Some Mexico timeshare resorts are extra special, and a select few take the idea of extra special to a whole other level. Pueblo Bonito Resort at Sunset Beach is one of those timeshares in a class by itself. It is also timeshare resort number 11 as we wrap up the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list.

Vacation in a Cabo San Lucas Timeshare Getaway

Located near beautiful Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Pueblo Bonito Resort at Sunset Beach is renowned for its incredible vistas, serene locale, and romantic, private golden sand beach. This Cabo San Lucas timeshare is located on a 50-acre site, in the southern Baja, where the Sea of Cortez meets the Pacific Ocean.

Pueblo Bonito Resort at Sunset Beach is close enough to the popular tourist destination of Los Cabos, (which means “The Capes” and includes Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo) for you to fully enjoy dining, shopping, and entertainment. At the same time, it is sufficiently private so that you will feel as if you are away from the hustle and bustle, relaxing in your own secluded Mexico timeshare beachside resort.

What to Expect in your Pueblo Bonito Resort Mexico Timeshare

Choose from a Junior Suite, which includes a fully furnished kitchenette, large bath with shower, a private terrace or balcony, a living room area and two double beds. Junior suites at the Pueblo Bonito Resort Mexico timeshare are over 525 square feet of comfortable, luxurious, timeshare accommodation.

The Luxury Suites include all of the amenities of the Junior Suite plus a dining area that seats four, and a private master bedroom and bath which includes two double beds. Luxury suites offer more than 750 square feet of elegant, relaxing space to enjoy.

Presidential and Penthouse suites are also available and all Pueblo Bonito Resort Mexico timeshare units, including the Junior Suite, offer spectacular ocean views.

On property, you will find the spa, for ultimate relaxation; wedding services; children’s activities; sparkling pools, and so very much more. Nearby golf, eco-tours, horseback riding, sport fishing, and water sports lets you pack a lot of action (or relaxation) into your Pueblo Bonito Resort at Sunset Beach timeshare vacation.

With Mexico timeshare resales and Mexico timeshare rentals available at great prices, the only thing left for you to do is start packing.

Have you been on a medical vacation?

In case you are not familiar with the term, a medical vacation is one where you combine vacation travel with medical treatment, typically surgery. Categorized under the broader topic of “medical tourism,” the idea of traveling to another country to have surgery, especially elective procedures, is growing in popularity.

Cost, of course, can be a driving factor in the decision by Americans to travel overseas for medical treatment. A November 2007 report (which appears below) prepared by Healthbase, identifies incredible savings, and cites the example of a hip surgery that costs $12,000 in India, but averages $48,000 in the US.

Other reasons often given for traveling abroad to receive medical treatment include: shorter wait times to schedule procedures; relaxed and private location for recovery; new or experimental procedures available that are not yet offered in the US; and the cost savings means you can bring family members along to enjoy the trip as a vacation while you spend your time recouping.

This week South Korea, a country seeking to cash in on medical tourism, announced the debut of the foreign medical tourist visa, designed to simplify the process of traveling to Korea for medical services. Thailand issued a press release, just this week, identifying that they are targeting Qatar, Japan, and England as sources for medical tourists. The release says that the government of Thailand seeks to become a, “medical tourism hub for high-quality, low cost health and medical services,” and goes on to explain that a breast augmentation, that in the US would cost between $3,000 and $8,000, in Thailand costs approximately $2,000.

CNNHealth.com identifies the following destinations as medical tourism hotspots:

• Brazil
• Singapore
• Central America (specifically Mexico, Panama, and Costa Rica)
• South Africa (home to what has been dubbed, the scalpel “safari”)
• Malaysia
• South Korea
• Hungary
• India

Timeshare Resales and Timeshare Rentals Fit in this Picture Perfectly

Since you aren’t likely to want to go directly from the hospital to a plane headed home, you will probably want a place to spend a few days before and after your surgery, as well as the fact that your travel companions will need accommodations during the time you are hospitalized. Where would you rather be, a hotel room or a spacious timeshare with kitchen facilities, perhaps separate bedrooms, internet access, and so many of the comforts of home?

That’s easy to answer. You will want space to quietly relax, and spend some down time before you return home. And since the whole idea of the trip was to save money, timeshare resales and timeshare rentals fit that plan perfectly.

Not only are there amazing options in timeshare resales, but if you decide to return for follow-up treatment or to have additional medical procedures performed in that same city, a timeshare makes the rescheduling of your accommodations especially easy.

Medical Tourism Guide

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.

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.

