A.
7. Marriott Timeshare’s Newport Coast Villas, Newport Coast, California U.S.A.
8. Harborside Resort at Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas
9. Manhattan Club, New York, New York U.S.A.
10. Marriott Timeshare’s Ko Olina Beach Club, Oahu, Hawaii U.S.A.

Click this link to read Sell My Timeshare NOW’s press release about the HOT 100

This week, Sol Meliá Vacation Club and Timeshare Resort announced the realization of a business milestone. The timeshare company developed three properties in 2004, and today the internationally branded club has 13 international locations.

As part of Spain-based Sol Meliá Hotels and Resorts, the vacation club has properties in Mexico, Europe, the Caribbean, and Central America, with more than 20,000 members worldwide. Alain Grangé, Chief Executive of Sol Meliá Vacation Club and Leisure Real Estate Division, says, “We have been profitable since our first quarter of business from vacation club sales, member and network operations, rental and Club portfolio.”

The vacation club and timeshare credits its success in part to the fact that its projects are fully integrated with those of the company’s hotel and resort divisions. The timeshare company feels this creates a beneficial synergy of marketing, sales, products, operations, financial strength, and customer loyalty.

But here is the single most important reason the company gave for its success and rapid growth. Alain Grangé described loyalty as a two-way street and said, “We couldn’t expect our customers to be loyal to us if we weren’t loyal to them first.”

Applause! The word loyalty is thrown about a lot in the business world, but it is rarely used to talk about a company being loyal to its customers. Loyalty is all too often forgotten in business today, and the few companies that demonstrate it deserve to profit because of it.

You can read the Sol Meliá Vacation Club and Timeshare press release here.

And you can learn more about the opportunity to become a member of Sol Meliá Vacation Club and Timeshare. Go to Sell My Timeshare NOW and look for the outstanding opportunities in Sol Meliá Vacation Club and Timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.

• Sol Melia Vacation Club at Gran Melia Puerto Rico
• Sol Melia Vacation Club Dominican Republic

In yesterday’s Timeshare Owners Blog, we looked at an ABC 20/20 investigation of Royal Holiday vacation club. Here is Part II of that post:

The hidden camera videotape made by ABC’s 20/20 investigators reveals that Royal Holiday breaks a lot of rules when it comes to selling timeshare. People who attend the Royal Holiday sales presentation are promised an incentive if they sit through a 90-minute sales pitch, which actually lasts 3 or more hours. They are told that they can only take advantage of special pricing if they buy today…on the spot, and if they prove reticent to buy, that price may mysteriously be cut in half in hopes of getting them to sign up now, as first one and then another salesperson tries to break down their resistance.

Royal Holiday also serves alcoholic drinks to their prospects. It is poor business ethics to do this, and it is an absolute no-no for you, as a prospective buyer, to make the mistake of clouding your good judgment with alcohol. Never, I repeat never, mix alcohol with the decision to buy timeshare.

Other criticisms of Royal Holiday’s sales tactics include promises made by salespeople that a buyer’s money is invested in a foreign bank account and will be returned to them in 30 years; that rooms shown as examples of what you are buying are far nicer than the rooms you actually can book; and that availability in busy seasons is scarce.

How to Avoid High Pressure Timeshare Sales Tactics

All in all, 20/20’s report was extremely negative. There is however, one foolproof way to avoid the heavy hand of a timeshare company salesperson. Buy resale timeshare. Deal only with the person who already owns the timeshare or vacation club membership. Bypass that salesperson who works for the timeshare company yet counts on you to pay his or her salary through commission.

When you shop for timeshare resales or timeshare rentals online, you can take your time. You can ask questions, you can compare products. You can sleep on your decision and consult your attorney or your financial planner. Money doesn’t come easily these days; take your time deciding how you will spend it.

Royal Holiday Vacation Club Timeshare Resales

Currently Sell My Timeshare NOW timeshare resales and timeshare rental advertising company has more than a hundred different listings for Royal Holiday vacations. Some start at under $1000.

The Royal Holiday vacation club affords you the opportunity to travel the United States and Mexico without joining an exchange company. Royal Holiday Club has occupancy rights at Sheraton Cancun Resort and Towers in Cancun; Sol Caribe in Cozumel; Sheraton Ixtapa, Mexico; the Raddison Xanadu in Freeport, Bahamas; Wave Crest in Del Mar, California; Powell Place, San Francisco; Marriott’s Streamside at Vail; Tropicana Golf Estates in Las Vegas; High Point in Orlando; and Brigantine Beach, NJ.

Sell My Timeshare NOW can help you buy, rent, or sell Royal Holiday vacation club timeshares, without the hassle.

Starwood Resorts and Timeshares has announced that they are building a freestanding timeshare sales gallery inside the Sheraton Atlantic City Convention Center Hotel for the purpose of selling timeshare weeks at that property and at the Sheraton PGA in Port Lucie, FL.

