Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez calls it, “Alba”. It’s a Spanish word that means “dawn” and in Venezuela it stands for a trade initiative that Chavez believes will make the country less dependent on trade with the United States.

When Hilton Hotels and Grand Vacation Club’s operating license to manage the 900-room Hilton Hotel Caracas expired, the government of Venezuela took over the management of the property. The state-managed hotel is described as a “socialist tourism business”.

President Chavez’s plan calls for taking the former Hilton (what he termed as a flagship for international capitalism) into his vision for “Socialism of the 21st Century”.

The London Daily Telegraph, quotes Eustacio Aguilera, the president of Simon Bolivar Centre (the government institution that now owns the hotel) as saying, “Now everyone will have access to a great hotel and be able to enjoy it.”

The irony in this statement is that the least expensive rooms in the Hotel Alba Caracas cost pounds 70 per night, while the average income in Venezuela is around pounds 100 per month. Alas, the inherent flaw in government by a socialist dictatorship rears its head again!

For several months, Hilton has listed the hotel in Caracas as “under renovation”. Guests who have stayed there recently say it is obvious that no renovations have been either commenced or completed in a long time. Descriptions of the hotel’s present condition range from, clean but outdated to downright filthy. Guests describe the service as: poor, substandard, non-existent, and rude.

At this time, Hilton Hotels and Hilton Grand Vacations still manage two other resorts in Venezuela, the Hilton Barquisimeto and the Hilton Margarita & Suites, which is a Hilton timeshare resort.

Other opportunities in Venezuela timeshare and Venezuela timeshare resale include:

• Dunes Hotel and Beach Resort Timeshare
• Hilton Suites Venezuela Timeshare (Margarita Island)
• Lagunamar Hotel Resort Casino Timeshare Resale
• La Ceiba Beach Resort Timeshare Resales
• Pueblo Caribe International Beach Resort Timeshare Resales

Dennis Drummond was arrested last summer on a fugitive warrant in North Carolina and extradited to Massachusetts to face multiple counts of larceny. This was not Drummond’s first brush with the Massachusetts judicial system. Charges were brought against him in 1990, 2003, and 2005, all related to timeshare fraud.

In one lawsuit brought by Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly, a Massachusetts state court ordered Drummond to pay $1.3 million in restitution and fees for defrauding timeshare buyers of nearly $400,000 in money and property. The Commonwealth’s case was a civil suit and named Dennis Drummond, Linda Drummond, and Lindsey Drummond, as well as their companies, Global Marketing and Resort Marketing.

Drummond has yet to repay his debt in the civil suit, and now faces criminal charges as well. On October 18, he made bail and was released from the Bristol County House of Correction in Dartmouth, MA. Let’s hope there is a way to finally hold him accountable for the charges of which he has already been convicted.

Just to keep things clear, I searched for “Global Marketing” and found no website for a company by this name. I also searched for “Resort Marketing” and found a company based in Alpharetta, Georgia, that assured me they were not the company listed in the 2005 lawsuit.

If you ever believe you have been the victim of timeshare fraud, whether you were trying to sell timeshare, rent timeshare or buy timeshare, you should contact the Office of the Attorney General for the State in which the timeshare company is located.

You also can file a complaint with the FTC if your grievance involves deceptive advertising. You can call them at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357).

The Federal Trade Commission maintains an excellent webpage that advises on safe business practices when you buy timeshare, rent timeshare, or sell timeshare. The article is called, “Facts for Consumers Time and Time Again: Buying and Selling Timeshares and Vacation Plans.”

The Texas based timeshare company, Silverleaf Resorts, has announced expansion plans in Colorado with the purchase of over 15 acres of land in Grand County, Colorado.

According to information released by Silverleaf Timeshare Resorts, the company plans to build 136 vacation interval units, which will be within two miles of Silverleaf’s 64-room Pinnacle Lodge hotel in Fraser, Colorado. The area is also within a short drive of the ski resort areas in Mary Jane and Winter Park.

Yahoo Finance quoted Sharon K. Brayfield, president of Silverleaf timeshare resorts as saying, “With world-class skiing in the winter and plenty of outdoor activities such as golf, hiking and fishing in the summer, we are confident that our members will be able to take full advantage of the Winter Park properties throughout the entire year.”

The purchase price of the property is reportedly $4.6 million.

To learn more about Silverleaf timeshare resorts and Silverleaf timeshare resales check these links:

• Silverleaf’s Oak N’ Spruce Resort Timeshare in South Lee, Massachusetts
• Silverleaf’s Orlando Breeze Resort Timeshare in Davenport, Florida
• Silverleaf’s Fox River Timeshare in Sheridan, Illinois
• Silverleaf’s Apple Mountain Timeshare in Clarkesville, Georgia
• Silverleaf’s Holiday Hills Resort Timeshare in Branson, Missouri
• Silverleaf’s Ozark Mountain Resort Timeshare in Kimberling City, Missouri
• Silverleaf Timber Creek Resort Timeshare in Desoto, Missouri
• Silverleaf Piney Shores Resort Timeshare in Conroe, Texas
• Silverleaf Lake O’ The Woods Timeshare in Flint, Texas
• Silverleaf’s Holly Lake Ranch Timeshare in Holly Lake Ranch, Texas
• Silverleaf’s Hill Country Resort Timeshare in Canyon Lake, Texas
• Silverleaf’s Seaside Resort Timeshare in Galveston, Texas
• Silverleaf’s Villages Timeshare in Flint, Texas

The newest issue of TimeSharing Today Magazine, includes a letter from Lori Card-King, who is the vice president of Quality Assurance for Interval International timeshare exchange. Ms. Card-King is responding to a letter TimeSharing Today received from a reader who had questions about Interval International’s exchange policy.

My summary of both letters may give you more insight into the thinking behind policies at timeshare exchange companies and the viewpoint of timeshare owners who question the policies.

The timeshare owner’s position was that when she needed to cancel her timeshare vacation within seven days of the travel date, it was unfair for Interval International timeshare exchange to refuse to let her select another timeshare interval at a future date against her banked timeshare week. The timeshare owner acknowledged that Interval International not only kept her banked week and refused to let her make a future exchange but also charged her a fee for the cancellation. While the timeshare owner had no objection to paying the fee, she did object to having to forfeit all possible exchange against her banked week.

Interval International timeshare exchange’s explanation was that last minute cancellations often result in unused timeshare weeks because no one else is able to make travel arrangements fast enough to use the timeshare interval. II pointed out that they try to protect their members by refusing to accept banked or deposited timeshare for dates that are less than two weeks in the future, and not permitting exchanges with less than 7 days notice.

When you hear both sides, you can see that the timeshare owner and the timeshare exchange company each raise good points and TimeSharing Today did a good job of showing both sides of the issue when they printed the two letters side by side.

One option that was recommended was for the timeshare owner to purchase insurance from Interval International for just this reason. The timeshare owner also pointed out that two other timeshare exchange companies with which she had dealt, do allow you to still exchange for another week, even if you make a last minute cancellation. These two companies are: RCI and Donita’s Dial An Exchange.

In the past, I have listed the names of several timeshare exchange companies here on the Timeshare Owners Blog, but maybe it is time to do it again. The Timeshare Owners Blog does not endorse or recommend any particular timeshare exchange company, because different ones are best suited for different vacation patterns and individual needs.