The Upgrade: Travel Better Blog recently wrote about a topic we’ve discussed here before in the Timeshare Owners Blog…the dreaded mini-bar.

The luxurious Wynn hotel in Las Vegas has apparently taken mini bar insanity to a whole new level. As many of you know, and we have talked about before here in the Timeshare Owners Blog, some hotel mini bars have motion detectors that charge you for mini bar items that you don’t consume, but just touch or slightly move within the fridge.

The Wynn however, (according to the Upgrade: Travel Better Blog), now employs the same strategy with regard to items that are located outside the mini bar. Snacks are offered on a tray in the hotel guest’s room. There is a written warning that the food sits on an electronic scale and that moving it means you bought it. Unfortunately that apparently also applies to accidently bumping it or casually picking up the snack to inspect it. And what happens if you do intend to pick up one snack to purchase, but in the process cause movement of other items on the tray? Well, apparently you have bought those too, whether or not you really want them. But don’t take my word for it, click here to see the actual photo of cookies at the Wynn.

Crazy? Sounds that way to me. So my suggestion is this: when you travel, rent timeshare or use timeshare weeks you own so that you can enjoy the benefits of a full and functional in-suite kitchen, without trying to pull off a balancing act every time you get near the mini bar.

Previous posts in the Sell My Timeshare NOW Timeshare Owners Blog on the topic of mini bars:

• Timeshare Vacationers Don’t Face “Mini-Bar Pressure”

Research and Markets, a firm that bills itself as the world’s largest market research resource, has released a report saying that globally, the vacation ownership industry holds strong market potential for timeshare sales. The 40-page report cites as evidence of this, the fact that, “the US economy is facing the challenges of a slump in the housing market and an increase in fuel prices…(but) the vacation ownership industry has not fallen to the economic woes and is fairly insulated from the economic performance.”

The report concludes that while consumers may be taking shorter vacations or staying closer to home, they have not stopped buying timeshare or renting timeshare for this purpose.

The State of Timeshare Sales Outside the US

According to the Research and Markets report, Europe is still trying to update governmental regulations to better serve and protect both the people who buy timeshare and the people who sell timeshare. Once this occurs, the report speculates that the timeshare industry in Europe will resume the growth levels it enjoyed during the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Other potentially strong international markets, according to the report’s findings, include Malaysia, Singapore, India, Indonesia, and China. The growing affluence of Asians, paired with new low-cost air travel options, are cited as reasons that have helped spur this expansion.

Research used in the report focuses on four timeshare companies: Wyndham timeshare, Marriott timeshare, Hilton timeshare, and Starwood timeshare. The full report is available at: http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c84948#. But don’t expect the wisdom it carries to come cheaply. Purchased in its least expensive format, this timeshare market report costs EUR 910.00, or approximately 1,440 USD—and for that price you could just go ahead and buy timeshare as a resale by shopping the competitive prices available at Sell My Timeshare NOW.

For several years, we’ve been hearing only good things about the state of timeshare sales in India. India has been a vacation hot deal with strong timeshare sales both from residents and from abroad. In fact, business has been so good, that some India timeshare companies have established targeted offices in cities such as Washington DC and London because these areas have large populations of residents whose parents or grandparents live in India and who visit there regularly.

India timeshare sales have boomed, in part, because people who make annual trips to visit their India homeland recognize the value of owning timeshare weeks at resorts located near their family and friends. Additionally, India has long been considered a safe vacation destination, with a warm climate, beautiful beaches, and a rich and splendorous cultural heritage, that is geographically well located for millions of travelers.

So I was surprised to read the recent post from India news source, Sify.com, stating, “The concept (timeshare ownership) failed because their owners apparently did not intend to honour their commitments to the consumers who paid money up-front and booked time in resorts. It was also alleged that after building these resorts, consumers holding valid timeshare were told that the resort was unavailable while walk-in customers were provided room because they paid cash.”

The India Timeshare and Timeshare Resale Market

I challenge this statement as a problem of “throwing the baby out with the bathwater.” I would certainly not call India timeshare a failed concept. While it appears that India timeshare owners are raising a complaint about their inability to exchange timeshare while their exchange company seems perfectly willing to rent timeshare weeks to non-owners, they are simply voicing a problem that is confronting timeshare owners in all parts of the world.

A detailed and highly-informative article posted by IndLawNews depicts a much more positive picture of timesharing in India, stating, “Timeshare is one of the most evolved and profitable sectors in the hospitality and leisure industry. Introduced in India barely 15 years ago, the timeshare industry is growing manifold with big brands such as Resort Condominiums International (RCI), Ramada Hotels & Resorts, Club Mahindra, Hyatt Vacation Club, etc. entering the business. Much of it still remains untapped and developers keep coming up with new, innovative and attractive deals.”

I venture to say that timeshare ownership in India is still an excellent idea and a perfect solution for both vacationers and people who travel regularly there. Every nation that has embraced the concept of timeshare ownership has soon found that new legislation must be introduced to regulate timeshare buying and timeshare selling within their marketplace.

Growing pains in the India timeshare market maybe, but a failure? Not a chance!

At Sell My Timeshare NOW, we recently completed a study on the reasons motivating people to sell timeshare they currently own. Looking closely at the key indicators, we concluded that the slow US economy does not figure as prominently among the reasons people sell timeshare as you might expect.

Our research involved nearly 1000 timeshare owners, all of whom had expressed a desire to sell timeshare they currently own as deeded property, right to use property, or vacation club membership weeks. We ran the survey for more than four months, and our demographic included a cross section of timeshare owners.

Why Timeshare Owners Decide to Sell Timeshare

On March 5, Sell My Timeshare NOW issued a press release on the findings of our timeshare owner survey. Our research revealed that 28.5 percent of the timeshare owners surveyed say: they just don’t use their timeshare anymore. Another 21.4 percent say they have experienced a change in their family situation, such as a divorce or their children no longer vacation with them, which motivates them to sell timeshare. In other words, lifestyle changes account for the reason almost half of all timeshare sellers decide to sell timeshare weeks or vacation club memberships.

Happy Timeshare Owners

While we all hear the grumblings of unhappy timeshare owners, maybe that’s a case of the “squeaky wheel” getting the attention…the majority of timeshare owners seem to just be busy planning and enjoying timeshare vacations.

Statistics from ARDA (the American Resort Development Association) have consistently shown a high rate of satisfaction among timeshare owners. Nearly 85 percent of all timeshare owners ARDA surveyed say they are satisfied with their timeshare purchase. Our study, at Sell My Timeshare NOW, expands on this information, showing that among people who are ready to sell timeshare, less than one percent are doing so because they do not like the resort or the amenities. Additionally only 4.6 percent sell timeshare because they feel it is too difficult to exchange timeshare for other dates or other locations.

Click here, to read the media release on the Sell My Timeshare NOW study or here to go to the Sell My Timeshare website and learn more about the opportunities in timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.