This is the first time Starwood Resorts and Timeshares have used a purpose-built, freestanding timeshare sales office to sell timeshare units and timeshare weeks. The new Starwood Timeshare office will employ 20 to 25 timeshare sales people, and will ultimately sell timeshare weeks at all 25 Starwood properties, which includes Sheraton timeshare resorts and Westin timeshare resorts.

In an article published by PressofAtlanticCity.com, written by business editor Kevin Post, Starwood Vacation Ownership spokesperson David Matheson was quoted as saying, “Timeshares are becoming more and more of a mainstream product. Starwood and companies like it are bringing credibility to the industry.”

The article noted that Starwood timeshare units range from about $13,000 to $28,000 with annual maintenance fees of $400 to $800. On the same day that this article ran, CrainsNYBusiness.com published an article identifying that their new chief executive officer, Fritz Van Paasschen, who took the helm in September of 2007, earned approximately $9.1 million during that 4-month period.

Sheraton Timeshare and Westin Timeshare

While Van Paasschen’s base salary is less than $300,000 annually, his bonuses, incentives, and stock options accounted for the rest of his 9 million dollar-plus compensation. Leaving you to draw your own conclusions here, now seems like a good time to remind you that you can get excellent timeshare deals on Starwood timeshare resales, resorts that carry the brands of Sheraton timeshare resales or Westin timeshare resales.

Timeshare Resales from Sell My Timeshare NOW

When you buy timeshare directly from the person who owns it, you are purchasing vacation time at the same resorts as people who buy timeshare new, from the developer and typically pay much higher prices. Here’s a list of some the opportunities available in timeshare resales in Sell My Timeshare NOW’s current inventory:

• Sheraton Broadway Plantation - Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
• Sheraton Desert Oasis - Scottsdale, Arizona
• Sheraton Mountain Vista - Avon, Colorado
• Sheraton PGA Vacation Resort - Port St. Lucie, Florida
• Sheraton Vistana Resort - Orlando, Florida
• Sheraton Vistana Villages - Orlando, Florida
• The Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas - Maui
• Westin Kierland Villas - Scottsdale, Arizona
• Westin Mission Hills Resort and Villas - Rancho Mirage, California
• Westin St. John Resort and Villas - St. John, US Virgin Islands
• Harborside Resort at Atlantis - Paradise Island, The Bahamas
• Lakeside Terrace - Avon, Colorado

During the 10th Annual Grand Bahama Business Outlook forum last week, Mike Murphy of Harcourt Development announced that Harcourt (the owners of Royal Oasis) has finalized a management deal for the Royal Oasis Timeshares property.

The Freeport News quoted Murphy, the director of Harcourt Development, as saying, “We’ve been working at this for a very long time and we met with Foxwoods almost a year ago now and we’ve been in talks with them ever since.” As Murphy explains, “We’re (Harcourt Developments) the owners and developers of the property, but Foxwoods are going to be the operators.”

Spokespeople for both Harcourt and Foxwoods agree that they are still in an assessment phase, determining which aspects of the hotel and timeshare resort can be refurbished and which will have to be totally rebuilt. Royal Oasis timeshares, as you probably recall, has be closed since Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne caused extensive damages in the fall of 2004. Timeshare owners at Royal Oasis have been in limbo since that time, many still on the hook to make payments on timeshare condos were no longer usable as vacation properties.

Upgrades and Repairs at Royal Oasis Caribbean Timeshare Resort

Currently, proposed plans for the Royal Oasis timeshare resort include quickly bring the Ruby Golf Course to playing conditions, with a long-term overhaul planned for the Emerald Course. A new hotel tower is planned, along with a spa, and multiple food and beverage service locations.

According to reports in The Bahama Journal, some 400 hotel units will be refurbished and another 350 hotel units added. While all sources of information about this newest development in the long and controversial issues surrounding Royal Oasis timeshares refer to the expansion as “hotel” units, I am speculating that they actually mean “timeshare units”. Moreover, while any news of forward momentum in this situation is positive, it doesn’t sound like timeshare owners at Royal Oasis can look forward to using their timeshare weeks any time in the immediate future.

The unfairness of this whole nasty mess as far as Royal Oasis timeshare owners are concerned is inexcusable and if you would like a refresher course on the chain of events, I recommend you revisit the following posts in the Timeshare Owners Blog:

• Updates about Royal Oasis Timeshare
• Do You Own Timeshare at Royal Oasis in the Bahamas?
• Royal Oasis Timeshare Resort: A Litany of Problems
• Uncertain News about Royal Oasis Timeshare Resort

If you are a timeshare owner at Royal Oasis, you still have until April 1, 2008, to become part of the class action lawsuit against the original owners of the timeshare resort. To find out more about the terms of this lawsuit, contact:

Phillips & Garcia, P.C.
Carlin Phillips, Esq.
13 Ventura Drive
N. Dartmouth, MA 02747
cphillips@phillipsgarcia.com

On Monday, the Timeshare Owners Blog will update you on the other group, in addition to timeshare owners, who have been so deeply impacted by the debacle at Royal Oasis timeshares.