This is the second in a three-part The Timeshare Authority blog. (Read Timeshare Sales and Developer Strategic Responses – Part I) Part II looks at how different timeshare developers and timeshare sales companies are adapting to meet the challenges of difficult economic times.

Marriott Timeshare, Starwood, Wyndham Vacation Ownership And Others

While not every timeshare company enjoys the depth of the Disney corporation with its worldwide network of theme parks, entertainment, and retail merchandise, many of the big dogs in the timeshare industry do have other revenue streams in addition to booking hotel room nights and selling timeshare.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, companies including Marriott Vacation Club International and Starwood Vacation Ownership are adapting to the credit crunch by reducing or eliminating certain incentives for timeshare buyers to finance timeshare through them. At the same time they are making it less inviting to use the timeshare developer as a financing source, they certainly haven’t stopped financing timeshare sales altogether.

Wyndham Vacation Ownership along with Westgate Resorts have had to dig deeper to compensate for the fact that many prospective timeshare buyers are unable to obtain financing. Both Wyndham timeshare and Westgate timeshare have laid-off thousands of employees and in some situations, closed timeshare sales offices.

Orlando timeshare company Sol Meliá, with timeshare resorts in the Europe, Mexico, and other top destinations worldwide, is responding to the credit crunch by restructuring interest rates. Sol Meliá is now typically requiring larger down payments from timeshare buyers.

Sell My Timeshare NOW – the Defacto Solution in Timeshare Resales and the Secondary Market

Already the industry leader in online advertising and marketing of timeshare resales and timeshare rentals, Sell My Timeshare NOW, continues to work to help consumers buy, rent, or sell timeshare in affordable and effective ways. We are also expanding our services, working with timeshare developers, offering proactive, business-to-business solutions for the secondary market.

We are living in challenging economic times. All of us – businesses, consumers, support services, and suppliers – need to work together, ride out the storm, and plan for the better days ahead that we know are coming.

In the final installment of this series, The Timeshare Authority looks at how timeshare sales trends and tactics at some development companies may be changing the patterns of timeshare buyers. Watch for Part III tomorrow.

The Houston, Texas-based timeshare company, Raintree Vacation Club, released news this week that they are not only acquiring additional properties and opening new resorts, they are breaking sales records!

With sales offices in Cancun, Los Cabos, and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, Raintree is the largest independent, US-based vacation ownership company operating in Mexico. The company currently has twenty-one timeshare resorts, ten of which are Mexico timeshare. Raintree Resorts can also be found in the western US and in western Canada.

In December, Raintree opened timeshare resort number 20 in Villa Vera Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Property number 21 came when Raintree Timeshares acquired the Phoenix resort previously known as Canyon View, currently under renovation.

According to the company’s president and CEO Doug Bech, the new Phoenix property represents “… over $100 million in future timeshare sales. It was acquired from Resort Funding, which is also providing an excellent working capital/receivables hypothecation line of credit for the consumer notes for both the Phoenix and Villa Vera Puerto Vallarta resorts. We will be rebranding this property quickly and begin operating it as a Raintree Resort.”

Raintree timeshares is pleased to be offering a new timeshare resort destination in Arizona, and enthusiastic about their relationship with Resort Funding, about whom Bech says, “… we believe we will have other future business.”

Clearly Raintree Resorts is Doing Things Right

You already know the situation for many timeshare companies and timeshare developers who are struggling to downsize and ride out the recession. Yet, Raintree is clearly doing things the right way. The company reported they were more than $8 million above sales, year-over-year for 2008.

Raintree Vacation Club is the exchange arm of Raintree Resorts, serving over 50,000 member/owners.

Last spring we started the countdown here on The Timeshare Authority for Sell My Timeshare NOW’s top 100 timeshare resales and timeshare rentals, based on the number of offers to buy or rent. Today we look at HOT 100 property, number 51, the multi-destination Palace Resorts timeshares in Cancun, Mexico.

Mexico timeshares are always in demand; they offer luxurious destinations and a climate that is pleasurable any time of the year. But the Palace Resorts timeshares adds one more element that you don’t always find at a timeshare – they are all inclusive resorts.

Mexico Timeshares Where One Price Pays it All

When you buy timeshare at a Palace Resort, you make vacation planning the simplest it can possibly be. Buy timeshare, and your vacation accommodations are covered, except for annual maintenance fees. All inclusive timeshares take the convenience one step further. You pay one price for your food, beverages, and many types of entertainment. You can almost leave your wallet at home. Your all-inclusive price covers meals, snacks, feasts, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, paddleboats, kayaks, snorkeling, banana boating, windsailing, windsurfing, and water biking.

