Sheraton Hotels and Resorts are rolling out a new $20 million marketing campaign created to help recharge the company’s brand. Called, “Rediscover Sheraton,” the marketing campaign is intended to inspire vacationers and travelers to take a fresh look at Sheraton properties.

Sheraton’s refreshed face includes 300 new lobbies; the new wifi wired lobby lounges called Link@Sheraton; some 70 thousand new guestrooms and 100,000 new beds.

With the intent of attracting both leisure travelers, vacationers, and the millions of people who combine the two, Sheraton Resort’s rebranding includes defining themselves as the brand that:

• “Brings business suits and bathing suits together…”
• “Brings power walks and power talks together…”
• “Brings bottom lines and bottom ups together…”

The marketing effort even makes use of the word: “bleisure” a blending of the words business and leisure.

Sheraton timeshares are part of the family of Starwood resorts, which also includes Westin timeshare and other popular properties worldwide. To find out more about outstanding opportunities in Sheraton timeshare resales, click on any of the links below:

• 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)

Select Westin and Hyatt Resorts are improving the experience for anyone who would like to incorporate a good run as part of their resort stay.

At Westin Resorts in 30 cities, a “running” concierge is available three mornings each week to lead guests on a three-mile jog. And more than 100 Hyatt Hotels and Resorts are now providing their guests with running route maps and GPS armbands. At both Westin and Hyatt, the services are free.

While many timeshare vacationers look forward to putting their feet up by the pool, others are enthusiastic about getting involved in the sports and recreation activities that are available at most timeshare resorts. Jogging trails, biking trails, and even on-property or nearby by hiking and horseback riding are frequently available at many timeshare resorts.

Runners, not already familiar with MapMyRun.com, will find the website to be a valuable tool whether jogging at home or during travels. MapMyRun offers some 775,000 US jogging routes, which you can save to your GPS. Besides introducing you to a vast online community of runners, this website helps you track your training and even count the calories you have burned. And while all of these benefits for runners are free, City Running Tours is an excellent paid service you may want to learn more about.

The Timeshare Authority told you about City Running Tours last year in a post we did on New York City timeshares. City Running Tours offers you longer runs and run tailored to your specific requests, as well as runs along preset routes designed to maximize the experience for you both as a runner and as a sightseer.

Whether you are vacationing at a Hyatt timeshare, a Westin timeshare, or any of the many beautiful timeshare resort worldwide, don’t forget to pack your running shoes.

For the third quarter of 2009, Starwood Hotels and Starwood timeshares has reported EPS at $.22 as compared $.62 for the same quarter in 2008. And while this comes as no surprise to anyone inside or outside the industry, there was at least one important bit of information in the report I found particularly interesting.

Here’s a summary of some of the notable points from their Quarterly Report, especially as related to Starwood timeshares:

• Operating income from Starwood vacation ownership (Starwood timeshare) and residential declined $47 million compared to 2008.
• Frits van Paasschen, CEO of Starwood says referring to both the timeshare and the hotel segments of the company’s business: “Over the past twelve months we have focused on cost containment and debt reduction, which positions us well to ‘Own the Upswing’. Our increasingly fee-based, capital-efficient business model will grow as REVPAR recovers and as our pipeline translates into unit additions. Our owned hotels are skewed towards the high end and have been particularly hard-hit over the past twelve months, implying they are poised for a strong rebound as the world economy recovers. And with half of our hotels outside of the United States, we will benefit from secular growth in international markets …With the $6 billion Sheraton Revitalization Program nearly complete, I can’t think of a better time to aggressively re-launch the brand than into the early stages of an upcycle.”
• Starwood timeshare reported a revenue decrease of 31.7 percent to $125 million as compared to 2008. Starwood also implemented what it calls “significant cost reductions” in its timeshare division, (which most notably came in the form of timeshare sales staff layoffs, one would speculate, not in decreased services to timeshare owners).
• The average sale price of Starwood timeshare dropped by nearly 22 percent, which Starwood notes is primarily due to increased sales of lower value timeshares …

And here is one of the most significant point to be gleaned from Starwood’s report in regards to timeshare sales. In addressing which factors contributed to Starwood timeshare’s drop in average sale price, they reported a higher percentage of biennial sales.

