According to KING 5 NEWS in Seattle, Royal Holiday Club timeshare has some unhappy timeshare owners.

KING 5 NEWS says their investigations found complaints against Royal Holiday Club timeshares from all across the country, ranging from alleged bait-and-switch sales practices to outright fraud. The news investigators say they found complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau, consumer websites, and the Offices of the Attorney General.

During the investigation, University of Washington law professor Kate O’Neill looked at a contract one timeshare owner holds with the company and noted that it says the purchase and sale agreement of the timeshare is governed by the laws of the state of Mexico City. The contract also has what O’Neill described as a merger clause, which basically means that verbal agreements can’t be added to the contract. In other words, if the timeshare sales person promises you something verbally that is not in the contract, then you should not expect to be able to insist that the timeshare company honor it.

According to an article posted on the KING 5 NEWS website, the Royal Holiday Club timeshare company says it, “Only gets complaints on 1 percent of all of its sales and that they are working to address the concerns of each member.”

The article also said that, “Royal Holiday Club does admit that some sales people did break company policy… (and) those employees have been fired.”

Here are important facts to remember when you buy timeshare:

Know what you are buying. If that means having an attorney review your contract, then spend the extra dollars and do it. If the contract is governed by the laws of another country, hire an attorney who knows those laws. Real estate laws vary greatly from country to country.

Know the rescission period for the state or country in which your timeshare contract is executed. If you do change your mind, notify the timeshare company by registered mail of your decision to exercise this option. You must be able to prove that your notice to the company reached them within the window legally allowed for rescission by the timeshare buyer.

If you have personal experience with Royal Holiday Club timeshare, please let us know about it. At the bottom of this blog post, you’ll see the word “Comments”. Click there to add your feedback. Your comment will not appear immediately on the blog, but will post within the next few days.

Who knows? With the spotlight on this timeshare company, they may use the challenge as an opportunity to upgrade their products and services, meaning that, Royal Holiday Club timeshare could be excellent to own. Or, if you own Royal Holiday Club timeshare you wish to resell, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW and learn more about the easiest way to sell timeshare.

Last month RCI (Resort Condominiums International) timeshare exchange announced a strategic alliance with LeisureLink, which followed the September news that RCI was making a substantial financial investment in the LeisureLink company.

LeisureLink is the company behind the electronic distribution of many vacation rentals, condo-hotels, (or condotels), and timeshares via several of the online travel sites as well as traditional travel agencies.

Kenneth May, (who at the time of the announcement was chairman and CEO of Group RCI) said, “Our alliance with LeisureLink underscores our belief in the non-hotel vacation accommodation experience and our commitment to grow this segment. We now have a distribution arrangement that is focused on properly marketing the advantages of this type of vacation accommodation. With their technology, we’ll be able to provide a turn-key program for our affiliates and inventory providers to bring a vast array of rental properties to the online travel market faster and easier than before.”

What does this mean for timeshare owners?

Well, it certainly seems that RCI timeshare exchange company is focusing even more of its time, energy and finances on being RCI timeshare rental company. It also implies that RCI members, on some level, will be competing with all vacationers (whether they are RCI members or not) for the same great deals in timeshare vacations. And it absolutely begs the question of how available timeshare exchange options will be through RCI, when the company has the opportunity to rent the primo vacation destinations and vacation times, and tell timeshare owners, “Sorry, there is nothing available for exchange at the location (or date) you want.”

Am I speculating? YES. But since this all came into place, Kenneth May has stepped down from RCI (effective on November 2, 2007), leaving even more confusion about the direction and intent of RCI.

So now would be a great time for someone from RCI to contact us, end my speculation, and let us know that they aren’t forsaking timeshare owners who are members of RCI exchange in favor of the opportunity to mass market timeshare rentals.

Remember, as a timeshare owner, you do have options. You can choose not to be a member of any timeshare exchange company. You can exchange only within a limited network of resorts operated under the same brand. You can also look into smaller timeshare exchange companies, where many timeshare owners choose to be members because they feel they get a more personal level of service.

