When the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) and the National Timeshare Owners Association (NTOA) joined forces in January, we knew great things were about to happen. This is the working partnership of two major timeshare associations, each with a goal of improving the timeshare industry and the experience of owning timeshare.

But here’s the first glaring fact that confronts both ARDA and the NTOA: while nearly seven million people own timeshare, 86 percent of whom rate their experience with the product as positive, timeshare remains misunderstood by the general population. As Howard Nusbaum, president and CEO of ARDA explains, “People love taking vacation … our goal is to show them that taking vacation with timeshare can provide a better experience. The developers can tell this story very well, but there is nothing like hearing it from actual owners and users of the product.”

ARDA and NTOA Turn to Timeshare Owners to Tell the Real Story

ARDA and the NTOA are working with timeshare owners to get the real story out there. In this age of social media we all recognize that the facts people want to hear are not corporate messages but the heartfelt stories and experiences of other people just like us. No ad campaign or media blitz is ever as meaningful as one consumer sharing his or her experiences with another. Real stories of vacation ownership, timeshare holidays, and vacation memories speak powerfully and communicate that timeshares could turn to be the best direction your vacation plans ever took.

Ed Hastry, founder and CEO of the National Timeshare Owners Association sees NTOA members as, “…enthused about the opportunity to have a more direct communications vehicle into the developers. We have a huge group of owners that can articulate what vacation ownership means to them and why it’s a great way to vacation.”

ARDA’s Representation at the Next NTOA Educational Conference

When the membership of the NTOA meets next week in Baltimore, MD for an educational conference, ARDA will be represented by Howard Nusbaum, president and CEO. Nusbaum will be speaking to the timeshare owners in attendance, answering questions, and very importantly, listening to what they have to say. You can be part of this event. (See: Reminder to Timeshare Owners: NTOA Meeting in Baltimore). For more information about the upcoming NTOA meeting, go to www.nationaltimeshareownersassoc.com But plan now, this event is filling up fast: Sunday, April 13, 2010, NTOA Educational Conference with Howard Nusbaum of ARDA.

Travel + Leisure Magazine recently tracked down the top-ten best hamburgers in the US; fortunately, you can plan your timeshare travel to enjoy them all.

Burger Joint in San Francisco took the honors for the numero uno best burger. Burger Joint is a 1950’s-style restaurant that boasts an old-fashion burger made from hormone- and pesticide-free beef.

Recommended San Francisco timeshare to accompany your Burger Joint hamburger is: Shell Vacation Club’s The Suites at Fishermans Wharf timeshare resales and rentals, where you are just a cable car ride away from Chinatown, Ghirardelli Square, The Cannery, and Pier 39.

Dyer’s Burger in Memphis took second place honors with their thin-patty burger, fried in oil in a cast-iron skillet. Once you order this burger, you might as well go all out and add Dyer’s famous chili cheese fries and a deep fried Twinkie for desert.

An ideal destination for a Memphis timeshare vacation is just 30 minutes away in Robinsville, Mississippi. The Westgate Tunica Resort, designed to look like an anti-bellum southern mansion, is centrally located for enjoying the hot jazz and cool blues of Memphis as well as the casinos, golf, and southern charm of Mississippi.

Duchamp’s Burger in Chicago is no greasy diner, yet this restaurant proves it still knows how to cook a burger, serving an eight-ounce ground chuck special on a Czech cottage-cheese-and-dill bun.

You may decide to day trip into the city for your Duchamp’s burger while spending your timeshare vacation in Silverleaf’s Fox River Resort timeshare, located a little over an hour away in Sheridan, Illinois. There you can choose between waterskiing, boating, hiking or picnicking in the peaceful rolling hills, or grab your sightseeing gear and head for Chicago, famous for its museums, shopping, and dining.

Timeshares at Every Top Burger Destination

Here are the next seven (NYC scores two great burger destinations, turning the top ten into an actual count of eleven) destinations for world-famous burgers…and a few of the outstanding timeshare vacation destinations that will get you there:

Lüke in New Orleans, LA., where you can vacation in a Chateau Orleans timeshare resale or rental in heart of the French Quarter.

Quinn’s Pub in Seattle, WA, when you are enjoying a WorldMark Seattle timeshare resale or rental at The Camlin.

Ranch 616 in Austin, Texas, where you can stay in Austin timeshare resales and timeshare rentals in a city known for its live music and western fun.

Kua’Aina Sandwich Shop in Hale’iwa, Hawaii. You know Hawaii timeshares are outstanding, so just pick an island and pack your Hawaiian shirt and your flipflops.

Kemble Park Tavern offers you and excellent dinner spot during your Washington, DC timeshare resale or rental vacation.

Back Forty and Black Iron Burger Shop in NYC. Two great burger destinations only a few blocks apart and both worth visiting during your Big Apple New York City timeshare stay.

Murphy’s on the Green in Hanover, NH, where you can enjoy New Hampshire timeshare resales or rentals, here in our own headquarters home state for Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Here’s a reminder to all timeshare owners that the next National Timeshare Owners Association Educational Conference is right around the corner. The NTOA will be meeting in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, April 11.

So far this year, the NTOA has met in Orlando, Florida, and in Orange County, California with a full house of timeshare owners in attendance. While these meetings are certainly a great time for timeshare owners in the geographic area to meet and ask questions of industry experts, the meetings often draw wide-ranging attendance. For the January meeting in Orlando, Canada timeshare owners, California timeshare owners, and timeshare owners from Missouri and Utah were on hand.

When the NTOA meets, questions get answered, timeshare owners learn how to better benefit from their timeshares, and new information and ideas about vacation ownership are exchanged. To attend the informative meetings you must be a member of NTOA, but membership in the National Timeshare Owners Association comes with many worthwhile benefits.

Here’s a direct link to the NTOA membership application: http://www.nationaltimeshareownersassoc.com/media/Membership_Application_2010.pdf

We can’t say enough about an association that stands for the rights of timeshare owners and works diligently to help its members get the most out of their vacation ownership product.

To learn more about the NTOA, contact Ed Hastry at [email protected] or call 410-536-0064

RCI Middle East and North Africa Managing Director, Jeff Tisdall, has an interesting observation to make about Middle East timeshare and Dubai timeshare specifically. “From a consumer perspective, the financial crisis helps to highlight some of the key advantages of timeshare. When times are tougher economically, we all tend to use what we already have,” Tisdall explains. “If you looked back 12 to 18 months, the strength of the residential market made it very difficult for established vacation clubs to enter the Dubai market by acquiring a block of residential units and then offering them to their member base. Today, conditions are much more favorable.”

In other words, when the economy was stronger, so was the Dubai real estate and vacation property market for sales of property to individual owners. Now, fewer people are laying down the cash it takes to buy a holiday home in the Middle East and developers, who once held a firm grip on many of the most highly prized destinations, are suddenly embracing the concept of shared ownership. Egypt timeshare and fractionals have seen success in Sharm El Sheikh (in the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt) and Hurghada, (in the Red Sea Coastal area of Egypt) both of which are areas where timeshare owners continued to travel, despite the tight economy.

Dubai Timeshare Stands Out

According to Tisdall, investors are looking at shared ownership and mixed use developments in Dubai with interest. “This is because the fundamentals which analysts look for when predicting strong potential for timeshare are all present in Dubai. Most importantly perhaps, Dubai is really starting to mature as a leisure destination,” said Tisdall.

These topics and others will be covered at the Shared Ownership Summit, scheduled for May 1, 2010 that will be held in conjunction with the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference.

Source: HotelierMiddleEast.com