Very noteworthy fact here, don’t miss its significance: Consumers still wanted to become Starwood timeshare owners. They still wanted to buy timeshare and to enjoy the benefits of timeshare vacations. And when the economy makes it challenging, they just change their game plan and opt to enjoy the properties every other year, rather than annually. Bottom line—they didn’t give up their dream of timeshare vacations; they simply adjusted the schedule.
Click here to read the full report.

Click here to read the full report.

Starwood Capital CEO Barry Sternlicht offers some interesting insights about the commercial real estate market as an investment during the down economy. You can watch the interview in this clip from the Fox Business Channel.

And before you view the clip, here’s a little perspective on how Starwood Capital fits into the bigger picture with Starwood hotels and Starwood timeshares. Historically, Starwood Capital is known as an aggressive and successful acquirers of individual hotels, hotel companies, and timeshare resorts worldwide. From their website: “Starwood Capital is well known for its 1995 acquisition and subsequent recapitalization, reorganization and expansion of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT “Starwood Hotels”), a Fortune 500 company, with ownership of brands such as Westin, Sheraton, W Hotels, The St. Regis, Le Meridien, The Luxury Collection and Four Points by Sheraton. Mr. Sternlicht, as Chairman and CEO of Starwood Hotels between 1995 and May of 2005, led the transformation of Starwood Hotels from an overleveraged, liquidating REIT into a thriving global enterprise of more than 115,000 employees, with a total enterprise value in excess of $18 billion, including more than 800 hotels system-wide in 80 countries.”

As the countdown on the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list continues, we look at three HOT timeshares, each distinctively different from the other. HOT 100 List timeshare number 20 is the Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas North. Hot List timeshare number 19 is the Grand Pacific Palisades in Carlsbad, California. And Hot List timeshare number 16 is the Wyndham Grand Desert in Las Vegas. Three ways to vacation; three timeshare resorts to enjoy.

A Lush Hawaiian Isle Westin Timeshare Resort

Designed with luxury in mind, the Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas North is one of two Westin resorts on Ka’anapali Beach. Enjoying a primo location on North Ka’anapali, (a beach that has been recognized as one of America’s Best Beaches) timeshare owners and timeshare renters at this Hawaii timeshare resort can choose verdant island views or stunning ocean vistas from their private balcony or patio. At the Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort, studio and one or two-bedroom timeshare villas offer an equipped kitchen, a whirlpool tub, and a relaxing living and dining area.

Located in Lahaina, on the island of Maui, if you watched the season finale of the CBS reality show, The Amazing Race, (this past Sunday night,) you saw enough beautiful views of Maui to make you long for a Hawaii timeshare.

California Timeshare Close to the Beach

Grand Pacific Palisades California timeshare offers you a totally different perspective of the Pacific Ocean than the one you’ll get in Lahaina, Maui, but equally as spectacular. North of San Diego (about 40 miles), and south of Anaheim (approximately 60 miles), Carlsbad has Southern California desert appeal in a location so perfect for family fun it is even located across the street from LEGOLAND®!

During the spring, you can enjoy Carlsbad’s famous Flower Fields® where more than 50-acres of vibrant flowers bloom on a hillside overlooking the ocean. Year-round, Grand Pacific Palisades timeshare tempts you with an ideal location for enjoying golf, the beach, or any of the nearby attractions.

Timeshare units at this beautiful California timeshare resort include one and two bedroom units as well as two bedroom lockouts.

This Las Vegas Timeshare is No Gamble, It’s Always a Winner

The Wyndham Grand Desert in Las Vegas is located only a quarter mile from the glittering Las Vegas Strip, but features a Mediterranean-style ambience. Timeshare owners at the Wyndham Grand Desert enjoy the resort, not only for its style and amenities, but because it makes it easy to balance your vacation between the casinos and nightlife of the Las Vegas Strip with a relaxing resort that offers plenty of entertainment for the whole family.

Considered a flagship property of Wyndham Resorts, Wyndham Grand Desert timeshare units are available in one, two, and three-bedroom units, as well as timeshare lockouts.

Like so many other great Las Vegas timeshare properties, the Wyndham Grand Desert makes it easy to explore both the natural wonders of the Nevada landscape and then take in the shows, dining, and unmatched glitz of Las Vegas after dark.