And in the end, RCI’s ability to court the general public as timeshare rental customers will be greatly impacted by the inventory they are able to maintain of RCI member’s timeshare exchange properties. All we can do is wait and see how well (or how badly) this turns out for timeshare owners who are members of RCI.

No one disputes that this is a tough real estate market in which to try to sell your home, but I have to admit that when Pacific Union Homes found a way to boost home sales by throwing in bonus timeshare, it was a sales strategy that caught me by surprise.

Pacific Union Homes builds new residential housing in northern California. After battling a rough year in home sales, and the cold reality that September home sales in the state had reached 20-year lows, Pacific Union decided to sweeten the deal for buyers. They began offering a program they advertise as, “Buy a home, get a vacation in paradise – Orlando, Hawaii, Vegas or even Mexico – every year, for the rest of your life!

The Pacific Union Homes bonus timeshare giveaway, promises prospective homebuyers that they can, “be the owner of a fabulous Pacific Union Home, and get your own vacation getaway for life from Hilton Grand Vacations, all for one amazing low price.”

The company’s strategy apparently has served to provide them a much needed boost in the real estate market. According to an article that appeared in RISMedia, “The builder did honor the wishes of some buyers who didn’t want a week’s timeshare, but did want the cost of it deducted from the price of their new home…but such requests were rare.”

I have to point out that there are cheaper ways to own Hilton Grand Vacations Club timeshare, or any other timeshare. You don’t have to buy a new house in order to enjoy timeshare vacation ownership; and with the excellent availability of Hilton timeshare resales, you don’t even have to buy timeshare from Hilton in order to enjoy owning Hilton timeshare.

Still, if you have been battling the real estate market, unable to sell your home, you could consider taking a page from this homebuilder’s playbook and buy timeshare resale to add as the distinctive perk that might make your home stand out in the competitive real estate market.

And if you are looking for a great deal on a Hilton timeshare resale, Sell My Timeshare NOW can help you find a Hilton timeshare that is right for your budget and your vacation needs, and we won’t expect you to buy a new home in the process.

• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at Sea World International Center, Orlando, Florida
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club on International Drive, Orlando, Florida
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at the Flamingo, Las Vegas, Nevada
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at the Las Vegas Hilton, Las Vegas, Nevada
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club on the Las Vegas Strip, Las Vegas, Nevada
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu, Hawaii
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at the Kalia Tower, Honolulu, Hawaii
• Hilton Grand Vacation Club at South Beach, Miami Beach, Florida

AIRDA, the All India Resort Development Association, recently announced the introduction of timeshare and vacation ownership classes as part of the curriculum in the Institute of Hotel Management.

The Director of Studies of the National Council of Hotel Management & Catering Technology, N. S. Bhuie, said in a press release, “The National Council has done extensive research and held detailed discussions with AIRDA and its members to evolve course material which will be relevant to the Indian industry and also provide successful candidates better job opportunities.”

The Chairman of AIRDA, B.S. Rathor acknowledges the importance of timeshares and timesharing by saying, “Vacation Ownership (Timeshare) is one of the fastest growing segments of the Hospitality industry and will require a large number of skilled personnel in the coming years.”

AIRDA figures show that the compound annual growth rate of India timeshares and vacation ownership is 20 percent and that timeshares are a significant player in domestic leisure tourism within the country.

But you don’t have to go to India to study timeshare management and timeshare resorts. Some of the better-known programs in this country can be found at:

• The School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
• The School of Hospitality and Tourism at Florida International University, Miami, FL
• The William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
• The Dedman School of Hospitality at Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
• Rosen College of Hospitality Management at the University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL

I sure we’ve left out other great collegiate programs, so if you would like to let us know about academic programs in timeshares, timeshare management, and vacation ownership, leave your comments on this blog, and we’ll make sure that they are posted to share with everyone.

Also, here’s a link to an e-booklet we prepared at Sell My Timeshare NOW, that offers some general information about the college scholarship opportunities in the hospitality industry.