Amenities will vary from one Palace Resort timeshare to the next, but most include beach access, swimming pools (often multiple pools on a property), activities for your children and child care, live entertainment, medical facilities, nearby shopping, restaurants and lounges. Typically, you will also find a sauna, exercise equipment, conference facilities, onsite auto rental, and tennis courts.

The Timing Is Right for Mexico Timeshares at the Palace Resorts

Considering that watching their dollars and cents is high on everyone’s priority list right now, wouldn’t it be nice to pay one price for a lifetimes of great vacation accommodations and then pay only one price for all the food and drink you wanted, with lots of entertainment options thrown in as well?

All inclusive timeshares are a unique opportunity to spend a few glorious vacation days, where you are not only getting away from your routine, but you can be on vacation from all those nagging thoughts about how much you are spending. For a change, forget about the economy and the state of the world. Head to Mexico where you can relax on the beach and eat, drink, and be merry – it’s an all inclusive timeshare!

Part I in a two-part series.

WIN, which stands for Women in the Industry, is a unique new organization that recognizes just how much talented, professional women can (and do) mean to the timeshare industry. The mission of this non-profit group includes advocating, educating, and connecting women in the vacation ownership industry.

As Georgi Bohrod, Cathy Backus, and Lani Kane-Hanan, (WIN’s founders and BOD) explain, the primary purpose of WIN is to foster the growth of women by recognizing their accomplishments and creating a strong networking environment. In addition to providing a forum for women in the timeshare and vacation industry to unite and leverage best practices, WIN will also support industry research particularly as it pertains to women.

Last week I had the opportunity to talk with some of the women behind WIN; I know you would be interested in what they have to say. For background, here is a profile of the seven founding members and volunteer Board of Directors of WIN. These short bios don’t begin to do justice to the depth and breadth of professional experience these industry leaders have in a diversity of areas from leisure, to marketing, to recreation, to hotels and hospitality, and of course, timeshare.

• Cathy Backus’ career includes eight years with TWA; owner/operator of Youth Explorers; Director of US Sales for Club Med; and her current position as Global Sales Director with CSA Travel Protection.
• Georgi Bohrod is the owner of GBG & Associates Inc., and has more than two decades of shared ownership industry experience. She is a designated Registered Resort Professional; writer; and public relations and marketing professional; and past director of marketing and public relations for Resort Communications.
• Melanie Gring is the vice president marketing for Global Connections. Prior to acquisition by Global, Melanie was the managing partner of Leisuretainment.com, LLC. She has more than 35 years of experience in the vacation ownership industry; 26 years with Fairfield Resorts; was past president of Cooperative Association of Resort Exchangers (CARE) and currently serves on the Board of Directors of CARE.
• Lani Kane-Hanan, RRP, is the senior vice president of Marriott Vacation Club International (MVCI). Lani is a third generation hotelier with over 20 years in the hospitality industry. She is responsible for all MVCI’s business planning, inventory and revenue management, pricing, and product innovation activities.
• Lisa Jackson is the vice president of strategic business development at International Cruise & Excursions, Inc. (ICE) and is the past regional sales manager for Cunard Line. Lisa manages all resort business development at ICE, seeking out new partners and ensuring that those currently using the ICE programs are fully realizing the benefits.
• Eliana Jones has worked with timeshare developers in Mexico and USA, including Shell timeshare Corporation, Palace Resorts Corporation, Solaris Resorts, and Sunset Group. Eliana is a partner of Zunny Trails Company, an international marketing and destination management company offering lead generation solutions to timeshare resorts across the border.
• Karen Knight, CTSM brings over 20 years of experience in the vacation industry to WIN. She is the past director of marketing for San Francisco Recreation and Park Department; was the grand opening director of Legoland California; past manager of university conference programs for both Cal Poly and Santa Clara Universities and has marketed and managed several boutique hotels in the San Francisco Bay area.

These are seven dynamic, timeshare industry leaders, who have identified both a need and an opportunity. You will be interested in what they have to say about timesharing, women, WIN, and the future of the industry; in the interview I’ll post on Monday’s The Timeshare Authority blog.

Two favorite Mexico timeshares are HOT 100 list property number 58: the Grand Mayan Nuevo Vallarta and HOT 100 list property number 59: the Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta.

