The tourism and timeshare industries in the Caribbean have been pleased with the response to new US passport laws.

One of our past blog topics this year dealt with the change in US Passport laws that requires US citizens, along with people arriving in the US from Canada, Bermuda, and Mexico, to present a passport in order to enter the US when arriving by air. The passport law revisions, implemented by the US Department of State and Homeland Security, specifically changed the old laws by requiring that US travelers returning from the Caribbean, now present a passport. The only exception to this rule is travel to and from Guam, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands (which includes American Samoa, Swains Island, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands).

People involved in the tourist industry in the Caribbean, including hoteliers and Caribbean timeshare resorts, were concerned that the new laws would have a detrimental effect on travel. For so many years, the Caribbean has been a favorite beachside vacation destination where US travelers could enjoy last minute holidays and timeshare vacations without needing a passport. Would the US government be able to meet the surge of passport applications that would inevitably occur as the deadline for the new laws approached? Would vacationers who don’t already have a passport choose another beach vacation destination, like Miami timeshares, rather than obtain a passport?

According to an article recently released by The Daily Herald News, published in Philipsburg, St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles the new passport laws have had a negligible impact on tourism, especially in the timeshare vacation sector.

St. Maarten-Saint Martin is a Caribbean Island, roughly 150 miles east of Puerto Rico. Divided in nationality, half Dutch and half French, it is the smallest island in the world with ownership claimed by two nations. The northern half of the island is Saint Martin, and is a dependency of France, while the southern half of St. Maarten is part of the Netherlands Antilles.

The Caribbean Hotel Association and Caribbean Tourism Organisation sponsored a media campaign based on the slogan, “Life needs the Caribbean but you need a passport,” in order to increase public awareness of the changing passport laws. The St. Maarten Hospitality and Trade Association even offered “100 St. Maarten Bucks” or the equivalent of 100 US dollars in goods and services on the island for visitors who arrived with a new or renewed passport.

According to The Daily Herald News, Jules James, president of the St. Maarten Timeshare Association, said that timeshare resorts gave the clearest indication that the new passport law did not stop people from traveling to the island. James said, “We are at 87 percent occupancy now and numbers have been high all through the winter.”

James explained that timeshare owners got their passports because they were protecting their interval timeshare. “The timeshare sector safeguards itself.”

Timeshare vacation opportunities are excellent throughout the Caribbean. To learn more about timeshare resales in St. Maarten, click here. You can also find out more about Caribbean timeshare rentals by visiting the Sell My Timeshare NOW website.

The Hilton Grand Vacations Club on International Drive in Orlando ranks as lucky number 21 on the Sell My Timeshare Now Hot Properties List.

Today I am putting the spotlight on another wonderful timeshare resort that appeared high on the Sell My Timeshare Now Hot Properties List. If you missed the information about the list, you may want to check our Timeshare Owners blog entry, posted on Wednesday, April 18, 2007. The Sell My Timeshare NOW Hot Property list gives you the top ranking resorts, based on the offers submitted to the timeshare property owners. This report covers more than 1,300 timeshare resort properties that were advertised as timeshare resales on www.sellmytimesharenow.com during the first quarter of 2007.

In the spotlight today is the timeshare vacation resort that ranked number 21 on the list: the Hilton Grand Vacations Club on International Drive in Orlando. In vacation town Orlando, Florida, International Drive is the hub of tourist activity and entertainment. When you select a timeshare resale on or near International Drive, you can walk to more restaurants, shops, and fun time attractions than you could possibly cover, even in a lifetime of great vacations.

The Hilton Grand Vacations Club on International Drive is designed with a Tuscan theme. Archways and fountains at this lakeside resort are part of the beautiful landscaping in an atmosphere that is wonderfully tranquil, while at the same time, conveniently close to the resort attractions of Walt Disney World ®, SeaWorld ® Orlando, Universal Studios ® and all the places you and your family want to visit during your Orlando timeshare vacation.

You can choose a studio, 1, 2, or 3 bedroom villa, all with either a screened porch or a screened balcony. Every suite (except studios) has a large whirlpool jet tub in the master bath, which could be just what you need after a busy day at the theme parks. Also found in all suites except the studios are washers, dryers and fully equipped kitchens. And when you want the simplicity (and cost-savings) of dining in, there is even a large supermarket located just across the street. When you own or rent a Hilton Grand Vacations Club timeshare, you have all of the Orlando theme parks, golf courses, and entrainment to chose from. On the other hand, with two large swimming pools and an interactive children’s pool, an on-property fitness center, video arcade, and regularly scheduled recreation activities, you may find it hard to think of a reason to ever leave the resort.

Orlando, Florida is the number one family vacation destination on the planet. If you find that conventions and tradeshows take you back to Orlando year after year, a timeshare resale on International Drive is a great way to turn a business outing into a wonderful and relaxing time for the whole family. Many companies also discover that owning a timeshare resale along International Drive provides luxurious travel accommodations plus long-term savings.

A timeshare in Kentucky or maybe southern Indiana would be a perfect way to explore thoroughbred country.

I hope the sun is shining in Louisville, Kentucky today, and the odds are good that it is. The weather forecasters were calling for a few clouds with only a slight chance of rain.

In case you’ve forgotten, today’s the 133rd running of the Kentucky Derby, an event that has justifiably earned the distinction of being known as, “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports”.

