The next educational conference for members of the National Timeshare Owners Association (NTOA) will be held on Sunday, May 2, from 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

Timeshare owners who attend NTOA educational conferences compare them to a “user’s guide” for enjoyable timeshare ownership. As the NTOA points out, “Why buy timeshare and not get the most out of it? And when you are ready to sell timeshare or rent timeshare, why not learn all that you can about your options in order to make the process as easy and as cost effective as possible?”

Believing that informed timeshare owners are happy timeshare owners, the National Timeshare Owners Association serves its members as a consumer group dedicated to improving the experience of timeshare ownership.

The Value of Membership in the National Timeshare Owners Association

In order to attend an NTOA educational conference, you must be a member of the NTOA, however, the association’s membership is open to anyone who owns timeshare or is interested in buying, renting, or selling timeshare. And NTOA membership comes loaded with benefits and opportunities in addition to their informative regional educational events.

Members of NTOA qualify for discounted costs and liability protection for timeshare rental. They also have access to legal assistance in dealing with a timeshare as a charitable donation, leaving it in a legal will, disposition of a timeshare in cases of divorce, and many other circumstances. But these benefits are only just the beginning.

Find out more about the NTOA or to sign up to attend the New Jersey timeshare event (or future educational events for timeshare owners) by contacting the National Timeshare Owners Association, at (410) 719-0064 or by emailing [email protected].

When Celebrity Resorts timeshares filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year, it left many timeshare owners wondering what the future holds for them. (See earlier The Timeshare Authority blog post: David Walley’s Hot Springs Resort and Spa Timeshare Updates to Timeshare Owners).

On a website established by the Board of Directors for the David Walley’s Resort Property Owners’ Association, the BOD states that it believes that the resort is both worth saving because it is unique and that it realistically can be save. The Board explains: “Quintus and the lender on the resort still have a vested interest in turning things around, so they are assisting the Board and advancing funds as approved by the Board.”

Additionally, the Board reports that new managers are considering lending money to the POA to get it through 2010; that many timeshare owners are prepaying special assessments; and other timeshare owners who have been holding back on payments are now making them—all of which contributes to cash flow during this challenge.

Timeshare Property Owners Settlement Agreement Summary

Here’s a partial summary of the terms of the recent Settlement Agreement:

1. Celebrity will no longer be managing the POA (Timeshare Property Owners Association).
2. Celebrity will sell the restaurant, spa building, parking lots, deli, grounds, and pool areas (“Real Estate”) to Quintus for $2.325 million. As part of purchase, Quintus will assume $1.825 million in debt that is in default.
3. Quintus will grant the POA a 25-month option to purchase the Real Estate at Quintus’ cost with no markup of the price.
4. Quintus cancels $265k note due from Celebrity and drops lawsuit.
5. POA drops lawsuit against Celebrity for “disputed funds”.
6. Celebrity drops any counter claims against POA and/or Quintus.
7. Celebrity continues to operate the reservation line for timeshare owners and reopens the reservation line for nightly rentals. In exchange, Celebrity gets to rent “unused, unreserved” weeks and Quintus-owned weeks for its own account. Celebrity will pay housekeeping charges for its rentals at a set rate and 50 percent of front desk costs. Unused, unreserved weeks can only be booked 45-days in advance.
8. Celebrity will release the POA cash accounts to the POA, and assign the dues servicing (billing) agreement to the POA.
9. Celebrity will provide all books and records to POA.
10. Quintus to manage POA until new manager can be found for a fixed monthly fee approximately 1/3 of what Celebrity was charging to the POA. The monthly fee will be all-inclusive with no other cost allocations. The Board can terminate Quintus and bring in a new manager on 3-days notice.
11. POA will fund costs to operate spa for rest of 2010 (Quintus will be responsible for debt in default). Unless the POA exercises its purchase option, beginning 1/1/2011 Quintus will fund all spa expense and pay debt service, and the POA will pay Quintus the annual “club dues.”
12. The “Facilities Use Agreement will be amend to provide for quarterly payments of “club dues” and to clarify the calculation of the fee, which should reduce the fee payable for 2011 by over $130,000 or 17 percent. If the POA buys the Real Estate, this agreement shall terminate.
13. Quintus will begin work immediately to reopen the restaurant. The POA will give Quintus the right to lease the restaurant for a share of the profits, if it buys the Real Estate.

You can learn more at the timeshare property owner’s association website. And for additional information on how to buy, rent or sell timeshare at David Walleys Hot Springs Resort and Spa timeshare, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW.

While your kids are getting excited about their Wyndham hotel or Wyndham timeshare vacation, Wyndham Worldwide want them also to be learning about the environment. With the launch of WyndhamGreen Kids, the hospitality company is hoping to educate children about water conservation, recycling/reusing, energy conservation, community involvement, environmental education, and innovation.

The website includes worksheets and hands-on activities developed by environmental organizations to raise children’s awareness about conservation and the environment Faith Taylor, Wyndham Worldwide vice president, sustainability and innovation, says, “We are proud to be one of the first hospitality companies to launch a dedicated sustainability program for children.” She adds, “As a global company, we are committed to conserving resources, preserving natural habitats, and preventing pollution in order to meet the needs of our customers and the lives of future generations.”

Wyndham Timeshare is Environmentally Responsible

Among the many other environmentally responsible initiatives taken by Wyndham Vacation Ownership, Wyndham timeshares now provide low phosphate and no-phosphate dish and laundry detergent in its resorts and timeshares. This effort alone has reduced pollutants by 90,000 pounds since 2008 when the program began.

Similarly, Wyndham timeshare exchange conserved 1.3 million kilowatts at its Parsippany, NY headquarters and its Indianapolis timeshare call center by replacing bulbs and lighting fixtures and installing motion sensors to control lighting, heating, air conditioning, and ventilation. Also, all of the Wyndham timeshare exchange’s timeshare resort directories, as well as the company’s timeshare magazine, are now printed on Forest Stewardship Council paper.

Good job Wyndham timeshare and Wyndham resorts! We all appreciate the leadership of companies that demonstrate environmental responsibility and a commitment to the future of this planet we all share.

Visit WyndhamGreen.com to learn more.

Following up on Saturday’s The Timeshare Authority blog, (Save on Theme Park Tickets during Your Timeshare Vacation), which was loaded with tips on how to save on theme park tickets, here’s a warning, that comes from Orlando, Florida, home of many of the most popular theme parks.

Police are cracking down on fraudsters who are selling recycled theme park tickets, many using a pitch that here are discount admission tickets that you don’t have to sit through a timeshare sales pitch to receive.

But the sale of these tickets is illegal. Fox News Orlando reports, “Orange County (Sheriff’s Department) suspects at least 20 ticket booths in the area are active in a big crime ring, led by one very wealthy man. Detectives won’t tell us who he is yet. But they’ve got him in their sites.”

The fraud begins when the criminals purchase the unused days that are part of a multi-day park ticket held by unsuspecting vacationers. The person selling the ticket may receive $20-$50 for the unused tickets. The criminals then use chemicals to remove the ticketholder’s name and voilà—they have what appears to be a new and unused ticket.

Theme parks have found they are losing so much money because of this scam that they are no longer sympathetically helping the victims of the crime. Instead, when the recycled tickets fail to get the visitor into the park, (and they will fail) the duped consumer is left with no recourse and no ticket.

Remember, if you receive a discounted ticket in return for attending an authentic timeshare sales pitch, you will receive a ticket voucher, not a recycle ticket masquerading as the real thing.

This video provides you more information about this scam, a real vacation bummer.