The Grand Mayan Nuevo Vallarta Mexico Timeshare Resort

The Grand Mayan Nuevo Vallarta timeshare resort is located 12 miles north of the Puerto Vallarta airport, or about a 15 minute taxi ride. This luxurious Wyndham timeshare property offers a half-mile of beautiful Pacific Ocean beach, as well as some amazing on-property amenities, including a lazy river, a flume slide, and a wave pool.

One bedroom timeshare units include a living and dining room, sleep up to five guests, and are called Grand Suites, while two-bedroom timeshare units, also include a living and dining room, and sleep up to eight timeshare guests. These larger units are called Grand Master Suites. All of the timeshare units at The Grand Mayan Nuevo Vallarta have either a private balcony or a terrace.

Many of the spacious guest rooms and suites of The Grand Mayan Nuevo Vallarta timeshare resort include a Jacuzzi or plunge pool, satellite television and international direct-dial telephones.

The Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta Mexico Timeshare Resort

Slightly closer to the Puerto Vallarta airport (9 miles), is the Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta timeshare resort. All suites there consist of a kitchen, living room, and bedroom with a king size or two twin size beds. Adjoining rooms and suites can be combined as timeshare lock-outs to comfortably accommodate larger families. The Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta timeshare resort offers : Master Room timeshare units, Suite units and Master Suite timeshare units.

During your Mayan Palace Nuevo Vallarta Mexico timeshare vacation you can enjoy golf on a Jim Lipe course, recently redesigned by Jack Nicklaus Design group, and scheduled to fully reopen in 2009. (At least 9 holes will always be available for guest play during the redesign).

After a day on the beach strolling Banderas Bay or 18 holes on the course, schedule some time at the Brio Health Spa, where you can choose from a variety of services to restore and rejuvenate your body and spirit. A Mayan Mudpack or Mexican Mescal-lime-lemon aromatic treatment could be just the thing to help you forget about the demands of your daily life in these hectic and stress filled times.

As with all the timeshare resorts on the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 List, these two popular Mexico timeshares are available as right-priced timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.

Club Casa Dorada Beach and Golf Resort timeshare in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico is as beautiful as any beachside resort you have ever dreamed of visiting. Located on El Medano beach, which is one of Cabo San Lucas’ best beaches for swimming, Club Casa Dorada Beach and Golf Resort offers guests a relaxing Mexico timeshare vacation destination, featuring access to an amazing range of amenities.

Timeshare owners and vacationers who rent timeshare at Club Casa Dorada Beach and Golf resort timeshare can enjoy their days with time on the beach or at the four health spas, the equestrian center, or teeing it up at one of the two oceanfront championship golf courses at the resort. Adjacent to Cabo Real Desert Park Reserve’s 3000 acres of protected land, your timeshare vacation can include ATV trail riding, mountain biking or hiking. There are perfect places for swimming as well as for personal watercraft use, kayaking, fishing, and snorkeling. But you might prefer to simply relax by the timeshare resort’s pool, shop the boutiques of Cabo San Lucas, and dine at one of the resort’s many fine dining or casual restaurants.

Club Casa Dorada Beach Timeshare is an RCI Golf Crown Resort

This exquisite Mexico timeshare resort is part of the exclusive 3500 acre Cabo Real Master Plan Community, which offers more than three and a half miles of some of Cabo’s best and most beautiful beaches. Club Casa Dorada Beach timeshare resort is an RCI Gold Crown property and is part of Melia Los Cabos Hotels in Los Cabos Mexico.

Offering timeshare owners and guests one, two, and three bedroom vacation ownership suites, most timeshare condos at Club Casa Dorada Beach Timeshare have private terraces, ocean views, kitchens or kitchenettes, and rooms with an elegant, clean-line décor. Jetted tubs, flat-screen televisions, and wireless internet provide you the comforts of home, with an upscale touch.

Buy Timeshare Resales at Club Casa Dorado Beach Timeshare

If you are reading this on the day this blog posts to The Timeshare Authority, then it’s Labor Day weekend, a traditional ‘long-week’ holiday in the US. And chances are, you are not on vacation. Because as much as I like to think of this timeshare blog as ‘gripping’ reading, it’s not the kind of thing most people read during their vacations…The Timeshare Authority is what you read when you are dreaming about a vacation.

So if you set aside a little time during your busy Labor Day weekend and peruse the incredible opportunities in Mexico timeshare resales and Mexico timeshare rentals, (timeshare resales and timeshare rentals available anywhere else in the world) advertised at www.sellmytimesharenow.com, then next time a holiday rolls around, you can be doing instead of dreaming; enjoying vacation ownership with your own affordable and luxurious timeshare.