The Kentucky Derby itself is just a part of the festivities that begin two weeks before the famous Run for the Roses, and actually start in the planning stages months and sometimes years in advance. There’s the Great Balloon Race, the Great Steamboat Race, and even the Great Bed Race, that are all part of the fun leading up to the Derby. There are marathons, parades, cook-offs, a Texas Hold ‘Em Tournament, and a particularly fun event where local restaurant workers race an obstacle course while carrying filled wine glasses on serving trays. Appropriately, it is called the Run for the Rosé.

Of course, there are also the famous parties. The black-tie celebrations leading up to the Kentucky Derby are some of the most lavish and spectacular private galas in the world. Décor, entertainment, and menus can easily top six or seven-figures at a Kentucky Derby party, with each host and hostess striving to make their event more memorable than all the other parties of the season.

You may never receive an invitation to such a Derby gathering; you might not even manage tickets to the Derby itself. But if you possibly can, try to vacation in the Kentucky bluegrass at least once in your life. Visit the educational Kentucky Horse Park located in Lexington, tour the scenic horse farms, and take in the races at Churchill Downs and Keeneland.

And all you need to make it easy to plan and easy to enjoy a vacation at your own personal, “Old Kentucky Home” is a great timeshare resale in Kentucky, or nearby southern Indiana.

Don’t just take my word on the subject of timeshare resale. Read what this Certified Financial Planner has to say.

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

I was reading the North Carolina-based online news edition of The News & Observer, and found a reader who had written with a question for Holly Nicholson, CFP, JD, who writes a financial advice column in the publication. I thought her answer looked so candidly at the topic of timeshares sales presentations and buying new or resale timeshares, that I requested permission to reprint it for you here.

The Q & A that follows is Ms. Nichoson’s March 18, 2007, column (http://www.newsobserver.com/1445/story/554780.html). This article is the copyrighted property (© 2007) of: Holly Nicholson, CFP, JD, and we thank her for permission to reprint it here.

Take Your Time with Time-Share Pitches

by Holly Nicholson, CFP, JD

Q: I have always read and heard from financial professionals that purchasing a time share is one of the stupidest financial moves a person can make. But every time I listen to a presentation, I’m tempted to buy.

The last one we attended sounded so good that I completed the paperwork, even though my wife and I had agreed that we would just go for the free incentives and wouldn’t buy. On the way out, we tore up the contract, but we still feel like it would have been a nice way to commit to a vacation place we liked with the opportunity to trade off locations and weeks in the future.

Do you have an opinion about time shares as either an investment or a relatively inexpensive vacation rental?

A: Thanks for the “free” lift tickets. I received your question a few days before my husband and I were heading off to Utah for a ski vacation. A young man approached us as we were having lunch on the slopes. He was extremely friendly and helped us figure out which trails we could take and avoid injury at our age and skill level. He confirmed that we were married and then launched into the wonderful opportunity his company had for a ski-in, ski-out condo. We could have a free lift ticket at a nearby ski resort just by attending a no-obligation presentation that evening, guaranteed not to exceed 1 1/2 hours.

When my husband and I were dating, we naively found ourselves in a hard-sell time-share presentation in Miami. I thought my now-husband would kill someone if they didn’t let us out of the building immediately, and we agreed to swear off freebie offers for the rest of our time together.

Thanks to you, I convinced him it was a research opportunity and he agreed to attend; that we had nothing planned until dinner and were exhausted from our first day of skiing didn’t hurt, either!

We attended and got our free lift tickets. You are right, it sounded great. We could buy a prime time or “red” week for $67,400 or a nonprime “silver” week for $10,900. Both allowed reward point accumulation, exchange rights to other weeks and other resort properties worldwide (with a membership fee to an exchange club).

Carlos, our sales associate, could not have been more professional; he was very low-key and answered all our questions. He even shared a secret. If we bought two less expensive silver weeks, we could switch off exchange and point accumulation years and would have the ability to reserve a week 13 months in advance versus 12 months if we only owned one red week. Sounded smart to us: a $21,800 investment versus $67,400 allowing the same exchange opportunity with an earlier reservation date. We were actually interested! Carlos then showed us that if we bought two weeks it would only cost us $330 a month for 10 years plus annual maintenance fees that, if we wished, could also be financed. I’m not a whiz without my calculator but that sounded like a lot of money to me so I asked for details. If you select the financing option, you are charged a 13 percent interest rate. We said we’d pay cash or finance elsewhere.

Next we wanted more detail about the maintenance fees. The silver week was $700 a year, the red week was $950. Owning two silver weeks would cost us $1,400 a year in maintenance fees. Suddenly it didn’t seem like such a no-brainer to own two “less expensive” weeks versus a prime-time red week.

We wanted to know the history and annual caps on increases to the maintenance fees. There was no historical information available, and no annual caps were in place. We were assured that they had and always would be reasonable, whatever that means.

It may have been the lack of oxygen at the high altitude but we were still interested and asked for some literature to take home and think about it. Carlos said he wasn’t sure he could do that and made the big mistake of bringing in his boss, Tom.

Tom basically told us we were stupid for not buying now and showed us two letters from satisfied customers. He then told us we couldn’t have any information to take with us with the rationale that only 0.50 percent of people who left came back to buy.

We failed to see how that was our problem and escaped back to our hotel with half an hour before our dinner reservation.

A quick Google search on the computer brought up two time shares in the exact same resort selling for less than $5,000. You’d get the deed and take over the maintenance obligation.

Thanks to the research initiated by your question, my husband and I now think the time share concept is interesting. But we are going to take our time and review what’s on sale on the secondary market and stick with our pact of no freebie offers!

Holly Nicholson, CFP, JD, is a financial planner in Raleigh. You may send questions via her Web site, www.askholly.com, or by mail, P.O. Box 99466, Raleigh, NC 27624.