To learn more about opportunities in timeshare resales and timeshare rentals at these great HOT 100 destinations and many more exciting vacation spots, talk to the timeshare resales specialists at Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Sell My Timeshare NOW’s HOT 100 list timeshare property number 44 is the Westin Kierland Villas timeshare resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. Located within the 730-acre master-planned community of Kierland, on ten beautiful acres, this Westin timeshare is an ideal destination for a quiet retreat or a romantic getaway.

Serene and low-key, the décor of this relaxing resort reflects the colors of the desert. Timeshare villas at this popular Westin resort include one-bedroom timeshare villas, one-bedroom premium timeshare villas, and two-bedroom lockoff units.

One-bedroom villas sleep four vacationers comfortably with 543 square feet of living space and 106 square feet of balcony. A larger, 871-square foot one-bedroom premium timeshare villa is actually the lockoff side of a two-bedroom lockoff unit. Two-bedroom lockoff units will sleep up to eight adults. Each side of a two-bedroom villa includes its own fully equipped kitchen and living area as well as its own bedroom and bath.

All of the Westin Kierland timeshare villas include the famous Westin Heavenly Bed ®, granite counter tops, solid maple cabinets, a 32-inch color television, a flat-screen television, CD player, Bose AM/FM radio, DVD player, fully equipped kitchen, dining area and access to a washer and dryer.

The timeshare villas at the Westin Kierland are adjacent to the Westin Kierland Hotel and Spa, making it easy for you to take advantage of all the spa treatments and services for which the resort is so well known. This is also an excellent vacation destination for golfers, bikers, horseback riding, relaxing by the pool, or enjoying local attractions including the Desert Botanical Garden, the Arizona Science Center, the Heard Museum, The Phoenix Zoo, the Pioneer Living History Museum, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West, and the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.

Own a Westin Timeshare Resale

Currently Sell My Timeshare NOW offers more than 50 timeshare units for sale at Westin Kierland Villas. These are all timeshare resales, meaning that you can buy them directly from the owner for substantially less than they sold for originally.

To learn more about this HOT 100 list timeshare, visit the website for Sell My Timeshare NOW, then buy timeshare resales at Kierland Villas and enjoy the pleasure and convenience of vacation ownership at a truly affordable price.

Starwood Hotels and Timeshare Resorts reported a 12 percent drop in profits for the third quarter, 2008. With this announcement, they joined the ranks of other hoteliers and timeshare developers, including Marriott, Hilton, and Westgate timeshare, who have all acknowledged that they are sharply feeling the credit crunch and the economic downturn.

Starwood (the parent company of Westin timeshare resorts and Sheraton timeshare resorts) reported revenue was flat at $1.5 billion, with international operations shoring up those in North America. Earnings for Starwood were $113 million or 62 cents a share, which is down from $129 million or 61 cents a share, in the third quarter 2007. Figuring all adjustments, and earnings from continuing operations, earnings should have been 71 cents per share.

According to Hotels Magazine, Starwood Chief Executive Frits van Paasschen stated that the company had begun streamlining and reducing costs earlier in the year. Yet, Starwood’s efforts don’t seem to be sufficient to quell concerns. Steve Kent of Goldman Sachs commented on Starwood specifically and the timeshare and hotel industry in general, saying, “… the industry will be hit with increasing supply at the same time demand is falling and [its] negative operating leverage and inability to cut costs quickly suggests margins are going to be under pressure for some time.”

Starwood Says Decline in Hawaii Timeshare and Florida Timeshare Sales is Major Contributor

Pacific Business News reported that Starwood specifically blames a decline in Hawaii timeshares sales and Florida timeshares sales for its revenue shortfall. Compared to 2007, revenue in timeshare sales is down 27.4 percent. Contract sales of vacation ownership intervals decreased almost 30 percent at Starwood timeshares, due both to overall decline and to Starwood’s sellout of Westin Kaanapali Ocean Resort North on Maui.

Starwood timeshare says it expects operating income from its timeshare business to drop as much as $115 million this year as demand for Hawaii timeshares and Orlando timeshares decreases.

How about spending your days golfing, swimming, or just relaxing in sunny, southern California and your nights curled up in a Westin Heavenly Bed®? This could be your next vacation if you buy or rent Starwood timeshare at the Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas.

Located in Rancho Mirage, this California timeshare includes 360 beautifully landscaped acres complete with bubbling streams, terraced fountains, and two championship golf courses. As Sell My Timeshare NOW’s HOT 100 List timeshare resort number 60, the Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas is a desert oasis, a retreat where you can rest and recoup from the pressures and demands of daily life.

Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas Timeshare, a Luxurious Choice

In your Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas timeshare, you will enjoy a fully equipped kitchen, washer and dryer, color televisions in bedrooms and the living room, Bose stereo system, and a DVD player in the living room. Living room areas feature a queen-size sleeper sofa, along with fireplaces in the living area and the bedroom of many villas. The Westin Mission Hills Resort and Villas timeshare is a luxurious resort for pampering yourself and enjoying some much needed quiet time with family or friends.

But when you have the urge to explore, there are so many nearby attractions to help you fill your vacation days. Enjoy the Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert, the El Paseo Shopping District, the Palm Springs Air Museum, Knott’s Oasis Water Park, Indian Canyons, and Joshua Tree National Park to name only a few of the nearby points of interest.

Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas Timeshare and More

Sell My Timeshare NOW has outstanding opportunities for you to buy timeshare or rent timeshare at the Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas timeshare. And if you enjoy the indulgence of the signature Westin bed, Westin bath, and Westin WORKOUT exercise rooms, you may also be interested in these other Westin timeshare resorts, which offer some or all of these amenities.

• Westin Kierland Villas – Scottsdale, Arizona
• Westin St. John Resort and Villas – St. John, US Virgin Islands

Yesterday our timeshare blog announced the release of the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list, revealing the top 100 properties to receive offers to buy timeshare or rent timeshare in 2007. For properties on the HOT 100 list, there were over 48,000 offers to buy or rent placed last year alone.

While we noted that Hawaii timeshares claimed 4 of the top 10 spots on the HOT 100 list, I didn’t go into detail about how strongly Hawaii dominates the top of the list.

Hawaii timeshares start with the HOT 100′s number one property, WorldMark by Wyndham, multi-destination resorts because four of WorldMark by Wyndham’s 60+ timeshare resorts are in Hawaii. There is the: WorldMark by Wyndham Kapaa Shore timeshare resort; the WorldMark by Wyndham Valley Isle in Lahaina timeshare resort; the WorldMark by Wyndham Kihei timeshare resort; and the WorldMark by Wyndham Kona in Kailua-Kona timeshare resort.

As I mentioned in our timeshare blog yesterday, Hawaii timeshares also claimed second place on the list with the Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas; fifth place with Diamond Resorts Ka’anapali Beach Club; sixth with Marriott’s Maui Ocean Club timeshares; and tenth with the Ko Olina Beach Club timeshares.

But Hawaii timeshares accounts for over 27 percent all timeshare resorts among the top 33 properties on the list. The Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas North timeshares, ranked 21; the Sands of Kahana Vacation Club timeshares, was number 24; Hilton Grand Vacations Club at Hilton Hawaiian Village was number 29; and Marriott’s OceanWatch Villas timeshares ranked number 33.

Why Hawaii Timeshare?

America’s fiftieth state may be small, but in terms of what you get for your vacation dollar, it packs a punch. A Hawaii timeshare vacation means you can enjoy your choice of tropical forests, mountains, beautiful beaches, a cosmopolitan (Hawaii-style) nightlife, or a chance to explore a fascinating culture.

The diverse islands of Hawaii cater to honeymooners, surfers, retirees, family vacations, and everyone seeking the peaceful, laidback style of the islands.

While many of the first timeshares in the US were built in Hawaii, it has never lost its place as a top demand timeshare vacation destination. But let’s face it, Hawaii is one of the more expensive places to live or to visit on holiday because it is a small cluster of beautiful but relatively isolated islands, where most goods must be imported. When you add to that the fact that limited geographic area keeps land values for development very high, the cost of that fabulous Hawaii vacation can be pricey.

While you can’t cut costs by driving there instead of flying or going by cruise ship, you can take advantage of Hawaii timeshare resales to help you control two other vacation costs – meals and accommodations. The kitchen and dining areas found in most timeshares will let you choose to eat in as much as you like and save your restaurant dining for those special luaus. And when you buy Hawaii timeshare resales, you lock the price of your Hawaii vacation lodging in for as long as you own your timeshare. When you do get ready to resell Hawaii timeshare, you can do so with confidence, using indicators like the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 list to affirm that there is a strong and consistent market for Hawaii timeshare resales.

Follow this link to read the Sell My Timeshare NOW HOT 100 press release about Hawaii timeshare.

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